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View Full Version : vBulletin vs FusionBB


KhunSanuk
10-20-2005, 05:19 PM
Hi,

We are currently using UBBT and have been very happy with it. However, InfoPop have dropped the product and it is effectively dead. So, we are seriously considering changing over to another board.

I've looked around a bit and have pretty much narrowed things down to 2 boards.

vBulletin
Pro
- huge community with a massive amount of hacks
- well established product
- very powerfull admin area
Con
- possibly bloated code due to being build upon for several generations
- admin area takes a while to get used to
- templates are stored in the database

FusionBB
Pro
- fully featured board in first generation (i.e. no bloat and lots of SQL optimization -> fast)
- build by the main hackers of UBBT
- lively community with a decent amount of hacks
- very responsive dev team
Con
- new product from a new company, i.e. not well-established yet

I think I am slightly in favor of FusionBB, but have yet to make up my mind. Any feedback would be much appreciated.

Sanuk!
James
10-20-2005, 06:04 PM
vBulletin. I've never even herad of FusionBB, and that says something.
LuckyShima
10-20-2005, 06:42 PM
FusionBB would have to be free to even consider it, but there are other free boards that might be more suitable.
John
10-20-2005, 11:13 PM
I used to be a big fan of invision because it was probably the best free forum going but now you have to pay a yearly license or something so it might tempt me to try phpbb.

If you are looking for something that is light and fast loading check out Punbb @ http://www.punbb.org/
MarkB
10-21-2005, 02:02 AM
vBulletin does not have "possibly bloated code due to being build upon for several generations", since 3.5 is a completely new rewrite.
KhunSanuk
10-21-2005, 06:31 AM
Hi,

Thanks for the comments, but must admit I am a bit taken aback at the immediate dismissal of FusionBB. Have a look at it first ;)

I have used vBulletin (just finished installing / configuring it for a client) and while it seems to work fine, I do think FusionBB has the slight edge.

Was not aware that vB 3.5 was a complete rewrite, I guess that makes the 'possibly bloated code' comment null and void.

Sanuk!
MarkB
10-21-2005, 08:56 AM
Just had a *very* quick look at Fusion - it looks nice (albeit a little generic in look, but don't they all?). One day I'm going to have to install all the major players again and see how they compare.
James
10-21-2005, 05:14 PM
vB has extremely good, well-thought-out and organized code.
etech-martin
10-25-2005, 07:29 AM
IMO, you should go through some more good popular forums and articles. IMO, vBulletin is better. It has much simple and clean code with no bugs virtually. It has good support with many more options configurable via the admin panel. IPB has also good features along with it but don't aware about fusionbb. :)
tony
10-27-2005, 02:09 AM
fusionbb seems to load a lot quicker, although ive only seen it on 1 site so could just be the servers being very good, i think we all know how good vb is but if someone has found another forum rather than slate it straight away it should be given a chance, from what i can see its not a bad forum, ok someone says it looks bland but as they also stated it can easily be changed, i think if your in favour of that you should give it a try.
s2kinteg916
10-27-2005, 08:19 AM
vbulletin is awesome as far as community and longetivity... their new 3.5 system makes hacking and adding mods very easy. I dont have any programing knowledge but i manage to modify my templates extensively and add a load of features... Im amazed people make these threads when vbulletin is so far ahead that no message board will ever catch up... at least in my opinion
tony
10-28-2005, 02:21 AM
vbulletin is awesome as far as community and longetivity... their new 3.5 system makes hacking and adding mods very easy. I dont have any programing knowledge but i manage to modify my templates extensively and add a load of features... Im amazed people make these threads when vbulletin is so far ahead that no message board will ever catch up... at least in my opinion

every dog has its day it wont be long before google bring out a forum :P
James
10-28-2005, 08:00 AM
every dog has its day it wont be long before google bring out a forum :P
I'm not so sure about that. They've got way too much traffic for one. They'd also be basically useless to have forums which are geographically based.

If they have a forum, it'll be substantially different than the kind we use and know about.
Or they'll create a blogger-style forum thing.
MarkB
10-28-2005, 08:47 AM
Perhaps Tony meant they will release their own forum software :)
James
10-28-2005, 07:06 PM
D'oh. >_<
That was dumb of me. But I still think that it would be substantially different than what we're used to.
MarkB
10-28-2005, 10:52 PM
Definitely - Google are outside-the-box thinkers.
tony
10-31-2005, 02:34 PM
yea i meant google to make their own software, it wouldnt surprise me but anyway i quite like the fusion software ive seen, i think however unless i know a bit more about their support and how easy it is to add/make templates and mods, vb might slightly have the edge for the price
izwar
05-01-2006, 12:01 PM
how is PHP BB compared to the other free forums?
MarkB
05-01-2006, 12:04 PM
It's ok, but I think you should consider others first if only because PHPBB is often a target for l33t h4X0rs. ;)
Giles
05-02-2006, 12:07 AM
I have used (not admin) myBB and found it very similar to vbulletin. It is worth checking out.