Hmmm

I have just converted from phpbb2 to phpbb3, i have downloaded and installed your premodded version for SEO (great idea). I have previously used the all encompassing mod by Craven de Kere. My urls were static and all sorts of other pagerank drains were removed. (i loved this mod even though with my rather limited understanding it took hours to install!)

This is my old forum acid-lounge.com/forum with these mods in place.

So, i now have your modded version of phpbb3 installed here acid-lounge.com/phpBB

All i wanted to do was achieve a simialar level of SEO mod to what i previously had.

The list of options on your modded version requires a degree in astro physics or simialar, i dont understand any of it, or indeed what i need to achieve the similar settings of my old forum.

I eventually part guessed part hoped some of the options and went for it, the forum created a htaccess file and i uploaded a robots.txt as described.

My forum doesnt work though, lol

all the pages go 404 and although i am sure the answer is here on this forum already, i simply do not understand the solutions provided. What i need is someone who can not only understand the issues and what i need, but provide help in simpleton terms.

Any takers?

kind regards

Nobby

ps. sorry for the long post

Nobby wrote:The list of options on your modded version requires a degree in astro physics or simialar

Then you should soon graduate

The premod as many option, but they are in the end quite simple.
The best is to play with a local install, once you have understood the basics, and then set up the url structure you prefer among the numerous available.

As said many times, the mixed mod has the best "efficiency/easy to use" ratio. And since in all cases you'll need to perform some redirection to keep your old urls indexing, I think you'd better look towards this direction than trying to keep the exact same url as before.

The zero duplicate is a powerful tool that will take care of all the required redirections (http 301), so there is no risk SEO wise.

Then, since you are migrating, you'll need to implement some of the old rewriterules to be able to properly redirect them.

To do so, first only focus on the new forum, test the settings, and once you're satisfied, post here both your new and your old .htaccess, I'll help you to implement the required additional rewriterules to allow redirection of your able2know urls.

Then you'll be able to switch from your old phpBB2 install to your new phpBB3 one very easily and without taking risk, since the required custom redirection will have been taken care of before

Well, thanks for the reply, i barely understood a word of it! lol

The "old" forum has been offline for a long time, so its indexed pages (the few that are) are of no interested to me, i just want to get the new install set up right and then that can index from scratch.

Does that change anything?

Yes, it means that you only need to deal with the premod options and don't bother about redirecting the old urls.

Give the premod a try on a test server, you'll see, it's not this difficult, at least it's a lot fewer settings than phpBB3 itself

++

Well i have played about with it, it still doesnt work i just get 404's, its very annoying. I have followed the instructions, but as always with such things the instuctions seem to be written by experts for other experts. I think i will have no choice but to stick with my old phpbb2, shame, but i have already spent hours and hours messing with the settings with no success at all.

thanks anyway.

well, with the .htaccess generator, it's not really hard to have a correct .htaccess, all you need to do is put it in the right place (mentioned in acp), and eventually play a bit with slashes, which, since you already installed the able2know mod should not be a problem, you just need to use the same slashes as per the able2know's .htaccess.

Note that the .htaccess generator will only generate the code, you need to put it in a .htaccess file in the proper dir.

++

dcz wrote:Note that the .htaccess generator will only generate the code, you need to put it in a .htaccess file in the proper dir.

lol, a somewhat crucial point, i selected save .htaccess, i then made fatal error 2, i made the assumtion it actually saved the .htaccess.

All now seems to be working, many thanks for your patients.

Perhaps i can ask 2 small questions:

1. Unlike phpbb2, is it possible to change the template without loosing the mods?

2. Is there a simple way to now apply mods, or is it the same method as per phpbb2, basically, search and amend code?

many thanks again!

Nobby wrote:lol, a somewhat crucial point, i selected save .htaccess, i then made fatal error 2, i made the assumtion it actually saved the .htaccess.

It does save it, but in the phpbb_seo/cache/ dir where writing privileges are set as described in the acp by the way

And yes you need to apply mods to all themes, the same way as always.

thanks for your help. Shame changing templates isnt easier, looks like i will have to stick with what i have for now!

[quote="Nobby"]thanks for your help. Shame changing templates isnt easier, looks like i will have to stick with what i have for now![/quote

I tried so hard to live with the standard template, i even tried amending some colours to improve things, but i am left needing to change the template.

I am presuming i am therefore going to have to install the SEOmod from scratch?

Will this mean my newly indexed pages will all need redirects or will the mod recreate what i already have?

I don't see any obvious relation between template update and installing from scratch.

To keep all you seo settings on a new install, just keep the files in phpbb_seo/cache/

So let me get this right, i can change templates without having to apply the seo mod to the new template?

no, you will need to apply the code changes from our mods to your new template, but they are not this many, take a look at the install file.

With the premod => Prosilver / subsilver2 code changes

Hey SEO, thanks for your help, sorry, i am not so good at understanding this. I have the phpbb3 install from you with all the seo options from simple to advanced built in, this is ofc on the prosilver template. I have set this forum to work with the simple seo option.

I have then installed a new template. This template opens fine on the index, but when i click a forum, it revents back to prosilver.

i have mimiked my forum on a test domain here pg03.com/forum

I would be grateful if you take a quick look and post in simple terms what i need to do. If its a case of going through the instructions you showed me the link to, then great i will apply those, but i want to be sure i am doing the right thing before i spend several hours working through them!

many thanks.

If you are using the premod like it seems, then yes, you need to apply the set of changes (either subsilver2's or prosilver's) that matches the best your template's code.
Otherwise, you juts need to do the same with the mod's you installed theme's code changes.