4images gallery management script from 4homepages.de came out with their latest update / version 4images 1.7.6 . If you subscribe to their newsletter , you probably already know it .

The new version 1.7.6 of the 4images – Image Gallery Management System has been released!

This release comes with lots of improvements, bug fixes and minor changes, e.g.:

* Added possibility to sort by filenames in CP image search form
* Improved download of big files
* Added onchange javascript for “per page” dropdown
* Disabled download button in lightbox if there are no download permissions for all images in the lightbox
* Fixed issue with paging tags
* Fixed missing image name escaping in alt tags of thumbnails
* Fixed redirect bug in admin/admin_global.php
* Fixed problem with brackets in template vars
* Updated URL for ICQ status image
* Fixed sql query in download.php
* Fixed logout problem where guests can delete other guests sessions
* Fixed displaying non-active images on details.php
* Improved download of big files

Theres already a feedback thread on the 4images forum if you are really into German language . Since I am more of the English language speaking crowd , i skipped the first 2 pages . Lol . I guess they really got too many bug reports or frustrations from sites using 4images having large files for download … that they mentioned it twice in their newsletter which i pasted above
One of these days i must learn .DE language to better grasp what all the super members such as jan , nicky , rustynet ivan say in there . *sighs* At least V@no speaks more English . thank goodness for that .

In the past few weeks, I have been a little side tracked by the happenings in the Search Engine industry and also seo for my own sites. So i have not been posting about vbulletin and also invisionboard . But with every new release – be it from any of the big 3 in the forum softwares ( vBulletin , Invisionboard and phpBB ) , I am noticing the growth or development of the softwares is mostly being directed towards making plugins or addons / modifications as default feature .

Example : In vbulletin version 3.7, some of the major changes or additions are -

• Reciprocal friendship between forum members
• Public messaging along with private messaging
• User Picture galleries
• User created social groups
• Member profile page
• Profile page Design and Customization
• Social bookmarking and tagging

Earlier , quite a few of these features were also introduced in Invisionboard and they also have their official gallery component .

What are the advantages of these modules being added as features : The best possible advantages is that features means , they are coded by the official developers – thus most secure, most easy to template and continuous support. Any modification always have the difficulties of 2 types – one that they are often made for the developers personal forum , and directed towards the site’s goals, which may or may not be the goal of other users of the modification. And the other being , the weaning of support due to lack of time or rather “free volunteer time”.

What are the disadvantages of the mods being added as features : Yes, there are direct disadvantages , such as … a software’s growth is often contributed by the plugins and modification community. Most mods developers spend months of their volunteer time building a modification and even for supporting it and provide it for free , in the hope of getting some donation money or related work in the future. This keeps them interested in contributing codes and time , and even build sites for supporting the modification . This comes to a close / end , with their mods being adapted as default features – which makes them loose their credit / money / fan following.

But all that is for any kind of mods and features … but these current modifications , turned feature sets, IMHO are not necessary in a forum software … a Forum is a Forum , a forum can not be a gallery . Same way , a forum is a forum , and IMO should not be a social network site . A social network site comes with a plethora of features which is often unworthy of being in a forum , which is typically a Message Board . A profile page … earlier the profile of the poster was recognizable through his posts , his posting habits , signature and maybe his avatar . Now, with a full blown profile page in place , i feel , the identity , the secrecy , the charm would be lost . Now , we have public messaging ( read profile commenting ), along with private messaging . All in all , every new element is taking the members and their “friends” away from the message board to the frills and fancies ( like MS Windows software ) . Will this really increase the value of the individual messageboards ? I feel it will only lower the posting and discussion on topics and people will be so besotted by the features .

Why this has been done : I believe this is entirely a marketing decision , only to generate hype , and compete with other scripts , but all in all this only Adds to the workload of a typical forum admin and moderators as they will have to check for more places which might go against forum policies . Every addon module as large as a gallery , friends network and the same , will only increase a web and database server requirement . Furthermore, with every one speaking of the web 2 and social web, most companies are feeling a need for making their offering more web 2.0 oriented and the frills such as “friends” and”networking” and “profiles” are the key features seen elsewhere.

To keep to the main topic as well , vbulletin 3.7 also comes with some good feature sets , undoubtedly . These are :

• Inline Spam Management and Prevention Tools
• Thread Tagging
• Thread Prefixes
• Attachment Viewing Lightbox
• Post Edit History
• Navbar Notices
• New Human Verification Systems

Spam and spam prevention is a constant complaint or nuisance for any and every forum administrator – the more tools the merrier . Thread tagging helps in quicker searching and less repeat posts by noobs , Thread prefix – a mod i always sought after
The attachment lightbox would surely be a welcome addition for preventing the stretching of template / board width etc .
To be quite frank , I have not tested all of this on a liver big board yet , as this is totally a Beta version , but I will do so soon and update this post , so stay UPDATED through the FEED.

I am sure most people are by now aware of Microsoft’s hostile offer to buy out the internet portal Yahoo! A lot of people have discussed about their views on the same . If Yahoo’s board of directors do accept to be taken over by MS there might be several changes to the company, it’s employees, culture, the portal , the services etc. Since Yahoo! has not yet given any proper response except the typical “we are looking at the benefits of the offer and those of our shareholders”. Instead of posting what I think could go or stay , I have put up a poll cum survey ( made free by Polldaddy), for the visitors like you to participate in. You can have your say which of the services of Yahoo you like , which stand a chance to be replaced by a MSN venture and so forth. Enjoy .

Shocking the search industry, Microsoft has officially submitted it’s bid to acquire the search and internet giant Yahoo! for a stunning 44.5 Billion USD. I do say , a shocking news, but many would easily say that such a bid was forthcoming, following Yahoo!’s recent downfall in share prices, clubbed with its sacking of near 1000 employees. Openly inviting the press in a conference call, the software giant’s CEO Steve Balmer spoke to Jerry Yang and the board of directors of the most popular website / portal of the world and express their interest in furthering the expansion and synergis-ing their resources and efforts to counter the search #1 , the big G.

Microsoft has proposed to Yahoo’s Board Of Directors that Microsoft acquire all Yahoo shares for $31, which is currently estimated to be worth $44.6 billion. Yahoo shareholders would get either cash or Microsoft shares (0.9509 of shares per 1 Yahoo share)

As a follow up , Yahoo! inc. accepted :

Yahoo! Inc. (Nasdaq:YHOO), a leading global Internet company, today said that it has received an unsolicited proposal from Microsoft to acquire the Company. The Company said that its Board of Directors will evaluate this proposal carefully and promptly in the context of Yahoo!’s strategic plans and pursue the best course of action to maximize long-term value for shareholders.

This would probably be too early to analyze what this means, what the repercussions would be on the search industry along with the internet / web in general. However, it would not be out of place to mention a few points i can think of :

This is not the first time MS has submitted a bid to acquire Yahoo! , the last time they did was in previous year almost 10-11 months back, when Yahoo! board of directors openly refused saying , it was no time for such offers.
Even with the current low Yahoo has hit , Yahoo.com is still the website with highest traffic in all internet – in every metrics available on the internet, and Yahoo! also has several important acquisitions which fare highly in the current social web – namely, Del.icio.us , Yahoo Answers, Alibaba, Flickr , Facebook to mention a few. Yahoo email, Yahoo finance rates pretty highly on the radar of very many users , ranking over Gmail and similar applications.

On the other hand , Yahoo! has lost lots of ground on the search front , where Google has grown by leaps and bounds and truly a synergy of Yahoo and MSN could be the only force which might even come close. Microsoft on the other hand might gain a good deal by coming close with the Yahoo Publisher Network users and advertisers – which does have a sufficient base and development.

My personal feeling : I always liked Yahoo as a site , as a brand ( which Microsoft does as well, as Steve Balmer said in his note – intelligent minds think alike ), and a place to be. Google never had that and even less in Microsoft . As a person who has been on the net since 1997, i somehow would not feel impressed by a MSFT-YHOO clubbing. But then , it might be in the best of interest of the shareholders of Yahoo – What do you think ?