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phpBB 2 or phpBB 3 - which should I install?

Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2007 12:23 am
by Josh1billion
Hey all,

I'm going to be starting up some forums for my web-based game (written in PHP) soon, and I know I want to use phpBB, but I'm not sure whether to use phpBB 2 or phpBB 3. I know that phpBB 3 is currently less stable, but I am tempted to use it for its added functionality etc. :)

I'm wondering if phpBB 2 databases are compatible with phpBB 3 databases. I.e., could I start out with phpBB 2 and have the community build up, then once a stable release of phpBB 3 is released, upload all the phpBB 3 files over that and expect everything to be fine? I doubt if all of the database structures would remain the same, but particularly I'm focused on the users table (read next paragraph to see why/how) and the forums and posts (so that old discussions will remain on the database).

Why I need "users" table compatibility: I want to have my game accounts and my forum accounts link up (so you register on the game, and it will insert a new user into the phpBB users table with the same username/password/email address).. this way, users only have to register once, and I can have the forums retrieve the user's data from the game (to display character level, print out the character's avatar as the forum avatar, etc.).

So I'm mostly considering starting with phpBB 3 if it's difficult to upgrade from phpBB 2 to phpBB 3, and then just living with that and upgrading from the phpbb3 unstable release to the phpbb3 stable release when one is released.

What do you think? Is upgrading from phpbb2 to phpbb3 easy, or should I just start with phpbb3?

Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2007 12:42 am
by Kieran Huggins
Upgrading from 2 to 3 was dead simple.

3 has been extremely stable for me, and has MANY nice enhancements over 2.

Every release of 3 has upgrade scripts from the previous version as well, so you won't be screwed when 3 final drops. I hear it will be sometime in 2026.

I would just start with 3, save yourself the re-write.

Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2007 12:51 am
by Josh1billion
Alright then, will do. :) Thanks for the input, Kieran.

Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2007 12:56 am
by Kieran Huggins
I would never refuse the Great Pumpkin.

Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2007 1:35 am
by Josh1billion
That was a little more difficult than I was expecting, but I figured it out.. :P Now I have "Level: 1" and "Class: Mage" right above "Posts: 3".. heh heh heh. :)

edit: in-game avatars now show up as forum avatars too now... woooooooooooo! 8)

Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2007 10:58 am
by RobertGonzalez
So where is this forum, that we might partake of the coolness therein, offering up "ooos" and "aahhhs" as we browse? Hm?

Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2007 11:22 am
by Josh1billion
It won't be uploaded for a while, since it's part of my game and the only way to register a forum account is to create a game character. :P So I'll upload it shortly before the alpha test of Seeds of Time Online launches (Halloween, 2007). The forums will then be located here.

Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2007 11:24 am
by RobertGonzalez
Nice. And I say go with 3.

Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2007 11:31 am
by Josh1billion
One thing I'm a little confused on what I should do though is this--

As you know, a forum account is inserted into the phpBB3 database once a game character has been created. Eventually, after the alpha test, I plan to wipe all characters from the game database. But that leaves the forum accounts there. Problems could come down the road if someone decides to create an account with the same name as an old, deleted character (i.e. they wouldn't have a forum account because that old forum account with that name would still exist).

For a solution, I could delete all forum accounts when I wipe all game character accounts, but I think that would mess things up when someone reads old forum posts posted by those users.

To solve that problem, I could just wipe everything from the forums (users and posts) when I delete the game characters.. and that may be my only option. The downside with that obviously is that old discussions would be lost.. may be a sacrifice I have to make, though.

Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2007 12:36 pm
by RobertGonzalez
Make a clear announcement that users of the beta stage game will eventually be wiped out and the forums will go with them when it does. When you start the game clean, start everything clean.

Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2007 2:34 pm
by Josh1billion
Good thinkin'. I'll go with that then.

It's been almost three years since I first released a web-based RPG with PHP.. :) Back then, it didn't have many features though.. now this one has a private messaging system, PvP battling, player trading, etc.. all written in about a month. I can't help but be proud of myself. :P