Oh me oh my! I think I swallowed a butterfly! Either that or an entire family has taken up residence! We are finally launching the new code shortly after this goes up and we are getting features in that I’ve dreamed of since I took over the site. Visually certain sections are getting a refresh as well, which will carry through to the rest of the site as the rest of the code launches over the next six to eight months. I’ve listed, as normal, a brief summary of the news and links to pertinent information, but please make sure you read everything about the new code, I know it’s long but it will help you out immensely. It is right at the top of the news under the bullets to make it as easy for everyone as possible!!!
Okay, to start with, your old profile in the archive has been switched to read only. All information is still visible, but you can no longer edit it. This includes your bio and your Recommended Reading lists. You will also no longer be logging into the archive with your user name, which is explained below.

So what’s new then? Well, first off, you’ll get a taste of the new layout that the whole site will be switching to once we complete the rewrite! The main changes are to the profile and how it shows to users, while there are some additional fields in the bio, changes to Recommended Reading, and the addition of Favorite Authors and a Currently Reading Section! Let me give you a breakdown!

BEFORE you start any of this, please clear your cookies for adultfanfiction.net. If you do not clear your cookies then you may experience issues as you switch between old and new code.

To start off with, all currently registered users will have to validate their existing account. The reason for this is twofold, one we need to make sure you are using a valid, working email address in case we need to get in contact and two so we ensure ToS compliance. You will need to log in with your email address and password, ensure the fields are filled out correctly, wait for a validation email, click the link and log back in. A step by step walk through can be found here. Yes, it will ask you for your name and birthday, but these are only shown to the admins, not to the general user base. You cannot complete validation without this information.

Now that you are in, you are in, you will be brought to your profile. It will show by default, the most recent news post. On the left side you can select what section of you profile you’d like to see, as well as links to the directory and member listing.

If you would like to edit your profile, then in the top right corner you’ll see links to My Profile (which will take you to view your profile), My Control Panel and Log out. To edit, you will click on the My Control panel and work from there.

Here are links to use the various FAQ’s With the new Recommended Reading/Authors and Currently Reading sections, right now yes, you have to add them through your profile, however in future code updates later on in the rewrite you will be able to do it directly from a story or profile!

Now, while we’ve had a group of brave betas playing around in the new code for the better part of the last month, we know that things may come up with the launch, so I’d like to talk to you about what to do if that happens.

First off, please make sure you’ve read the FAQ on the subject thoroughly and are not simply missing a step. Next, please let us know in detail, with screenshots if possible, what exactly is occurring. The preferred method is to visit this forum and post a topic (after you scan other recent topics to make sure no one else had the same issue) for us to review. You will not need to register to do so, guest posting is allowed. Alternatively, you can also email technicalsupport@adultfanfiction.net for assistance, but we do prefer the forum as everyone can see it.

We have opened the Shoutbox in the forum up to guests for the next week so that if you are not a forum member but would like to reach out for help, you can also do so that way. Staff does monitor the Shoutbox pretty consistently even if we aren’t always talking.

If a bug arises (ie something affecting multiple users that is code based) we will be tracking it again in the forum in the tracker found here.

Feedback about the new code is always welcome; however please remember that if you don’t like something you let us know in a constructive manner. In other words, please don’t just post “I HATE THE NEW LAYOUT,” instead, if there is something you don’t like, let us know what is wrong with it. I am not making a promise that we will change it, but please know that we do listen to our user base.

If you feel that something needs an FAQ for it that is not already there, please let us know by following the appropriate guidelines as outlined here.

Now, as we go along with the rewrite, some things will break. For example, in fixing something that is part of the new code, and actually part of the addition of the rte; where stories were added in plain text format, they've lost their paragraph markers, as they didn't really HAVE any. This makes for the wall'o'text. Please see this topic for information on the issue.

That just about wraps it up for the new code launch! I think I covered everything, but as I’ve become accustomed to the new system, I may have missed something, I’ll update if I did!

Okay! Now that I’m 3 pages into the news, here are regular site updates!

What do you think of the updates? Do you like ‘em? We are still paying Manta for the rest of the updates on site and as I said last week, this is costing the site $1,500. Every $5, $10, $20 helps! You can either donate directly through PayPal or if you would like something back for your money, you can also donate by purchasing items from our Cafepress Store. All items have a $3.00 markup on them. As always, if you are looking for a specific item with one of this year’s designs on it and don’t see it, just let me know and I’ll get it added for you if Cafepress has it! We currently have $476.04 sitting in our PayPal account.
DemonGoddess worked on a project over the last few weeks to show everyone what has been done each year in each area we moderate. Take a look at year over year here and then at January’s stats here. What staff has done on a moderation end is from Sept 2008 through present. The reason for that date range is that was when current staff started to be assembled, so the start includes the earliest action from current staff.

The format for the monthly report has been changed slightly to show completed only, no pending.

Okay, so we have to revisit the whole minor thing again.

Old minors - Revisiting this for a number of reasons. The cutoff date for what we consider an "old minor” is 12/31/08. What this means to the affected users, is that if you are active, and posted data to the archive BEFORE your 18th birthday, that is deleted, while your account and post 18th data remains. If you are inactive, and all your data is pre 18th birthday, it all is deleted.

Kindly bear in mind that regardless of how old you are now, if you posted before your 18th birthday, that data has to go. The site has been restricted in age since its inception. We do understand that for years, the minor user policy was only enforced haphazardly. We get that. However, that is not the fault of this staff. Like you, the rest of us were just members during this time frame. The time frame I'm referencing is 2005 through 2007, approximately.

In 2008, we were very short staffed, and the gals doing it then, did what they could. The whole point I'm getting at here, is that I CANNOT leave data on the site from under-agers. You're welcome to re-post data as you're now 18 or older. What matters for the data is the posting date in relation to 18th birthday. If you are within this group, and want to save your stuff before we get to you that would be wise. Once I delete from the database, the records are gone, and the deletion is permanent.

Please note that when in the reports mentioned above you see ‘Users over 18’ this references users who are now 18 but were underage at the time of registration. If you registered after 1/1/09, your entire account will be removed, regardless of your current age as the site was actively moderated at this time.
As for our clean-up project, repairing errors from the crash, it is on hold while the wall of text issue is fixed. Please read here for more information.

If you’ve stuck with me, well into the 4th page in Word on this, Kudos!!! Thank you for reading the news and as always your feedback is appreciated, so long as it’s polite! (Please note, I didn’t say positive, just polite) =^.^=