Possibility of ProBoards as mini-image host?

[caladrius]

Hi,

Question: Is it possible for ProBoards to provide some storage in my forum for image hosting? I'm not asking for a lot but just a couple MB, at the most.

Background for context: I encountered a big problem with one of the plugins. Nothing wrong with the plugin. It's poker. But it required that you store 52 images (for the 52 cards in the deck) in an image host. And, here's the tricky part, the filenames have to be very specific, e.g., card1, card2, card3, etc. I looked at about a dozen image hosting sites -- all the major ones plus a few others -- and ALL but one hashed out random filenames with no ability to rename them. The one that worked was WordPress which allowed me to store images with the exact filenames as the uploaded images. But WordPress  isn't really an image hosting site but you could use it as such. So, I uploaded my images there and got my plugin to work. 5 random cards can be dealt easily and smoothly. But I hate having my images stored in WordPress. I mean, I'm not using it as a business website or a personal blog or anything like that. In fact, if you go to my homepage, the title is "Your title goes here" LOL! Maybe it's just me but I feel very unsettled using WordPress just for the sole purpose of storing those 52 card images. I feel like those guys are gonna delete my account after a short time. LOL!

Can the Member Galley do this? I don't think the Member Gallery can serve as this function. Or can it? In fact, I'm not really sure what the Member Gallery is for actually because I've never created a forum where it was necessary for users to store and share images. The only thing I can think of is that if you have a forum for a very specific hobby like knitting, I suppose you could have members upload knitting patterns for all to see (or buy).

[Scott]

caladrius, we do allow you to upload images used for plugins to a theme on your forum (Custom Images section), however you cannot specify the image URL. It would be randomized like you encountered with other services.

Have you looked at Cloudinary? I have an account there myself and I do believe you can upload images and they will retain their name in the image link URL.

[caladrius]

Sept 30, 2020 10:04:44 GMT -8 Scott said:

caladrius , we do allow you to upload images used for plugins to a theme on your forum (Custom Images section), however you cannot specify the image URL. It would be randomized like you encountered with other services.

Have you looked at Cloudinary? I have an account there myself and I do believe you can upload images and they will retain their name in the image link URL.

Yeah, I got to Cloudinary and was confused. It had a free service but it said "1 user" (for the licensing, I guess) and a lot of fancy-schmancy terminology I was unfamiliar with. It targeted businesses and anyway, I think I just gave up on it.

I'll look into it further now that you bring it up.

[caladrius]

I haven't used the Custom Images section. I don't even know what that is. I've been able to design my forum exactly the way I wanted without it. But who knows? Maybe I'm missing out on something. I'll have to check it out.

[Bennett 🚀]

What is this poker plugin you are using? If it is an editable plugin, I could potentially change it so that you can just set the image for each card (which then could use the Proboards theme asset storage).

[caladrius]

Sept 30, 2020 10:37:48 GMT -8 Bennett 🚀 said:

What is this poker plugin you are using? If it is an editable plugin, I could potentially change it so that you can just set the image for each card (which then could use the Proboards theme asset storage).

It was the one recommended by Todge in this thread. See second post.

support.proboards.com/thread/661319/card-game-similiar-vdice

I do not think it's the poker game that's tied to the Monetary System plugin. Right now, it works really well except for the card1, card2, card3, etc. filename issue (and thus, having to find the right image host). As I said, I found WordPress but will look into Cloudinary.

I actually love that poker game. It's very basic and all it does is deal 5 random cards. That's all. But I still love it.

[Bennett 🚀]

Sept 30, 2020 11:03:11 GMT -8 caladrius said:

Sept 30, 2020 10:37:48 GMT -8 Bennett 🚀 said:

What is this poker plugin you are using? If it is an editable plugin, I could potentially change it so that you can just set the image for each card (which then could use the Proboards theme asset storage).

It was the one recommended by Todge in this thread. See second post.

support.proboards.com/thread/661319/card-game-similiar-vdice

I do not think it's the poker game that's tied to the Monetary System plugin. Right now, it works really well except for the card1, card2, card3, etc. filename issue (and thus, having to find the right image host). As I said, I found WordPress but will look into Cloudinary.

I actually love that poker game. It's very basic and all it does is deal 5 random cards. That's all. But I still love it.

You're sure that is the correct plugin? In your admin panel on your forum, is that the same one?

[caladrius]

Sept 30, 2020 11:12:06 GMT -8 Bennett 🚀 said:

Sept 30, 2020 11:03:11 GMT -8 caladrius said:

It was the one recommended by Todge in this thread. See second post.

support.proboards.com/thread/661319/card-game-similiar-vdice

I do not think it's the poker game that's tied to the Monetary System plugin. Right now, it works really well except for the card1, card2, card3, etc. filename issue (and thus, having to find the right image host). As I said, I found WordPress but will look into Cloudinary.

I actually love that poker game. It's very basic and all it does is deal 5 random cards. That's all. But I still love it.

You're sure that is the correct plugin? In your admin panel on your forum, is that the same one?

Yup. I did not install any other poker game.

My admin panel says "Poker" and its version is 1.0.4.

[caladrius]

Do you need a screenshot of the "Manage" tab of the plugins admin panel? It would say exactly what I told you.

Here's a screenshot of what the poker game looks like in your post after you press the "poker" button.

(Ignore the background image of wolves. It's just a product of the "Post Background" plugin.)

[Bennett 🚀]

Sept 30, 2020 11:15:25 GMT -8 caladrius said:

Sept 30, 2020 11:12:06 GMT -8 Bennett 🚀 said:

You're sure that is the correct plugin? In your admin panel on your forum, is that the same one?

Yup. I did not install any other poker game.

My admin panel says "Poker" and its version is 1.0.4.

I see. It looks like the plugin was not exported as an editable version. Todge would you give me permission to recreate the plugin using your code as a base? And would you happen to have this plugin on a test forum somewhere that you could export as editable? Otherwise, I can just recreate.

[caladrius]

Sept 30, 2020 10:04:44 GMT -8 Scott said:

...

Have you looked at Cloudinary? I have an account there myself and I do believe you can upload images and they will retain their name in the image link URL.

So, I looked at Cloudinary, set up an account, and uploaded images. (Btw, that site is intimidating. Too many unfamiliar technical terms.) It didn't work because even though it allowed me to rename my filenames, in order for the poker plugin to work, the entire path in the URL has to be the same EXCEPT for the final integer in the filename, e.g., card1, card2, card3, etc. Cloudinary generated different path names before the filename, the part I colored in red:

res.cloudinary.com/caladrius/image/upload/v1601534290/Cards/card51.png

Unless I did something wrong. I don't think I did. I uploaded all 52 cards, renamed them, and copied the URL, as in above, and entered it in the proper format in the poker plugin.

So, I'm stuck with WordPress.

[Retread]

Sept 30, 2020 23:18:26 GMT -8 caladrius said:

Sept 30, 2020 10:04:44 GMT -8 Scott said:

...

Have you looked at Cloudinary? I have an account there myself and I do believe you can upload images and they will retain their name in the image link URL.

So, I looked at Cloudinary, set up an account, and uploaded images. (Btw, that site is intimidating. Too many unfamiliar technical terms.) It didn't work because even though it allowed me to rename my filenames, in order for the poker plugin to work, the entire path in the URL has to be the same EXCEPT for the final integer in the filename, e.g., card1, card2, card3, etc. Cloudinary generated different path names before the filename, the part I colored in red:

res.cloudinary.com/caladrius/image/upload/v1601534290/Cards/card51.png

Unless I did something wrong. I don't think I did. I uploaded all 52 cards, renamed them, and copied the URL, as in above, and entered it in the proper format in the poker plugin.

So, I'm stuck with WordPress.

Hi caladrius

I've been using Cloudinary for several years now. While it can seem a bit intimidating, it's an excellent platform and allows hosting of a wide variety of files in addition to image files. It has a flexible directory structure and the ability to rename files during upload, and perform image manipulations, and numerous other features.

The URL you cited:
res.cloudinary.com/caladrius/image/upload/v1601534290/Cards/card51.png
includes the the specific version number.

You can omit the part in red and just use the latest version by default:
https://res.cloudinary.com/caladrius/image/upload/Cards/card51.png

Which will display as:



You should definitely be able to use identical URLs with the exception of the number between 'card' and '.png'

[caladrius]

Wow!

I’m glad my example was very specific. I’ll try it out again.

[caladrius]

Oct 1, 2020 4:53:26 GMT -8 Retread said:

Sept 30, 2020 23:18:26 GMT -8 caladrius said:

So, I looked at Cloudinary, set up an account, and uploaded images. (Btw, that site is intimidating. Too many unfamiliar technical terms.) It didn't work because even though it allowed me to rename my filenames, in order for the poker plugin to work, the entire path in the URL has to be the same EXCEPT for the final integer in the filename, e.g., card1, card2, card3, etc. Cloudinary generated different path names before the filename, the part I colored in red:

res.cloudinary.com/caladrius/image/upload/v1601534290/Cards/card51.png

Unless I did something wrong. I don't think I did. I uploaded all 52 cards, renamed them, and copied the URL, as in above, and entered it in the proper format in the poker plugin.

So, I'm stuck with WordPress.

Hi caladrius

I've been using Cloudinary for several years now. While it can seem a bit intimidating, it's an excellent platform and allows hosting of a wide variety of files in addition to image files. It has a flexible directory structure and the ability to rename files during upload, and perform image manipulations, and numerous other features.

The URL you cited:
res.cloudinary.com/caladrius/image/upload/v1601534290/Cards/card51.png
includes the the specific version number.

You can omit the part in red and just use the latest version by default:
https://res.cloudinary.com/caladrius/image/upload/Cards/card51.png

Which will display as:



You should definitely be able to use identical URLs with the exception of the number between 'card' and '.png'

It worked!

Woo Hoo!

[Retread]

Oct 1, 2020 11:25:27 GMT -8 caladrius said:

It worked!

Woo Hoo!

Excellent. Thank you for confirming your result.

☑