Which Forum Software Is The Best?

[fixer]

Lets just lay it out there, no fan boys, legit responses based on real experiences.

Some may be better than others in certain areas, vote based on POUND FOR POUND outright winner as to which software is the best.

 

[LeadCrow]

Difficult to say. Seasoned webmasters are somewhat too focused on oldschool software, and new scripts are barely registering on their radar no matter their merit.

If you're looking to evaluate 'pound for pound', other costs (and savings) should be considered. A free script requiring a dedicaced server for a new, empty site should normally be considered wasteful.
Either way, based on code cleanliness, extensibility and early adoption of the latest stable versions of libraries, I'd say Woltlab is a winner here.

 

[Tracy Perry]

Some may be better than others in certain areas, vote based on POUND FOR POUND outright winner as to which software is the best.

One man's "pound" is another man's waste. You can't simply say "which is better" - you have to ask "which is better for the needs of the site".

 

[LeadCrow]

Substitution value can be measured.
Consider MyBB next to vB3/4. Despite MyBB's stagnation, it still qualifies as 'better' in several performance metrics, although commercial tech support and suitability as a whitelabel solution score an absolute zero and the code's internal structure is messy.

With Google's recent changes giving mobile versions of websites higher priority over desktop first ones, I suspect the criterias we're used to compare solutions with will have to adapt. All the scripts listed above are 'desktop first' solutions with varying levels of mobile-friendliness and incomplete, degraded perhaps but not necessarily worse conversion of that desktop experience.

 

[Alpha1]

which software is the best.

You tell me. I have no clue, except that for my sites its probably either XF or IPS.

 

[fixer]

You tell me. I have no clue, except that for my sites its probably either XF or IPS.

Personally, in the year 2018 IPS is the forum software that gives the owner a legitimate shot to stay afloat in the Facebook era. They understand what it takes 4.3 proves this as they made posting images streamlined and sharing to social networks and login handlers flawless


#AMAZING

 

[Alpha1]

Nice video. keep those coming.

 

[haqzore]

I have major abandonment issues.

I live in fear of mod coders ____________ (insert 1001 reasons to stop supporting mods) and leaving me with non-functioning features my communities have learned to love and use.

For this reason, IPS is my main squeeze and what I consider to be the best today.


Secondly: innovation. No other company has brought in the new features and functionality the way IPS has in recent years.

People have hopes for XF 2.x, and I do too, but at this point they're playing catch up with IPS. I really appreciate innovation, and IPS has been doing it for a while.

 

[djbaxter]

This is kind of a pointless thread. Ask 10 people and you'll likely get 10 different answers.

Additionally, both your thread at This is goodbye xenforo *sniffsniff* and your post at https://theadminzone.com/threads/which-forum-software-is-the-best.147142/#post-1115531 above make me question why you bothered to start this thread. Are you just looking for other people to tell you you made the "right" decision? Or are you trying to convince yourself that you made the "right" decision?

 

[haqzore]

This is kind of a pointless thread. Ask 10 people and you'll likely get 10 different answers.

Additionally, both your thread at This is goodbye xenforo *sniffsniff* and your post at https://theadminzone.com/threads/which-forum-software-is-the-best.147142/#post-1115531 above make me question why you bothered to start this thread. Are you just looking for other people to tell you you made the "right" decision? Or are you trying to convince yourself that you made the "right" decision?

This is the never ending recurring question on TAZ.

I think it's interesting to see what the current popular opinion is.

 

[fixer]

This is kind of a pointless thread. Ask 10 people and you'll likely get 10 different answers.

Additionally, both your thread at This is goodbye xenforo *sniffsniff* and your post at https://theadminzone.com/threads/which-forum-software-is-the-best.147142/#post-1115531 above make me question why you bothered to start this thread. Are you just looking for other people to tell you you made the "right" decision? Or are you trying to convince yourself that you made the "right" decision?

it’s just a thread, to see the current climate, sorry im not trying to unlock the secrets of the universe didnt mean to disappoint

 

[Alpha1]

I added 'don't know' to your poll so that people can vote even if they are not sure.

 

[Ummagumma]

I added 'don't know' to your poll so that people can vote even if they are not sure.

I think *in your opinion* to the thread title would be more apt

 

[eva2000]

Forums are like Android phones, mean choosing the best one for your needs also requires looking at their accompanying ecosystem for 3rd party addons, accessories, plugins, development, themes etc.

I'm biased but Xenforo has my vote these days.

Lets just lay it out there, no fan boys, legit responses based on real experiences.

Some may be better than others in certain areas, vote based on POUND FOR POUND outright winner as to which software is the best.

should extend the voting choices to add Vanilla and Discourse too

 

[LeadCrow]

should extend the voting choices to add Vanilla and Discourse too

And nodeBB...
But really, since all solutions in the poll are 'legacy' desktop-first scripts, it might be more insightful to have a separate exchange about these modern mobile-first solutions. I doubt the opinions regarding legacy scripts changed much over time, their continued suitability for purpose has been discussed extensively.

 

[Alpha1]

I added nodeBB, Vanilla, Discourse.

 

[fixer]

I added nodeBB, Vanilla, Discourse.

may want to turn on the ability to change their votes

 

[Tracy Perry]

I added 'don't know' to your poll so that people can vote even if they are not sure.

Need to add "Depends on needs of site".

 

[fixer]

Need to add "Depends on needs of site".

was looking for a general which is better , the argument X is better for Y and Z is best at this has been had again and again , someone is best POUND FOR POUND

 

[Tracy Perry]

was looking for a general which is better , the argument X is better for Y and Z is best at this has been had again and again , someone is best POUND FOR POUND

And some recipes call for a pound of beef... some for a pound of pork.... some for a pound of chicken and some for a pound of lamb.
Point is... recipe depended on what the "pound" is.... site dependent on what the "pound" is.

If one cannot see this, then one is wearing blinders.