Ask A British Guy... Anything? (Within Reason!)

[Leaf_Green]

Just doing this out of boredom. I don't think I should tell you everything in the OP, although honestly there isn't a huge deal to tell! But I should give you a few details to get this started.

I'm a 31-year-old English male, born and bred. My first forum admin experiences were in 2008. I went to university but didn't get my degree, so I'm college-educated. (In the UK the order is basically high school > college > university.) I am currently unemployed and have been for some time for medical reasons. In May 2019 I had major brain surgery.

I think that's a half-decent ice breaker... I suppose!

 

[zappaDPJ]

I think that's a half-decent ice breaker... I suppose!

It certainly is, I hope your surgery went well and that you are now fully recovered

The forum in your signature is running on vB4. Have you any plans to migrate and if so to what platform?

 

[LeadCrow]

- What do you think of the unconventional minimalist forum softwares that cropped up (nodebb, discourse...)?
- Would you be comfortable migrating your current forums to those, and if not what would change your mind ?
- Do you browse forum mainly from a classic computer or from mobile (wether as a user or staff)?

 

[Leaf_Green]

It certainly is, I hope your surgery went well and that you are now fully recovered

The forum in your signature is running on vB4. Have you any plans to migrate and if so to what platform?

Thanks very much. My neurologist (and the lead neurosurgeon) told me the operation couldn't have gone better. I'm still recovering but I'm getting there. (Gotta generally take it easy since a candy bar-sized piece of my brain was removed. )

vBulletin 4 itself was a migration. My forum used to run on MyBB. I noticed the amount of customisation vBulletin offers around six years ago. MyBB is great but I simply had to make the switch. I'm usually recommended XenForo. It does look great (TAZ has demonstrated that well enough) but my forum is very cosy as is and members almost never take issue. Such a migration would be quite an undertaking so I'll stay put for the foreseeable future. Don't fix what ain't broken and all that jazz.

There was one person who asked me to switch it all to Discord. I think I speak for a lot of admins here when I say, "NO THANKS!"

- What do you think of the unconventional minimalist forum softwares that cropped up (nodebb, discourse...)?
- Would you be comfortable migrating your current forums to those, and if not what would change your mind ?

Too squeaky-clean. Admittedly, perhaps my forum is a little too customised but it can easily be identified and leaves an impression. With software like you mentioned, it's the equivalent of a minimalist apartment. Sure, you have the essentials but you've seen it all already. I suppose I'm a stubborn sod, but I don't think anything will change that opinion.

Do you browse forum mainly from a classic computer or from mobile (wether as a user or staff)?

Both. My own forum has an app for both iPhone and Android, provided by Tapatalk. Too bad it doesn't have stuff like proper smiley support and it can otherwise be a little rough around the edges, but it works fine and many members use it as well as the desktop site. (Many checking the app every day.)

I prefer desktop. There's more screen real estate for a better experience (IMO) and there usually isn't good mobile support for most forums. vBulletin can be awful on mobiles so I find the app essential. If more forums had better mobile support I'd probably make use of that. I realise that XenForo apparently works well on mobile but I'll admit that I'm lazy enough to choose a dedicated app over that. (Or, the lazy solution of a shortcut on the home screen that opens in your browser independently.)

One "forum" I use sometimes on my mobile is reddit.