Vbulletin vs. SMF

Discussion in 'vBulletin' started by casperl, Nov 28, 2006.

  1. #1
    I will open a new forum :) and was planning to buy Vbulleting + vbseo.

    But with the annoucement of SMF1.1, i decided to revise my decision.

    So what do you think about these two forum solutions? Which features do you think best in each of them and what the worst ones. Here are some things which may be important for me. Let me know your thoughts..

    - Url rewrite:

    Vbulletin: Vbseo seems to be the key but i heard some opionions here which says it is a serious extra load for your server and these solutions are not free.

    SMF: There are some hacks for previous versions but i guess they are not as advanced as vbseo solution. But as far as i remember SMF team is plannin to incorporate url-rewritting to the core. Is this correct? If so probaly SMF will have the fastest solution for url rewriting in the future. In that case SMF looks perfect solution since after some point, i will only need to upgarde to get url rewriting in my forums..

    - Features: As far as i see, both have lots of features. But if you think sth important is missing in one of them and exist in the other, let me know it...

    - Speed: I dont have any comparison about this but can be very impiortant for being successfull.

    - Security: I dont know which is more secure but since vbulletin is a paid solution and SMF is an open source one, i am guessing that vbulletin is better in this area.
     
    casperl, Nov 28, 2006 IP
  2. sawz

    sawz Prominent Member

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    #2
    i am an SMF junkie, but vBulletin is a pretty good product.

    url re-writing. there is a mod for that, and it will work with 1.1 as soon as i alter it a little bit, (i caught a small error when i tried to install it)

    not sure about feature comparisons, both products have a multitude of features, some great and some useless. its all in the eyes of the beholder.

    security. SMF is more secure, i read something about that recently and SMF scored better points then vB on that issue.

    speed. i think they both perform wonderfully, what else is there to say. 2 great forum packages, one costs and one is open source. and i'm a big supporter of open source cause i'm cheap.:D
     
    sawz, Nov 28, 2006 IP
  3. Endurer

    Endurer Well-Known Member

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    #3
    Vbulletin all the way.. I've tried almost every popular BBS for my communities but nothing compares to vbulletin. Modifying it, upgrading it e.t.c. is so easy that you'll fall in love with it. ;)
     
    Endurer, Nov 28, 2006 IP
  4. JsnTech

    JsnTech Peon

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    #4
    vbull vs SMF?

    No way, there not even a match, a free board that would of taked a day to make compared to a much more powerfull software worked on for years.

    As Endurer said, nothing compares to vbull
     
    JsnTech, Dec 1, 2006 IP
  5. rockinaway

    rockinaway Guest

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    #5
    That is wrong, they have worked on it for ages... just because it is free.. Since VB is paid for more stuff is available.. I personally love SMF.. used it for a while.. it is free and it is great... yes can't be compared to VB, but it is very good to say it is free
     
    rockinaway, Dec 2, 2006 IP
  6. casperl

    casperl Peon

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    #6
    Thank you very much for the answers. I slected the vbulletin way.. So far everything looks good. I will return back to ask new questions related to vbulletin.. :)
     
    casperl, Dec 2, 2006 IP
  7. Nikolas

    Nikolas Well-Known Member

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    #7
    Vbulletin is great if :

    1) You have no clue of programming, or don't need to modify your forum anyway.

    2) If server overhead is not something that you care about.

    SMF is great if :

    1) You like to customize your forum or even write your own code on it (it is very simple if you have some php experience)

    2) You want a free software (everyone knows that free and open source software is developed much faster than any commercial one)

    Personally I have used both (+phpBB) and SMF was the best for me. What I don't like in Vbulletin is the way that it works (everything is stored in the database, which makes it real slow) and the fact that whenever you upgrade it, the modifications are gone....

    On the other side Vbulletin has the most features for the admins, but I am not really sure how important is this. I mean I don't really care if there is a control panel module that helps me change a description or a message when I can do it by opening my text editor :)
     
    Nikolas, Dec 2, 2006 IP
  8. JsnTech

    JsnTech Peon

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    #8
    Vbulletin is much more powerfull in regards to be edited.
    Templates are much more technical. And admin cp is much detailed.

    If you are only going to have a few members than maybe SMF would be fine.
    Vbull is more suited to hundreds of members to 80,000+
    You would have a hard time installing hacks/mods to help stop 200 spammers a day on SMF.

    Vbull makes admin/mods lifes more easyer.

    :)
     
    JsnTech, Dec 2, 2006 IP
  9. Coldfx

    Coldfx Guest

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    #9
    I wouldn't say that. As said, SMF showed to be more secure (And from what I've read in several sites I have access to), vBulletin has many recently seen exploits, where as SMF only had one for SMF 1.04.

    200 spammers? Just install min characters/words per post, how often you can post, etc. Shouldn't be a problem..


    As far as I can tell you, I'll chose SMF over vBulletin any day. I'll admit, vBulletin has its points, but if you notice, EVERYWHERE a forum uses vBulletin. Sure, it's comfortable, but it's repetitive. For me, I always found SMF the one away from the crowd.

    Most of the vBulletin mods can be matched by SMF (IE: vBulletins "Thanks" mod, SMF "Thank you" mod; vBulletins "vbPlaza", SMFs "SMFshop"). If you want something fast, unique, SMF is the choice. If you want something 100% user-friendly, with a littlle more live support, vBull is the choice.

    ~Coldfx :p
     
    Coldfx, Dec 9, 2006 IP
  10. letsjoy

    letsjoy Well-Known Member

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    #10
    if u want free then SMF is best if u have money then VB party is also Coool ;)
     
    letsjoy, Dec 10, 2006 IP
  11. BamaStangGuy

    BamaStangGuy Notable Member

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    #11
    I have used both to an extent and I find vBulletin worth the money over SMF for my uses.
     
    BamaStangGuy, Dec 10, 2006 IP