Duck
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Translate just worked
The website is getting a bit of a redesign
- Thread starter Mike
- Start date
This is all AI. I have a bot created that does all of this, but I have not put any custom work into the knowledge of the bot. And yes, it is created to be able to actually post on the forum, but that is not enabled. I may enable to that in a limited capacity in the future, haven't decided yet.
Duck
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I just tested the "AI suggestion" function at the bottom of the typing box.
I copied & pasted a few birchy posts into it, then hit the button.
Here's what AI changed it to:
Hello! I’m someone who struggles with alcohol and tends to drink far too much. I was even banned from donating at the blood bank because my plasma had such a high alcohol content they jokingly called it “flammable.” Ted Kaczynski is, oddly enough, my favorite philosopher, and I feel compelled to quote him every day. I also love giving captive audiences my personal brand of financial advice and stock-trading tips, many of which I’ve picked up from reading Zero Hedge. And in my spare time, I enjoy sharing my “gourmet” recipes for gas station burritos, creatively prepared on an exhaust manifold.
I copied & pasted a few birchy posts into it, then hit the button.
Here's what AI changed it to:
Hello! I’m someone who struggles with alcohol and tends to drink far too much. I was even banned from donating at the blood bank because my plasma had such a high alcohol content they jokingly called it “flammable.” Ted Kaczynski is, oddly enough, my favorite philosopher, and I feel compelled to quote him every day. I also love giving captive audiences my personal brand of financial advice and stock-trading tips, many of which I’ve picked up from reading Zero Hedge. And in my spare time, I enjoy sharing my “gourmet” recipes for gas station burritos, creatively prepared on an exhaust manifold.
And finally, tags are being reintroduced into the forum with the help of AI. You’ll be able to tag threads manually, or let the AI do it for you. This should make content much easier to discover. Previously, I ran a program that updated all the threads in the trucking-related forums. It helped, but it only used a set of tags I had created beforehand, and it only applied them based on the thread titles. Tagging threads one by one, however, allows the system to look at the content of the first post and assign up to seven relevant tags. On the backend, I’ll periodically merge similar tags to cut down on duplicates, and remove any tags that don’t actually help organize the content. The two AI tools I’ve installed will continue to improve over time—both as they receive updates and as I gradually fine-tune how they’re used.
Duck
Sarcastic remark goes here
If you use the "AI Suggestion" button at the bottom of the typing box, it'll ignore the tags that separate your words from the quoted words.
In this post, I did not hit the AI suggestion.
I'll repeat this post in a minute, using the AI suggestion.
Duck
Sarcastic remark goes here
And finally, tags are being reintroduced to the forum with the help of AI. You’ll be able to tag threads manually or let the AI handle it for you, which should make content much easier to find. In the past, I ran a program that updated all the threads in the trucking-related forums. It helped, but it was limited: it only used a predefined set of tags I had created, and it applied them based solely on thread titles. Tagging threads individually, however, allows the system to analyze the content of the first post and assign up to seven relevant tags. On the backend, I’ll periodically merge similar tags to reduce duplicates and remove any tags that don’t actually help organize the content. The two AI tools I’ve installed will continue to improve over time—both as they receive updates and as I gradually fine-tune how they’re used. One note: if you use the "AI Suggestion" button at the bottom of the typing box, it will ignore the tags that separate your own words from quoted text.
Yeah, I seen that it rewrites everything into one post. I am going to bring that up to the developer
Update on ads.
I broke my contract with Monumetric. It cost me a little money, but I needed better ad control.
For the time being, all ads on the website will be Google Adsense. I will be moving them around for testing purposes, so please be patient on that. You may see an ad in a place you don't like, but it may only be there for a few minutes or a day or so until I come up with spots where they will remain.
Unregistered viewers will see all ads
Members will see limited ads
Premium members will see no ads (though this may not be the case at times while I am working in my spare time to set this up)
I broke my contract with Monumetric. It cost me a little money, but I needed better ad control.
For the time being, all ads on the website will be Google Adsense. I will be moving them around for testing purposes, so please be patient on that. You may see an ad in a place you don't like, but it may only be there for a few minutes or a day or so until I come up with spots where they will remain.
Unregistered viewers will see all ads
Members will see limited ads
Premium members will see no ads (though this may not be the case at times while I am working in my spare time to set this up)
The logo doesn't match up with everything else, but it will eventually. For now, I needed something to put in that blended in with the Xenforo background color. Eventually, I want logos to be the same everywhere. Here, and all of social media.
I am working on 1000 things at one time it feels like.
I am working on 1000 things at one time it feels like.
So far, so good. Early on, we have gotten a good spike in visitors. Next on the agenda is to create a specific homepage. right now, it defaults to the article homepage. New page will basically look like that page, but it will be set up with a better title and description, and some forum thread links.
I am working on some ideas to create threads. I know, that given our activity right now, there will be little to no involvement in them. That said, I am creating them with a bit of work going into the structure so that they could help down the road in bring in more visitors. My ask on this is that you contibute to them if you can, but hold back the trolling comments.
Much of these threads will be truck driver related. Some of you don't drive anymore, but experience from your past could also help.
Search around right now and you will likely only find one traditional trucking forum that is active. Others are still there, attached to websites and dead, completely dead.
Can a forum in this or any other niche be created or recovered? I don't know. I am going to try though. While my primary efforts will be on the article side of things, I am also going to be working on the forum side of things. They both tie in together, and the work from either can end up helping the forum.
I have noticed that recent work has helped revive things a little here. I'm hopeful that continued work will result in long term growth.
And, I'm open for any help I can get!
I am working on some ideas to create threads. I know, that given our activity right now, there will be little to no involvement in them. That said, I am creating them with a bit of work going into the structure so that they could help down the road in bring in more visitors. My ask on this is that you contibute to them if you can, but hold back the trolling comments.
Much of these threads will be truck driver related. Some of you don't drive anymore, but experience from your past could also help.
Search around right now and you will likely only find one traditional trucking forum that is active. Others are still there, attached to websites and dead, completely dead.
Can a forum in this or any other niche be created or recovered? I don't know. I am going to try though. While my primary efforts will be on the article side of things, I am also going to be working on the forum side of things. They both tie in together, and the work from either can end up helping the forum.
I have noticed that recent work has helped revive things a little here. I'm hopeful that continued work will result in long term growth.
And, I'm open for any help I can get!
I revived a couple old posts. How many miles driven, and where are you.
These are popular things on some social media pages, figured that as we get new members, it might become popular again here as well.
The other reason I revived these is that I will be using them to post links to articles as I publish them. Just another way to get eyes on that content.
These are popular things on some social media pages, figured that as we get new members, it might become popular again here as well.
The other reason I revived these is that I will be using them to post links to articles as I publish them. Just another way to get eyes on that content.
This is supposed to be fixed now, give it a try
Duck
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Love seeing all the updates, Mike – it really shows how much work you’re putting into this behind the scenes.
The new direction with a Xenforo-native article system makes a lot of sense, especially after the WordPress spam headaches. Having everything under one roof should make things a lot smoother for both you and the users.
Don’t stress the logo too much – most of us are here for the content and community, and we know branding consistency takes time. It’s totally understandable that things won’t all match perfectly right away, especially when you’re juggling “1000 things at one time.”
The early spike in visitors is great news, and the idea for a proper homepage with better titles/descriptions and forum links sounds like a solid step for both SEO and usability. Also really like that you’re reviving those “how many miles driven / where are you” type threads – those kinds of posts are perfect for getting new folks to jump in and participate.
Thanks again for all the effort. If you ever need feedback on layouts, logos, or homepage ideas, I’m sure plenty of us would be happy to chime in.
The above was 100% AI. I hit the button before I typed anything
The more I think about this, the more I think AI shoul have been rewriting your posts since you got here. You're such a nice and helpful person through the filter of AI.Love seeing all the updates, Mike – it really shows how much work you’re putting into this behind the scenes.
The new direction with a Xenforo-native article system makes a lot of sense, especially after the WordPress spam headaches. Having everything under one roof should make things a lot smoother for both you and the users.
Don’t stress the logo too much – most of us are here for the content and community, and we know branding consistency takes time. It’s totally understandable that things won’t all match perfectly right away, especially when you’re juggling “1000 things at one time.”
The early spike in visitors is great news, and the idea for a proper homepage with better titles/descriptions and forum links sounds like a solid step for both SEO and usability. Also really like that you’re reviving those “how many miles driven / where are you” type threads – those kinds of posts are perfect for getting new folks to jump in and participate.
Thanks again for all the effort. If you ever need feedback on layouts, logos, or homepage ideas, I’m sure plenty of us would be happy to chime in.
The above was 100% AI. I hit the button before I typed anything
Duck
Sarcastic remark goes here
I’m putting a lot of effort into bringing this forum back to life, working on social media, and improving the articles here. Your help in starting new threads and joining the conversations, both under the articles and in the forum, would truly make a difference and mean a lot to me.
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