Master groups for forums. An unlimited number of conferences can be created. Each can have its own configuration file for permissions, attachments, file sizes and more. Conferences automatically track and display the number of forums, responses and views they receive.
Forums
Contain discussions. An unlimited number of forums can be created. Include announcements (appear on every page of all discussions) and stickies (discussions that remain at the top of the forum listing). Forums automatically track the number of views and responses they receive.
Discussions
An unlimited number of discussions can be created. Also known as threads, discussions are created by members to begin a conversation. Other members can then respond (known as posts or replies). Moderators can also create "sticky" discussions, which always remain at the top of a forum's listing.
Searching
Meld Forums has three varieties of searching: Verity/Full Text, which allows for very sophisticated searches of forum content; Full Text, which uses the database "full text" ability to quickly scan content; and Simple, which uses very basic search techniques but is compatible across wide variety of database and CFML engines.
Members
Members are Mura CMS members who have permission to access a Conference or Forum. Members can update their profile, including setting forums-specific items such as email subscriptions, privacy, and update their Avatar (if allowed).
Online Status
Members are Mura CMS members who have permission to access a Conference or Forum. Members can update their profile, including setting forums-specific items such as email subscriptions, privacy, and update their Avatar (if allowed).
Avatars
Avatars are images that a member feels represents themselves or their personality. Themes govern an Avatar's ultimate dimensions, and Meld Forums will resize uploaded images to ensure they match the theme requirements. When a theme is changed, a stored version of the Avatar is used to recreate the new image (when required).
Subscriptions
Members can subscribe to an entire forum or just individual discussions, receiving Email notifications when a new topic or reply is posted. Members can also optionally receive notifications when any of their own discussions receive a reply.
Themes & Skins
Themes
Themes are layout frameworks for Meld Forums. A Theme is comprised of display modules that organize the content on a page, assigning CSS ids and classes to the various content elements.
Skins
Skins sit "on top of" a Theme. They are essentially a CSS file that adds information such as images, colors and sizing to the base theme.
Permissions & Moderation
Configuration Files
Access to forums is governed in configuration files. A configuration file allows forum administrators to assign read, post and moderate permissions to existing Mura member groups. Configuration files can then be applied to any conference or forum. In this way, any conference or forum can have its own set of permissions.
Members
Forum members are actually just Mura CMS members, so site administrators can use all of the base Mura member management tools to create or edit them, as well as assign members to groups.
Moderators
Moderators can edit, disable or remove a member's post. They can also add administrative messages, create "sticky" discussions, and close existing discussions (preventing further replies).
Master Moderators
Master Moderators have the ability to manage content in all forums. They also have the ability moderate users themselves, disabling their accounts, hiding all of their discussions/responses, deleting avatars and posting private messages to a user.
Settings & Configuration
Super Admnistration
Settings can only be accessed via Mura Super Administrator accounts, giving a high degree of control over what content managers are able to change on the configuration level.
Files
Global control over files can managed, including limiting the file types and maximum file size.
Images & Avatars
Uploaded images, specifically Avatars, are automatically re-sized and/or cropped to fit within a forum's theme. Site administrators can control how this is operation is performed. It is also possible to set the maximum size for "stored" avatar files, which can be used to recreate avatars when a current theme is changed. Avatars can also be allowed/disallowed for one or more conferences/forums.
Attachments
Attachments can be allowed or banned on a per-conference/forum basis. Settings include file type, file size, whether they are displayed inline (i.e. images displayed in the actual post), and the maximum dimension of attached images.
Caching
To increase performance, items like searches and member information are cached in memory. Site administrators can fine-tune these settings to maximize forums performance.
Themes
Themes and skins can be changed by simply selecting them from the available list.
Permissions
Permissions are based upon Mura member groups, which are assigned read, contribute or moderation access. Permissions can also be "open", so that a member doesn't have to belong to a group to read or contribute to your forums.
Other Features
Internationalization
Meld Forums uses language "resource bundles" for both the front-end forums and back-end administrator. Just like with Mura, site owners can translate these bundles into almost any language for both members and content managers.
Clean URLs & Breadcrumbs
As part of the site integration, Meld Forums makes use of custom functionality to integrate itself into both the normal web page urls Mura uses, as well as Mura's "breadcrumbs". This helps keep the user experience on your website consistent and forums easier to navigate. It also makes your forums content much more search engine friendly.
Security
There are a great number of security features built into Meld Forums. HTML is scrubbed from all user input fields, making it harder to inject malicious code into your forum content. We also do a great deal of data validation, permissions verification and session tracking to ensure that members can only access and edit what they have permissions for.
Cloud Storage for Attachments & Images
Meld Forums fully supports the Mura Amazon S3 storage of cached files and images. If you have configured your Mura CMS to use S3, all of your forum attachments and Avatars will be stored on your S3 implementation.
Unencrypted and Modular Codebase
For advanced users who need to customize the way Meld Forums works with their website, the code base is unencrypted. Further, the display templates are extremely modular, making it easy for developers to customize the way content is displayed or add their own functionality.
