About vBulletin forum software

**Ab001** · 04-11-2006, 06:19 AM

Hi All,

do you guys know if vBullettin forum software is free to use ?
if not can anyone suggest free, easy to use forum software and Blog software applications ?

thanks in advance.

Ab001

**John** · 04-11-2006, 06:41 AM

vBulletin isn't free to use it costs $85/year to lease or $160 to buy the license. phpbb and Punbb are great free alternatives. Invision Power Board used to be one of the best forums going but I think they charge for it now.

**Chris** · 04-11-2006, 07:07 AM

On the blog front, most of those are free.

**Erin** · 04-11-2006, 09:55 AM

WordPress is free. I use it and like it a lot.

**darker** · 04-11-2006, 10:38 AM

phpbb (www.phpbb.com) is a forum software, free to use. one of (if not the) most used forum software out there.

**AbsoluteKC** · 04-11-2006, 05:22 PM

I used to love phpbb but when I have more and more MODS installed, it become very troublsome when upgrading..

I would definately go for VBulletin if i got the $$$

**Cutter** · 04-11-2006, 09:28 PM

Here is a suggestion, start with phpBB, if you forum takes off drop $85 on vBulletin; its worth every penny. There is software on vBulletin's site that will move phpBB's database to vBulletin.

**etech-martin** · 04-13-2006, 05:48 AM

SMF, phpBB and MyBB all are good free forum softwares. For blogs go for Wordpress.

**s2kinteg916** · 04-15-2006, 08:41 PM

Look at the amount of plugins and hacks available for vbulletin...

Check it out at

http://www.vbulletin.org

**Giles** · 04-16-2006, 05:02 AM

I've had experience with phpBB and myBB:

myBB:

pros
similar to vBulletin
free
advanced system with lost of features

cons
can be complicated
hard if you're not used to it

phpBB:

pros
simple
lots of mods/themes
most people are used to it
popular and widely recognised

cons
not enough features
not very secure(apparently)

Basically, use myBB or vBulletin for an IT community or other web savvy group. If your audience is less skilled then you'd be better off with a simple and better looking phpBB forum.

**john190** · 04-17-2006, 07:20 AM

I have also heard that many people say that phpBB is not very secure. It is only so widely used because there are so many people using it in the first place that they then use it because they see that it is popular so they think it must be the best.

I use it anyway, so I hope all this is not true.

**KLB** · 04-17-2006, 07:41 AM

My take on this is if one plans on doing a forum as a commercial venture, the invest in vBulletin from the start. I personally buy vBulletin licenses and then pay the annual update fee. This can be the most cost effective method in the long run. vBulletin is very well supported and the licensing fees help ensure that development continues for it.

**john190** · 04-17-2006, 07:51 AM

How much is a vBulletin licence? I have two sites that has forums on them. I am currently using phpbb, but would most probably like to change it to vBulletin soon.

**KLB** · 04-17-2006, 08:10 AM

As John pointed out above, vBulletin has two licensing models. It can be either leased for $85 per year or you can buy a license outright for $160 which comes with one year of updates. To continue getting updates after the first year with the outright purchase there is a $30 per year fee. If you plan for the forum to be an ongoing concern, buying the license outright for $160 and then paying the $30 per year update fee will start to save money over the leasing model by year three.

**john190** · 04-17-2006, 08:50 AM

Thanks KLB and John.

It seems that my memory is very short on this thread. I replied to the thread and then I came back to write another post and forget that it was already mentioned.

I think I either have a short memory today or I am going blind. Maybe it is just both. lol

Thanks anyway.