My opinion on SMF

[Golden_Helmet]

To be brief, this is the BEST forum software i've EVER used. I've never been able to install a forum myself, that is, untill i tried SMF. I've used quite a few forums in my time, and this one definetly tops them all.

Now, in to more detail. I'm fairly new to the world of installable forums (i used to think that if you wanted a forum, you had to code it yourself, good times ).When compared to my previous long-time favorite, Invision Power Board, the invision board seems as bad as that crummy phpBB board that php-nuke installed for me. When used on the same host (dhost.info is my fav), my old Invision Power Board 2.0 PF3 took an average of 0.3-1.6 seconds to create the page. With SMF, my average time is 0.02-0.3 seconds. Quite a nice difference. As far as SQL goes, i was getting SQL errors on my second day with IPB, i'm on day 4 with SMF and i havent had a single problem yet (and i havent optimized yet either).
Installation was also quite easy, and it would have been even easier is my damn FTP program would work right for a change. Asides from having php-nuke's phpbb module install some phpbb forums for me, i've never installed a forum myself before. With SMF though, even me, a complete idiot, was able to get a fully functional forum running in less than 15 minutes.
Let's have a look at things from an admins point of veiw now. The admin CP is easy to use, dosent take forever to load *shakes fist at Invision*, and i can do so much customization that i'm getting lightheaded.
Now, from a client's point of veiw. It may take a while to find the "Post new topic" button, but other than that, theres plenty of toy's for clients to play with in their profile controls, post options, and so on. SMF is fun to use as both an admin and a client, who could be displeased with that?
Now, for features, did you guys ever consider holding back on that? I mean, come on, this is a free forum, and it has more toy's than any pay-for forum that i've ever seen, it's just not fair (for them)

To wrap things up, SMF is fun, easy to use, powerfull, free, and everything in-between. Who could ask more? You guys did a great job on this forum system, i honestly didn't think there was anything better than IPB

[GiNi3D]

Now, for features, did you guys ever consider holding back on that? I mean, come on, this is a free forum, and it has more toy's than any pay-for forum that I've ever seen, it's just not fair (for them)

Have you heard of the saying, >> The best things in life are FREE...

First and foremost, one thing that SMF is trying to do here is to give the product an equivalent argument against vBulletin and IPB, so you can imagine that it's a serious shot here, they are going against the big guys. And I have a filling that if SMF is used by a few VERY big forum, the waves of SMF downloads will start, but for now I see only small forums from SMF, sad, but hey! SMF is young and the future seems bright enough.

[Elijah Bliss]

Now, for features, did you guys ever consider holding back on that? I mean, come on, this is a free forum, and it has more toy's than any pay-for forum that I've ever seen, it's just not fair (for them)

Have you heard of the saying, >> The best things in life are FREE...

First and foremost, one thing that SMF is trying to do here is to give the product an equivalent argument against vBulletin and IPB, so you can imagine that it's a serious shot here, they are going against the big guys. And I have a filling that if SMF is used by a few VERY big forum, the waves of SMF downloads will start, but for now I see only small forums from SMF, sad, but hey! SMF is young and the future seems bright enough.

What constitutes a small/large forum? Hits? Posts per day? Total posts?

[Golden_Helmet]

Now, for features, did you guys ever consider holding back on that? I mean, come on, this is a free forum, and it has more toy's than any pay-for forum that I've ever seen, it's just not fair (for them)

Have you heard of the saying, >> The best things in life are FREE...

First and foremost, one thing that SMF is trying to do here is to give the product an equivalent argument against vBulletin and IPB, so you can imagine that it's a serious shot here, they are going against the big guys. And I have a filling that if SMF is used by a few VERY big forum, the waves of SMF downloads will start, but for now I see only small forums from SMF, sad, but hey! SMF is young and the future seems bright enough.

lol, i was being sarcastic

[GiNi3D]

What constitutes a small/large forum? Hits? Posts per day? Total posts?

All of the above, I'm talking about a big forum in the terms "renowned"

I know that in this next link, not all the worlds forums are displayed, but it gives you an idea where SMF stands at this moment, if you want to skip the search, look at the 106 position (thought the position changes)

http://www.big-boards.com/index.php?type=others

Who cares where they are, it's up to us SMF users to make it big, just like users made phpbb big.

Us we know that SMF is good, we are in it, but people when making choices, they need examples.
To give you an example, I found out about SMF when I went on the Coppermine photo gallery forum, I liked the look, and clicked on the bottom SMF link, the rest is history...
Imagine if Coppermine didn't have SMF, imagine that big chunk of people that didn't come to SMF?

So my point here is... Elijah I don't know why you asked me that question?
But my answer is yes, it's important for a board system to be seen with very big "renowned" forums.   


EDIT>>>

lol, i was being sarcastic

It was too superficial...LOL, it's a joke,  welcome to SMF by the way!

[[Unknown]]

Hmm... eldaronline.  Haven't talked to Purple Raine in forever.  We really need to get that upgraded!

Actually, once SMF hits 1.0 I'd like to have a user campaign (if anyone's interested) to get people to upgrade their YaBB SE forums.  This means writing any mods they're attached to for SMF, etc.... but there are YaBB SE forums out there that are decent size, and should be SMF by all rights .

Big forums help a lot though, yes.  There are other things that help a lot too, and we're working on them... shhh.

To wrap things up, SMF is fun, easy to use, powerfull, free, and everything in-between. Who could ask more? You guys did a great job on this forum system, i honestly didn't think there was anything better than IPB

Thanks.  We do try.  And you're right - one of the biggest problems is discoverability... many people don't know about SMF, and some know about it but don't want to use it because it's still in the release candidate phase.  We're getting awfully close, though.

In regards to the message you sent me, I did read it but I'd like to wait to see a little more before I respond to it.

-[Unknown]

[Golden_Helmet]

yea, most forums i've seen are running stuff like vbulletin, phpBB (god i hate this forum), IPB, and so on. asides from this forum and my own forum, i've hardly seen any sites running this software. i've seen a few YaBBSE boards, but no SMF. in fact, if someone hadnt have mentioned this system to me, i wouldent be here right now. i'll have to tell my freinds about this system, then have them spread the word. SMF WILL ONE DAY RULE THE WORLD!! MWAHAHAHAHA.... err.... i mean, one day SMF will be the world standard, yea, thats what i meant... *clears throat nervously, then leaves the room in a hurry*

[Elijah Bliss]

What constitutes a small/large forum? Hits? Posts per day? Total posts?

All of the above, I'm talking about a big forum in the terms "renowned"

I know that in this next link, not all the worlds forums are displayed, but it gives you an idea where SMF stands at this moment, if you want to skip the search, look at the 106 position (thought the position changes)

http://www.big-boards.com/index.php?type=others

Who cares where they are, it's up to us SMF users to make it big, just like users made phpbb big.

Us we know that SMF is good, we are in it, but people when making choices, they need examples.
To give you an example, I found out about SMF when I went on the Coppermine photo gallery forum, I liked the look, and clicked on the bottom SMF link, the rest is history...
Imagine if Coppermine didn't have SMF, imagine that big chunk of people that didn't come to SMF?

So my point here is... Elijah I don't know why you asked me that question?
But my answer is yes, it's important for a board system to be seen with very big "renowned" forums.   


EDIT>>>

lol, i was being sarcastic

It was too superficial...LOL, it's a joke,  welcome to SMF by the way!

Well I asked because I had no idea what a "big" forum was and where my forum stacked up. In a few days I'll have over 500,000 posts, and next month my forum will be 1 year old. I'll sign up to Big Boards.com, even though I will be last in the rankings, but if that little helps get this forum on the map then great.

Hats off to the developers of SMF for putting stability and speed over everything else.

I have quite a few fast and furious posters (meaning they post like crazy) in my forum, I get kudos from many praising me about how my forum is always up and how it never crashes, that's when I refer them here to SMF. I personally know 2 people who took my advice and junked their other forums for SMF.

I see SMF becoming the top forum software in the near future. I know what I am about to say won't sit well with many here, but I do believe eventually SMF should charge everyone for downloading their forum software.

[[Unknown]]

Not a chance:

http://www.google.com/search?q="I, Unknown W. Brackets, would rue the day SMF was not free"

-[Unknown]

[Amacythe]

LOL

I had to wait to see just how you would reply to that... I already knew the answer would be no... just how you would say it really had me curious

[Elijah Bliss]

Not a chance:

http://www.google.com/search?q="I, Unknown W. Brackets, would rue the day SMF was not free"

-[Unknown]

lol. A developer with principle. It's hard to find anyone who stands for anything these days, but hey, I am looking out for the developers, I am of the firm belief that people should be compensated for a job very well done. Now if the current system is treating you guys well, then more power to you and keep up the good work!

[GiNi3D]

Well I asked because I had no idea what a "big" forum was and where my forum stacked up. In a few days I'll have over 500,000 posts...

Well with 500,000 posts, you definitely have the status of a big forum, and you should put your board in that big-board list (if free).

Next month my forum will be 1 year old.

Congratulations in advance! And continue the great job.

Hmm... eldaronline.  Haven't talked to Purple Raine in forever.  We really need to get that upgraded!...

Eldaronline definitely needs an upgrade, but at the same time, it's funny to see him use the Beta4 and doesn't complain about it, proof that SMF as a solid base. 

yea, most forums i've seen are running stuff like vbulletin, phpBB (god i hate this forum) , IPB, and so on.

Yap! phpBB is loosing it, that board was cool back then, but time kills, and they are very, very late with the new 2.2.
But at this stage my choice is done, when time comes for my sites grand opening as we say, SMF will be the deployed board. 

[Oldiesmann]

Whoever runs that SMF board (currently at position 105) needs to update its profile

[Louis (CSpotkill)]

Actually, once SMF hits 1.0 I'd like to have a user campaign (if anyone's interested) to get people to upgrade their YaBB SE forums.  This means writing any mods they're attached to for SMF, etc.... but there are YaBB SE forums out there that are decent size, and should be SMF by all rights .

Laughs.

Who's starting www.spreadSMF.com then? :p

[Elijah Bliss]

Well I asked because I had no idea what a "big" forum was and where my forum stacked up. In a few days I'll have over 500,000 posts...

Well with 500,000 posts, you definitely have the status of a big forum, and you should put your board in that big-board list (if free).

Next month my forum will be 1 year old.

Congratulations in advance! And continue the great job.

Thanks! I wouldn't consider my forum a "big" forum compared to those forums on Big Board, those forums are HUGE.

[Burpee]

(Off-Topic)

http://www.big-boards.com/index.php?type=others

Hmm... Dutch people seem to be forum addicts... 4th and 10th spot taken up by Dutch forums

[roboter88]

Well i used em all :-P

And like when something gets commercial or becomes the monopol things start to get very very boring ...mostly.

eg.
phpNuke i started with 4.x when i installed 5.x i noticed 90% of the sits on www. use CMS oriantating on phpNuke and all the clones and things got boring cause it wasnt special anymore.

Or bbs who want hard cash for their work...i hear always people saying hej come on vB is so coool...bla bla...no its not!

I as the user the hall community make s what its is. So to exist companys must find a way for making their product good and recive money from people who can afford eg charter members.

I would never pay for a bbs which i just installed! Even if its a stable version which features who other dont have.

People must understand that everything what charges is out of time and this way they support this!
I dont want support commercial based projects where i as the user help testing em by installing em routines.
People must understand that the oldschool capitalism mechanism not compatibel with the www. not even with the real world!
No its on us to make the change and stop the capitalism in www.
Also even if they can balance it its a big step back cause u slower your growth rate. This effect the hall project expotential even effect the hall www cause other would start also charging or thej dont use it.

With commercial i mean charging for installing your software. Commercial i mean no offering doante and such a like.

IF SOME1 IS SATISFIED WITH YOUR WORKY AND CAN AFFORD HE WILL DO.

This is why evry 2nd project site has a donation button cause wise people understand this mechanism i mentioned above and it is liek a religion.

Of course you could make everything chargable but then the www becomes only a place for people who could afford and it would be very very boring cause good ideas need no money! (refer to latest blockbuster cinematics). Also the poor would crash this commercial networking cause it would be like ms vs linux like :-)

People must realize the internet is like a timemachine...its always ahead cause its free...all services who charge oriantating on systems made 100 hundreds years ago.

The www is like a libery where all mankind can contribute as more contribute as more human race gets ahead.

Now i choosed SMF cause its free logical nice community and shows us all how you can do such a project without charging for just participating in this evolutionary process of creating a platform for communication inside a virtual world.

It got spirit it has future!

cheers

[Elijah Bliss]

Well i used em all :-P

And like when something gets commercial or becomes the monopol things start to get very very boring ...mostly.

eg.
phpNuke i started with 4.x when i installed 5.x i noticed 90% of the sits on www. use CMS oriantating on phpNuke and all the clones and things got boring cause it wasnt special anymore.

Or bbs who want hard cash for their work...i hear always people saying hej come on vB is so coool...bla bla...no its not!

I as the user the hall community make s what its is. So to exist companys must find a way for making their product good and recive money from people who can afford eg charter members.

I would never pay for a bbs which i just installed! Even if its a stable version which features who other dont have.

People must understand that everything what charges is out of time and this way they support this!
I dont want support commercial based projects where i as the user help testing em by installing em routines.
People must understand that the oldschool capitalism mechanism not compatibel with the www. not even with the real world!
No its on us to make the change and stop the capitalism in www.
Also even if they can balance it its a big step back cause u slower your growth rate. This effect the hall project expotential even effect the hall www cause other would start also charging or thej dont use it.

With commercial i mean charging for installing your software. Commercial i mean no offering doante and such a like.

IF SOME1 IS SATISFIED WITH YOUR WORKY AND CAN AFFORD HE WILL DO.

This is why evry 2nd project site has a donation button cause wise people understand this mechanism i mentioned above and it is liek a religion.

Of course you could make everything chargable but then the www becomes only a place for people who could afford and it would be very very boring cause good ideas need no money! (refer to latest blockbuster cinematics). Also the poor would crash this commercial networking cause it would be like ms vs linux like :-)

People must realize the internet is like a timemachine...its always ahead cause its free...all services who charge oriantating on systems made 100 hundreds years ago.

The www is like a libery where all mankind can contribute as more contribute as more human race gets ahead.

Now i choosed SMF cause its free logical nice community and shows us all how you can do such a project without charging for just participating in this evolutionary process of creating a platform for communication inside a virtual world.

It got spirit it has future!

cheers

^ This goes way beyond the scope of what I was talking about.

Whether the internet stays free from "old school" capitalism or not, at the end of the day we all have to eat and bills have to get paid.

Pardon me for suggesting something as preposterous and archaic as "paying" developers for their time and hard work.

What was I thinking.

[roboter88]

as i mentioned the conclusion therfor is getting paid by donation or with charter members model which extra support and on...

And with capitalism i mean that everybody has to pay which is not the case and of course i would agree also commercial projects should pay a fair price but all should be very low calculated. In the end you get more cause mor epeople can afford then just a few.

Oh and this is my opinion and has nothing todo with your post


cheers

[[Unknown]]

The idea of open source is simple and sweet; it is not an idea of communism or socialism like its critics sometimes say.

You see, throughout commerce and money-making, there are a few important things people have found make them money:
   1. The customer being treated well, such that they will come back and recommend the product and/or services to their friends.
   2. More people knowing about the product (advertising) and being able to get use out of it.

Further, it has been concluded that the following contribute to those goals:
   1. Being able to modify the code such that you can change anything you don't like about the product, given motivation.
   2. Having the opportunity to receive the product and/or service for free or at the least possible cost.

Why are these two things important?  Because if the software is free, anyone can download it.  If anyone can download it, then anyone who could possibly get use out of the product has a chance to use it, however much money they may have.  These people then contribute by referring other people (who can also get it for free) and by:
   1. Creating and developing solutions to other peoples problems, such as modifications, which are also open source.
   2. Developing advocacy for the software because it is well written and well maintained.

So, in other words, by not charging for the software, and by even letting anyone download it... we increase the yield.  Marketting strategy.  We also develop advocacy much better and stronger (there are people who like paid products too, just not as strongly in most cases) than otherwise.  We're adding significant fuel to the fire that is the project.

Most small business that don't fail in their first few years operate on a net loss, as is commonly known.  If you want to make money, it's going to be in the long run not the short.  Open source is just a widening of this; if we have a million users (0.5% of which paid), and you have only 100 ones (who all paid, and more) we still got more money than you did.  100 * 100 < 5000 * 50.

There's also the point of support.  As we do here, most open source projects charge for advanced support.  While this isn't for everyone, this is how they make money.  The idea is to grow the client base from which the few paid ones come; again my numbers above.

Another very important and often ignored point is education.  How hard is it to enter the programming market?  Not that easy in some cases.  Sure, you can go on google and learn some things... but you're still a yellow novice.  No one would hire you like that!  Open source is a way people who aren't quite experts yet can grow and expand their knowledge such that they can become attractive employees.  Yes, they're offering their software to you for free.... but you're offering to use and test it, and give them legitimacy for free too!  They're giving you products, and you're increasing their resume.

It's barter, and it's done everywhere on this planet.  Just because open source does it so well that it's starting to threaten "paid" companies like Microsoft only proves how good a strategy it is.  If it weren't, if it weren't a gain to people... it wouldn't happen.

We're not crazy hippies, us open source people... we're programmers and I at least am a big fan of the free market.

-[Unknown]

EDIT:  The above statement was made by one of the original developers.