Just wondering what a good forum software pack is? I am starting a niche forum, and want something easy to install, and easy to maintain, any suggestions?
I would also say MyBB, but its opinion only. So check out them all at http://opensourcecms.com and reach your own conclusions.
Simple Machines Forum - http://simplemachines.org/ . And why i think its the best forum software: 1. Its free 2. To install a MOD or Plugin , you need just 2-3 clicks , no file editing. 3. Great SEO mods - superb easy to setup (i have try IPB and his seo mods .... wow there was 1h till everything is OK). And now spiders just LOVE my forum ) 4. Easy ADMIN Pannel to work with. There is no 1345345535 options , but the existing one are simple and effective. Also , with SMF you have news letter, admin log, spiders log, auto embeding YouTube, MetaCafe and 100+ video sites, ANTI SPAM deffences and simple user option (in some cases SMF is better FOR ME , than the other PAYED softwares) Hope , this will help you!
Personally I like phpBB... although the jury is still out on the latest version. I hear it's not as friendly as it used to be from an admin point of view.
Yea, but have you ever tried to search for the word forum, in a forum ;} Thanks so much , I like the look and feel of the MyBB. Thanks so much , I like the look and feel of the MyBB.
If you are still looking, I will recommend vbulletin, if you are willing to paid script, Otherwise, if you are willing to use freeware, then I will recommend phpBB > SMF > MyBB
You can get a good comparison of the software here: http://www.adminfuel.com/picking-right-forum-t135.html Also, there will be a comparison script up soon
Is this going to be a commercial site? If so, then go with Vbulletin. Vbulletin has certain built in features that favor commercial forums - such as paid memberships, built in support for several payment processing sites (such as paypal). Other built in featurs like automatic changing of usergroups and or permissions when the payments are processed are really nice for selling premium memberships. You will get a lot better support with Vbulletin then the "free" forums. There is nothing like opening a real trouble ticket and getting a reply from a real tech support tech. Unlike the free stuff where you post in the forum and hope someone answers you. And then hoping their reply will fix your problem.
Vbulletin uses a script called IMPEX to import the database of other forums. Jelsoft even has a support forum on how to use the script and migrate your forum to vbulletin. Vbulletin is the best commercial grade forum software on the internet. I am going to guess that you have never had your own forums and had a chance to use Vbulletin right next to phpbb and smf. Also, notice what digitalpoint is using - Vbulletin. If you ever get hacked, which would you prefer, real tech support were you can open a trouble ticket and get a reply from a real technician. Or, would you rather post in a forum and hope someone helps you? The support that jelsoft offers with vbulletin is worth the cost alone.
Lol. 1. I don't care what DP uses. Its frontend is pretty much the same as any other forum software - phpBB, MyBB or pretty much any lower known forum software such as MyTopix or PunBB use the same style, a look made famous from phpBB - , with some bloat only 1 out of 100 people use. Yes, SMF is a user friendly nightmare, but I'd choose it over vB any day. I have set up many forums in my life, and tried more or less every free and paid software out there - from W-Agora to Jive. I currently have a vB license and while it offers an incredible amount of options, nearly all of it I consider bloat - social bookmarking, customizable profiles, I mean - I want a forum. Not all the gliss and gloss that gives continous database errors on a high end dedicated server (a test forum, 3 users, rock solid MySQL server). Switch it to MyBB - works awesome. Switched it to SMF - works awesome. Switched it to phpBB - works awesome. vBs admin interface is waaaay more complicated than it needs to be, a more spread out redesign - like phpBB, IPB, or Mybb 1.4 has - is in order, so I don't have to check 3 different pages to find the one I'm looking. I've seen hundreds of forums convert to SMF, PhpBB or in lesser cases to Mybb, and have their server performance massively improve, to the point where they can cut back from dedicated to VPS. On such case is rmxp[dot]org, which used vB for a while, before the server was completely slowed down and they switched to SMF, saving a tonne of resources. To create a forum in vB, I have to waste a whole extra click to expand a category, when some simple layout tecniques could have it expanded all the time - bringing me to 6 clicks in total, when I wasted just 4 on MyBB 1.4. vBulletin is nice to code for, but then again so are MyBB and phpBB 3 - plugin hooks are awesome. And in the free versions I don't have to f**k around enabling them. vBulletin does not have as powerful cron/task manager or multiple db type master/slave setups, or easy to use MySQL master/slave setupsas MyBB. vBulletin is a nice, but way to bloated software. And I have over 30 forums softwares set up on localhost And set up production forums generally once a fortnight for people, so I know more or less every forum software back to front - code end and user end.
The default VB install has a lot of features enabled, such as the reputation system. Disabling the features that are not needed will save a lot of memory and processor time. VB also has security checks in place to stop cross site scripting flaws. These security features may also slow down page loading. But which one would you rather have, a secure site or a fast site? To create a forum in VB, you click "Add Forum" in the admin control panel, type in a name, select a parent and click ok. I do not see the big deal in that. I have used phpbb, smf, dragonfly, postnuke board, fireboard, MDforum and VBulletin. VB has by far the best support features and is the most secure out of any other forum software on the market. And you have seen hundreds of forums leave VB???? Huh, most site owners that I have seen, once they go with VB, they ask why they waited so long. I know of only a handful of people that have left VB for some other forum. Its usually the other way around. Also, the VB community stays on top of security. At vbulletin.org, if an add-on is found to have a security hole, that mod is removed until the developer fixes the problem. Compare that so a community like joomla that rarely removes a mod because of a security hole. I used SMF bridged with joomla for 6 months. Getting any kind of support was a nightmare, it was the worst experience of my forum ownership career.
I agree with blueparukia. I want a streamlined base for a forum where I can simply add the components I need for that specific forum. VB is now a social software more than forum software. Give me a rock solid base with easy template system and simple way to add plugins and I am happy. For me..mybb is my software of choice. This is after years of phpbb use and a year of VB where I had my #1 site turn to crap under VB.