Our own company web forum?
I work for a medium sized company with 60 branches statewide, and I've been talking to HQ about considering collaborative support systems such as Web-based forums. Up to 200 people might use it.
What are my options and what direction would be best?
I could possibly build a forum system into our existing web site, in which case, what tools and options are available?
Another direction might be to consider using an external company that manages web forums. There are so many web forums out there that there must be online companies that manage these sorts of things. What are my options in this regard, and what are some example companies that I might consider?
Thanks for any advice.
Megan posted this at 13:20 — 4th September 2007.
She has: 11,421 posts
Joined: Jun 1999
Setting up a forum is not difficult. Unless you're really afraid of setting up a MySQL database then it's really not a big problem. I would recommend a simple forum system such as vanilla or punBB. To integrate into your existing site you'll just need to figure out how to customize the templates to match your site.
If you want someone to do the installation and customization for you, try posting in our Help Wanted area. I'm sure someone would be able to help you out.
Megan
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pr0gr4mm3r posted this at 16:41 — 5th September 2007.
He has: 1,502 posts
Joined: Sep 2006
phpBB is another good one.
MrCat posted this at 18:42 — 7th September 2007.
They have: 151 posts
Joined: Aug 2007
Vbulletin is also an option
Hombro posted this at 06:44 — 10th September 2007.
They have: 3 posts
Joined: Sep 2007
Thanks Everybody. You've given me plenty to work with.
- Hombro.
Megan posted this at 13:44 — 10th September 2007.
She has: 11,421 posts
Joined: Jun 1999
vBulletin sucks. Way overkill for a small forum anyway. Way overkill for a big forum
For a small forum like that I'd recommend Vanilla first. Clean, simple, easy to use. phpBB might be good if you want a few more options - vanilla doesn't come with a lot of extras but you can install add-ons that extend the functionality. I don't know how easy those are to install but I'm guessing they wouldn't be a problem. Both are open source and Vanilla is standards compliant.
Megan
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pr0gr4mm3r posted this at 13:47 — 10th September 2007.
He has: 1,502 posts
Joined: Sep 2006
Funny how the forum administrator disapproves of the forum system that's used on the site.
greg posted this at 17:23 — 11th September 2007.
He has: 1,581 posts
Joined: Nov 2005
maybe Bill Gates gets angry at annoyanes with XP too
Megan posted this at 17:32 — 11th September 2007.
She has: 11,421 posts
Joined: Jun 1999
It's a legacy issue. We're working on correcting that
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