SMF or MyBB

[mike omar]

Hi

I am thinking of switching forum software, I previously used phpbb but it's got really old and they have not updated it in awhile. (I might go back depending on the updates they make.)

After exploring them for a little while, I would like to switch to SMF or MyBB. Both seem great and are unique in their own way but I would like to get opinions from other users. If you can name me a better free forum software then please do (except phpbb).

Also this might be the wrong place but I thought I would ask here regarding hosting a issue:

Are my users allowed to post attachments and if so how big can they be? They will only be image attachments, if not thats fine.

Also are my users allowed to post pictures of premier league football matches as attachments or just hosted on other image sites?

I will post this elsewhere if it's not meant to be here. Appreciate responses.

[mike omar]

Any thoughts?

[callumacrae]

phpBB!

3.0.8 is looking to come out in less than a week
3.1 in the next few

I love phpBB :D

~Callum

[3dhomejoe]

I have always had issues with phpbb so when I had a forum I used SMF, it was much easier to use and understand

[callumacrae]

The support for phpBB is by far the best

phpBB 2 was awful, if you haven't used 3.0.x I would seriously recommend trying it!

~Callum

[3dhomejoe]

I thought phpBB2 was better then 3.0.x
When I used it, it was hard to find all the functions and to limit the permissions of everyone, and the bugs in the system too, im gonna guess that alot of the bugs have been fixed by now but I have no plans to use it anytime soon

[techairlines]

My vote goes to MyBB. I previously used SMF and phpBB 3.

SMF has many many features, but there's so many that I found it rather difficult to find what I need in the Admin section. I spent a while on SMF.

phpBB doesn't have the best modification/plugin system. Without the AutoMod system, which I don't think existed when I used phpBB, installing mods can be a pain. And even with AutoMod, it modifies core and theme files, so upgrading might cause an issue.

I like MyBB because it has many of the features found in commercial boards like vBulletin. In addition, its the only one of the three that uses plugin hooks, therefore installing plugins doesn't require any core file or theme modifications whatsoever and upgrading MyBB has no effect on plugins (other than compatibility). Theming MyBB is incredibly easy.

I've tried all 3 and am very comfortable with MyBB.

To answer your questions, yes they're allowed post attachments. They can be up to 16 MB, which is the max upload size in PHP but make sure you limit it to a lower more reasonable amount to avoid using up too much disk space, even though we have unmetered here. All files should be relative to your website.

They're allowed to upload the pictures if they have the right/permission to from the original owner.

[nathaniel.bent12]

I haven't run a forum in quite a few years, but back when I did I always preferred SMF. Four or five years ago (I can't believe its been that long ) SMF had a much more active community from what I understand, and I found it much more fun and easy to work with. At the time I was also obsessed with trying to get a bunch of random plugins to work (I remember hours looking for a shop plugin for SMF and IBP) on my forums, which were never very populated.
From what it looks like now no major development has really taken place. I've played around with both systems recently, and much of it looks the same. That said I would probably install SMF before I installed phpBB if I was going to create a serious forum now, but it would totally also depend on what you're working with. I would look at which has more active bug catching and security hole patching, and which seems to run faster/lighter. I've heard a lot of good things about myBB from people I respect, though from what I've seen it looks to be a little more basic than phpBB and SMF. I've heard it runs like a champ, though, so if you're not totally dependent on certain features or in love with a certain skin then its definitely worth considering.
If you have the money to throw down, and are serious about maintaining the forum for a while its worth looking at both Invision Power and vBulletin are awesome. I've never run my own, but I was a mod on a vBulletin board and an admin on an IPB one, and they were both incredible. Both sites are no longer around, so I guess that should be a disclaimer on my advice.

[mike omar]

Thanks for great responses everyone.

OMG I can't believe phpbb are coming out with a new version in the next week or so. I waited and waited and decided that I could not wait any longer and then what happens? I hear they are coming out with a newer version .

After hearing that, then I am not sure what I will do now. I might wait and see what happens with phpbb and see if they do anything good with their next update. I know they are all offering free software but they just dont update it like they do with IPB and vBulletin. Unfortunately for me, both of those are out of my price range at the moment but I can see myself getting one of them in the future depending on how the forum goes.

SMF seems to be the best software for what I intend doing but I love the admin panel on MyBB. Looks like I have a tough decision on my hands.

To answer your questions, yes they're allowed post attachments. They can be up to 16 MB, which is the max upload size in PHP but make sure you limit it to a lower more reasonable amount to avoid using up too much disk space, even though we have unmetered here. All files should be relative to your website.

They're allowed to upload the pictures if they have the right/permission to from the original owner.

That sounds fantastic. I would like to know x10hosting policy on hosting images tho. What size can they be and how big (as in height and width) can they be?

Also, are their any limits on how much they can upload? I don't think it be used that often but I would like to know to ensure we don't break the rules.

Another question would be, are we allowed to post images such as of football (soccer) matches that are hosted on say places like imageshack and Photobucket etc? I ask this because I see other forums do it and I doubt they have permission to use the images. Other users just post pictures they find on the internet and it seems ok. They also are allowed to post links to full premier league matches. Is this ok to do on x10hosting?

[callumacrae]

phpBB 3.1 is going to include a powerful hooks system and a built in mod installer - this should make stuff a LOT easier.

You can keep up with its progress here: http://tracker.phpbb.com/browse/PHPBB3 (although phpBB 3.0.8 will come out first)

~Callum