The 'Who's Actually Using vBulletin 5' list!

I've found another site (albeit a less busy one) that used to have a reasonably nice vB3 colour scheme (I won't say "skin" because by and large these are just default skins with customised colours and backgrounds), who are now on vB5 but it's completely default in terms of colours and even logos and it simply doesn't suit them.

I'm considering reaching out to them to offer to do the colours for them and get their original logo back. (The web archive's Wayback Machine is brilliant for this type of thing).
Sometimes people get a bit suspicious of this sort of thing though so I need to tread carefully.

On a lot of sites I find that much of the resistance to vB5 is more down to the loss of their site's distinctive identity (colours and logos) rather than specific functionality or bugs (though that does play a part).

I could probably make money doing this but I don't have the time to commit to it, doing it as a favour/goodwill type of thing suits me better.

Part of the way I do it is to agree with the site owner that I can create an admin account and interact with the actual users as I go, so that things are tailored to their feedback, obviously with the site owner having final veto. Not all sites would be comfortable with this. Also a big part of this is that the users need to be broadly supportive of what I am trying to do - if all they want to do is take potshots at vB Support then that's not something I'm going to waste my valuable free time getting involved with.

 

Don't really see that as a negative, rather I see it as a positive.

Nobody thinks it's negative when Kier or Mike do similar things for XenForo customers. Which they have done.

Anyone who wants a distinctive, customised site has to accept this is going to involve some work. If I wanted to move my site to XenForo or IPB and still have it looking and working right, it'd be a HUGE amount of work. Work that would be beyond my skillset and time availability. Indeed I'd probably need to pay somebody a fair wad of cash. That fact doesn't change whether the software is any good. This is how it's always been and probably how it always will be.

 

VB4 was released in 2009, not VB5 and yes VB4 is indeed a product to be proud of. Software that sucks doesn't become the market leader.

Oh wow- someone with an Anti-VB agenda didn't start a thread that you would call a "Showcase" of VB5 communities? How surprising.

And no, as has been said, I can't make such a thread without permission from the site owners which I have no desire to get.

 

From what I can see, these are ALL of the vB5 sites out there and none of them are really worth showcasing, so even if you could start such a thread, it wouldn't be worth your time and my point in my post still stands. vB5 is a shame and the reason for it is obvious.

Scott

 

Piggy backing off of what bama said, vB4 was released as a heaping pile of shitty diapers. The ONLY reason it would have been considered "market leader" is from riding the coat tails of prior versions of vB.

 

And let's also not forget, the market leader's market share is dropping like big load of hot tamales too.

Hmm....I wonder why that is?

Oh yeah.



How could I forget so quickly.

I wonder if the responsible people, if they saw this thread, would even flinch a little. Just a wee bit. I wish they would. Really I do. Because, it would mean they did care even a little bit about their own reputation and that indirectly would be good for vBulletin. I am not even asking for them to care about vBulletin, although that should be the goal. It is unbelievable to imagine that they think they can sit behind their monitors and sell a community software and not be a very important and integral part of their own customer community. It just goes to show you, the picture above is absolutely analogous to the management mentality involved with producing and selling vBulletin.

Scott

 

Oh dear, I thought this thread was going to be a useful discussion about the merits (or otherwise) of various live vB5 sites that could be found.

Instead it's back to the usual "vBdrama" along with the usual attacks on staff by the usual suspects.

*Unwatched* (to use the new, strange terminology).

 

I thought you were "no longer available", anyway...

 

I'm not but where there's constructive input I can add value to, I'm always happy to try.
Clearly, this isn't such a thread.

 

Well going the extra mile for a customer is good even if its in your own spare time. The only issue is that apparently you need assistance of a support guy from the company to even get vBulletin 5 running correctly or to have a decent theme,

 

I personally think a couple of things need to happen, before I can imagine really useful conversations about vBulletin will be possible.

1. Staff on third party sites stop acting like there is anything to defend. In other words, simply be much more humble. If anyone writes untruths, just correct them with simple facts, if they are known and not with any additional marketing jargon like "market leader". No belittling comments, like "threads deteriorate again because of certain people" or "that is rubbish". No judgmental attitudes, like "Oh, vB Drama again".

I said it earlier and I'll say it again, every customer IB has and even those they lost are absolutely correct to be cynical, sarcastic, drama queens and any other derogatory name you can give them. As long as they are there, IB still has a chance! And you can point your finger all you want at them Mr. vB Support Guys. They will continue to win, until the following point happens.

2. Management must show they care. I don't care how, but they need to show they care. They need to show they don't have their heads in their butts. They also need to show they actually know what they are doing and more importantly they need to show they actually do have the customer's best interests in mind. They need to show they want to deliver quality. They must show they do want respect and do their damn best to earn it too.

If that happens, then I think we might see some nice discussions about vBulletin again.

I would welcome it.

You know, people who say business should be driven without emotion are fools. Passion and the want to satisfy your customer base and work hard, with blood, sweat and tears to give them the best user experience possible, is the driver of great business.

Great business is definitely not done by cash grabbing with a totally ignorant delivery of shoddy, piecemeal, gimmicky quality.

Think about it.

Scott

 

It may have been- but it was built into something great. Get over how it started- what matters is where it is now and how high it got.

Only proves you don't see so well if you honestly think the half dozen or so sites are the on;y VB5 sites out there.

The ONLY reason it is called the Market Leader is because there are more VB 4.x forums then any other major version forums of any of its competitors. That is just math. You don't get to be market leader solely on reputation alone- if the software isn't there people would leave.

 

Hundreds of sites, but no where near the numbers required to keep vB profitable, it's a failing business that I suspect will be closed down in the next year or so.

The launch of vB Cloud as an attempt to save the business, is not going to work.

 

So many people, myself included, "upgraded", for lack of a better word, to vBulletin 4 based off its reputation alone. Unfortunately, not everyone is able to just switch to another software when they find the one they are running turned to shit. They just have too much invested into it. So yes, reputation had a big part of it.

 

What half dozen? I'm looking at the 164 sites Shawn posted. I haven't looked at them all and probably won't, but every one I've looked at, about 20 of them, look pathetic to just barely semi-decent. None of them are really eye catching. Too many of them are in sad shape.

Scott

 

Does that mean you are off?

Yet again?

LOL.

 

Sites are leaving, week by week we see vB market share drop and both IPB & xF's market share grow, that's the fact, no matter what spin you try to put on it.

It's time you woke-up and smelled the coffee.

 

There's nothing to wake up from- I'm not under the delusion VB isn't losing market share- I know unless there is some major change I won't be able to call VB the market leader at some point be it this year or next- none of that is relevant to the point that VB4 was the market leader and no one can take away the fact it rose to be the market leader- and that did not happen solely on the reputation of VB3. VB4 is a quality product.