Yes or no?
It is expensive, but do you get more signups than whith pHPBB or envision?
THNx
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Yes or no?
It is expensive, but do you get more signups than whith pHPBB or envision?
THNx
I fail to see why that would be true. Granted, most webmasters see Vbulletin as more professional but we're the minority of users. The average Joe doesn't know any better and won't base their decision to join a community on the forum sftware being used. (Heck, webmasters shouldn't either).
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My motto is that it's not the software, it's what you do with it that counts
That being said, I know of a fair few successful communities on free forum hosts.
A member here runs 2 successful phpBB boards (although she did hack the crap out of them). But I think that invision and vBulletin should really be getting the same amounts of signups because they are both purchased forum software.
I agree.Originally Posted by Shaun B
My motto is that it's not the software, it's what you do with it that counts
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Yes. The time that you will spend hacking to add features and securing your phpBB is not worth it.
I think it's worth it .. it helps you do better business
Is vBulletin a good investment? Yes
Is it impossible create a good community with phpBB or IPB? No
i like phpbb because its simple, i will be moving my main site to vbulletin but thats because i want the site to be secure, my site has been hacked in the past, sql injection attacks ( excuse the term if it means nothing to you ) have plagued me in the past and in the current version of phpbb we are on update 19! i like vbulletins look feel and features and i like some of the features ive read like allowing users to choose who they cant see ( ignore ) as this means people will complain less and can immediatly solve the problem of spamming themselves. by merely clicking ignore, as well as the admin having the ability to do a global ignore. once i read that on the vbulletin site, i knew i had to change forum software
i like phpbb, i had a custom module to emulate the admin making a user invisible feature of vbulletin to the phpbb boards so that i could make a spammer invisible whilst others continue to post without disruption, and so that the spammer did not see any change and could still see everything he was doing without being stopped ( i can clean up later and it means he/she wont re-register )
but i had to pay for that customisation, its standard in vbulletin and in hindsight i might have been better putting the money toward vbulletin
Go for anything that you are familier with and can use/upgrade and mod easily if needed.
Just make it look presentable and have something useful there and you be ok with either of your choices.
I agree 110%
If you have the money, yes, invest...if not, it isn't the end of the world
From a slightly less biased viewpoint, go with the forum and administration setup you feel most comfortable with
Which is kind of a catch-22 if you don't have access to vB any other way than paying for a license.From a slightly less biased viewpoint, go with the forum and administration setup you feel most comfortable with
As someone who has used SMF, phpBB, IPB, vB, and PunBB (among others), I would have to say vB outdoes them all (of course, PunBB isn't meant to compete, and I really like it for what it is). Of course, that's just my opinion... but I think that's what SonarSys was soliciting.
That is very true (bolded statement).Which is kind of a catch-22 if you don't have access to vB any other way than paying for a license.
As someone who has used SMF, phpBB, IPB, vB, and PunBB (among others), I would have to say vB outdoes them all (of course, PunBB isn't meant to compete, and I really like it for what it is). Of course, that's just my opinion... but I think that's what SonarSys was soliciting.
Off Topic:
Having used quite a few types of forum software (As a user and as an administrator) I have to say I prefer IPB just for the customisation and ease of use. VB does have it won hands down on unique features however.
Look at it this way...
How often does vbulletin issue security updates and patches? Now go take a look at how often phpbb issues security updates and pathes.
It has nothing to do with building a community, common joe who will be signing up on a forum wont care wether the security updates and patches come every 2 weeks or every 2 months.
Administrator - http://www.pakpassion.net
My members in the other communities (not the webmasters one) cannot tell the difference between night and day as long as we're talking forum scripts. They can't even post an image, lest comment on my scripts.
I agree with the fact it's important to develop your forum, no matter the script. I have seen crappy phpBBs and vB's too. People who think installing a forum is the only thing they need to do. There are people who spend money on VB or IPB and then make fun of people with phpBB just because it's a free script. As long as the admin is not capable of modding the forums and theme I have no respect for his community. We are not talking about scripts anymore, but about people being able to make the best out of their script.
I love VB for all its features. But it costs me my monthly wage. I have to live from 200 USD, can't spend on scripts. But I do have some time on my hands and a lot of willingness to learn. I pride myself with some of the best modded phpBB scripts. My forums are on a free script, but I have managed to give my people all the features they needed (by installing mods) and the themes are far from the ordinary.
Wouldn't really matter, although many people do think that vB looks more professional
Very true. However, the extent of customizability might influence consumer/user reaction as well.
I've been posting on various messageboards for close to 4 years now, and I have yet to see a case where the software influences a person's decision to join. Granted, if the software being used is full of bugs and doesn't work right, the person might not want to join, but I don't know anyone who would join a site simply because they like the software being used.
Hello, my name is Ryan. It's nice to meet you
There is some forum software I refuse to use...but it is the very poor stuff, such as ProBoards...I personally would never *not* register at a forum because of the software (assuming it is one of the better software), but I do believe there are people who would
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