Suguay Productions

This photo gallery or photo book software is available as part of Go Daddy’s Hosting Connection software. I first looked at version 1.4.10. Go Daddy has the easy installation for this software as well so I can’t speak to how difficult it would be on your own.

 

I can say that on first look I didn’t like the software. I can’t remember what the specific turn off was. I just remember thinking it wasn’t very good. I’m sorry I can’t provide specifics as to what I didn’t like about it.

 

I have had people make comments towards the positive regarding the software since I originally looked at it. Because of that I will likely be looking at it again in the realtively near future. When I do that I will provide better information.

Originally published at: suguayproductions.com/joomla which has been discontinued.

This in another piece of software offered by Go Daddy as part of their Hosting Connection. Consequently the installation process is super easy. I didn’t have to do much other than providing certain adminstration information.

 

This is supposed to be image gallery software allowing for sharing of photo collections with people.

 

I have this software installed to use and to test. I like the look of it though I must admit. I have not spent a lot of time working with it, administering it or exploring it. I looks fairly extensive. I would like to assess the ease of use for adminstration, and site access. I also want to look at how easy it is to upload photos and their security. Also, how easy is it to setup different galleries and portfolios.

 

As you can see I haven’t done a lot of work with this software. It is on my list of things to continue to work with. When I do have a better assessment I will publish a more useful article.

Originally published at: suguayproductions.com/joomla which has been discontinued.

I was looking for a chat program to integrate with a forum I setup using Simple Machines Forum. I thought I had found one. I went to install it, set it up, and integrate it. I had a fair bit of trouble with it so I went to the help forums for the forum software. It turned out that the software I was trying to use wasn’t being updated or supported any longer and on and on. There was a recommendation for X7 Chat.

Install-

This was very easy, the installer and the instructions were very easy to follow.

Integration-

Basically easy. It comes with instructions and files for integration in a variety of programs. I happen to be using it with Simple Machines Forum and the instructions were clear. As I recall, if you install it within the forum folder and using the forum adminstration information, it will utilize the authentication from Simple Machines Forum so if your users already log into the forum the don’t have to have a different user name and password to go straight into the Chat module.

I did have a little trouble finding just the right place in the various themes to place the link icon. The instructions are fairly clear on how to do it. However, that’s for the default theme. Some of the other themes are less kind and if you are going to change themes you will need to adjust the files for the different themes.

Customization-

This is seems fairly limited. It comes with a few different color themes. They are very stark. You can decide if you are going to have only one mass chat room or allow for seperate rooms to be created.

Conclusion

I generally like this software. I have not used it terribly extensively and so have not had to deal with too many quirks. I really like the ability to integrate with the forum so you don’t have to have a lot of extra usernames and passwords.

Originally published at: suguayproductions.com/joomla which has been discontinued.

I am using Simple Machines Forum software for a couple of sites and I really like it.

Install-

As the hosting for both sites is with Go Daddy and they offer Simple Machines Forum as part of their Go Daddy Hosting Connection I have not had to go through the complete install myself. They have a great setup that will walk you through the pieces of information they need and then there is an automated process that sets it up.

So, I cannot speak directly to the level of expertise required to set it up. What I have read makes be think it probably isn’t too bad.

Upgrading-

This is pretty easy. I have done it once so far. I need to do it again as there is another update out.

Customizing-

That turns out to be pretty easy too. There are a lot of options out there for themes. The themes handle layout as well as design. There are add on modules that add functionality as well. I have not used these.

The only thing I had a little trouble with was finding a Chat program to integrate. There wasn’t one readily available on the Simple Machines Forum site though there were tools for integrating with some. I finally found a chat program that I could integrate and installed it.

Administration-

The adminstration interface has been easy and logical to use and find things. You have nice ability to organize your boards and specify access and asign moderators to specific boards.

Ease of Use-

The sign up process is easy and you can set it up to require confirmation via email. The people that are on the forums I have setup with this seem to have little problem with it. They have been able to easily figure out things like adding a photo to their profile, setting whether they want to be notified about updates to a topic and things like that. They can set their time zone. The pm system seems to work well and not at all difficult to use.

 

Conclusion

I like this software. I would recommed Simple Machines Forum for any site I were setting up a forum on. It works well, it looks pretty good out of the box and it seems to be very easy to use.

 

Originally published at: suguayproductions.com/joomla which has been discontinued.