New msg board software - Dallas-Mavs.com Forums

djb · 08-21-2001, 12:21 PM

I'm thinking of switching to a different message board program to run this site and wanted to get some input from all of you. I really like the program this site is currently using but unfortunately it's very expensive to maintain it. The software has cost me nearly $300 while having the site hosted runs nearly 8 times the cost of my other personal sites. Combine that with the fact that I'm not making any money whatsoever and I'm sure you can understand why I'm contemplating a change.

Anyway, the board I'm thinking of switching to is probably the most popular one currently available. It's highly flexible and customizable, and sites such as ClutchCity have even switched to it. The program is called vBulletin, and I encourage you all to check out a couple sites running it. Let me know what you all think of it. If the majority of you guys don't like it, then I'll look for another way to keep the existing board.

vBulletin Community Forum
ClutchCity BBS

Murphy3 · 08-21-2001, 12:39 PM

looks pretty good to me

LonestarROB · 08-21-2001, 12:45 PM

Looks good. It'd be sad to see this board go though.

Murphy3 · 08-21-2001, 01:26 PM

yeah..this has always been my favorite board by far..but i'm sure the changes won't sour that at all...

just as long as it's as user friendly as this one

Rhylan · 08-21-2001, 02:01 PM

dj,

For what reasons does this site cost so much more to host? I used to work for an ISP/Hosting place. I might be able to help.

djb · 08-21-2001, 02:41 PM

Hosting costs a lot for this site because this board requires Cold Fusion and an MSSQL database. Most host providers that offer those features charge $99 and above. The "cheaper" ones are still at least $50 a month, not including fees for excess traffic. If you happen to know of anyone who can host this site at a reasonable rate, please let me know! The company I'm thinking of switching to currently doesn't offer Cold Fusion, so unless they manage to get a copy of the program, I'll have to either stick with my current host or switch to vBulletin, which can be run in a unix environment with a MySQL backend.

Rhylan · 08-21-2001, 03:57 PM

The place I used to work for has an MS SQL Server. All of their web servers are Win 2000 running IIS. Check them out at http://www.htcomp.net. They also run a Lotus Domino server but they're trying to move away from that, mostly because the boss and I are the only two that know how to design sites with it. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

I noticed vBulletin uses php. php can be used in conjunction with MSSQL. One of my classes just did it as part of a project in summer school, on a 2000 server. You might want to check and see if it can be done with vBulletin. I know that the software needed on a Win2k server for interpreting php is pretty insignificant. If you could make vBulletin run on Win2k, I could guarantee that they'd be able to beat $50/month. Maybe with a small setup fee, since I don't think they have any clients using php at the moment.

They usually charge $25/month, with no setup fee. If you can give me some stats on the size of the site, traffic, etc, I can talk to them and see if they'll be strict about charging extra. They host hundreds of domains that don't really get any traffic. Mostly small businesses that want a site. So, they advertise 20MB of space for that price. But, between you and me and the rest of the board, I know for a fact that a good number of their sites are much bigger than that and get more traffic, and they sometimes don't mind turning the other cheek when it's a site they can brag on, like this one would be. Some do pay more, though. Hopefully I can help you with that issue.

Of course, it's all contingent upon being able to run it on their servers. They don't have ColdFusion. What they do have is what I described above, and a willingness to try new things as long as they don't cost $5 grand like ColdFusion. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

djb · 08-21-2001, 04:43 PM

Thanks for the info man! I'll be sure to check them out. Right now I'm waiting on a friend's host, who says he could host everything for a relatively cheap price if he can just get his hands on a copy of Cold Fusion. If that doesn't happen, then I'll most likely switch to vBulletin and go with the cheapest/most reliable provider I can find. The amount of traffic the board generates isn't that much when compared to other sites, since there are currently only 242 members. But my current host only allows 5GB xfer a month (not enough during the regular season). I've halted development of the site but I do still plan on getting a news feature and stats db up sometime in the near future. Adding those would surely cause an increase in bandwidth. So I could be paying a lot more in the upcoming months if I don't figure something out soon.

Rhylan · 08-21-2001, 05:19 PM

Well, send me an e-mail if you need to start shopping. I'll make some calls for you.

big_pth · 08-21-2001, 05:45 PM

You could always go with the very cheap (read:free) WWWboard software...free is pretty good

NotEnuffEyesToSee · 08-23-2001, 09:14 AM

big_pth, long time, glad to see you again [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img] ...

big_pth · 08-23-2001, 09:53 AM

I hang around, just too busy to post much...But I like to keep an eye on what's happening here...

gmoore96mav · 08-24-2001, 10:59 AM

http://www.jw5designs.com/scripts/forum/index.php?gid=2

email me for the script, its free and very customizable.

gmoore96mav@jw5designs.com

gmoore96mav · 08-24-2001, 11:01 AM

I think the scripts are identical but the company that made the one I use is helpful with many addons.

djb · 08-24-2001, 12:02 PM

Thanks man! I'll be sure to take a look at it. Seems there's a ton of free boards out there now. My friend just opened a new site, Opinionize.com, and he uses phpBB. I'm still waiting on a possible new host who said they might be able to take on this board for a much lower monthly fee.