By Robert_R on
Once I download and install Drupal then should I buy a vbulletin license and download vbulletin?
I guess what I'm asking is in what order do I do things?
And, most importantly how?
Any links would be appreciated as well.
Thanks! And Merry Christmas to all!!!!
Comments
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Drupal has a core forum.module which you can expand using contrib modules in the downloads area. Any reason you've decided against using the core forum.module?
Keep in mind that adding a seperate script to run your forum will add its own set of headaches, in that it won't be completely integrated with drupal as the core forum is.
I haven't decide against
I haven't decide against anything. I'm not even sure I know what you're referring to.
Is the "core forum" drupal stuff? I'd like to think that vbulletin is a better choice for a forum though I may be wrong.
In the "core - optional"
In the "core - optional" fieldset on the module's page you can enable the drupal forum module (that's the forum used here on drupal.org). You can also add the http://drupal.org/project/advanced_forum module to get probably 95% of the functionality of a stand alone forum. IMO this is far better then going with an integrated 3rd party forum which will never really be quite 'integrated'.
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"Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." - Lao Tzu
"God helps those who help themselves." - Ben Franklin
"Search is your best friend." - Worldfallz
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Vb is certainly better if you want a forum centric site. Though at that point I don't know that you need Drupal.
the core forum.module is distributed with drupal. it can be enabled in administer -> modules and be expanded with other module in the downloads area.
if you use Vb here is what you are faced with, drupal search will not search vB you will have to use two searches. Uploades in Vb won't be integrated, profiles won't be integrated. For the most part the only thing that seems to be integrated where it concerns "bridges" between two seperate scripts is logins.
You are using the core forum.module right here on drupal.org, There are no bells and whistles with the core forum.module hence where the contrib modules come into play which provide full integration.
I too was originally
I too was originally planning to integrate vBulletin with Drupal for my large community site. It was actually what led me to Drupal for the first time a few years ago, since it was said to have one of the better vBulletin + CMS bridges. However over time, and due to the amazing work of Michelle on her Advanced Forum module, as well as many other developers on lots of modules providing specific features, I've completely changed my mind, and personally will never use vBulletin on a site again. Years ago that "forum experience" was the height of the interactive community site experience, but these days (though forums are still great and valuable) it has moved away from that into a much more integrated overall experience, interacting with content, user profile pages (similar to Facebook, etc).
Here's a recent example of a core Drupal forum, augmented with Advanced Forum module: https://www.pearljam.com/forum
Drupal's forum is completely integrated with Drupal itself, and you have just as much control as you have over all other Drupal content. One cool thing to do is install Nodequeue module (and Views), and add various interesting discussions to the queue which you want to highlight on your site's home page, in the side bar, etc... and once it's set up, it's as easy as a few clicks and it's done (plus you can allow your staff or moderators access to add posts they like as well if you want, so you don't have to do all the work yourself).
-- David
davidnewkerk.com | absolutecross.com
View my Drupal lessons & guides
Awwww
*Blush*
I agree that forum centric sites aren't where it's at anymore. There's still plenty of nice ones out there but I can't see starting a new site that's nothing but a forum.
BTW, your first siggy URL has a typo in it.
Michelle
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See my Drupal articles and tutorials or come check out life in the Coulee Region.
Thanks
Thanks Michelle, dunno how that typo got back in there (I corrected the same typo there once before but somehow the change didn't save correctly I guess haha).
Hope you're having a great Christmas :)
-- David
davidnewkerk.com | absolutecross.com
View my Drupal lessons & guides
So I guess what you guys,
So I guess what you guys, gals are saying in a nutshell is that:
Use the drupal core for a forum or use vbulletin. One or the other but not both together?
You lost me there--- what
You lost me there--- what would be the use case for using both?
===
"Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." - Lao Tzu
"God helps those who help themselves." - Ben Franklin
"Search is your best friend." - Worldfallz
Well
Sometimes people have existing vBulletin forums and they outgrow the limited CMS capabilities it has and want to merge it with Drupal. Or the forum part of their site may be extremely active and require the more advanced moderation vBulletin provides. So there are reasons for using the bridge. But too many people just discount Drupal without even seeing if it would fit their needs and I think they do themselves a disservice.
Michelle
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See my Drupal articles and tutorials or come check out life in the Coulee Region.
Duh-- i so read the question
Duh-- i so read the question wrong. I saw 'use both drupal forum and vbulletin forum'. Too much egg nog methinks. ;-)
===
"Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." - Lao Tzu
"God helps those who help themselves." - Ben Franklin
"Search is your best friend." - Worldfallz
Oooooh
Yeah.... That wouldn't make much sense to do. :)
Michelle
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See my Drupal articles and tutorials or come check out life in the Coulee Region.
No
You can bridge vBulletin to Drupal but you should have a good use case for it. vBulletin by itself is good for sites that are basicaly just forums. If you are just making a forum site, then you probably don't need Drupal. But if you are looking for a full site where forums are just one part of it, you should consider the advantages of using Drupal's built in tools over the hassle of bridging to vBulletin to Drupal.
Michelle
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See my Drupal articles and tutorials or come check out life in the Coulee Region.