Question Karma required for posting

Is there any way I can stop guests from reading the first post of the topic. On the first post it says, register if you want to see this. The guests do see all the other posts. Is this possible through Karma or other settings.

Also is there an option while posting which says only members with say karma or points above 50 can see this post.

Thanks.
calvinhobbes

Excuse me? :S What do you want to do? :huh:

Yes, it's possible to stop guests (that is non-registered users, or those who have not logged-in) from viewing your forums. This restriction applies to all messages within a forum (not just the first posting which starts a discussion topic).

I don't understand what you mean "on the first post it says, register if you want to see this." Could you explain more about this restriction?

Sorry, I wasn't very clear.

I was asking if there is a restriction where if you are a guest and you click on this thread at

www.kunena.com/forum/144-hacks-tricks-an...required-for-posting

they won't be able to view the first message (which is mine), but they will be able to see second message onwards. In this thread second message is from sozzled and what i am writing here is the third message.

Do you have a practical application where you want to display only the replies in a discussion but you don't want to see the context in which those replies were made? Most of the time, people are asking for the opposite (i.e. they want to display the first message, but they don't want other people to read the replies).

For example:

*** First message which you cannot see ***

(Second message): Of course, but only if you check the meter.

(Third message): I don't have a meter. If you can't read the first message in the above, fictitious example, how are the second and third messages going to make any sense?

Is this what you want?

And, would you please explain how "karma" gets involved in this discussion? :S

Yes, thats exactly the kind of funtionality which I wanted. The practical application is that its kind of a video forum and the first post contains the video and to see it the guest users will have to register.

I can do this functionality in another forum software through their "karma feature". Guests automatically have a 0 karma and while posting a message i can select an option saying..only ppl with karma = 1 can view this message.

I guess the definition of karma on that forum is different. some other forums call it user points etc.

thanks for being interested in this topic really appreciate the quick response.

Let's talk about "karma" for a little bit. Perhaps other forums have a fair and just system or rewards but, in my opinion (and the opinion shared by more than 50% of the users of this forum and Kunena in general) Kunena karma is unfair, unjust, more abused than it's used properly and - most importantly - there's no accountability for it. I would like you to take a good look at two discussions that we've had on karma: What is "karma"? and Kunena Karma and Unanswered thread . Please read all the posts in those discussions (it won't take you long) to obtain a balanced appreciation about karma.

The way that karma is currently implemented in Kunena will not serve your purposes. Let us suppose that you could tie-in karma as a necessary criterion for your registered, logged-in users to participate within your forum; in essence, that's what your solution boils down to. For as easy (or practical) as it may be for users to obtain positive karma, it's just as easy for other users to tear it down with the result that your site could turn into a karma battleground.

I want you to think about this. How do users obtain plus or minus karma? It's because other users award those points. But, suppose, someone decides to remove another person's karma points, not because they may have deserved it, but merely out of spite? This can result in people being denied the necessities to participate. You could find yourself as the umpire in unremitting "karma wars" ... and your users will be the casualties. We know, from experience, that it's much more difficult to obtain positive karma than it is to attract the gainsayers and the bullies who, knowingly, spoil other people's enjoyment. Karma is therefore undignified and this absence of dignity reflects on everyone!

Last of all, the Kunena karma system is obsolescent - it will be retired in future - and therefore any system you build today that relies on it will need to be reworked later on.

In concluding my remarks on this aspect of the discussion, I do not offer any technical solutions to Kunena karma problems except to show users how they can turn off the feature. I have no interest in using karma for anything.

However, let's get back to your original question: how can you provide site content that can be enjoyed by logged-in, registered members but screened from guest browsers? This is easily achieved with the hide tag:
Part of the message is hidden for the guests. Please log in or register to see it.
Please logout from Kunena and view this message again to see the difference. I think you can use this approach to address your need in a much more even-handed way than you proposed.