Tapatalk forum plugin?

[Was]

Admin Is there any possibility of having the popular Tapatalk plugin installed to the vBulletin forum software? In the past two years I have generally been using Facebook groups more than discussion forums due to the ease of access and speed at which people reply. But I recently discovered Tapatalk, a smartphone app that connects to Tapatalk-enabled forums, and I must say, it is now a joy to use most Tapatalk-enabled forums anytime, right from my smartphone.

Surely the install would be fairly easy. The plugin can be found at the following link: https://www.tapatalk.com/download_vBulletin. I have run forums in the past myself, and I have nearly 16 years of experience with web applications and server technologies. But I have never installed or managed vBulletin, so I am not sure exactly how it works.

My usage of this wonderful discussion board will remain unchanged regardless, but I did want to throw the suggestion out there!

[Admin]

Tapatalk was supported by the previous forum software, but am unsure whether it works with the current version.

Unlike the previous version of the forum software, this version is a totally responsive design that should work seamlessly across mobile, tablet, and desktop platforms, without Tapatalk.

VBulletin does have IOS and Android app frameworks for the forums, but I've not taken a license and that would be my choice to better support mobile, if there is a need to. AFAIK, the only thing the VBulletin mobile apps support that is not supported is push notifications, but email notifications are possible with the current setup.

What is the advantage of using Tapatalk on your mobile device as opposed to the current responsive design?

[Was]

Tapatalk was supported by the previous forum software, but am unsure whether it works with the current version.

Unlike the previous version of the forum software, this version is a totally responsive design that should work seamlessly across mobile, tablet, and desktop platforms, without Tapatalk.

VBulletin does have IOS and Android app frameworks for the forums, but I've not taken a license and that would be my choice to better support mobile, if there is a need to. AFAIK, the only thing the VBulletin mobile apps support that is not supported is push notifications, but email notifications are possible with the current setup.

What is the advantage of using Tapatalk on your mobile device as opposed to the current responsive design?

I would say the advantage is notifications and staying logged in, rather than, as you've pointed out, the responsive design that is already present. At first glance, it looked to me like 1) a free addition that is easy to install, and 2) that the board software of 5.5.6 fits in line with support for 5.x, so I thought I would at least suggest it. I hope you don't mind me bringing it up :)

[AllenAnalog]

I belong to several other forums that use the older vBulletin software and I must admit that I find it incredibly annoying that every bloody message sent with that app ends with the message "Sent from my xxxphone using Tapatalk." It gets really old after you see it dozens of times, especially when it shows up repeatedly in the message teasers for short posts. I would find it equally annoying on here.

[andijah]

Yes, tapatalk has the annoying habit of using this default signature line. There's a possibility to change this somewhere in the settings, but most people don't.
I've updated my forum software a while ago and the responsive design is so good that third party apps don't make sense for us in the admin team at all. So I can relate to what Admin says. In addition, we have different data protection rules where I live (and run my forum) and thus would've stopped using plugins like tapatalk anyway even without the change in the software. But that doesn't apply here, I guess.

[Admin]

I would say the advantage is notifications and staying logged in, rather than, as you've pointed out, the responsive design that is already present. At first glance, it looked to me like 1) a free addition that is easy to install, and 2) that the board software of 5.5.6 fits in line with support for 5.x, so I thought I would at least suggest it. I hope you don't mind me bringing it up :)

I don't mind suggestions and there certainly is merit in potentially improving the Forum experience for mobile users. The first consideration for me, then, is what advantages are provided by an add-on such as TapaTalk.

I'm not sure about IOS, but with Android you can create shortcut icons to websites that will take you there with a single click. You should be able to stay logged across sessions on mobile devices the same way you do on the desktop by clicking Remember Me when you sign-in. If that's not working, you'll want to check the cookie settings of your mobile browser. Since you've gone to the dark side and share your phone with Facebook, you can also log into the Forum with a single click with the log on with Facebook option. You'll be automatically signed in to the Organ Forum whenever you're signed in to Facebook. You need to enable this in your user settings.

• Go to your user settings
• Click the Account tab
• Scroll down to Third Party Log In Providers
• Click the Connect With Facebook button
• If you're not logged in the next time you visit the Forum, sign in by clicking on the Log In with Facebook Icon.
• Once you've completed the above steps, your Facebook log-in status is mirrored by the Forum, i.e. if you're signed into the FB you're signed into the Forum.

As I mentioned you can selectively receive email notifications on a wide variety of Forum activities by using the Forum's subscription options. While these are not technically push notifications and you won't see a badge on your Forum icon, practically speaking, there is little functional difference.

I'd like to know more about the advantages of using dedicated app, especially if it is dependent upon a third party for support and updates. What more can you tell me?