Best forum software/hosting options available for webiste?

[XiZiT]

Hey guys, I don't know if I am wording this right but basically I want a forum for my company so that clients can create accounts (profiles, pictures, etc) and then discuss ideas, suggestions, questions, etc relating to my business. I am not a great programmer but somebody suggested to use Mambo because it is very easy to setup and configure. I also know that there are websites offering FREE forum hosting and installation but the drawback is that they host it for you. I am willing to pay a few bucks a month if necessary but would prefer free. Can anyone suggest something for me???


Thank you in advance.

 

[tami]

it's not a drawback to have people host it for you. would you rather it run on your home computer where it is more prone to crashes and doesn't have the best bandwidth?

btw, phpBB is good too, but you have to be aware that you should patch it regularly. what you're asking for seems to be more of a bulletin board than mambo, which is more of a portal/content management system where you regularly update it with news, etc.

this is mambo <--content is nsfw unfortunately (but in very small text); i guess the "admins" were having too much fun.

this is phpBB

 

[murderburger]

If you are expecting alot of people to use your site , the best thing would be to pay for webspace and install the software yourself. Phpbb is good but another good alternative is Smf , it even has a great portal that uses the same database Tiny portal. I installed it thru a web interface after uploading the files, couldn't be easier.


You have at least some control over the content, if you host it. With the free forums, you are kind depending on them making backups of your database.

 

[Stuxnet]

I would look into DotNetNuke. The only issue is that it requires a hosting service running on IIS. This limits your hosting options, but the software looks quite robust.