Very well put, Benjamin. I might as well add my $0.02;
I'm currently using CFForum2000, written by a member of this list. I'm
suprised it hasn't been mentioned yet. www.cfcode.com
The unencrypted version is reasonably priced, and it seems pretty full
featured to me (I can't think of any feature I've seen elsewhere that it
lacks).
Best of all, as it turns out, putting a site wrapper around CFForum is a
snap, especially if you're already useing header & footer files.
Having said that, the documentation is a little *ahem* thin, but you can't
beat the service - I've posted 3 or 4 times to the support forum, and in
every single case, my questions were answered by the developer within a very
short amount of time (measured in minutes & hours, not days).
djm
-----Original Message-----
From: Benjamin S. Rogers [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Sent: Thursday, March 29, 2001 11:55 AM
To: CF-Talk
Subject: RE: Cold Fusion Forums
Heh heh heh...my point exactly. :) www.anandtech.com looks exactly like
every other FuseTalk forum I've seen.
Changing colors is not enough to integrate a canned application into the
design and layout of a Web site in a manner that provides the end user with
a consistent and fluid user experience. If it is a familiar interface you
are after, you might as well choose 4um, though my guess is that 4um would
be just as difficult to customize.
My point is that the FuseTalk forums seem to allow you to customize the
colors with very little effort. You can even customize the images with a
little persistence.
However, the layout and design of the application requires the full breadth
of a 800x600 screen to be useable. If all you have control over on the
administrative side is the colors, then you have to go to the source code
and rewrite much of the overly GUI design. Once you've done this, you've
killed the upgrade path and defeated the purpose of buying the application
instead of coding it yourself.
Since the price for the application with the source code is outrageous (it
is even a little steep without the source code), this generally precludes
the possibility that one would even purchase the source code license (which
is probably the point of the high price tag).
Don't get me wrong. The application seems very solid and has a fairly
respectable customer base. FuseTalk forums rarely seem slow or unresponsive
as Allaire Forums have often felt. But without being able to perform most of
the customizations of the layout and design elements without going to the
source code, we won't be able to resell it our customers.
Benjamin S. Rogers
Web Developer, c4.net
Voice: (508) 240-0051
Fax: (508) 240-0057
-----Original Message-----
From: Angél Stewart [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Sent: Thursday, March 29, 2001 2:08 PM
To: CF-Talk
Subject: RE: Cold Fusion Forums
Umm..check out www.anandtech.com
You can customise all the images etc. on the forum to your hearts content,if
you have the time.
You can also set your own color schemes.
Ironically, you can say the same thing for FUsetalk's nearest competition,
which is Ultimate Bulletin Board(Perl based).
ALl UBBs look more or less the same, and thats a good thing.
IT is a familiar interface, that is tried and true...sort of like MS
Windows...
you know?
-Gel
-----Original Message-----
From: Benjamin S. Rogers [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
The FuseTalk forums always seen to look the same. Is it customizable at all?
Do you have any examples of a FuseTalk forum that doesn't look like a
FuseTalk forum, preferably an example of one that is integrated cleanly into
the design of a site?
Benjamin S. Rogers
Web Developer, c4.net
Voice: (508) 240-0051
Fax: (508) 240-0057
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