AFO

ok thanks for reporting. will look into today/tonight and hopefully resolve

FYI, using Fluid view and the categories check boxes on the right is a pretty handy way to view all topics easily that you want to look at 

This view is when you are on the homepage:

Table View:

Grid View:

Fluid View: note Fluid view also has filters to drill down into categories so you only show topics from categories you want

AFO has 3 different views to view the forum topics, you can choose this on the home page.

Interested to know what view you use/favour. 

Great poll @ellicat

Many members may not be aware but you can customise the activity stream on AFO to suit your own liking.

If you click on the main menu 'Activity' tab (Step 1), then click on 'My Activity Streams' (Step 2) you are given the option to create a new stream (Step 3).

You are then presented with the options to create a new stream. This 'stream' is the list of activity on the site, and so you can customise this so you don't have to see all the activities, but just the ones you're interested in.

So if you only want to see topics and posts that are about sharking that you haven't read yet and that has been posted in the last 7 days, you can create that!

After you create your new stream you can then also set it as your default stream if you want. You can also rename and delete it.

If you set it as your default stream this is the one that is at the top right of the screen for easy access for you to just see the content you want on AFO.

There are so many options in how you can customise it, so hopefully this will allow you to make AFO more personalised and focus more in showing you the content you are interested in.

Ok, yes on the long term to do list is to correct broken links to articles. Have put the article now into the first post 

sorry please explain further @samsteele115

With the new platform comes a new way to navigate the AFO site. The aim is to keep the site navigation simple and easy to use.

Forum Menu

The Forum takes centre stage and is the first menu item. Click this to view the index of the forum which will show you all the categories.

Activity Menu

Next is the Activity menu. This is the main menu item to see what has been happening on AFO and what content has been created. These are displayed as activity streams. Content means anything that is created, so new forum topics and posts, photo galleries etc. 

Under the Activity menu are some sub-menus. These are useful for finding specific content.

All Activity = all content activity including new forum topics, new forum posts, who has liked a post, who has updated their status, who has added photos to their galleries etc

Forum Activity = new forum topics and posts

Unread Content = content you haven't read yet on the AFO site

Content I Started = this is where you will find content (e.g. forum topics) you created

Content I Follow = You can follow content on AFO, this notifies you when there are replies or activity to this content. This menu item shows the content you have chosen to follow

Members I Follow = You can follow members now, so that when a followed member posts new content (e.g. a new topic) you can be notified. This menu item shows all the members you follow

Status Update Activity = shows the latest status updates on AFO

Gallery Photo Activity = shows the latest photos uploaded the gallery. This is not forum images that are uploaded to posts. This is a separate area where members can create photo albums and upload their own photos. Member can then insert these photos into forum posts, but you can also just upload images directly in forum posts as well.

Online Users = shows users online

Gallery Menu

This takes you to the gallery area where members can upload images into albums they create. A great place to store your photos digitally and to then also you can also easily insert them into forum posts. 

Search Menu

Here you can search the AFO site. Please note 2 or 3 word search string currently are not supported and will return an error. This is a limitation of the new platform and if this is changed in the future we will advise AFO members.

Viewing Activity Streams

Another tip is that you can change how you view the activity streams. You can view either in expanded or condensed view. Click the icons in the top right to change.

Expanded View shows text and images. The icon to change display type is shown circled in red

While Condensed view shows less information. The icon to change display type is shown circled in red

Hope this helps explain some of the new layout and changes to AFO.

How to upload images to the forum and insert them into the posts.

First go find the images on your computer and drag them into the box below

You can see the status of them uploading. Once uploaded to insert into your posts is as simple as placing your cursor where you want the image to go and then clicking the image

That's it! images are uploaded and inserted.

This AFO Tip will show you how to upload images to forum posts and insert them into the post.

You can upload images several different ways, but the easiest is to simply drag and drop them onto the area just below the text field. 

Another method is that you can select "choose files" and manually find them on your computer and select to upload. 

If you already have upload your image into your Gallery on AFO there is no need to reupload the images. Simply click "Insert other media" and select "Insert existing attachment". Then you can select either an image you have already upload in another forum post or an image you have uploaded to your gallery.

Post below is example from video

Hope the new site is working well for everyone  

We will be continually improving the site over the coming weeks including:

• posting AFO Tips explaining new features and how to do some of the basic tasks
• improving the menu and navigation to help you find latest posts, topics and content faster and easier
• looking into reorganising / condensing categories with the assistance of a new tagging feature

As always, please post in the Website Problems category any issues and we will address them as soon as we can.

Also, we are always open for suggestions as well. Whilst we cannot guarantee that all suggestions will be implemented, we are always happy to hear what our members and guest would like and then we can see if they can be done.

Over the coming weeks we will be posting tips to help members make the most out of the AFO site.

One of the new features is the ability to add a Cover Photo to your profile.

Currently if you go to your profile you will see a blank Cover Photo.

In the top right of this black space is the Cover Photo button. Click this to upload a new one.

Follow the on screen instructions to upload a photo, then reposition it and click save.

You will now have a Cover Photo added to your profile.

We have site rules in place to foster community spirit and a friendly atmosphere on this site. We have close to 9500 members now and it is always going to be tough keeping the peace with that many differing opinions, backgrounds and attitudes. We do try and keep the site fairly open yet we still do have to moderate discussions and posts, however this is not always going to please everyone but we do this in a way we believe is consistent with out rules and in a way that retains our site goals. After 7 years we think the site is still a great, friendly place to chat, discuss and learn from each other.

Please read these classifieds guidelines before posting in the classifieds

• We would prefer if commercial activities by wholesalers and retailers not be posted, but rather get in touch to advertise
• Please tag your post with the relevant 'prefix', for example For Sale, and once it is sold please edit your ad's prefix to mark it 'Sold'
• Please keep all comments relevant to the item for sale
• Users are solely and completely responsible for any and all goods sold under their username.
• If any actions occur under a username that are considered suspicious or fraudulent this will result in a ban

Regards

AFO