SpyderZone News

Taking Suggestions for Spring Grand Reopening Giveaway!

rebes@spyderzone.net (Rebes) — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 13:11:45 GMT

You might have noticed I'm taking a new approach with the SpyderZone, and letting the users get involved in the day-to-day design and content of the site. With this in mind, I've decided to go to you for suggestions for a giveaway prize...

The prize should be in the $20 to $50 range USD, and should definitely be paintball related. Think of something that any paintballer would need, experienced or otherwise. Post your suggestions on this thread, and we will take them into consideration.

When spring finally arrives (Thinking April/May time-frame) we will hold a month long contest entry period, and everyone will have a chance to win the item we finally pick.

I would like to decide on the prize before the end of March, so that we can have it available and ready to ship when a winner is announced.

Head over to the forums and make your voice heard!

Welcome Back Everyone!

rebes@spyderzone.net (Rebes) — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 05:01:05 GMT

As you can probably tell, either by the email that you've received, or just by randomly visiting the SpyderZone, we are back!

If you are a previous member of the SpyderZone, give the login a try, and head over to the forums and let s know you're back. If the login doesn't work, why not register, and get involved!

We've got lots of cool stuff coming, so stay tuned!

Welcome to the new SpyderZone!

rebes@spyderzone.net (Rebes) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 14:06:16 GMT

As you might have noticed, we've made some changes around here! Rather than using an integrated system such as PHP-Nuke, and embedding everything within a single content management system, we've gone to separate, vanilla installs of some of the best site management software available.

The site now has three main "destinations", each of which run independently of each other.

First and foremost is Joomla, which is what you are looking at right now. All of the articles, news, FAQs and other static content of the site will now be handled through Joomla, and will be the first page you see when arriving at The SpyderZone.

Next, we have phpBB, which is a replacement for the always popular SpyderZone forums. The forums have been pruned to the last year of data, and the user database has been cleaned up. What does this mean for you? A *LOT* less spam will be posted on the forum, and the auto-registering spambots will be a thing of the past. Not to mention, we should see a speed increase since the new phpBB is less bloated.

Finally, the gallery has been split out to a vanilla install of the newest version of Menalto Gallery, which is one of the most user friendly, configurable gallery systems available.

From a login perspective, you will only "need" a login if you would like to participate on the forums or post pictures to the gallery. Each system has individual logins, so you will need to create an account on each. The content on Joomla will be fully available for all to see... And most of the content in the gallery will be available to all users, with the exception of the Paintball Girls gallery which as usual require a separate login to the gallery. In addition, it will be possible to set up "user" galleries to allow our members to create albums and post pictures within their own special area. To get started, head over to the forum and register (Or, if you were already registered, just login!), then if you would like access to view the Paintball Girls gallery, request an account on the gallery. The ability to upload photos will be handled on a case by case basis.

We plan to integrate a floating top menu that will tie everything together between the three systems, making it easy to navigate from one to another. We also plan to "unify" the themes across the three systems, so that everything has a similar look and feel.

All in good time...

Welcome back to the new and improved SpyderZone!