# New software version on the forum
**URL:** https://talkingsober.com/t/new-software-version-on-the-forum/190856
**Category:** Feedback
**Created:** [January 4, 2025, 7:40pm UTC](https://talkingsober.com/t/new-software-version-on-the-forum/190856 "2025-01-04T19:40:00Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Mno](https://talkingsober.com/u/Mno)
#### Post date: [January 4, 2025, 7:40pm UTC](https://talkingsober.com/t/new-software-version-on-the-forum/190856/1 "2025-01-04T19:40:01Z")
I’ve noticed (and a lot of members with me) there’s a new version of the Discourse software up and running on TS. A lot of changes and improvements! Thanks for all your work @Robin. If it isn’t too much trouble maybe you could give us an overview of the biggest changes in a post in #Announcements ? I’d appreciate it and I feel many with me would.
One thing I find a bit odd. See the screenshot. I like it there’s a direct link to Messages in the drop down menu now. But this link to a seeking help mailbox confuses me a bit. There’s one message there (out of three in total) that was put there before I became a member. Strange.
Anyway, thanks again. It looks great!
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### Author:  [@Butterflymoonwoman](https://talkingsober.com/u/Butterflymoonwoman)
#### Post date: [January 4, 2025, 7:42pm UTC](https://talkingsober.com/t/new-software-version-on-the-forum/190856/2 "2025-01-04T19:42:48Z")
That would be great! Im slowly getting used to the new format and i quite like it!! Im wondering tho what the offline/online button does?
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### Author:  [@acromouse](https://talkingsober.com/u/acromouse)
#### Post date: [January 4, 2025, 7:46pm UTC](https://talkingsober.com/t/new-software-version-on-the-forum/190856/3 "2025-01-04T19:46:15Z")
So many pretty new buttons, I want to click them all 😉
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### Author:  [@SassyRocks](https://talkingsober.com/u/SassyRocks)
#### Post date: [January 4, 2025, 7:55pm UTC](https://talkingsober.com/t/new-software-version-on-the-forum/190856/4 "2025-01-04T19:55:29Z")
I haven’t seen that one yet!!
I haven’t had much time to play around and see what’s what yet. I was thinking of going on Discourse and seeing if it had any info on this updated version. I would offer assistance @Mno , if I had any idea. Where is @Eke when we need him? 🙂
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### Author:  [@Butterflymoonwoman](https://talkingsober.com/u/Butterflymoonwoman)
#### Post date: [January 4, 2025, 8:00pm UTC](https://talkingsober.com/t/new-software-version-on-the-forum/190856/5 "2025-01-04T20:00:03Z")
Ya its a new feature i think!!! If u go to ur profile theres the online/offline button at the very top
Im curious to know what this is about and what all the other features are!
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### Author:  [@mxelle](https://talkingsober.com/u/mxelle)
#### Post date: [January 4, 2025, 8:01pm UTC](https://talkingsober.com/t/new-software-version-on-the-forum/190856/6 "2025-01-04T20:01:43Z")
Overall, i like the organized data.
I enjoy perticularly the
**Display tally** and **Display as percentage** on the stupid polls.
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### Author:  [@SassyRocks](https://talkingsober.com/u/SassyRocks)
#### Post date: [January 4, 2025, 8:03pm UTC](https://talkingsober.com/t/new-software-version-on-the-forum/190856/7 "2025-01-04T20:03:37Z")
Ah, I think that means you can hide that you are online!
And wow…Pause Notifications might be handy for people wanting a break!!
Thanks for pointing them out!
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### Author:  [@mxelle](https://talkingsober.com/u/mxelle)
#### Post date: [January 4, 2025, 8:06pm UTC](https://talkingsober.com/t/new-software-version-on-the-forum/190856/8 "2025-01-04T20:06:01Z")
> [@SassyRocks](#):
>
> I think that means you can hide that you are online!
But we could see if others were online before? If I hid my interface, they still saw me online?
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### Author:  [@Dan531](https://talkingsober.com/u/Dan531)
#### Post date: [January 4, 2025, 9:08pm UTC](https://talkingsober.com/t/new-software-version-on-the-forum/190856/9 "2025-01-04T21:08:13Z")
If your profile wasn’t set to private and a user clicked to view it, it would’ve shown when you were last scene.
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### Author:  [@SassyRocks](https://talkingsober.com/u/SassyRocks)
#### Post date: [January 4, 2025, 9:34pm UTC](https://talkingsober.com/t/new-software-version-on-the-forum/190856/10 "2025-01-04T21:34:22Z")
What Dan said!
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### Author:  [@Eke](https://talkingsober.com/u/Eke)
#### Post date: [January 4, 2025, 11:00pm UTC](https://talkingsober.com/t/new-software-version-on-the-forum/190856/11 "2025-01-04T23:00:39Z")
What Dan said, but yes! No?
Since yours is private, it never shows online status.
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### Author:  [@Eke](https://talkingsober.com/u/Eke)
#### Post date: [January 4, 2025, 11:03pm UTC](https://talkingsober.com/t/new-software-version-on-the-forum/190856/12 "2025-01-04T23:03:01Z")
I think it was always possible to send messages to the Seeking Help group. Or any group, actually.
Recall there’s been a time or two it was quite confusing. 😅 I think somewhere in one of the SH help pages it actually suggests doing that.
I guess now there’s an inbox just for groups? Or it’s more visible anyway.
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### Author:  [@Eke](https://talkingsober.com/u/Eke)
#### Post date: [January 4, 2025, 11:04pm UTC](https://talkingsober.com/t/new-software-version-on-the-forum/190856/13 "2025-01-04T23:04:28Z")
Yeah, @Butterflymoonwoman nailed it.
With the newest version you can pause notifications and opt to mask online status while browsing.
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### Author:  [@Matt](https://talkingsober.com/u/Matt)
#### Post date: [January 4, 2025, 11:22pm UTC](https://talkingsober.com/t/new-software-version-on-the-forum/190856/14 "2025-01-04T23:22:48Z")
> [@Eke](#):
>
> I think it was always possible to send messages to the Seeking Help group. Or any group, actually.
I think (I suspect, based on my readings about the Discourse platform) - I think the difference that happened when the “Seeking Help” category was created in 2023 was that it was a category, and not just a group. The difference between groups and categories is explained on the Discourse software discussion platform here:
> **[Understanding groups and category permissions](https://meta.discourse.org/t/understanding-groups-and-category-permissions/87678)**
>
> 🔖 This guide explains how to manage category visibility and user permissions using groups in Discourse. 🙋 Required user level: Administrator Groups and category permissions are crucial for managing access and content creation within your...
The “Seeking\_Help” group existed prior to 2023 - the group messages (posts) Menno is talking about here date back to January 2019 - but it hadn’t been used much.
In fact, I think “Seeking\_Help” is still a group, actually, and that is how visibility of the “Seeking Help” category is controlled (by opting in and out of the group). If members want to message the whole group (so the messages will appear in that message box Menno mentioned in his first post here), they can message the whole group by visiting the group link here (this is the same group page where the option to join or leave the group is available: joining means opting in to see the Seeking Help category; leaving means opting out):
[http://talkingsober.com/groups/Seeking\_Help](http://talkingsober.com/groups/Seeking_Help)
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### Author:  [@LittleMissL](https://talkingsober.com/u/LittleMissL)
#### Post date: [January 4, 2025, 11:40pm UTC](https://talkingsober.com/t/new-software-version-on-the-forum/190856/15 "2025-01-04T23:40:58Z")
On the Seeking Help it takes you to what appear to be 3 (Private) Messages?
Re: Online/Offline I thought it would be an indicator to show who is actively online, I went on a different computer and went on TS not logged in and there were no different ‘alerts’ to show online peeps. So Im interested to know what it means @Robin
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### Author:  [@mxelle](https://talkingsober.com/u/mxelle)
#### Post date: [January 4, 2025, 11:45pm UTC](https://talkingsober.com/t/new-software-version-on-the-forum/190856/16 "2025-01-04T23:45:26Z")
When i go to
When i click link i get .
Do i re-login to access seeking help?
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### Author:  [@LittleMissL](https://talkingsober.com/u/LittleMissL)
#### Post date: [January 4, 2025, 11:53pm UTC](https://talkingsober.com/t/new-software-version-on-the-forum/190856/17 "2025-01-04T23:53:55Z")
You may need to as when I clicked CATEGORIES then SEEKING HELP it showed up as normal…
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### Author:  [@LittleMissL](https://talkingsober.com/u/LittleMissL)
#### Post date: [January 4, 2025, 11:57pm UTC](https://talkingsober.com/t/new-software-version-on-the-forum/190856/18 "2025-01-04T23:57:02Z")
You’re definitely opted in
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### Author:  [@JazzyS](https://talkingsober.com/u/JazzyS)
#### Post date: [January 5, 2025, 12:33am UTC](https://talkingsober.com/t/new-software-version-on-the-forum/190856/19 "2025-01-05T00:33:11Z")
Also curious to know what all the new features are. Anyone else having trouble with the site moving slower (going between the threads)?
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### Author:  [@Matt](https://talkingsober.com/u/Matt)
#### Post date: [January 5, 2025, 12:57am UTC](https://talkingsober.com/t/new-software-version-on-the-forum/190856/20 "2025-01-05T00:57:24Z")
> [@JazzyS](#):
>
> Anyone else having trouble with the site moving slower (going between the threads)?
I’ve noticed that too. It’s not a big problem for me - I am not having any problems posting or reading - but it is a little slower navigating around the platform.
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