Starting a Forum

Posted on November 20th, 2008 by jack
  • Thinking of starting up your own forum?
    Well, it's hard, but definately worth it in the end.
    Well, here's a list of some forum software you may want to consider.
    Even with a little description for you.


    Free Web Forum Software

    These software packages can be used to set up forums on your own Web site, and are available free.





    ASP-DEv XM Forums
    Linear software newly rewritten as XML-based forum. Available as inexpensive hosted service, option for commercial license, or free with '' logo.
    Developer: ASP Resources
    Platform: Windows

    Basic Bulletin Board Script
    See WebBBS.

    Ceilidh
    Displays the developer's banner ads. (Buying the commercial version lets you eliminate the ads.) Features e-mail notification and listserv capabilities.
    Developer: Lilikoi Software
    Platforms: UNIX, Windows, OS/2, Macintosh

    ConferWeb
    Simple system with linear discussions. Also suitable for use as a guestbook. Free for non-profit use. All sites must register.
    Developer: Brian Johnson
    Platform: Macintosh

    COW - Conferencing On Web
    Exceptionally powerful for a freeware product. Similar to YAPP.
    Developer: Eric Klavins, San Francisco State University, University of Michigan
    Platform: UNIX

    Discus
    Uses a tree structure for categorizing topics and subtopics, but each discussion is presented as a continuous, linear stream of responses. Available in English and several other languages.
    Developer: DiscusWare, LLC
    Platforms: UNIX, Windows (written in Perl)

    DiscussionWeb
    Remembers what you have read (something most freeware systems can't do).
    Developer: Bob McQueen
    Platform: Windows (Written in Perl; UNIX version planned.)

    PHP-Nuke
    A Usenet News system based on PHP.
    Developer: phpnuke.org
    Platform: UNIX

    Ruboard
    Simple BBS software, originally modelled after WWWBoard.
    Developer: Andrew Maltsev
    Platform: UNIX (written in Perl)

    SEO-Board
    Simple message board implemented with PHP and MySQL. Designed to be search engine-friendly.
    Developer: Hristo Hristov
    Platform: UNIX

    Snitz Forums
    Feature-rich message board software similar to UBB, based on ASP.
    Developers: Snitz Communications
    Platform: Windows, UNIX with ASP-enabled server

    Sporum
    Freeware. Supports both threaded and linear discussions; stores messages in an SQL database.
    Developer: KaYue Mak, Smallpig.net, Mike Robb, and others
    Platform: UNIX (written in Perl)

    Teemz
    Customizable, linear message board software.
    Developer: Elated Communications, Ltd.
    Platforms: UNIX, Windows (written in Perl)

    Thread-IT
    Simple message board software implemented with Active Server Pages.
    Developer: yMonda
    Platform: Windows

    W-Agora
    BBS software that features a multilingual user interface and ability to upload file attachments to messages. Comes with full source code in PHP.
    Developer: Marc Druilhe
    Platforms: UNIX, Windows

    WebBBS
    A template you can hack to suit your own needs. Formerly known simply as "Basic Bulletin Board Script."
    Developer: Selena Sol
    Platform: UNIX (written in Perl)

    WebMoot (formerly known as WebÞing)
    Features realtime chat and e-mail participation.
    Developer: Nick Kew, WebThing Ltd. (WebÞ)
    Platform: UNIX

    Web Wiz Forums
    ASP-based bulletin board software. Free download, but there is a modest fee if you want to remove the Web Wiz branding and links from the user interface. Requires MS Access or SQL Server.
    Developer: Bruce Corkhill
    Platform: Windows

    WikiWikiWeb
    A simple but powerful tool that's unlike anything else. Essentially, a wiki is an open-ended, interlinked set of web pages that anyone can edit or add to. A wiki can be used as a discussion forum, a database, an organically grown encyclopedia... you name it. There are now many versions, written for many different platforms. A list is available here.
    Developer: Ward Cunningham and others
    Platforms: Many

    WWWBoard
    Very widely used.
    Developer: Matt Wright
    Platform: UNIX

    W3 Interactive Talk (WIT)
    Highly structured forum software designed for group decision making. Probably the first Web forum system (created June 1994). Unknown if still available.

    Developer: Ari Luotonen, CERN
    Platform: UNIX

    W3news
    CGI-based Usenet newsreader. Connects directly to NNTP servers. Page layout is configurable through template HTML pages.
    Developer: Kasper Peeters
    Platform: UNIX

    XMB Forum (Extreme Message Board)
    Based on PHP and MySQL.
    Developer: XMB Group
    Platforms: UNIX

    YaBB (Yet another Bulletin Board)
    Perl-based message board software.
    Developer: Zef Hemel and others
    Platforms: UNIX, Windows (written in Perl)

    YaBB SE
    Enhanced version of YaBB. Not supported since March 2004. The development team has gone on to create SMF.
    Developer: various
    Platforms: UNIX, Windows (written in Perl)

    zForum
    Zope-based forum. Works with MySQL or Postgres.
    Developer: various
    Platform: UNIX, Windows

    Zorum
    Based on PHP and MySQL. Supports both linear and threaded discussion views. A commercial release is planned, but the original will remain free for noncommercial users.
    Developer: Zoltan Nagy
    Platform: Linux


    And a few more.

    Open Source Software

    Open Source refers to software that is available under a license that permits its use, study, modification, improvement and redistribution.


    AZbb
    Forum based on PHP. Modify for nonprofit and personal use only.
    Developer: AZ
    Platform: UNIX, Windows
    Backtalk
    Text-based linear forum software, compatible with YAPP. Comes with C source code.
    Developer: Jan Wolter and Steve Weiss
    Platform: UNIX
    Bazaar
    Bazaar is configurable through template files, though significant technical skills are required for full utilization. Allows the creation of a variety of applications in addition to message boards, such as polls, FAQs, and announcement boards.
    Developer: Mike Sosteric
    Platform: UNIX (written in Perl)
    BBMatic
    Simple bulletin board software.
    Developer: Joe DePasquale
    Platform: UNIX (written in Perl)
    Beehive Forum
    Open-source forum based on PHP and MySQL. Features frame-based layout, email notification, private messaging system, and extendable user profiles.
    Developer: Various
    Platform: UNIX, Windows
    BlazeBoard
    PHP-based message board software with email notification, instant messaging, polls, and other features.
    Platform: UNIX
    Caucus
    Formerly a commercial product, Caucus is a high-end, powerful, and extremely customizable linear forum software, now available as open source. Support, services, and add-ons are available for a fee.
    Developer: CaucusCare
    Platform: UNIX
    Class-1 Forum Software
    Based on PHP and MySQL, and distributed under the GNU General Public License.
    Developer: Class-1 Web Design
    Platform: UNIX, Windows
    Code Project Discussion Boards
    Open source message board software, implemented as an Active-X control and ASP scripts.
    Developer: Uwe Keim and Chris Maunder
    Platform: Windows
    D3E - Digital Document Discourse Environment
    Open Source tool for document-centered discussions. Works with customized versions of HyperNews and Phorum.
    Developer: Tamara Sumner, Simon Buckingham Shum, and others
    Platform: Windows, UNIX
    E-Blah
    Open source bulletin board implemented in Perl.
    Developer: Justin
    Platforms: Windows, UNIX
    eThreads
    Supports distributed servers. Requires Perl and mySql, though it isn't clear if this software is still available for download.
    Developer: Eric Richardson
    Platform: UNIX
    FruitWare BBS
    Displays all messages in a forum on one page.
    Developer: FruitWare
    Platform: UNIX (written in Perl)
    FUDforum
    Bulletin board with many features, including tracking which posts each user has read, moderation, support for multiple languages, and integration with newsgroups and email lists. Requires PHP and MySQL or PostgreSQL.
    Developer: Advanced Internet Designs
    Platform: UNIX
    http://hypernews.org/]HyperNews [/url]
    Allows discussions to be distributed across multiple Web servers. Must display HyperNews license/.
    Developer: Daniel LaLiberte
    Platform: UNIX (written in Perl)
    Ikonboard
    Flat (linear) message board software featuring email notification and instant messaging.
    Developer: Ikonboard.com
    Platform: UNIX (written in Perl)
    InterMix
    Allows readers to register approval and interest ratings for each message. Complete source code is freely available. InterMix II is in development.
    Developer: Collective Communication Inc.
    Platform: Windows
    JForum
    Open source forum software implemented in Java. Requires a database (MySQL, PostgreSQL, Oracle, SQL Server, etc.)
    Developer: Rafael Steil and the JForum Team
    Platform: Windows, UNIX
    jGossip
    Forum software based on Java and the Struts framework.
    Developer: jResearch.org
    Platforms: UNIX, Windows, Mac
    LWGate
    Web interface to mailing lists; includes Web browsing of a mailing list archive. Development on this product appears to be frozen.
    Developer: David W. Baker
    Platform: UNIX (written in Perl)
    MHonArc
    E-mail gateway: permits Web browsing of a mailing list or newsgroup archive.
    Developer: Earl Hood
    Platforms: UNIX, MS-DOS
    miniBB
    A minimalist, yet nicely designed, bulletin board. Can be integrated with an existing user database. Open source. Requires PHP and either mySQL or PostgreSQL.
    Developer: Paul Puzyrev and Sergei Lariono
    Platforms: UNIX, Windows (written in PHP)
    mod_virgule
    Open source forum and blog software which drives Advogato. Also see the Virgule scripting engine.
    Developer: Raph Levien and others
    Platforms: UNIX
    mwForum
    Open source threaded forum software implemented with Perl and MySQL. The user interface is available in English, German, and several other languages.
    Developer: Mark Wichitill
    Platform: UNIX
    MyBulletinBoard (MyBB)
    Free bulletin board based on PHP and mySQL.
    Developer: Chris Boulton and others
    Platform: UNIX, Windows (written in PHP)
    OpenACS
    A suite of open source modules designed for building web-based communities, originally based on ArsDigita's ACS.
    Developer: Ben Adida, Don Baccus, and others
    Platform: UNIX
    Phorum
    Open source message board software implemented with PHP and MySQL. Features e-mail notification and moderated posting.
    Developer: Brian Moon
    Platform: UNIX
    phpBB
    Popular open source message board software implemented with PHP. Features e-mail notification. Requires an external database (MySQL, MS SQL, PostgreSQL, or Access).
    Developer: The phpBB Group
    Platform: UNIX, Windows, Macintosh
    Pinguinite
    Highly customizable open source forum software designed for Linux/Apache/MySQL system. HTML template design with innovative features and administrative options.
    Developer: Neil McIver
    Platform: UNIX (written in Perl)
    Prattle
    Simple open source forum software with a linear conversation structure, implemented with PHP and MySQL.
    Developer: Steve Yelvington
    Platform: UNIX
    PunBB
    Open source message board software implemented with PHP. Requires an external database (MySQL, PostgreSQL, or SQLite).
    Developer: Rickard Andersson and others
    Platform: UNIX, Windows, Macintosh
    Quicksilver Forums
    Open source forum software implemented with PHP and MySQL.
    Platforms: UNIX, Windows
    Scoop
    Open source system similar to Slash.
    Developers: Brent Metzler, Rusty Foster, Chad Kreimendahl, and others
    Platform: UNIX (written in Perl)
    SKForum
    Open source system based on J2EE and MySQL, which also features an address book, a wiki, polling, a guest book, and other widgets.
    Developer: Anders Hovmöller
    Platform: UNIX
    Slash
    Open source news and message board software implemented with Perl and MySQL.
    Developers: Patrick Galbraith, Chris Nandor, Brian Aker, and others
    Platform: UNIX
    SMF (Simple Machines Forum)
    Open source community software based on PHP and MySQL.
    Developers: Jeff Lewis, Joseph Fung, David Recordon, and others
    Platform:Windows, UNIX, Macintosh
    Squishdot
    Open source blog and discussion software inspired by Slashdot. This is a plug-in module for Zope.
    Developer: Butch Landingin and others
    Platform: UNIX
    UseBB
    Free, open source bulletin board software based on PHP and MySQL. Features RSS and topic subscriptions via email.
    Developer: Dietrich Moerman and others
    Platform: UNIX
    Vanilla
    Free, open source, multi-lingual discussion forum software based on PHP and MySQL.
    Platform: UNIX, Windows
    Venice Web Communities System
    Linear forum software with open source, under development.
    Developer: Eric Bowersox and others
    Platform: UNIX, Windows (written in Java)
    Yazd
    Open source, Java-based forum software. Uses JDBC to connect to a wide range of supported databases. The user interface is available in several languages.
    Developer: various
    Platform: UNIX


  • ASP-DEv XM Forums - http://www.asp-dev.com/main.asp
    Ceilidh - http://www.lilikoi.com/
    ConferWeb - http://quicksilver.caup.washington.edu/software/default.html
    COW - Conferencing On Web http://calypso.rs.itd.umich.edu/COW/about.html
    Discus - http://www.discusware.com/
    DiscussionWeb - http://merlin.mngt.waikato.ac.nz:5000//dw/
    PHP-Nuke - http://www.phpnuke.org/
    Ruboard - http://amsoft.ru/ruboard/
    SEO-Board - http://www.seo-board.com/
    Snitz Forums - http://forum.snitz.com/
    Sporum - http://www.tucows.com/preview/8681
    Teemz - http://www.teemz.com/
    Thread-IT - http://www.ymonda.net/
    W-Agora - http://www.w-agora.net/en/index.php
    WebBBS - http://www.extropia.com/scripts/bbs.html
    WebMoot (formerly known as WebÞing) - http://www.webthing.com/software/moot.html
    Web Wiz Forums - http://www.webwizguide.info/web_wiz_forums/default.asp?mode=forum
    WikiWikiWeb - http://c2.com/cgi-bin/wiki
    WWWBoard - http://www.scriptarchive.com/wwwboard.html
    W3 Interactive Talk (WIT) - http://www.w3.org/WIT/
    W3news - http://www.aei.mpg.de/~peekas/w3news/
    XMB Forum (Extreme Message Board) - http://www.xmbforum.com/
    YaBB (Yet another Bulletin Board) - http://yabbforum.com/
    YaBB SE - http://www.yabbse.org/yse_history.html
    zForum - http://www.zforum.org/
    Zorum - http://zorum.phpoutsourcing.com/

    Open Source Software

    Open Source refers to software that is available under a license that permits its use, study, modification, improvement and redistribution.

    AZbb - http://www.azbb.org/
    Backtalk - http://www.unixpapa.com/backtalk/
    Bazaar - http://sourceforge.net/projects/bazaar
    BBMatic - http://www.getcruising.com/crypt/bbmat.html
    Beehive Forum - http://beehiveforum.sourceforge.net/about.html
    BlazeBoard - http://sourceforge.net/projects/blazeboard/
    Caucus - http://www.caucuscare.com/
    Class-1 Forum Software - http://class1web.co.uk/downloads.php
    Code Project Discussion Boards - http://www.codeproject.com/asp/codeproject-forum.asp
    D3E - Digital Document Discourse Environment - http://d3e.sourceforge.net/
    E-Blah - http://www.e-blah.com/
    eThreads - http://www.ethreads.com/
    FruitWare BBS - http://www.phonelosers.org/FruitWare/scripts.htm
    FUDforum - http://fudforum.org/forum/
    Ikonboard - http://www.ikonboard.com/
    InterMix - http://www.intermix.org/
    JForum - http://www.jforum.net/
    jGossip - http://sourceforge.net/projects/jgossipforum/
    LWGate - http://www.netspace.org/~dwb/lwgate/
    MHonArc - http://hydra.nac.uci.edu/indiv/ehood/mhonarc.doc.html
    miniBB - http://www.minibb.net/
    mod_virgule - http://www.advogato.org/
    mwForum - http://www.mwforum.com/
    MyBulletinBoard (MyBB) - http://www.mybboard.com/
    OpenACS - http://www.openacs.org/
    Phorum - http://www.phorum.org/
    phpBB - http://www.phpbb.com/
    Pinguinite - http://pinguinite.com/
    Prattle - http://prattle.sourceforge.net/
    PunBB - http://www.punbb.org/
    Quicksilver Forums - http://www.quicksilverforums.com/
    Scoop - http://scoop.kuro5hin.org/
    SKForum - http://soft.killingar.net/wiki.view.action?wiki=SKForum
    Slash - http://www.slashcode.com/
    SMF (Simple Machines Forum) - http://www.simplemachines.org/
    Squishdot - http://www.squishdot.org/
    UseBB - http://www.usebb.net/
    Vanilla - http://www.getvanilla.com/
    Venice Web Communities System - http://venice.sourceforge.net/
    Yazd - http://www.forumsoftware.ca/


  • Please provide the links also.


  • ya the best are
    phpbb free.
    and vbulletin paid.
    and also now the phpbb and vbulletin has their own cms's also.


  • no reps :sad::sad::sad::sad::sad::sad::sad::sad::sad::sad: :sad::sad::sad::sad::sad:


  • mybb is the best www.mybboard.com


  • any sources dude???
    btw the best r
    free - phpBB
    paid - vbulletin, invision..


  • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_Internet_forum_software :p:D


    • Tags: badahutong.com edit //