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Post by **Phineus** » Sun May 04, 2003 2:26 pm

Our recent round with the flooder has brought up, once again, the topic of whether or not the ol' UBB is adequate to deal with such problems. Accordingly, I've sought out a couple free forums for consideration.

PHPBB - http://www.phpbb.com/phpBB/

This looks friendly, fast and flexible. It uses the php programming language, which I know this ' ' much about. I use php to admin the more complex functions on the current download databases (when not at the command line), which means we know it works but I have limited resources to customize the scripts - tho help is never far away.

Ikonboard - http://forums.ikonboard.com/

We know this one from ObeOne's old Road Rage. It uses the perl programming language, which is the same one the UBB uses and that I've used for the download pages here. It has no admin demo that I could find.

I "should" be able to import the current forum into either. I wouldn't switch if I couldn't.

Things like snitz and yabba are out of the question because they use asp, which is a windows language. The runner ups would be a modern UBB (I don't think so because of price and licensing) or vBulletin (nice but costs money).

If I was to do something like this, it would be a summer project. The biggest downside would be cross referencing track reviews. The up side would be more user choices, and better admin features.

But again, I'm not saying this is a sure change. I bring up the topic for consideration and to hear what anybody else thinks. If I was to change tomorrow, I think I'm leaning toward phpbb because there seems to be an aura of friendliness to it. That said, alternate suggestions are welcome, and there's definitely a plus going with a language I know. I might consider writing my own forum but at this point in time that seems a huge undertaking which amounts to reinventing the wheel when so many competent scripts are freely available. If I was to write my own, I'd probably want to practice on the main mtm bbs first.

Anyway, food for thought. Depending on my schedule, I'll bring this up again in July. Meantime, input is certainly welcome.

Thanks.

ch_2005 · Post by **ch_2005** » Mon May 05, 2003 4:46 am

Whats wrong w/asp?

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Post by **Phineus** » Mon May 05, 2003 5:04 am

This unix server is not equipped to execute asp.

SLO_Jumper · Post by **SLO_Jumper** » Mon May 05, 2003 7:17 am

Wish i could help ya but unfortunatly php ubb or perl mean about the same to me as $#@%$%??&##$% heehhee i guess that make me a follower, so i'll follow witch ever way you go.

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Jumper
Only those who will risk going to far can possibly find out how far one can go.

Edited by SLO_Jumper (08-05-2003)

Psyco · Post by **Psyco** » Mon May 05, 2003 12:29 pm

Hey phin... I highly recomend Vbulitin if u can get it... I'm a mod here http://forum.racesimcentral.com/ and with 20,000 + members it still works wonderful..

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"If it don't hurt, you're not havin fun"

"Bloody hell, I don't Want To Be A Millionaire, I don't want to see people's Greed, I don't want to be a Survivor, Shipwrecked or left on a bloody Treasure Island, and I don't want to know who Big Brother is watching!" - Drive2Survive

"When I read about the evils of drinking, I gave up reading."
Henny Youngman
On The Roof Racing
My Personal Site

Malibu350 · Post by **Malibu350** » Mon May 05, 2003 1:11 pm

>>> 20,000 + members it still works wonderful.

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no wonder heheh

sounds like a pretty nice kick back job there man

HaC · Post by **HaC** » Mon May 05, 2003 10:12 pm

LOL!!!!!!

ur funny mal

phineus, equipt the server to run asp, and thats the bottom line, no excuses, ASP or nothing ha ha just joking, asp would be a pain in the backside to run on a unix server, wouldnt be worth it

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WOWZA!~

SLO_COPE · Post by **SLO_COPE** » Mon May 05, 2003 10:27 pm

Hmmm...I suppose my first question is, how often do we encounter situations whereby we have to deal with flooders like the one we just had? Also, given what that number is...or the probability of encountering more situations of that kind in the future, is it worth the time/effort to make such a move? I suppose the reason I ask is because it seems as though the forum is relatively problem-free, and I have to wonder if undertaking such a labor intensive task is worth the benefits. I see where you mentioned a few drawbacks or what appear to be trade-offs in moving to a different setup, but in the end do you feel the value added is worth it?

Like Jump I'm pretty clueless where forums are concerned, but if the decision is to pack up and move out...I'll help in anyway I can. Got my lawn chair, cooler, umbrella and magazines sitting by the door, so all you gotta do is say the word, Phin - I'll be right there lol. Ok seriously, if there's any manual labor to be done if the decision to move becomes a reality, let me know, bud.

Post by **Phineus** » Tue May 06, 2003 6:56 am

Why we wouldn't. This ol' board has served us for a few years with virtually no problem. Review links and cross reference links would go out of sync.

Why we would. More user features, more admin features (I've hacked this one to the point I don't think many more will be guaranteed to work - tho I'm tickled at the "last post by" which was completely my own). More efficient coding should be faster. Dynamic updating - a sig change appears on all pages automatically, for example. Proper licensing (is a bonus). Somewhat tighter security. Easier backups.

Why no asp. Hac is absolutely right.

re: the work load. Could be a fun challenge. But see, the real problem is not the work it takes to implement, but the time lost whenever these problems occur. If there's one attack a year, I lose a week a year. What if it's more frequent than that? So, if I'm spending the time anyway, why not make it productive.

re: knowing forums or languages. You don't need to know a language beyond that some make it easier and some a bit tougher for me. As for forums themselves, you know what you like. That's sort of like 'not' knowing how to make a track but knowing what you like to race. You don't need to know how to make them. Just like racing.

re: the price. Unless somebody wants to pony up, it has to be free. Expenses are high enough as they are.

psyco's suggestion is a good one. I've seen vbulletin in a few places but it costs. And the updates lately are not moving in a direction I like. Still, suggestions are welcome. I certainly haven't seen all there is to see.

Thanks for the input so far.

Psyco · Post by **Psyco** » Tue May 06, 2003 10:39 am

Well... I havent been holding up my end around here lately... (noticed I'm nolonger a mod... LOL) But as long as its not in the next 3 weeks I could help pay(probobly most or all of it..) for v... (the next 3 weeks I have to save for the cruise I'm goin' on for my senior trip...)

Mal... We had another forum decide to play forum wars... so we locked alot of things to help make our job easyier... (most or all should go back to normal today...)

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"If it don't hurt, you're not havin fun"

"Bloody hell, I don't Want To Be A Millionaire, I don't want to see people's Greed, I don't want to be a Survivor, Shipwrecked or left on a bloody Treasure Island, and I don't want to know who Big Brother is watching!" - Drive2Survive

"When I read about the evils of drinking, I gave up reading."
Henny Youngman
On The Roof Racing
My Personal Site

Stuck_Throttle · Post by **Stuck_Throttle** » Wed May 07, 2003 2:39 am

Hmm. Had to register. Stuck Throttle without the "_" was already taken, but then it said the username didn't exist. Oh, well. Phin, don't forget it is my turn to foot the bill this year. Even though that's not for a little while. Let me know if you need anything bro.

ch_2005 · Post by **ch_2005** » Wed May 07, 2003 3:29 am

it's case sensitive

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Keep on MTMing,
CH_2005 Visit my site

KC · Post by KC » Sat May 10, 2003 1:44 am

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:<HR>Originally posted by HaC:
... asp would be a pain in the backside to run on a unix server, wouldnt be worth it<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
So true.
I looked high and low for a way to do it because Unix hosting is so much cheaper.
All I could find was an Apache plugin that did "most" of .asp's needs on Unix, but there is no Access plugin for it, so no Access database.

I'd go with a PHP setup Phin.
It's got to be easier to work with than Perl!

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It's all how you look at things ©¿©¬

HaC · Post by **HaC** » Sat May 10, 2003 7:01 pm

i tried using perl for the uploader, i soon gave up and learnt a bit of php, php is alot easier to learn than perl, especially in the way of filemanagement...asp sux for it, perl is too hard and php is just right

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WOWZA!~

Post by **Phineus** » Sat May 10, 2003 7:09 pm

> ..asp sux for it, perl is too hard and php is just right

Reminds me of Goldilocks.

Psyco · Post by **Psyco** » Sun May 11, 2003 8:51 am

roflmao.....

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On The Roof Racing
My Personal Site

Post by **Phineus** » Wed May 14, 2003 9:33 am

There's a couple bugs still to work out, but I think we're in business.

http://forum.mtm2.com/

Right now, user profile updating is a problem as is new registrations. But forum review links should be ready to roll. I "think" we'll eventually be moving to this new one. If I can get over these last couple hurdles, there'll be lots of user flexibility and customization options.

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