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Newbie Oxwallian - a few Q's | Forum

Topic location: Forum home » Support » General Questions
Bridgette
Bridgette Jun 3 '16
Hello out there,


I'm new to Oxwall though not to CMS & site building. Have many (ugh.. many!) years of experience with various platforms.


I setup the test server and I'm at the 'hmmm, I wonder if..." stage. So for anyone who reads this and can shed some light -- a fresh batch of home baked chocolate chip cookies and eternal gratitude!


1. Free vs Paid: Difference between the free version (with 50$ brand removal fee) and the paid? [Why buy this other than to support the good work they are doing, which is always a good idea] Are there any special features?


2. Template: Is there any guide for making new templates or altering old ones?


3. Youtube links not embed: embed code is a PITA. Any way to support links (on current version of Oxwall please. I see a plug in at the store for an older version, but won't work now)


4. Ability to integrate (bridge?) other chat systems? (Rocket Chat or Comet)


5. Best Payment/membership plug ins in your opinion?


If I have broken some secret pact you guys have to never post these sort of stupid questions - forgive me. I'm new around here. :)


Thank you,


Bri

dave Leader
dave Jun 3 '16
Hi Bridgette, i love cookies please make them sugar free please, my pancreas will thank you :)


Unfortunately its the weekend for the Oxwall folks and i am a kind volunteer :)   I cannot answer number 1 because i dont have the paid version. 


However as per: 


2.  Yes there is a guide, 


 https://wiki.oxwall.com/...themes-for-beginners


3.  Yes, the youtube links will parse on the newsfeed, however to add a new video in the videos plugin you will need the embed code.  Maybe i should ask what issue you are having with the embed codes, they should be copy and paste. 


4. There used to be a rocket chat and comet chat plugin, i dont know if there still is or not, but yes you can. If they have a api html code or js code im sure all you will need to do is just make a new page via admin pages and insert the code and bam your done. 


5. I cannot rate the membership payment plugins because i do not own one, i did my own.  However i have noticed that some are high priced and some you have to also purchase another plugin to go with it which in my opinion is BS. If i paid high dollar for a membership plugin, it better come with at least a paypal gateway included.  But that is just how i do business ya know. So honestly i do not know. 



No pact broke your good to go, ask any question you want accept for how many hairs are left on my head... hush the number is very small :) 


Welcome to Oxwall we hope you will learn to love Oxwall as others have and stay involved in the community. 
Dave :) 


The Forum post is edited by dave Jun 3 '16
Bridgette
Bridgette Jun 3 '16
Hi Dave,


Thank you for the speedy and detailed reply! Sugar free cookies, you got it! :)


This software seems amazing. Why isn't this site swamped with users??


thanks again - you rock.


Bridgette

dave Leader
dave Jun 3 '16
Some users want to try other stuff but they tend to come back here. Some users dont realize what it takes to make a community grow so they give up too early and dont give it a chance.  And some users want a free product to have all the things that FB has but the team is a small team on a small budget so there is a huge difference in finances between this and FB. 


Plus all companies or communities have their up and down times as they go thru a transition and so we will get their im sure. 


ps... i like choc covered gram cracker cookies :) 

Musik
Musik Jun 3 '16
Quick two cents on chats. I integrated Comet Chat with mixed success about two years ago. Over time, the continued cost and some less-than-intuitive things with its integration ultimately led me to go to iFlychat. They recently raised their prices but if it's in your price range, they are excellent, reliable, and great to talk to. I had nothing but good service from them.


(Note: Unlike Comet Chat, it's a monthly fee, but they host chat on their servers instead of yours, so not having that burden on your server is a plus.)

dave Leader
dave Jun 3 '16
Great into Musik  :)  Its always good to have choices because people want different things and consumers want different things.    


I always preferred to host my own data rather then have some third party keep my chat data stored on their servers. If i did use a third party i always had a disclaimer under the chat box letting users know that their chat was stored on server outside of our control.   I have a couple of old chat scripts laying around from days gone by maybe i should convert them to a Oxwall plugin..  I will noodle over that one. 

Bridgette
Bridgette Jun 3 '16
Thanks Dave and Musik. I appreciate the follow up. 


@Dave - I have to host our member data locally. It makes no sense these days to hand that over and hope it's safe & secure. 


I use iFly for another system -- how did you integrate it? (If that isn't too complicated to even ask about) :)


[EDITED: Nevermind, I just found the plug in details on iFly - will check it out -- but still prefer to host it for data security ... meh. Sometimes, we don't get 100% huh?) :)


Cheers,


Bridgette

The Forum post is edited by Bridgette Jun 3 '16
Abbey
Abbey Jun 5 '16
I have cometchat on one of my oxwall sites for 4 years, the latest version is great and they're always improving it. Any issues I've had have been fixed by cometchat support. Their latest version is a plugin and gives many options such as hiding it from different roles. If you're looking for a chat to go with oxwall cometchat is definatly worth a look in.
You can also use cometservice which takes the load off your servers at a much cheaper price than iflychat
The Forum post is edited by Abbey Jun 5 '16
Bridgette
Bridgette Jun 5 '16
hi Abbey,


I installed cometchat yesterday. It works like a charm.


Only oddity is that the normal chat pops up on the right, along with the cometchat.


How did you stop that, if you don't mind my asking? :)


thanks,


Bridgette

Bridgette
Bridgette Jun 13 '16
Yep - found it. Thanks! :)


Bri

Aliya Team
Aliya Dec 7 '16
Welcome to Oxwall community Bridgette

Answers bellow.

1. I believe you are speaking about oxwall.com website.

Comparison chart: https://www.oxwall.com/order


2. Guide: https://wiki.oxwall.com/design:index

Templates in general only set master pages and general look and feel of the site.

Most likely you will need to alter html files of each plugin.

Our software is based on MVC pattern, so you can find .html files in /views/ directory of each plugin.

For system features /ow_system_plugins/base/views


3. +1 to Dave's reply.


4. I am aware that Cometchat does have an integration with Oxwall. Contact them for more information.


5. Paid Memberships + User credits.

- proved to be working correctly
- owner supports plugins and keep them up to date.
- plugins are compatible with gateways owned by same plugin developer.
The Forum post is edited by Aliya Dec 7 '16