Forum Software

[digitalquill]

Hi all

I know this is not strictly CMS but can anyone recommend a forum software, ideally opensource, but prepared to pay if it makes sense.

I have used phpBB in the past but had problems with it being Spammed to death and never managed to find anything that would effectively control it.

That is my main requirement, the ability to control spam but also simple and easy to use

Any advice would be very welcome

Thanks

Matt

[RSK3000]

Simple Machines is another very popular free forum software.

Home of SMF: Free PHP and MySQL forum software

It probably as popular as phpBB.

For simple and easy you might like BB Press http://bbpress.org/ from the Wordpress people

[jimm]

It used to be easy - VB, but VB4 is not really as gold as they would have you think. IPB used to be a very close second but I would say it has taken over as of the present.

PunBB is about the only free one I would think about using, but would still end up with one of the above.

[digitalquill]

Originally Posted by jimm

It used to be easy - VB, but VB4 is not really as gold as they would have you think. IPB used to be a very close second but I would say it has taken over as of the present.

PunBB is about the only free one I would think about using, but would still end up with one of the above.

Thanks for this (and thanks to the other replies) by IPB do you mean:

IPBFREE.COM - Free IPB ( Invision Power Board ) Hosting, Instant Setup, Support Forums, CSS Skins - Get your FREE FORUM NOW! :: Home

I guess not as this one is also free?

I have been looking at vBulliten but I will need two licenses so its getting pricey with my limited budget.

thanks

Matt

[jimm]

IPB - Invision Power - Community Forum, Blog, Gallery, CMS, and more - We're community experts

Why do you need 2 licenses for one site?

[digitalquill]

Thanks

I need it for two sites/domains

Matt

Originally Posted by jimm

IPB - Invision Power - Community Forum, Blog, Gallery, CMS, and more - We're community experts

Why do you need 2 licenses for one site?

[woopwoop]

I would also recommend Simple Machine Forums.

You must make sure to patch it as soon as the security updates come out, and try to have any spam/captcha mods enabled that you can get - but it is now my default choice when starting a new forum project.

I have used (and still use) VB, IPB and PHPBB (in one case with PHP Nuke) and I have so many that I refuse to pay for forums that I'm starting now - and SMF is the one I like the most.

If paying I tend to choose IPB I like the interface better and it seems more stable than VB but there are fewer mods available.

[FC Domains]

I've used Simple Machines for several forms, since it was YaBB.

It's always been very stable and the support good.

[digitalquill]

Thanks everyone, I will download Simple Machines when I get a moment tonight and try it.

My main concern is being able to add some SPAM protection which I could never do (either because it can't be done or lack of knowledge on my part) with phpBB, so up to now I have steered away from forums, but I could really do with getting some up and running for several projects, not least my plugins.

Thanks again to everyone

[FC Domains]

To avoid spammers just set new users to 'admin approval'.

It does take a lot of memebers to sign up, before a board takes off. I'd say a minimum of 200.

So for small sites I use TalkBack.
It's a simple notice board that anybody can post to without registering.
This sounds dangerous, but the spam filters are excellent and they are popular. Things get posted, so people come back.