owdlad   10 #1 Posted January 13, 2005 I am want to know how much it would cost to run a forum, similair to this. Not exact figures, but just a rough guide.  I am not thinking of opening one in competition BTW I am happy letting others do the hard work on here..lol Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
nomme   10 #2 Posted January 13, 2005 Well you could go here:  http://makephpbb.com/  and in less than a minute set one up for nowt.  Nomme Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
owdlad   10 #3 Posted January 13, 2005 Originally posted by nomme Well you could go here:  http://makephpbb.com/  and in less than a minute set one up for nowt.  Nomme  I don't want to set one up nomme, all I want is to know the costs of setting it up & running one. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
JoeP   11 #4 Posted January 13, 2005 If you wanted to use the same software as here....  Well, the vBulletin software is about $160 to buy, of $85 for a year's 'lease'. So let's say £100 for the software.  Then there's the time spent in modifying it away from the 'base build', and actually installing it. You might expect to pay a programmer anywhere between £15 and £30 an hour for that.  Then you have monthly hosting - let's be generous and say £50.00 / month to give you lots of bandwidth and space and backups.  And then there's the time taken to moderate and maintain the system - if people are volunteering then it's not an actual 'cash' cost but it can be if you take time off of work to do teh modding and maintainence when needed.  Of course, there are free options that allow you to put a foot in the water - I use something called phpBB on a couple of sites I run, but it's not as powerful.  Joe Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
Mooseyb   10 #5 Posted January 13, 2005 Php is free. Webspace is £3 a month. Sorted. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
JoeP   11 #6 Posted January 13, 2005 Originally posted by Mooseyb Php is free. Webspace is £3 a month. Sorted.  Indeed, but it does depend upon number of users. I've not tried phpBB on a site as busy as this one, although on teh sites I have used it on it's scaled reasonably well.  owdlad did say 'a forum, similar to this'. So I assumed by similar he meant commensurate in terms of size / activity.  Joe Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
Mooseyb   10 #7 Posted January 13, 2005 One of the forums I use regularly has over 2000 users on PHP and is fine. Check out Derren Brown's forum (http://www.derrenbrownforum.com) - that has loads of users and no problems. Webspace that I use is £2.50 a month with lots of free space and bandwidth - http://www.dataflame.co.uk. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
Saxon   10 #8 Posted January 13, 2005 Have a look at MSN Groups - its very similar to this although not quite as polished!!  And its free!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
JoeP   11 #9 Posted January 13, 2005 Originally posted by Mooseyb One of the forums I use regularly has over 2000 users on PHP and is fine. Check out Derren Brown's forum (http://www.derrenbrownforum.com) - that has loads of users and no problems. Webspace that I use is £2.50 a month with lots of free space and bandwidth - http://www.dataflame.co.uk.  'on PHP' - I assume you mean on phpBB?  The monthly figures for space and bandwidth are probably over the top a little, but basically I'm happier paying more to get the support, backup and uptime.  This site here is also a very active one - not sure about the other ones you mention. Numbers of suers isn't necessarily teh issue about scaling - it's numbers of postings and frequency of postings that usually causes problems.  Joe Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
Mooseyb   10 #10 Posted January 13, 2005 Originally posted by JoePritchard 'on PHP' - I assume you mean on phpBB?  The monthly figures for space and bandwidth are probably over the top a little, but basically I'm happier paying more to get the support, backup and uptime.  This site here is also a very active one - not sure about the other ones you mention. Numbers of suers isn't necessarily teh issue about scaling - it's numbers of postings and frequency of postings that usually causes problems.  Joe  Yep phpBB - same thing. Well technically php is an extension, but hey lets not get technical  The forum I mention is so active its actually quite scary. In all honesty, and nothing against this forum, but the Derren Brown one is much more active than this one. I also prefer the layout of phpBB (I feel a ban coming on!! ) I can think of loads that are on phpBB as well. I use it personally, and its so easy to set up.  As for my web hosting - Dataflame have always been excellent for me. Plenty of space, 24/7 support, good bandwidth, free stuff, and Ive never ever had a problem with reliability.  While Im praising companies - pipex broadband. Simply the best. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
JoeP   11 #11 Posted January 13, 2005 Originally posted by Mooseyb Yep phpBB - same thing. Well technically php is an extension, but hey lets not get technical   Not quite - PHP is a server-side development scripting language that is used to write software such as phpBB and vBulletin.  I have to be technical...I'm a geek...  Joe Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
owdlad   10 #12 Posted January 13, 2005 Thanks guys. The one I am interested in only has around 30 messages per day tops, there is a chat room attached to it, and only around 2000 members. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
