Author: Boardtalk.net
Extension Description:
SmartPreview replaces the traditional phpBB forum index with a modern, scrollable “Recent” feed designed for clarity, speed, and usability on both mobile and desktop.
It provides a clean, content-first view of forum activity, allowing users to quickly scan conversations and jump directly into relevant posts.
- A truncated preview of the first post in each topic
- The most relevant reply preview:
- First unread reply (if available)
- Fallback to latest reply if all content is read
- Opening post only if no replies exist
- Fully clickable topic and reply preview blocks
- AJAX-powered “Load More” pagination (no full page reload)
- Visual unread indicators using phpBB session tracking
- Smilies and image support with automatic thumbnail previews
- Single-image preview logic with clean layout handling
- User avatars with fallback placeholder support
- Configurable “Start a Conversation” button
- Sitewide Recent / Categories navigation tabs
- Mobile dropdown dock with:
- Avatar access
- Notifications
- Quick navigation
- Optional avatar-triggered side navigation menu
- Optional desktop sidebar layout
- Back-to-top button (ACP controlled)
- Page loading indicator (ACP controlled)
- Flexible ACP settings for:
- Homepage behaviour
- Navigation layout
- Posting options
- Dock branding (text or logo)
- Read/unread marker styles (icons or text)
SmartPreview is built as a standalone extension and works alongside existing forum structures while offering a significantly improved browsing experience.
Extension Version: v1.2.9 Beta
Requirements: Compatible with phpBB 3.3.x, PHP 7.3 or higher
Important Notes:
- Beta release.
This version is actively under development. It is stable for testing but may continue to evolve. 
Clean install strongly recommended.
If you have used SmartPreview before (especially pre-1.2.7), you should perform a full clean install.
Older installs may contain outdated ACP modules, navigation structures, or settings that can cause conflicts.- Why a clean install?
Recent versions introduced major changes to:- ACP module structure (Smart Suite integration groundwork)
- Navigation system (dock, tabs, side menu)
- Routing and homepage handling
- Settings structure and defaults
- Guest behaviour (current beta):
Guest users may see all content as unread. This will be refined in a future update. - Ongoing development.
UX polish, performance improvements, and additional ACP controls are actively being refined.
- Upload to /ext/boardtalk/smartpreview/
- Enable via ACP → Customise → Extensions
- Purge cache
- Disable SmartPreview in ACP
- Click Delete Data
- Delete the SmartPreview folder:
/ext/boardtalk/smartpreview/ - Upload the new version
- Enable the extension
- Purge cache
- Improved dock stability and scroll behaviour
- Refined mobile interaction and tap responsiveness
- Cleaner state handling for navigation components
- Improved layout consistency across devices
- Better internal handling of SmartPreview UI state
- General bug fixes and performance improvements
- Documentation and changelog alignment with current feature set
v1.2.x (Current Beta Cycle)
- Final UX polish for dock, menus, and navigation flow
- Unread display improvements (including guest behaviour)
- Meta row consistency (views, replies, unread counts)
- Compact number formatting (e.g. 1.2k, 100k)
- Performance optimisations and query improvements
- Stability fixes across mobile and desktop
- Set SmartPreview as default homepage (ACP controlled)
- Audience targeting (admins, groups, guests)
- SEO-safe routing options (bots vs users)
- Expanded ACP settings structure
- Preview length controls
- AJAX live updates with notification bar
- Admin announcement cards in feed
- WordPress/blog preview cards (meta-based thumbnails + excerpts)
- Group-based posting defaults (Start a Conversation)
- Floating mobile compose button
- Enhanced navigation customisation in ACP
This extension is being developed with the assistance of Codex and ChatGPT, helping to accelerate development while maintaining phpBB best practices.
Thanks!
— Colette
https://github.com/boardtalk/
Extension Download:
Important: A clean install is strongly recommended when upgrading from older versions.Older Versions: