If You are Thinking Of Buying/Switching to XenForo, Don't...

Business Coach

Active member
Hi,

I own a few Vbulletin Licenses. I have one in particular with lots of members, posts etc. I am doing a total revamp. I need to build a modern community. One that fits with todays socialized network. These were things we were doing to it 3 years ago, with twitter and facebook integration, and back then it was spotty at best.

Vb 3.8 is where we left it, due to heavy modification and styling. Vb 4.anything is totally horrible, not to mention the things they are doing and treating their customers, they pretty much have lost me for life.

So I heard about this xenforo thing from vbulletin of all places. On a thread where Vbulletin was asking about what customers think about their latest release, 90% complained and hate it for one reason or another. Not aesthetics mind you, but FUNCTIONALITY and RELIABILITY.

This is important. I have to ask myself:

How well can the community engage each other?
Will they get frustrated because it is slow or buggy?
How does this fit into modern convergence of web 4.0 (TV/ Video/Internet/Mobile)?
How stable is the base?
How extensible is the base?

So far I will say there seems to be a PORTION of the xen community that is kinda cultish.

It scares me. The founders have become "celebrities" and people are clearly star struck and have drunk the kool aid.

Also, I believe there is a VERY good chance that the stress and difficulty of owning a business, added to the additional stress of legal defense, may end up being too much. Passion only takes you so far. Xen my NOT be around in 2 years.

However they have done some groundbreaking code, which surely some in the future will use as an example to duplicate.

I had to make a choice between IPB and Xenforum. These are the only two real options today. Free boards are NOT a question. They suck. Period. From development, support etc. "Free" has a very high cost. Free is definitely for people who do not value their time and resources.

IPB has a history, and most likely is not going anywhere anytime soon. And it has an almost out of the box, all you need for $500 to own the full license.

Since I heard about this on friday i have poked around, made some posts etc. Can't say I am exactly happy with what is here.

The development community has not really embraced this outside thier own testing. TO be fair, stable release 1.0 has not been released yet, so that is probably wise on their part. Especially from an upgrade/support perspective.

In the end, after much research I finally made a decision, this morning. And I purchased a license for what I feel is going to be best FOR THE FUTURE.

In a competitive marketplace, you must be competitive. And so, there was only one thing that TRULY fit that bill.

So, If you are like I was, just an hour ago; thinking of buying or switching to xenforo, then don't bother wasting another minute of your time on this post.

Just go ahead and do it. I did. Click that shopping cart button and get it. No it does not have every feature you need, but I have seen even in a scaled down version, rocks.

Take a risk if you feel that is what it is. It is what we business people and hobbyist do.

Think about it, if you have the option of a touch screen smart phone, why settle for a flip phone?

I have the privilege of being trained by and affilaited with the #1 marketer in history. If someone were to get coaching from me (at $300 per hour) then I would RECOMMEND they switch and get xenforum as their framework.

For what it is worth, xen will give you a competitive edge in your niche, and that is PRICELESS.

Best to you in all your endeavors.

Remember to Picture Your Success!

Maurice Evans, Business Coach
Certified Guerrilla Marketing Trainer
 
KIER DARBY! KIER DARBY! KIER DARBY!

KIER!

DARBY!

biggrin.png
LOLZ
 
Upon reading the title, it gave me a weird speculation as to what they didn't like about the site. I'm not one of those people that go around saying "I love this site, so you should too!", I do keep things a bit more reasonable: If this site doesn't suite your needs, pick something else, but keep an eye on here as this is just a child.
So I like to see what points the person is making before I start to speak. What I found in your first post was very...odd, yes that would be the word. A business coach who purchased something that is not in a final release after only exploring it for a few days and still haven't tested out all the features yet?!? That's a bit bizarre! You just buy a new car, from a new company just because people said it's good, you need to find out for yourself, test drive it and play with all the features until they break (if you like it, return the car and say you want a different colour :D ).
Having said that, all of your points are very valid and true!
Anyone interested needs to head to the Test Thread area and play with all the features! You'll see how fluid this site looks and feels, experience the edge that will make your site/forum stand out above the rest, even if you are just running a site as a hobby. Why be like everyone else?
If you can't smell a great change in the air upon visiting this site, then that mean I really need to clean my laundry hamper out.
 
I was glad to see the resolution at the bottom of the OP. I was a bit worried about our responsibility for buyer's remorse given B.C's comment in the Brainstorming thread! ;)

I like the hook in the title to get the reader of the thread immediately involved and the way it evolved in the OP. But I probably would have restated the title again at the end, with the concluding bit being something like:
If You are Thinking Of Buying/Switching to XenForo, Then Don't Think About It... Just Do It! :)
 
Upon reading the title, it gave me a weird speculation as to what they didn't like about the site. I'm not one of those people that go around saying "I love this site, so you should too!", I do keep things a bit more reasonable: If this site doesn't suite your needs, pick something else, but keep an eye on here as this is just a child.
So I like to see what points the person is making before I start to speak. What I found in your first post was very...odd, yes that would be the word. A business coach who purchased something that is not in a final release after only exploring it for a few days and still haven't tested out all the features yet?!? That's a bit bizarre! You just buy a new car, from a new company just because people said it's good, you need to find out for yourself, test drive it and play with all the features until they break (if you like it, return the car and say you want a different colour :D ).
Having said that, all of your points are very valid and true!
Anyone interested needs to head to the Test Thread area and play with all the features! You'll see how fluid this site looks and feels, experience the edge that will make your site/forum stand out above the rest, even if you are just running a site as a hobby. Why be like everyone else?
If you can't smell a great change in the air upon visiting this site, then that mean I really need to clean my laundry hamper out.

hahaha....well i definitely did a lot more research and private conversations (not just on this forum either) before making the purchase. I may have oversimplified the process a little.

Not to mention that was all freestyle first draft :p

I was glad to see the resolution at the bottom of the OP. I was a bit worried about our responsibility for buyer's remorse given B.C's comment in the Brainstorming thread! ;)

I like the hook in the title to get the reader of the thread immediately involved and the way it evolved in the OP. But I probably would have restated the title again at the end, with the concluding bit being something like:
If You are Thinking Of Buying/Switching to XenForo, Then Don't Think About It... Just Do It! :)

I thought I DID...it is in bold :)
 
I thought I DID...it is in bold :)

Sort of... but you changed the text enough from the title to the re-iteration that it loses a bit of the *punch* factor of a near direct repetition IMO.

Title:
If You are Thinking Of Buying/Switching to XenForo, Then Don't...

Conclusion:


"So, If you are like I was, just an hour ago; thinking of buying or switching to xenforo, then don't bother wasting another minute of your time on this post. "

vs.

"If You are Thinking Of Buying/Switching to XenForo, Then Don't Think About It... Just Do It!"

Mostly personal preference, and more a tweak than anything else, but that's what jumped into my head weh I read through the OP :).

In any case, good job, I agree, and looking forward to a bright future!

(Though we'll have to wait a bit and do some prep-work first. Might still end up in IPS, though both Susan and I are strongly leaning towards XF. :) )
 
I'll admit, the post title angered me a bit. It's a good thing I read first, before replying, lol.
Excellent post.

Welcome to XenForo!

Ditto.

The title got me a treat, I was thinking (a) he's only been here 5 minutes and (b) I tried to help in a PC exchange and he seemed OK and keen on xF, what a Bar-Stewart. :mad: / :D
 
Sort of... but you changed the text enough from the title to the re-iteration that it loses a bit of the *punch* factor of a near direct repetition IMO.

Title:
If You are Thinking Of Buying/Switching to XenForo, Then Don't...

Conclusion:


"So, If you are like I was, just an hour ago; thinking of buying or switching to xenforo, then don't bother wasting another minute of your time on this post. "

vs.

"If You are Thinking Of Buying/Switching to XenForo, Then Don't Think About It... Just Do It!"

Mostly personal preference, and more a tweak than anything else, but that's what jumped into my head weh I read through the OP :).

In any case, good job, I agree, and looking forward to a bright future!

(Though we'll have to wait a bit and do some prep-work first. Might still end up in IPS, though both Susan and I are strongly leaning towards XF. :) )

oh i gotcha....maybe if there was an affiliate program or something, i definitely would have put a much stronger call to action...and more than once! ;)

Someone already thought I was a shill. lol


Ditto.

The title got me a treat, I was thinking (a) he's only been here 5 minutes and (b) I tried to help in a PC exchange and he seemed OK and keen on xF, what a Bar-Stewart. :mad: / :D

glad we can still be friends :)
 
I have to admit that I have been going back and forth over and over - should I buy vBulletin? It is the most popular software. It's got a long history, (Yes I know the developers are here) and I do like the idea of CMS. But I have to admit I am somewhat of a techno-tard, and as such - this software seems like it might be a bit more for the developer, and not necessarily for those of us that have somewhat reasonable intelligence, but aren't necessarily programmers either?

I have to admit there are some really friggin' cool things here from what I have seen so far. To be honest - the one thing that I am looking for is an easy way to add .flv video to a post. (My forum will have about 30 static posts that have .flv, I know it can be done on VB, but everything I read suggests it's a *****.) As a side note, I only chose flv for size - I use Camtasia to record, and can do any of those formats......I would also only like the ability to do it - I don't need the readers to be able to pull that off either.

I have to admit, this is kind of confusing. Some of us aren't as educated about the world of forums as the rest of you. I do have a phpBB board at the moment, and truthfully - I haven't been overly impressed. It does the trick - but nothing worth writing home about.

Chris
 
I have to admit that I have been going back and forth over and over - should I buy vBulletin? It is the most popular software. It's got a long history, (Yes I know the developers are here) and I do like the idea of CMS. But I have to admit I am somewhat of a techno-tard, and as such - this software seems like it might be a bit more for the developer, and not necessarily for those of us that have somewhat reasonable intelligence, but aren't necessarily programmers either?

I have to admit there are some really friggin' cool things here from what I have seen so far. To be honest - the one thing that I am looking for is an easy way to add .flv video to a post. (My forum will have about 30 static posts that have .flv, I know it can be done on VB, but everything I read suggests it's a *****.) As a side note, I only chose flv for size - I use Camtasia to record, and can do any of those formats......I would also only like the ability to do it - I don't need the readers to be able to pull that off either.

I have to admit, this is kind of confusing. Some of us aren't as educated about the world of forums as the rest of you. I do have a phpBB board at the moment, and truthfully - I haven't been overly impressed. It does the trick - but nothing worth writing home about.

Chris


DO NOT BUY VB

it SAYS it has a CMS...it does not...not anything properly functioning anyway.

Ask yourself this...why is the VB forum have "feedback" and "support" CLOSED to people who do not have a license. I will tell you why, and you will find out if you purchase...because it is full of complaints and unhappy people, and they don't want you to see that.


oh and you got exactly what you paid for with php BB :p

as far as the technical end.

Your concern was my concern. Except I COULD do it, i just don't have the time or inclination to. I have other things to do. Thats why I hire people.

You will find for the non techie, due to the fact they are using CSS, this may be easier to LEARN than vB

I am sure someone can code a way for you to embed an flv into a custom player as long as your server supports it. There is a lot of that code around. The issue is just how easy you want the front end to be for you to manage the files (the easier it is to use, the more complex the code in the back)

Making permission so only you can do it won't be a problem

See...i speak regular person AND techie.
 
DO NOT BUY VB

it SAYS it has a CMS...it does not...not anything properly functioning anyway.

Ask yourself this...why is the VB forum have "feedback" and "support" CLOSED to people who do not have a license. I will tell you why, and you will find out if you purchase...because it is full of complaints and unhappy people, and they don't want you to see that.


oh and you got exactly what you paid for with php BB :p

as far as the technical end.

Your concern was my concern. Except I COULD do it, i just don't have the time or inclination to. I have other things to do. Thats why I hire people.

You will find for the non techie, due to the fact they are using CSS, this may be easier to LEARN than vB

I am sure someone can code a way for you to embed an flv into a custom player as long as your server supports it. There is a lot of that code around. The issue is just how easy you want the front end to be for you to manage the files (the easier it is to use, the more complex the code in the back)

Making permission so only you can do it won't be a problem

See...i speak regular person AND techie.


Truthfully, I am looking for something similar in functionality (plus the handful of posts I will have video for) as the forum site http://www.forexfactory.com - including the ability to have the rotating ads. I really like some of the things that this forum seems to offer. To be honest, if the place had a call center - I could ask a handful of questions and be satisfied I believe. I am also interested in changing the look, and have seen some postings about this, so I think that will be a non-issue as well. (As a note - the above site uses VB3.8 I believe.)

Is there a way to make a front page that points to the forum and does things like update the "latest blog post" "latest articles" etc, etc.....

I know this is a forum only, and in theory - if VB4 actually did what it says it does - I would buy it right now. (But I am starting to read more and more about it's issues around the net.)

Chris
 
Oh and the best thing of all it only took me about 2 hours to do it, where as with vbulletin I'd have been planning for months.

lol it took me years figuring out about my project how to make things work with vb & well it took me 5days overall to finish /achieve what i was aiming for once i got my xf license :p

XF is already more then stable but still waiting till it hits Gold Release so can sit back and have fun updating everything properly even i am not expecting big changes probably few new addon's & who knows Devs here might surprise us again in Gold Release with some ass kicking features.
 
But I have to admit I am somewhat of a techno-tard, and as such - this software seems like it might be a bit more for the developer, and not necessarily for those of us that have somewhat reasonable intelligence, but aren't necessarily programmers either?

Hi Chris, welcome to XenForo!
wavesmile.gif


Hun, I am not a developer, and couldn't program my way out of a box. The developers made this software extremely easy for the end user. Of course, if you're not familiar with it, it does have a learning curve.
So does a game of checkers. ;)

Once you get used to where everything is, and what does what, and where, you'll be ok.
Trust me, you'll like XenForo.
 
MIKE SULLIVAN! MIKE SULLIVAN! MIKE SULLIVAN!

MIKE

SULLIVAN!

...because without him, you'd have a great UI into a steaming turd.
Yes!

I think there should be an automated replacement that sees the Text string "Kier Darby" and replaces it with "Mike Sullivan" 50% of the time on the XF forum. ;)

I try hard in my posts to alternate saying "Kier and Mike" with "Mike and Kier". We need to recognize the awesomeness that is our resident Regexian! :: raises a virtual glass of Duvel ::
 
MIKE SULLIVAN! MIKE SULLIVAN! MIKE SULLIVAN!

MIKE

SULLIVAN!

...because without him, you'd have a great UI into a steaming turd.
Sounds like Windows Vista.
erm, minus the great ;)

Is true to say Mike doesn't get the recognition he deserves, but you do seem to be somewhat of a front man Kier, we don't see Mike doing a video voice over ;)
 
I thought this thread was going to be a totally different direction than it actually is! Well done for your purchase, and yes we do all worship at the (bare) feet of the Devs, but only because they have earnt that devotion ;)

Coming from the IPB world, I thought this software was interesting, but it couldn't be as good as IPB, Within a few short weeks I had fallen deeply in love with it, and now 6 months later, cannot bear to use any other forum software, whilst there are things I would like added, I am sure they will be there eventually, and the wait is worth it for how much more engaging Xenforo is!.

I can feel a muffin squash coming on!!!!
 
Sounds like Windows Vista.
erm, minus the great ;)

Is true to say Mike doesn't get the recognition he deserves, but you do seem to be somewhat of a front man Kier, we don't see Mike doing a video voice over ;)
I get the impression that Mike is happy with the status quo. He's a shy guy.
 
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