[Intex]

Very nice work - I'm yet to install, but I'm sure many members will find it useful as with the first version.

[lierduh]

I reserve this post position for support FAQ. This way it will be easily found and referred to.

If you have problem retrieving and posting messages, please make sure your web server can access the NNTP server.

If you have shell access to your web server either by telnet or ssh. You can test the server access using:

=============================
First, ssh or telnet to your web server.

Then telnet the news server from your web server. For example:

[ns@mb eyoforums]$ telnet msnews.microsoft.com 119
Trying 207.46.248.16...
Connected to msnews.microsoft.com (207.46.248.16).
Escape character is '^]'.
200 NNTP Service 6.0.3790.1146 Version: 6.0.3790.1146 Posting Allowed
GROUP microsoft.public.access
211 13988 1 86055 microsoft.public.access
ARTICLE 86054
==============================
ie. after telnet to the NNTP server by using "telnet msnews.microsoft.com 119"
type
GROUP group.name
then type
ARTICLE xxxxx

(xxxx is the post number)

You should get the whole article including the header. If the telnet does not even work. There is no point trying to fix the gateway.

You can do other things while you are under the telnet session. Type "help" will get a list of the commands you can use. To quit a telnet session, type push Ctrl key together with "]" without the quotes.

Server Crashed during the creation of gateway tables, now I am getting MySQL errors when open AdminCP interfaces

The best way to do when this happens is to delete both nntp_groups and nntp_settings tables. Open the AdminCP interfaces. These tables will be recreated by the AdminCP interfaces. Tables will also be upgraded to the latest version automatically.

It tries to download instead of displaying the contents on the screen when I run it manually

Please fix the Windows registry following the instruction here:

http://support.microsoft.com/default...&Product=ie600

The gateway retrieves the messages our forums sent

This usually happens if the news server rewrite your Organization header, eg. to insert advertising etc.

Please set the "No Organization Check" to '0' without the quotes.

Which newsgroup providers do other forum owners use?

Please check out this thread:

http://www.vbulletin.org/forum/showthread.php?t=75232

[Erwin]

To upgrade from the beta vB3 version in the vB2 hack thread to this new vB3 version, you need to upload the new files here, and then run these queries before running the new gateway to add the new nntp settings variables:

Block Disabled:      (Update License Status)
Suspended or Unlicensed Members Cannot View Code.

Otherwise, this new gateway.php won't work with the old settings.

[Cap'n Steve]

Cool. Anything's better than google's interface.

[Majik™]

What exactly do I need to be abl to run this? I use SSH to connec tto my Web server and while in the SSH session I tried the command telnet news.swiftel.com.au 119, but got the error bash: telnet: command not found.

[lierduh]

Originally Posted by Majik™

What exactly do I need to be abl to run this? I use SSH to connec tto my Web server and while in the SSH session I tried the command telnet news.swiftel.com.au 119, but got the error bash: telnet: command not found.

That means your host has removed telnet program from your server, or disallowed the users to use telnet.

Above steps are only for fault finding. No need to try if you have no problem.

By the way, in the example, I used my own news server. You need to use your own.

[Erwin]

lierduh's upgraded USENET hack seems to work a whole lot better than the old ones. No more blank threads, it actually works faster, and there is less load on the server. Thanks!

[allan grossman]

Hey, lierduh -

Suggestion for a future release:

I've commented out the entire signature routine in gateway.php to keep my users from being flamed hard by real Usenet users - since you have to be pretty durned old to remember when a signature was

<dash><dash><space><cr>
No more than
four
lines of
text

Setting a database field to skip the whole signature routine to keep Usenet neophytes from getting their feelings hurt might be kinda cool - but commenting out the routine doesn't take a whole lot of technical expertise.

Just a thought

[lierduh]

Originally Posted by allan grossman

Hey, lierduh -

Suggestion for a future release:

I've commented out the entire signature routine in gateway.php to keep my users from being flamed hard by real Usenet users - since you have to be pretty durned old to remember when a signature was
Just a thought

That should be quite easy to implement. At the moment, the users can uncheck the "Show your signature" when post. I can have a "disable signature" option in the settings table to disable the signature altogether.

Another thing I have on mind is to create a posting interface which behaves just like a news reader. ie. No BB codes available, just the "> > " for quoted text. It will be kind like WYSIWG of a news reader. This way, it will be much easier to trim the quoted text, and it will reduce the chance of forum news posts getting flamed. :devious:

Right now, I just want to get the second part of the Admin CP interface finished.

[Imhotep]

I have something to add to this discussion... something I never thought about until someone pointed it out. I have had this hack installed for at least a week and have never been able to get my posts out to Usenet. I just checked with my host and, sure enough, they have outgoing port 119 blocked! :ermm: To make matters worse, they refuse to open it up for my domain.

So, if anyone here is having problems with their posts not showing up, first thing I would do is check to see if your host is blocking outgoing port 119.

I'm screwed unless someone wants to code POP3 to NNTP or something to that effect. :ermm:

this sucks...

To those people who have this thing working, what hosts are you using? Mine is Lunarpages.

[lierduh]

Originally Posted by Imhotep

I'm screwed unless someone wants to code POP3 to NNTP or something to that effect. :ermm:

That won't help your situation, your web server needs to talk to a NNTP server on port 119 to send the news to it. pop3 to nntp is used to post news by email instead of vB.

If you can retrieve news but not post, that means the port is open. Does the news server accepts posts? or does the server accepts posts from your web server's IP range?

If you can ssh to your web server, just try to use one of the Unix news readers from the shell. eg. tin. You can even use lynx to read news. Check Google, I can't remember.

[Imhotep]

If you can retrieve news but not post, that means the port is open.

Open for incoming only! The server is firewalled and port 119 outgoing is blocked! From what the support staff has told me, there is no way in hell I am getting anything out 119... ever. This is their reply.

Unfortunately, we will not open port 119. Usenet has had many longstanding
abuse issues, and opening port 119 would open it for anyone on the server,
which could cause many problems. I am sorry we will not be able to accomodate
you.

[allan grossman]

Some news providers will also let you run NNTP on other ports - like port 80. I'd contact my news provider.

At work the NNTP *protocol* is blocked

[Imhotep]

Originally Posted by allan grossman

Some news providers will also let you run NNTP on other ports - like port 80. I'd contact my news provider.

At work the NNTP *protocol* is blocked

Good idea, Allan... I am going to look into it.

thanks!