Feedback and suggestions

It would be nice to be able to offer a limited mobile chat feature for basic members as you suggest, however the chat script is developed by a different company so it's difficult for us to make changes to the script at this time.



I agree, we do need a mobile app to allow users of Apple devices to upload pics and videos. We also need to convert the videos into different formats to allow non-flash devices to be able to view them. These are on the cards but will have to come after the FF Version 2 website upgrade.

Not quite sure what happens at the minute, but views on your own content shouldn't count towards your daily limit. This will be built into the new site.

Does this mean videos will work on the iPhone ? That will be amazing if that happens. I use the current site on both my PC and iPhone and find it easy to navigate on both, so I hope you will incorporate an override so that if we want to still use the desktop version on our mobiles we will be able to.

Videos on the iPhone is important but unfortunately won't be part of this release. It's just too big a task to do everything at once. However improving the videos will be on our list of things to do following the FFV2 go live.

Whether we include an override will come out of user testing. I'm hoping that the new responsive site will work so well on mobiles that you won't feel it's necessary.

This is a pity. I might be an exception, but when I see someone has posted something interesting, I actually like to read their profile.

-FF profile location search returning-

Just adding this here to the topic as it's been absent from it.

The map was removed since it was linked to Google, who were updating their own maps. While the map system itself will not return, profile location search will return in Fantasy Feeder Version 2. People will be able to search profiles by location, so you'll be able to find all the members in your area.

You probably wouldn't believe how much it costs to develop and maintain a site like this, which is why many others have tried and failed.

Hosting and maintenance alone come in at many thousands per year. Development of version 2 which has been going on for almost 2 years now will run into many tens of thousands before it's complete.

Obviously we have to cover our costs somehow and it's the paid members that keep this site going. Without them we'd fold overnight, so if you value this site and are benefiting from the many free features, you have them to thank.

The difference between this purpose-built site and off-the-shelf forums will hopefully be a lot more apparent when version 2 goes live. Without wanting to build it up too much (since there's bound to be initial teething problems), I think it will be quite a big improvement on what we currently have, especially for mobile users. Although it won't solve all our current problems, it will bring the site up-to-date, hopefully making it look and feel as modern as any other website out there. After the initial launch we'll continue to fix and improve, since FF development has always been an ongoing process.

As has been stated above, if you feel like contributing to the community by taking out an upgrade that's always very much appreciated. On the other hand if you just want to enjoy the free features and perhaps contribute with occasional pics or posts, you're very welcome to do so. Although FF is a registered business, this site is primarily a community and everyone is welcome

Is there a way to find a cheaper server to host on such as phpBB? Do they have that in Britain? I know it's over here in North America but don't know about across the pond. And what does the site move mean for our content? Do we need to reupload it?

Thanks very much for your offer of help, it's much appreciated. I try to do as much as I can myself to keep the costs down, only using external services where absolutely necessary. The coding side of it is drawing to a close now, however where I will be needing help is in the testing (functional and usability). At some point I'll be uploading the site to a server and let people loose on it to have a play and gather feedback. If you have any previous experience of website testing so much the better.



phpBB is good at what it does and many thriving forums are based upon it. However FF v2 is bespoke code written from the ground up specially for this website. Our hosting is expensive, but it's with a top rate company, highly secure and fully backed up. It's well worth paying the extra.

When it comes to switching over to the new website I'll try and port as much of the current content as possible. Given the differences between the two versions this won't be easy and I estimate it may take a couple of weeks. The existing website will remain live while the switchover takes place, but once a snapshot has been taken anything added after that will be lost. Don't worry, I'll be giving out full details and many warnings nearer the time.

Not yet. Will probably be early in the new year