AN EASY ONE - What's a good choice for a PHP forum package?

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RacerX
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AN EASY ONE - What's a good choice for a PHP forum package?

Post by RacerX »

I am looking to add a PHP forum to my website and hoped I could tap into some of talent & experience here. I am looking for something that is easy to setup & maintain. I already have a PHP website host. Any suugestions?

Your advice is greatly appreciated!
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daven
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Post by daven »

The forum you are currently using. http://www.phpbb.com.
Gen-ik
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Post by Gen-ik »

Yep I agree. phpBB seems to be the best one. It's a bit of a pain in the ass to customise though (graphic/layout wise) but if you know PHP fairly well you should be able to find your way around.
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evilmonkey
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phpBB, but...

Post by evilmonkey »

I've added a lot of mods to my phpBB2 forum quite easily, even made some myself (graphics/text wise), but seeing it's code made my eyes crawl up forehead. :roll:

So if you want to spend hours modyfying a forum to fit your needs, go with phpBB (it is truly the best). If you want an alternative, I would reccommend vBulletin. My buddy has it on his site, it's a very good forum, a lot more function than the out-of -the-box phpBB. However, with a few hours of mods, phpBB can become just as (if not more) functional than vBulletin. The neggie about vBulletin is that it costs $150+.

Make your descision.
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mabufo
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Post by mabufo »

use invision board!
In my opinion it is the best php board there is. It's very easy to setup.

http://www.invisionboard.com

check it out!
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evilmonkey
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Post by evilmonkey »

I took a look at the invision website, and noticed a few things. First off, you have to pay for the "enhancements", which I dont really like. Secondly, it's almost identical to phpBB. So why pay for "enhancements", when you can them for free at the an almost ideantical forum package?

I'll tell you this, if you're willing to pay, vBulletin is your only choice. (http://www.jelsoft.com)
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RacerX
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Post by RacerX »

I think I am going to give PHPBB a try. I will probably try to setup/config it early next week, so you'll probably see posts from me asking for help 8O

I'll let ya know....


Thanks again.
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mabufo
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Post by mabufo »

http://www.invisionboard.com/download.cgi?subc=trial

you get the free version, then download skins and hacks from ibplanet.com
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m3mn0n
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Post by m3mn0n »

Latest version of phpBB is 2.0.5, enjoy.

http://sourceforge.net/projects/phpbb/
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phice
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Post by phice »

Make your own. :D
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qartis
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Post by qartis »

vBulletin has always had too many useless features (subscribe to this thread? email this page to a friend? calendar?)

My site had vBulletin for a few weeks, but nobody ever liked it. I'd recommend phpBB :)
kettle_drum
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...

Post by kettle_drum »

Check them all out and see which you like best.

You can use a demo of all the popular php forums at http://www.opensourcecms.com/

Just click on their links about half way down on the left. You will then be able to check out a demo of the forum and play about with the admin panels.

Have fun :)
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phice
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Post by phice »

I actually really like vBulletin. No apperent reason, it just feels more stable than phpBB. Though, when installing, phpBB feels 100x more stable than vBulletin. :/
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qartis
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Post by qartis »

Oh right, admin panels :)

$admin_panels['vBulletin'] > $admin_panels['phpBB']
Vicious
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Post by Vicious »

i think phpbb sucks ass Invision board is easily the best. And the enhancments are Live chat. Go with invision board.
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