I have a set of requirements and I am seeking the best script that will suit my needs. Please provide any feedback that you feel is useful. The project is an online directory for local small business owners. Requirements: Directory listings with map feature (Google Maps, Map Quest) Paid or free listings with upgrade option for free members. Blog and or news on the homepage along with the directory. Content that can be provided by the admin or members but must be approved by the admin. Profitability - does not have to be immediate but the thinking is that the articles and blogs section should build the community trust for offering services later. (More business than script related, comment on this idea as well) Linkup Gold appeared to meet all of these requirements out of the box except for the map feature. Phpmydirectory meets them all except for the blog, news or articles. Ive reviewed a ton of the information on these boards and could not find anything this specific. Any feedback would be appreciated. Most post seemed geared toward directory real estate.
Im the new guy. Someone insult me and lets get it over with. Or I can warm it up with a joke. Really seeking the expertise of this group.
Personally i would pick any directory off the shelf that does not require any modding, cause i seen mods break directories so i avoid now any modded directory cause their future may be dark, if at later time some bug happens popup using any of the mods. Thus, its better to have a script which is capable to do what you wish it to do without mods.
Thats a good point and we thought about that. The question becomes, do you pay for something and then have to do additional work to get it customized to your needs or pay for something out of the box that does most of what you want. Were also thinking about maintenance upfront. Life is much simpler when you can go to one person for issues.
One thing that you'll find about phpLD is there are a lot of people that can help you, some paid, some free. If you have any questions, also feel free to ask in the phpLD forums as well. Thanks, David
I agree, thats why i am myself seeking a script that does not require any modifications or anything to serve all the basic needs and support good enough to bring latest official updates to keep upto par with the market and current trends. Though esyndicate was one , but really got dissapointment from them, so i am yet to find the good enough script. Cheap scripts exists(i mean price) that are good enough for running basic directory but if you need to do something special be ready to fish out some money for the same to get extra customization, but than make sure that than any script owner will refuse to provide support if you have used any mods, so unless you remove all those mods they will not be able to support u, recent incident would be vbulletin. And it stands for every brand. So, choose your investment wisely.
phpld is good script to start a directory but I think esyndicat has features you require like maps , additional fields also you can pay a mod to do custom changes in phpld to suit your needs