A quick note about TGJ and the future...

[The Cobbler]

V- bulletin used to be the supreme of forum software. I don't think it is any more.
Xenforo has many of the people that left V Bulletin due to disputes on how the new company owners were running it .
I know nothing about Xenforo, and I'm one that doesn't like change, but it is probably worth it in the long run . simple things like better spam control , better search engine, etc, make it seem a worthwhile upgrade to me.

 

[astrohip]

V- bulletin used to be the supreme of forum software. I don't think it is any more.
Xenforo has many of the people that left V Bulletin due to disputes on how the new company owners were running it .
I know nothing about Xenforo, and I'm one that doesn't like change, but it is probably worth it in the long run . simple things like better spam control , better search engine, etc, make it seem a worthwhile upgrade to me.

I mentioned this a couple years ago... a forum I am very active on (20,000+ posts) moved from VB to Xenforo about the same time it was discussed here. It was a very positive move. The forum is easier to use, much faster, easier to use attachments & pics, yada yada. Not one single negative.

Let's do it!

 

[NUTTSGT]

I have walked away from three forums in the last couple of years after they "upgraded" their format to something that left me lost. Hoping this place doesn't end up the same.

I know of two other forums (Xenforo) and I think the new layout looks like total ****. I don't think they are easy on the eyes and hard to look at.

 

[Wrench97]

V- bulletin used to be the supreme of forum software. I don't think it is any more.
Xenforo has many of the people that left V Bulletin due to disputes on how the new company owners were running it .
I know nothing about Xenforo, and I'm one that doesn't like change, but it is probably worth it in the long run . simple things like better spam control , better search engine, etc, make it seem a worthwhile upgrade to me.

It's a real shame Vbulliten has not been able to keep up Xenforo can be made to do many things like Vbulliten but I still can't get use to the back end and find my way around like I can in Vb 3.x

 

[oldmxracer]

I know of two other forums (Xenforo) and I think the new layout looks like total ****. I don't think they are easy on the eyes and hard to look at.

Agree 100%

 

[HOTFR8]

I have walked away from three forums in the last couple of years after they "upgraded" their format to something that left me lost. Hoping this place doesn't end up the same.

The HAMB is on the new format and has been now for some time. I'll admit some of the changes took time to get used to but in the long term the new format will be much better. Allow some time to adjust.

Just waiting for Ryan to advise what has been the delay.

 

[Strouty]

I am nervous.

 

[iSpark]

I haven't seen a Xenforo forum, at least I don't think I have.

Just took a look at HAMB, and the biggest thing off the bat for me, is the font size in the post list and section names and in the actual forum post, the font type is awful and hard to read.
Other than that I don't know, I was on the HAMB forum for all of 2 minutes. lol

 

[HOTFR8]

I haven't seen a Xenforo forum, at least I don't think I have.

Just took a look at HAMB, and the biggest thing off the bat for me, is the font size in the post list and section names and in the actual forum post, the font type is awful and hard to read.
Other than that I don't know, I was on the HAMB forum for all of 2 minutes. lol

You can change the size of the fonts.

 

[58Yeoman]

I've been on the hamb and noticed that it was different than here, but didn't know that it was brand X. I've been getting around it okay. Doesn't look as good as it does here, though.

 

[mmb617]

Whatever happens I'm sure I'll adjust. I'm on another forum which I won't name but the initials are YB, that recently underwent a format change. My God the complaints! Yes there was a learning curve but I found once past that the forum is easier to use than before. At least that's my opinion although there are still a lot of complainers.

I'm an old fart who isn't particularly fond of change, but change is inevitable so you just have to move on.

 

[Jeffh40]

Assuming we will finally get a like button and reply notifications. That will be such an improvement. Replies to threads can easily get overlooked here in some of the fast paced forums.

 

[astrohip]

Feedback on some replies from above...

* Font size can be changed by the individual user
* "layout looks like ****" there are dozens of layouts available for Xenforo, it's up to the admin to pick the one they want. And in many cases, the user can actually pick the one they want from a menu of layouts (again, up to admin)

If you are a frequent forum user, ANY change is challenging at first. Your brain has to re-process everything from scratch. But as *several* people have commented above, once you get used to it, it's *much* better.

 

[HOTFR8]

I'd like to know what is so wrong with what we have today????

I believe this format will soon be obsolete and thus incompatible with certain Internet protocols in the near future...or something like that.

The below quote may help.

Some of you guys act as if I have a choice. I don't. Here's a better explanation:

TGJ is ran on VB 3.8 - widely known as the last version of VB that actually works and scales. However, VB 3.8 doesn't run on newer versions of PHP. In fact, we are quickly getting to the point where in order to stay on VB 3.8, I would have to run an unsupported version of PHP. That's not only risky from a software standpoint as far as security goes, but it risks all of the data posted here since 2005. I'm not willing to do that.

So, my options are to upgrade to VB 5 (which is widely known as a miserable piece of software) or move to Xenforo. I'm moving to Xenforo because I have experience with both VB 5 and Xenforo and know first hand which piece of software works better given the loads that we have.

 

[ZRX61]

I was a member of a UK aviation forum for about 15 years that used V Bulletin. Then the people in charge (Key publishing) decided they could write their own forum software & do a better job. They apparently employed people who had never used an online forum before.. or who had any experience writing software. People left in droves, they went from dozens of posts a day to 3 or 4. Took less than a month to utterly destroy the forum.


At least here Ryan was talking about using another off the shelf software package.

 

[ant.foste]

I hope that any upgrade here does not go the way it did recently at HVAC-talk. That forum has been crippled for the last two weeks.

 

[jkeyser14]

Can I request you change ad providers? The current infosys ones wreak havoc on mobile browsing.

 

[brianh]

I am sure it will be fine, I found this site ten years ago when I was thinking about putting up a 40X60 steel building for a new shop. Saw some builds and did one.

One thing I would like to suggest is a woodworking sub forum a lot of us do that in our garages too.

 

[bdk1976]

Damn this *****. I rarely visit the HAMB anymore as the desktop format ***** major **** since the "upgrade". I know my opinion doesn't amount to jack, but this is seriously disappointing news.

 

[Jagmandave]

Two year old seriously disappointing news that is.....

 

[Jlbc212]

Another forum i frequently visit changed from VBulletin to Xenforo. A third of the screen is now filled with click bait advertisements and in each thread advertisements frequently appear as postings within the thread itself. The board is no easier to maneuver around and really has no better features. I've also noticed that the board traffic has dropped way off. I understand why the owners made the change - all those advertisements generate $$ as members accidentally click on the advertisement.

 

[Higgins]

Keep up the good work!
Thanks for the heads up on the pending change. That way I can get my brain ready for the upcoming changes .............

 

[kbuhagiar]

Another forum i frequently visit changed from VBulletin to Xenforo. A third of the screen is now filled with click bait advertisements and in each thread advertisements frequently appear as postings within the thread itself. The board is no easier to maneuver around and really has no better features. I've also noticed that the board traffic has dropped way off. I understand why the owners made the change - all those advertisements generate $$ as members accidentally click on the advertisement.

I don't spend as much time on H.A.M.B. (Ryan's other board which runs Xenforo) as I do here on GJ, so, after reading this I went over there to investigate. After logging in I couldn't find a single ad anywhere on any screen. That pretty much tells me all I need to know about what to expect when the switch to X happens over here.

Relax, folks, everything will be fine.

 

[PCMusicGuy]

As long as the desktop user interface stays closer to what we currently have here now and not like the Fisher Price HAMB ui, I'll be fine. It really is unacceptable that you can see twice as many threads here (22) than you can in the same vertical screen space as on the HAMB (11).

 

[F451]

I'd welcome a transition to Xenforo or similar forum. -Ed

 

[Jagmandave]

Well, is it actually going to happen? His first post made it seem like it was going to be imminent, yet that was two years ago, maybe he changed his mind?