YEs.
Th idea seems simple (but I'm not programmer so I don't know how to create it -_-...): two php pages to create + one functionnality :
- One new profil page (added to the existing common profil page) where the users can put photo, personnal preferences, life, jobs, music and reading preferences, hobbies, etc. On this added profil page, you can put a wall, exactly like in facebook. I think it's simple because a friend of mine on another project succed in implementing facebook's personnal wall interface. The only problem is that I'm personnaly totally unable to create this.
- Another "news feed page", where all and all the "shared messages" of the profile pages interact, totally independently of what they can post on the forum (it is important that "forum messages" remain outside/separated from this news feed of all the "shared messages" from the new improved profile page. This mean that for instance, the photo of the added profile page must not appear like an avatar on the forum. Conversely, a link to this new kind of profile page can be added on the forum downside the name of users when they post a message on the forum.
To be clear, the idea is not to add something to the forum, but to create another simple interface to users, in their profile with another improved profil page outside the forum (the current profile page can remain still) and the navlink bar with a new link "personnal news feed", with the messages "shared" (not those posted on the forum unless they decide it) from their new profile page by their "friends".
- One functionnality that enable users to deceide who can feed their personnal news feed, their "friends". Only them would have access to their personnal profile page with photo and so on. If they are not "friend", thay only have access to their current profile page. (This couls also have interesting perspective over the better "internal mutual knowledge" of the users)
- If you add to this the idea of enabling users to create closed discussions and documents sharing groups, PunBB become a very powerful tool.
To my mind, This could opens considerable perspectives for PunBB. This could make and transform any forum a real social network considering the current standards of the web.
I'm sure that if you add all the PunBB forum of the world, we are close to facebook audience ! :-))
