[RFC] Topic Image - Associate topic with an image attachment?

[Louis7777]

Description
--------------

Give an option to the user who created the topic, to associate it with an image that he attached to his first post. He should be able to select and mark one of the attachments as the topic's image.


Usefulness & Implementations
-------------------------------------

It is very common for blogs, news sites, cms-based sites and other sites, to display short presentations of their content that only show the title, an image and a short description. Extension authors will be able to extract that info (they can already get the title and the post's text) and use it for a variety of extensions.

With jQuery it is possible to display that info in a gazillion of ways! Just think of the dozens of carousels, slideshows and featured content sliders. Not only many new extensions could emerge, but also many of the existing MODs -that will most likely become extensions in the future- could be enhanced and assisted. For example, newspage and portal mods and all of their alikes.

[Mess]

I have numerous uses for this, and use a hack to half way solve it currently.
I'm not sure it belongs in the core though? I would be the first to download the extension though.

[PayBas]

So every topic will get a new attachment that is marked as the "topic image"?

Although it is a nice idea in principle, this brings us directly into CMS waters. There would need to be a centralized media library (so we don't have hundreds of dupes) and an extension of the permission system. Let alone the fact the proSilver does not seem suitable at all for this.

So yes... would like the feature, but will be a BIG extension before it ever gets to the core (if ever).

[Mess]

So every topic will get a new attachment that is marked as the "topic image"?

I see no reason why the image would have to be an attachment. But there would probably need to be a thumbnail folder.
4seven made a hack I'm still using. Problem is that you cant define what image is shown and it has to have an image extension (png/jpg/gif etc.).
http://www.4seven.de/forum/6test/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=27
He also made sliders and other fancy stuff which can be found on his forum. Combined, someone with knowledge could make a kickass media gallery using existing thread/discussion methods.

[Louis7777]

I have numerous uses for this, and use a hack to half way solve it currently.
I'm not sure it belongs in the core though? I would be the first to download the extension though.

I'm not sure either, even though I'm the one suggesting this. In fact, I'd prefer to have extensions and no such functionality in the core.

But the thing is that I could never find any MODs! Even the one that you've linked to, I see it for the first time.

I can't believe that noone ever thought to make such mod, so perhaps it's a hassle for mod authors? That's why I thought that maybe we could have some limited functionality to support them.

So every topic will get a new attachment that is marked as the "topic image"?

Every topic will have the ability to have an attachment that can be marked as the "topic image". If the OP uploads a few image attachments he should be able to mark one of them.

I see no reason why the image would have to be an attachment. But there would probably need to be a thumbnail folder.

Because it might be the simplest way to do it and anything more than that I guess would be a pain in the ass for the developers, since this isn't much of a priority.

[nickvergessen]

This should be an extension