IPB and Xenforo vs MyBB

I'm debating on dropping both of my premium softwares and going with MyBB. There's things that I like about the two that make me hesitant and I wouldn't want to spend a fortune getting on MyBB.
Keep in mind that I'm a complete idiot when it comes to anything coding related. :c I'm also extremely indecisive. Both of my licenses are expired and the versions I'm on are old. I have never used MyBB.

What I'm trying to create is a role-play and creative forum.
Though, ideally I'd like to have some very specific features without paying an entire month's paycheck. I want to know if any of these are able to be done in MyBB at a relatively decent price.

• Character mod. I had the perfect one in IPB, but my version is outdated and takes up a lot of space according to my server admin. Xenforo has a mediocre equivalent that I can somewhat deal with. Custom fields separate from the "Out-Of-Character" or main account is required.
  
• Some sort of way to feature members or artwork. People like to be recognized.
  
• A portal isn't required, but could be tied into the former point.
  
• Auto refresh ofnotificationsisn't really required, but it's something I really love in Xenforo.
  
• A gallery of some sort, being a creatively-geared community. Again, not required but really nice to have.
  
• A way to prettify my posts. Float and glow BBcodes are my favorite.
  
• Awards (which I believe I've seen here, which is a mybb forum??)
  
• Integrated wiki/easy to edit pages. I need to supply the forum with lore information and having members dig through threads seems a bit inconvenient. This isn't a requirement right this moment, but will be in the near future.
  

I think that's all I can think of for now. Of course, I'm sure all of this is possible with the right people to code but some prices get pretty high up there especially with paid software.

What are the advantages and benefits to each compared to the other, from your experiences? Do any of them have more features/mods/addons than the others? How much more difficult is it to customize MyBB as opposed to the others?

Also if anyone mods/codes/skinsany of these softwares and can provide help I'd love to get into touch! I am willing to give payment.

IPB is the most preferred for me becauseof the existing character mod, but isn't nearly as pretty as my custom Xenforo skin. and sometimes I end up having problems with database errors, probably my fault for being silly while installing/editingstuff.

Sorry if this is in the inappropriatesection. This is more of an inquiry than anything set in stone, since I'm so indecisive and notknowledgeable.

Honestly I would go straight for MyBB. They have mods for pratically everything, and if they don't have a specific one, save up some money and put it in to a developer to make it for you.

Most of the things you mentioned are already plugins. I don't know about a character mod or gallery, but there is one for Alertsand Awards(For 1.6 and 1.8). A Portal can either be the default or you can find a plugin for one.

05-11-2015, 08:24 AM

LucidiousXIV Wrote: Honestly I would go straight for MyBB. They have mods for pratically everything, and if they don't have a specific one, save up some money and put it in to a developer to make it for you.

Most of the things you mentioned are already plugins. I don't know about a character mod or gallery, but there is one for Alertsand Awards(For 1.6 and 1.8). A Portal can either be the default or you can find a plugin for one.

Thanks!
Honestly I never considered MyBB before using Nulled.
Sorry for not doing much research before posting this, I was lost on where to start.
So, would you say that MyBB is fully customizable? How's the support?

05-11-2015, 08:29 AM

YouDontSae Wrote:

05-11-2015, 08:24 AM

LucidiousXIV Wrote: Honestly I would go straight for MyBB. They have mods for pratically everything, and if they don't have a specific one, save up some money and put it in to a developer to make it for you.

Most of the things you mentioned are already plugins. I don't know about a character mod or gallery, but there is one for Alertsand Awards(For 1.6 and 1.8). A Portal can either be the default or you can find a plugin for one.

Thanks!
Honestly I never considered MyBB before using Nulled.
Sorry for not doing much research before posting this, I was lost on where to start.
So, would you say that MyBB is fully customizable? How's the support?

Yes, MyBB is fully customizable. Go to the community forums first, then come here, and look at how the theme and everything else is setup. All it takes is a little learning and imagination. As for support, you're better off asking here than the community forums, as people like Aoki will give you better insight and guidance on how to fix issues.

You can get mybb support almost anywhere. NBB is one place of them.

MyBB is literally one of the best forum softwares you can use. Lots of people use it, so there will be support no matter where you go, and it is VERY customizable, thanks to mods, themes, and the ability to change templates and such.

I will note, though, that MyBB has a bunch of security vulnerabilities, and that you should at least have some knowledge about HTML or CSS.

All in all, you're making a very good decision to move to MyBB.

MyBB is the best (for me) Forumsoftware wich exists.

05-11-2015, 08:58 AM

LucidiousXIV Wrote: Yes, MyBB is fully customizable. Go to the community forums first, then come here, and look at how the theme and everything else is setup. All it takes is a little learning and imagination. As for support, you're better off asking here than the community forums, as people like Aoki will give you better insight and guidance on how to fix issues.

Ahh, will do. Thanks!

05-11-2015, 02:44 PM

Nyan Wrote: MyBB is literally one of the best forum softwares you can use. Lots of people use it, so there will be support no matter where you go, and it is VERY customizable, thanks to mods, themes, and the ability to change templates and such.

I will note, though, that MyBB has a bunch of security vulnerabilities, and that you should at least have some knowledge about HTML or CSS.

All in all, you're making a very good decision to move to MyBB.

I have very minute knowledge, but a lot of what I need would need to be coded as a mod. I'd have to hire someone to do it, unfortunately. I don't have time to learn PHP. Q_Q

----

Thanks for all of the support!

Just a few questions, though, so please endure my rambling about my plans and such. I just want to make sure this is all possible before making the switch- I hope you understand. I've done some research on what's available here and there but still haven't been able to see just how far I can go with getting it modded.

The character mod for IPB is the closest to what I want- The reason I'm hesitant about moving to IPB again is because the character mod isn't updated to the newest version and I've had database issues when I try to upgrade. Even if I were to stay on 3.2, a coder is near impossible to get without spending an arm and a leg. I hear that it's pretty difficult to mod IPB compared to other forums, though.
It handles character "accounts" as their own type of account, which strips it down to a profile and a posting profile that "masks" the user's avatar, name, and signature. A list of characters is added to the user's account and the user can modify all of them from a character tab in the control panel.
There's also character-only usergroups that characters can be sorted into, but users can not.

Xenforo has a new way to handle "sub-accounts", which is nice. There are sub-account only profile fields and such- and I even have a custom theme for it. Again I'm on an ancient version and would need to have the theme and everything updated, which is why I'm even considering starting from scratch again (with free software because renewal costs for both softwares just... bleh). Another drawback is having to switch accounts in order to modify the profile of each character.

Of course, the IPB version is ideal, and I would like some extra features (character friendships, character awards, etc.) but those aren't required.

Are either of these possible with MyBB? I mean, I'm sure with a knowledgeable enough developer anything is possible but I'm wondering if there would be limitations- and if there are too many limitations, are there any IPB/Xenforo developers on this site?

05-11-2015, 04:45 PM

YouDontSae Wrote:

05-11-2015, 08:58 AM

LucidiousXIV Wrote: Yes, MyBB is fully customizable. Go to the community forums first, then come here, and look at how the theme and everything else is setup. All it takes is a little learning and imagination. As for support, you're better off asking here than the community forums, as people like Aoki will give you better insight and guidance on how to fix issues.

Ahh, will do. Thanks!

05-11-2015, 02:44 PM

Nyan Wrote: MyBB is literally one of the best forum softwares you can use. Lots of people use it, so there will be support no matter where you go, and it is VERY customizable, thanks to mods, themes, and the ability to change templates and such.

I will note, though, that MyBB has a bunch of security vulnerabilities, and that you should at least have some knowledge about HTML or CSS.

All in all, you're making a very good decision to move to MyBB.

I have very minute knowledge, but a lot of what I need would need to be coded as a mod. I'd have to hire someone to do it, unfortunately. I don't have time to learn PHP. Q_Q

----

Thanks for all of the support!

Just a few questions, though, so please endure my rambling about my plans and such. I just want to make sure this is all possible before making the switch- I hope you understand. I've done some research on what's available here and there but still haven't been able to see just how far I can go with getting it modded.

The character mod for IPB is the closest to what I want- The reason I'm hesitant about moving to IPB again is because the character mod isn't updated to the newest version and I've had database issues when I try to upgrade. Even if I were to stay on 3.2, a coder is near impossible to get without spending an arm and a leg. I hear that it's pretty difficult to mod IPB compared to other forums, though.
It handles character "accounts" as their own type of account, which strips it down to a profile and a posting profile that "masks" the user's avatar, name, and signature. A list of characters is added to the user's account and the user can modify all of them from a character tab in the control panel.
There's also character-only usergroups that characters can be sorted into, but users can not.

Xenforo has a new way to handle "sub-accounts", which is nice. There are sub-account only profile fields and such- and I even have a custom theme for it. Again I'm on an ancient version and would need to have the theme and everything updated, which is why I'm even considering starting from scratch again (with free software because renewal costs for both softwares just... bleh). Another drawback is having to switch accounts in order to modify the profile of each character.

Of course, the IPB version is ideal, and I would like some extra features (character friendships, character awards, etc.) but those aren't required.

Are either of these possible with MyBB? I mean, I'm sure with a knowledgeable enough developer anything is possible but I'm wondering if there would be limitations- and if there are too many limitations, are there any IPB/Xenforo developers on this site?

Anything is possible in MyBB that is done in any other forum. Just got to find the right person to code it, and most likely offer a good pay for it. And there are obviously some developers on here that work really well with IPB/Xenforo.

So, the developer for that character mod confirmed that she would be updating it, and adding a lot of the features I desire. This cuts down a lot of work, so I may just go with IPB for now!