Site updates – forum integration, new forum theme, and fixing problems

Keeping this on the front page overnight!

Forum integration: So… I’m really leaning towards making logging in to the forum mandatory in order to comment. Registering on the forum should take less than a minute, and I’m experimenting with ways for users to stay logged in. For one reason or another, spam comments on the main site have gone up a great deal, but, as I said a few days ago, I think that this new setting could cut down on that. Granted this totally blows up in our faces, then I’ll consider reverting back to the old settings. If you guys are on board with this, I’d like to make the switch this weekend. If you have anything else to say about this, feel free to do so in the comments section.

New forum skin: We’ve been using the default phpBB skin for awhile now, and we desperately need a change. Fortunately, we’re going to be implementing a new layout very shortly, and I think you guys will like it. I was actually going to put it up today, but I encountered a critical error that I need to take care of before the style goes live.

Broken things: Jeez, I have a ton to fix. First, I’m aware that we’re having an issue with our RSS feed (thanks for sending in the emails about that). However, I really need to work on a few other things first, such as the new forum skin and polls. I promise to look into the RSS problem soon!