vBulletin Installation and a Sneak Peek at vBulletin Publishing Suite

by Scott Clark

November 12, 2009

Introduction

Those of you who frequent discussion forums on your favorite sites are probably used to using vBulletin discussion forum software. It's on thousands of sites around the globe, from our own sites to hobbyist sites to news sites to community-based sites. It's been around for over 10 years now, and has changed hands several times, but it is still the defacto discussion forum software for professionals. This article will discuss the current features of vBulletin, how to install it, along with the upcoming features of their soon-to-be released vBulletin Publishing Suite, a full-featured social networking platform that is built around the vBulletin discussion forum software.

Initially, you will have to purchase a vBulletin license ($195) from vBulletin.com and download the software. It comes as a zip file, and when it is unzipped, it will have several directories, including the Upload directory, and the do_not_upload directory. To start the installation process, you will need to create a MySQL database through your host's MySQL Administration section. Once you have done this, you will be presented with the applicable information needed to configure the config.php file that you will need to upload to your server. That file is commented so that entering the information is a piece of cake. The info you will need is:

• Database name
• Host name
• Port (usually 3306)
• User name
• Database password

You will then upload the entire content of the Upload directory to your web host, usually in the a directory called forum. Once it has been uploaded, you will open a file that is located in the includes subdirectory called config.php.new, add the required information, which not only includes the database information, but also the email address you wish to be contacted at through your forum. You save the file as config.php and upload it to the includes subdirectory, and then proceed to the installation program, which is accomplished through the web browser, like this:

http://www.yoursite.com/forums/install/install.php

It will then ask you for your vBulletin customer ID, so that it knows you are a valid customer, and then it will begin the installation process, which is a 13-step process. The first thing it will do is to verify that the config file exists and is readable. Assuming that you have uploaded it, you will move on to the next step, in which it will attempt to connect to the database that you have specified in the config file. In the next step (all steps are reached by simply clicking the Next Step button), it will create the required tables into your mySQL database. It then changes some of the tables it just created, then inserts the default data into those tables, then it imports the language XML file as the Master Language (which is English by default). Next it installs the style information, and updates the style sets. The next step installs the Admin Help system (another XML file), and then presents you with a large form where you can fill in the information for your site, including the title of your discussion forum, the homepage title, the webmaster email address, cookie info and home URL. Next, it installs the default settings, another XML file, then allows you to set up your Administrator account, which involves creating the username, password and email address. The final step tells you to delete the installation directory for security reasons. Once you have deleted that directory (usually through your FTP client), you are allowed to click the link to get to your administrative control panel, which it then presents to you. You will then be required to login using the Administator login and password that you just set up in Step 11.

Once you are in the admin CMS (content management system), you will be notified if there are any patches or updated releases for vBulletin available (in my case, there was an updated version that is available that wasn't available when I downloaded the version that I am installing for this review), and it will also show you any news from vBulletin that you might need to be aware of.

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Congrats, your vBulletin discussion forum is up and running, and the entire process takes less than 20 minutes from the creation of the database to the installation of the software! Woot!

Features of vBulletin: More Than Just a Bulletin Board!

Now we'll discuss some of the outstanding issues that vBulletin provides out of the box. Once advertised as merely software that enables developers to create a discussion forums where their site members can talk to one another, this software has evolved into a social networking platform in which members can create profile pages much like those on MySpace and Facebook, send instant messages to one another, create friend lists, add comments to each other's pages, create photo albums and more. Given that these are features that the basic vBulletin software comes with, wait till I get into telling you about their upcoming Publishing Suite! More about that later...back to the core features.

The vBulletin Discussion forum software comes packed with a ton of features that your members have come to expect with all the social networking sites out there. They haven't missed a beat, and have included PMs (personal messaging) between members, the ability to email other users, the ability to create personal profile pages for themselves, complete with photo albums, along with the ability to leave comments on other members profile pages. They are also able to add other members as friends, and to have a top friends list which shows up on their page when the login to the site, which also shows them when their friends are online, which is a good way to stay in touch with one another.

The software also allows administrators to create special user groups with special privileges, including the ability to have more IM space, inbox space, larger avatars, special titles and more. It's come a long way from the very basic discussion forum software that it was several years back--- even before the Publishing Suite is released, the basic vBulletin software encourages community involvement and return visits, and turns an otherwise static site into a thriving, living entity that never sleeps!

vBulletin Publishing Suite

Since vBulletin has been providing their discussion forum software, several companies have produced software that enabled you to change your site from a website with a discussion forum into a website that is community driven, a virtual MySpace in which your discussion forum members, the discussions themselves and the contributions from members, such as news items, member stats, a shoutbox which allows members to post messages live on the home page and other instant features turn your forum into a site that is built around the forum, making it a community driven site. This type of software includes vbIndex, vbAdvanced, vbPortal and others. Some are for sale for a small charge, such as vbPortal, which charges $30, to others which are free, such as vbIndex. In the last year, vBulletin has enhanced their software with many of the features that these packages provide, but now with the vBulletin Publshing Suite, they have blown them out of the water, even with a price of $285! Check out these features:

vBulletin Publishing Suite Features

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The following section comes from the vBulletin Publishing Suite Preview page verbatim. I'm posting here along with a screen shot of the main page so you can get a glimpse of what's to come. It essentially builds on what they already offer with vBulletin forum, along with many social networking features built in. The numbers correspond to the numbers in the screen shot above.

1. Section Navigation Widget. This widget allows you to go to different sections. The "plus icon" means that this section has sub-sections. Clicking on the "plus icon" will display the sub-sections.
2. Category Navigation Widget. This widget will display all categories on CMS sections. The number next to the name displays the number of articles in that category.
3. Admin-Defined Navbar Section Links. The admin is able to define which sections can display in the top navbar. Please look at the "Managing Sections Article."
4. Articles. The content here is displayed in the "2x1" layout. "2x1" means 2 articles are displayed in the first row and all remaining content is displayed in a single column. In other sections you will see alternate content layouts like 1 column, 2 column, 3 column, 1x2 (first article spans 2 columns and all remaining articles displayed in 2 columns).
5. Create New Article Button. If a user has permissions, the "Create New Article" button will display. For more information please look at the "Create New Article" article.
6. Recent Article Comments Widget. This widget will display the latest article comments.
7. Recent Blog Posts Widget. This widget displays the newest blog entries.
8. Recent Forum Posts Widgets. This widget displays the most recent forum posts.

You can read more about their preview at their site at Welcome to the new CMS.

The new CMS enables the administrator to publish threads from the forum as articles on the site,or blogs, as well as enabling members to publish articles and blogs themselves. The Admin can also create articles themselves, set articles to specific categories, create unique layouts and styles for specific sections, set article display order, set future publishing dates and times, set specific articles to be published on the home page, assign permissions to specific user groups, publish custom widgets, and even create and publish static HTML pages as articles.

Admin tools include a content manager, category manager, section manager, layout manager, grid manager, widget manager and unified permission system. As would be expected, admins can add and use themes and skins to the site, enabling a unique look and style for their site, which allows them to develop a look and feel for the site that differentiates their site from all the other vBulletin sites out there.

Search engine optimization plays a big part in this release, with SEO friendly URLs, custom META keywords and descriptions, automatic Google XML sitemap generation, and removal of duplicate content.

The use of the popular Captcha system has been implemented, as well as the login "strike" system and email and password checks and compliance with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA)...security and privacy issues have been addressed throughout the entire CMS.

Currently vBulletin's Publishing Suite has a deal going right now in which you can pre-purchase the product before it is officially released for the price of $235. Current vBulletin customers can pre-purchase it for the even better price of $160, which is a steal since it includes the vBulletin discussion forum software itself sells for $195 for new customers. The official release date for the vBulletin Publishing Suite is somewhere around November 16th, which is when the pre-sale offer ends.

Conclusion

vBulletin is already an amazing discussion forum software tool that can make your site more than a scattering of visitors--it can turn your site into an active, live community of returning customers. The next iteration of vBulletin's software as a social networking Publishing Suite is a huge step in the right direction, and vBulletin will be helping to bring sites to life, and things will never be the same. I for one am looking forward to a sneak peek at this soon-to-be-released package, and will be reviewed by myself next week on our sister site, WebReference, so be sure to have a look for a closer inspection and details about this amazing software. See you then!