PinsofWar.net is back! The world’s first online pinboard for miniature painters and wargamers is once again up and running. There are many new features to will hopefully make sharing and browsing pictures and videos on PinsofWar.net more enjoyable than ever. Let me show you some of the exciting new options!
What happened to PinsofWar.net?
In case you missed the first part of the story, I decided to take down PinsofWar.net for an all-out reboot. Though I was slowly tinkering away at the bugs that were plaguing the site, there was really no way to give the old software the fix it needed to be truly great. I decided to reboot the entire site to a new software to give it the full professional treatment it deserves. Unfortunately, this meant that old accounts were lost.
Nevertheless, I believe this painful sacrifice was more than worth it. PinsofWar.net is now reborn in brand-new, shiny glory. Let me tell you about four examples of the new features you can now enjoy when you share your pictures or videos on PinsofWar.net:
1. Enhanced Privacy from Search Engines & Delete Account
Privacy is clearly one of the most important things for a social site like PinsofWar. I have to admit, however, that there were some rather obvious things I simply did not think of launching the first incarnation of my site; most notably the ability for people to leave again if they should wish to do so.
This has been addressed now. To register an account at PinsofWar is no longer a one-way street. In your settings, you will now find a button to delete your account.
Please keep in mind that deleting your PinsofWar account is permanent and will delete all of your boards and pins forever.
And that is not all. I always emphasized using PinsofWar with an internet username or pseudonym (though your name is required when you sign-up). This anonymity can now be enhanced even further. There is now an option to hide your profile from the crawlers of search engines such as Google. You will find this option in the user settings.
2. Enhanced Facebook & Twitter Integration, Twitter-Login
The integration with Twitter was completely redone from scratch. On the previous site, you could only log-in with a Twitter account if you originally signed-up using Twitter. Connecting a user account to Twitter retroactively was not possible.
Using a different Twitter App, you can no longer register at PinsofWar with a Twitter account (sorry!). However, all existing accounts can now be linked to your Twitter-account (displaying a little Twitter-bird in your user profile). Once you approved this link, you can link into PinsofWar at any time using just your Twitter Account.
As for Facebook, there is now also an option to automatically feed all your pins to your personal Facebook timeline should you choose to do so!
3. Shared Pinboards for Joint Projects by Multiple Users
Another great new feature is the option to share pinboards on the site with other users.
Boards on PinsofWar help you organize your pictures and videos by collecting them in a specific place. Each board is usually tied to a specific category. Above, you see a screenshot of my board for “Cool Sci-Fi Miniatures” in the category “Sci-Fi Misc.”
You can of course create as many boards as you want.
Previously, each board was strictly tied to one user. Now, however, there is an option to invite other users on PinsofWar to share a board with you. By using this option, several users can for example collect pictures and videos of a joint project or a joint interest in one place.
Please note that – to avoid spam and unsolicited “advertising” - you can only invite users to share a board with you if that user is following you on PinsofWar.
4. Vimeo Integration
YouTube is clearly the most popular video portal out there. But it isn’t the only one (as several users of my old site pointed out). Restarting the site has given me the option to expand the available options. PinsofWar.net can now also play videos from Vimeo.
As with YouTube Videos, you cannot upload videos directly to PinsofWar.net in the same way you can upload pictures. Videos can only be added and shared on the site using the “War Pin” bookmarklet, which is a very useful little gadget that you can add to your browser’s bookmarks.
Once you added the War Pin Button to your browser, use it to pin pictures or videos to your PinsofWar Profile.
Sign-up, Collect Pictures, Enjoy and Leave Feedback!
I hope this little overview of some of the features make you consider joining PinsofWar.net. I’d love to see some of your pictures on my site.
The examples above are not the full extend of the options that are available. I certainly plan to write future posts on this blog that will talk more and in greater depth about some of the things that are already on the site, as well as about some of the things that are not there yet, for example a RSS-Feed or an integration with Twitter-Cards.
Moreover, please be aware that PinsofWar.net is still a “hobby”-operation of mine and certainly not a professionally run social media site. There will be more bugs and hick-ups that I have not yet found (or thought about).
If you come across any issues or if you have any suggestions for improving the site, get in touch with me using either my contact form, sending me a tweet, or by leaving a comment below. You can also join my newsletter to get the latest information directly to your inbox.
Happy pinning!
Z.
About Zweischneid
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