Developing Discussion Board with phpBB

[Agnes]

I want to develop discussion board (not for myself) and I came across phpBB, what do you think? Could here be something else easier that a newbie like myself could work with?

Thanks

[Tess]

Hi Agnes,
Other members may have some input to offer but I've worked with PHPBB and while it is fairly easy to install, etc. it offers almost no functionality when it comes to spam protection and real forum growth. I've got a client running PHPBB and it's a real pain, honestly - it's fine for her site because her forum is on the quiet side, but we use VBulletin here - customized - and I can't imagine ever spending even one minute on another PHPBB forum. At least not for a forum I actually hoped to grow (like this one )

[Agnes]

Thanks for the info Tess! I'm having a look at VBulletin

[jeannedb]

I did a lot of work with Simple Machine Forums (SMF) a few years ago and it was great. http://www.simplemachines.org/ We didn't have a spam problem at all when we were using it, but it's possible that forum spam in general wasn't as prevalent back then.

According to a web designer mail-list, it does seem to do better with spam than PHPbb.

[jeannedb]

PS - I just double checked and SMF is part of Fantastico Scripts. Thought that would be helpful to know if you're hosting has Fantastico, then you can play around with it.

[Agnes]

Thanks so much Jeanne . I'll definitely look into this as well.

[White Rose]

I am about finished setting up a forum myself and I'm using SMF. I like it MUCH BETTER than phpBB. It's easier to set up, run it, and install themes. I love it.

[jeannedb]

I've also found SMF's support forums more helpful than others. I recently installed one of the latest versions for someone and was amazed at some of the included newer features (like paid subscriptions and ads), and I renewed my paid SMF membership so I can keep up with the latest info (and be on the fast track having questions answered).

[White Rose]

Yes, they are very helpful.

They have also many packages that you can download as well (similiar to plug-in or widgets you find on wordpress). It's a lot of fun setting up my discussion board and it should be ready for public in a couple of days.

One great thing is that it's free. You mentioned SMF membership - I wasn't aware of that. I'll look into it.