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Title Third party integration
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Description

Support for integrating popular forum software: See our download page for a list of supported forums.

Share login credentials: Login to the Composr site with the same usernames/passwords as your forum.

Share usergroups: Control website access based on someone's forum usergroup.

Emoticon support: The emoticons on your forum will also be used on your website.

Title Stay on Top
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Description

(Conversr only)

Virtual Forums: Find posts made since you last visited or within a time frame.

Remembers your unread posts even if you frequently change computers

Recent activity: See what topics you recently read or posted in

Unanswered topics: Find which topics have not yet been answered

RSS and Atom support

Title Conversr Forums
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Description

The usual: Categories, forums, topics, posts, topic polls, announcements / pinning, sinking, quick reply, topic closing

Forum and Topic tracking: Receive notifications when new posts are made on monitored topics and forums.

Password-protected forums

Present an 'introductory question' which members must answer or agree to before accessing a forum.

Full moderator control: Determine who may moderate what forums.

Inline personal posts: Whisper to members within a public topic; only those members will see the post.

Over 50 bundled emoticons: Also, support for batch importing new ones

Multi-moderation: Record and perform complex routine tasks; make post templates for those tasks.

Mass-moderation: Perform actions on many posts and topics at once.

Post preview: Read a topic's first post directly from the forum-view. Also see the latest posts when making a new post.

Highlight posts as ‘important’

Title Membership
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Description

(These features pertain to Conversr only)

Profiles: Browse through and search for members, and view member profiles.

Multiple usergroups: Members can be in an unlimited number of different usergroups. They can also ‘apply’ to join new ones.

Social networking: Create and browse friendships.

Custom profile fields: Allow your members to add extra information which is relevant to your website (or to their subcommunity), and members can set privacy settings on them.

Promotion system: Set up a usergroup rank ladder so members advance the ranks through their rank points. Members can view rank on their profile rank tab including unlocked and unlockable privileges.

Private Topics: A special kind of private messaging system between 2 or more members. Think 'on-site e-mail inbox'.

Invitation-only websites: Restrict registrations from the public; existing members can invite others to join.

Allow members to create and manage clubs (personal usergroups).

Avatars: Include avatars that members can pick from, or allow members to upload their own.

Member signatures, photos, and personal titles

Users online: See which members are currently online (unless they logged in as invisible)

Account pruning: Find and delete unused accounts, or merge duplicate accounts, based on defined criteria.

CSV files: Import and export members using CSV files, including support for automatic creation of custom profile fields and usergroups – great for migrating data

Title Support Tickets
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Description

Users can communicate with staff privately through Support Tickets.

Assign to individual staff: Includes the ability for staff members to “take ownership” of raised issues, and for staff to discuss.

Allow users to e-mail in their tickets and replies to a designated e-mail address

Expanded access granting: Grant third party members access to individual tickets.

FAQ integration: Automatically search FAQs before opening a ticket.

Multiple ticket types: Set up different types of support tickets, with different access levels and fine-grained ticket notification settings.

Anonymous posting: Allow staff to post anonymously or as a designated support operator account so that customers don't always expect the same employee to reply.

Merging: If customers open multiple tickets for the same issue, you can merge them.

Closing: Let customers close tickets that are now resolved, or do it yourself.

Filtering: Filter the tickets you see by status and ticket type.

Title eCommerce and Subscriptions
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Description

Paid membership: Sell access to sections of your website, or offer member privileges.

Shopping cart for running an online store

Extendable framework: Programmers can easily add new product types to sell, or payment gateways / tax services / shipping providers.

Multiple payment gateways: Accepts payments via PayPal or other gateways developers may add, and manual transactions (cash/cheque).

Invoicing support: Including status tracking and online payment tracking.

Basic accounting support: Input your incoming and outgoing transactions to get a basic ledger, profit-and-loss, and cashflow charting.

Currency conversions: Perform automatic currency conversions within your website pages (requires an API key).

Title Featured Content
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Description

Random quotes: Put random quotes (e.g. testimonials) into your design.

Awards: Showcase your most popular content, and optionally award the submitter with points.

Tags: Set keyword tags for content and display tag clouds.

Recent content: Automatically feature links to your most recent content (via main_multi_content block).

Show website statistics to your visitors (via stats graphs or page hit counters).

Random content: Feature random content from your website specified via a sophisticated filtering language.

Title Newsletters
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Description

Automatically create newsletter issues highlighting your latest content

Double opt-in: Prevent false sign-ups by asking subscribers to confirm their subscriptions.

Host multiple newsletters: Visitors can subscribe to the ones they want.

Flexible mailings: Send out mailings to all members, to different usergroups, or to subscribers of specific newsletters.

Welcome e-mails: Send multiple welcome e-mails to new users automatically, on a configurable schedule (Conversr-only).

Bounce cleanup: Automatically clean out bounces from your e-mail list.

Unsubscribe: Recipients can easily unsubscribe from newsletters through an unsubscribe link provided in the e-mail.

Change settings: Newsletter subscribers can change their subscription settings on-site.

Drip sending: Prevent overwhelming your mail server or outbound limits.

Title Searching
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Description

Choose what is searchable

Boolean and full-text modes

Keyword highlighting in results

Search boxes to integrate into your website

Logging/stats

OpenSearch support: Allow users to search from inside their web browser.

Results sorting, and filtering by author and date

Search within downloads: Including support for looking inside archives.

Composr fast custom index: Support full-text searches in instances where your database does not

Title Banners
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Description

Multiple types: Each one can specify its own width-by-height (e.g. skyscraper).

Smart banners: Integrate text-banners into your content via keyword detection.

Broad media compatibility: Image banners, external banner rotations, and text banners.

Determine which banners display most often

Run a cross-site banner network

Hit-balancing support: A site on a banner network gets as many inbound hits as it provides outbound clicks.

Targeted advertising: Show different banners to different usergroups.

Track banner performance

Use the banner system to display whole sets of sponsor logos or partners

Supports Geotargeting

Periodic content reviews: Reminders to check (or remove) banners

Top 10 Entries

Question How can potential conflicts between staff members be avoided (regarding content moderation)?
Answer Composr incorporates "conflict detection" features to prevent staff from accidentally overwriting each other's work. When multiple staff members attempt to edit the same resource simultaneously, a warning message appears, prompting communication and coordination.

Open communication and transparency are crucial. Encourage staff to share their ongoing tasks and plans with each other to prevent overlaps and potential conflicts. Utilizing shared tools like the staff checklist and private forums can further facilitate coordination.
Question What should be considered when assigning roles and responsibilities to staff?
Answer When assigning roles, it's recommended to start new staff with limited responsibilities and gradually increase their authority based on performance and dedication. This fosters a sense of progression and prevents discouragement among existing staff.

Always consider the individual's skills and interests when assigning tasks. For example, someone with strong writing skills might be well-suited for managing content creation, while a technically-minded person could excel at site maintenance.
Question How can staff be effectively managed in a Composr community?
Answer Successful staff management requires a mindful approach that prioritizes fostering a positive and productive environment. Key recommendations include:
  • Respect staff limitations: Avoid overwhelming staff with excessive workload or overly ambitious site expansions.
  • Active involvement: Maintain active involvement in overseeing staff activities and ensuring their effective functioning.
  • Open communication: Engage in regular communication, providing feedback, addressing concerns, and recognizing achievements.
  • Foster teamwork: Encourage collaboration and information sharing among staff members.
  • Lead by example: Ensure staff adhere to community rules and demonstrate expected behavior.
  • Empowerment and trust: Grant sufficient freedom and control to enable staff to excel in their roles.

By fostering a supportive and empowering environment, community managers can enable staff to contribute their best efforts and drive the community's success.
Question How should staff members be chosen for a Composr-based online community?
Answer Choosing staff for online communities differs from traditional hiring processes due to factors like unpaid positions, varying time commitments, and remote interactions. Focus should be placed on identifying individuals with:
  • Genuine interest: Look for members passionate about the community and its goals.
  • Available time: Ensure potential staff can dedicate sufficient time to fulfill their responsibilities.
  • Relevant skills: Prioritize skills and experience aligned with the specific role requirements.
  • Maturity and discipline: Seek individuals who demonstrate responsible behavior and commitment.
  • Recruitment methods like directly approaching active community members or allowing the Composr points system (or the karma non-bundled addon) to identify dedicated contributors can be more effective than traditional advertising.
Question How can content issues be reported and addressed by staff?
Answer Composr's content reporting system, powered by the Tickets addon, allows users to report problematic content to staff. Key features include:
  • Report links: "Report this" links embedded throughout the site enable users to flag content for review.
  • Custom reporting interface: Forums offer a dedicated interface for reporting individual posts.
  • Anonymous reporting: Logged-in users can choose to report content anonymously.
  • Ticket-based management: Reports are automatically created as support tickets, facilitating staff collaboration and record-keeping.
  • Comprehensive report details: Tickets include content title, type, ID, submitter information, an embedded rendering of the reported content, and the reporter's explanation.

This system ensures efficient handling of content issues, allowing staff to address concerns effectively while maintaining a transparent record of actions taken.
Question How can staff members collaborate effectively in Composr?
Answer Composr offers various tools to facilitate staff collaboration:
  • Private forums: Dedicated forums with restricted access enable staff to discuss site operations and coordinate activities. Composr installs a staff forum by default in Conversr.
  • Conflict detection: When multiple staff members attempt to edit the same resource simultaneously, Composr displays warnings at the top to prevent accidental overwrites.
  • Staff checklist & dashboard: The Admin Zone dashboard provides a shared checklist for task management, along with space for notes and links.
  • Staff notifications and tickets system: Staff receive notifications about various site events, including support tickets from the "Contact Us" page, allowing for efficient issue handling.
  • Content notes: Staff can embed notes within Comcode or use dedicated "staff notes" fields for various content types to share information and context.
  • Validation and workflows: Content can be intentionally left unvalidated even by staff, enabling secondary checks before publishing. A dedicated workflows addon allows for complex approval processes with multiple stages involving different staff groups.
Question What defines a staff member in Composr?
Answer There are two ways to define "staff" in Composr:
  • System-defined staff: This includes administrators and super moderators who have specific privileges within the forum/member system (Conversr).
  • Privilege-based staff: Anyone granted the necessary permissions for a particular situation is considered staff for that context.

Composr prioritizes flexibility by utilizing privileges over fixed roles, allowing for customized staff responsibilities. However, certain features like "staff reply" in tickets inherently rely on a pre-existing understanding of "staff."
Question What steps should I take if my website has been hacked?
Answer If you suspect a security breach, take immediate action:
  • Identify the Cause: Analyze access logs for suspicious activity and pinpoint the vulnerability.
  • Clean and Restore: Restore your website from a clean backup and thoroughly remove any malicious code.
  • Address Vulnerabilities: Patch security holes, update software, and strengthen security configurations.
  • Seek Expert Help: If needed, consult security professionals for assistance with cleanup and prevention.
Question What additional security measures can I implement for my Composr website?
Answer
  • SSL: Enable HTTPS for encrypted communication and improved user trust.
  • Secure Zones: Configure sensitive zones to require confirmed sessions.
  • Restrict Logins: Enforce IP address confirmation for enhanced account security.
  • Maintenance Scripts: Restrict access to maintenance scripts like upgrader.php via IP restrictions.
  • Server Hardening: Disable unnecessary services, change default ports, enable automatic updates, and more.
  • Robots.txt: Use the robots.txt file to prevent search engine indexing of sensitive areas.
Question How does Content Security Policy (CSP) contribute to Composr security?
Answer CSP adds a layer of protection by controlling the resources the browser is allowed to load. It helps prevent:
  • XSS Attacks: By restricting inline scripts and limiting script sources.
  • Data Injection Attacks: By controlling the allowed origins for data requests.
  • Clickjacking: By specifying allowed framing sources.

Composr's CSP implementation utilizes "Trusted partner sites" and nonces for fine-grained control.