We still have a lot of work left to do before we release our next update. There is a lot of designing, planning, implementing, and testing going on. This won't just be a typical fresh coat of paint. Before we do finish it, there are a couple of changes that are important for our users to know.

First, an update to our smiley submissions.
Not only are we still accepting smilies, but cards and avatar frames too. Users will be able to customize the backgrounds and look of their cards and put a frame around their avatar for the price of some tokens. Similar rules apply, and as always, we request you submit them via our email contact@worlio.com. We're working on a webpage where you'll be able to experiment and preview to see how they look for submission, and will update this post with a link when it is complete.

Second, we'll be changing how our file system works entirely.
Right now, each user who registers receives a small amount of storage to upload their own files and create their own webspace through the File Manager. This has worked great, but can be a LOT better. Starting on the Overhaul Update, users will no longer have their own individual files, but instead can manage a space.

What is a space? I'm glad you asked. Spaces are groups or communities within Worlio. Spaces can be created by users, and users can join spaces to post on their wall and follow for updates. Best of all, spaces are used for managing webspaces (hence the name "Spaces"), and allows you to collaborate with others on a site together. No longer will you be forced to have a central account for a group website. Worlio can now act as your site host and community! What does a space cost? Just some tokens for each space, and that is it!

Upon the updates release, every user with their file space set up will get their own Worlio Space automatically converted. However, we understand there are users who are already a repository for a group or community effort, or may want to transition to one. We're opening up applications to reserve a space for you, with the option to convert your existing account into an individual account. If you'd like to apply, you can send an email to contact@worlio.com with your existing username/uid, your spaces' name, and what you want to change your own account to. When the update releases, you'll be managing a space instead, and will be able to invite and add collaborators.

And everything else.
This has been a very large update, and has already taken so long. Trust me when I say it will be worth it. So many things are being improved, so many features added, so much fun to come. Worlio right now isn't even half of what the next Worlio will be. I appreciate the patience of every one of our users and ask for only a little bit more.

Take care, worms, and stay tuned!

I'm sure you've put a lot of thought and time into this but I do wonder what the value is of partitioning an already small community? What does a space do that a forum topic cannot? As a newbie here, I joined because of the lack of complexity and for the unified community vibes. Just curious how you see the future of spaces and what they would accomplish?

Since you are a newbie, perhaps you don't know that Worlio is both a forum and a webspace provider. If you hover over your name on the top bar, you'll see "My Files", which is a web interface for managing your webspace files that is under <username>.worlio.com.

The issue with this is that they are only yours, and sometimes people want to make things together and provide their own webpage for it. The first thing that usually comes to mind for me is webcomics, which usually have their own community or fanbase too. That is what a space is for. Now, Bob and Emily can easily work on their stick figure comic together and both upload new pages every other day, while users can join their space and discuss the stick figure comic.

This isn't really "partitioning an already small community", the entire community we have is already partitioned, just sharing common interests that bring us together here. I believe this is usually the case for a forum.

Gotcha, thanks for clarifying. That definitely makes more sense to me now and I can see the benefits of spaces.