My review of vBulletin

Why not try the logical approach and treat the members and customers with respect instead of calling them infantile names and belittling them ? This I am sure would result in the reciprocal respect you so desperately seek.

VB is on the fast slide to nowhere, and the jobs will most likely go with it. Logic would dictate that this is NOT the time to be a smartass for any employee of VB/IB.

Despite all the pathetic propaganda issued by VB/IB and the support staff, as well as all the censoring done on VB.com and VB.org, they have been totally unable to slow down, let alone stop the bitterly disappointed customers from posting the truth for all to see.

Yet you and others continue to try to lord it over your members/customers. I pity you.

I am absolutely amazed at the incompetence shown and the lack of common sense by those who support VB etc.

But carry on, It will only increase the degradation of a once great product.

 

Paul M, there are members on A-T who still enjoy running vb, so please don't let a few discourage you in giving us the heads up

 

I have to agree a bit with BigAl. But let's just look to the future. If you give people/ customers helpful information, which is inline with their expectations, I highly doubt you will see many of the negative comments or trolling. On the contrary, you'll see attitudes change. It is what I've been preaching all along. I just hope you don't get a big stone thrown in front of your efforts to get vB4 up to snuff.

Also, is it me, or is vB4 being pushed a bit more on the vB.com website? I mean, information about vB4 wasn't an extra link at the top of the page until recently, was it? At any rate, I'd say IB is waking up finally. Now they need to take vB5 back to beta status. It is the only smart thing to do and it will stop most negative criticism in its tracks.

Scott

 

I ignore his posts so I wouldnt know.

On the main site ? Thats always been there (certainly in 2013).

You know very well thats never going to happen, its rather pointless to keep saying it.

 

No, I don't know that isn't going to happen. Why won't it happen?

Scott

 

Problems? What problems.

 

Oh well, just when I thought you were being sensible.
I have better things to do than play these games, enjoy the company of the trolls here.

 

The question was a valid one and was respectful, containing no insults nor profanity. All in all a very SENSIBLE question.

IMHO all the posts by s.molinari, have been sensible, polite and restrained. While many of yours have been evasive and demeaning.

You freely chose to come on here to post about VB/IB. Unfortunately for you we did not all fall over ourselves and feed your ego for you.
So now you look for an excuse to depart, by playing the martyr instead of doing the right thing by your customers.

We have seen another VB staff member Joe, also run away when confronted by the truth. Is it a VB trait? Bullies cannot stand this and will run away when they have to deal on a fair basis with others.

Sadly for you it is a different story when you cannot hide behind the ban button and you have to deal with customers on a more level playing field.

The MASSIVE number of complaints by dissatisfied customers would indicate that a SENSIBLE explanation and a desire to work with the customers to help VB get back on its feet would be expected, instead we get criticism by the staff for daring to voice our opinion, posts deletions and banning in an attempt to censor VB customers. And totally inappropriate responses attempting to belittle any who dare to complain or point out the truth.

Thank you Paul for showing us all that our comments are very appropriate and accurate.

 

@Paul M
So are we to conclude then that you as an employee and representing the decisions of IB are making an official statement that IB will not take vB5 back to beta status and continue to mislead customers and the general public that vBull is a gold release?
Personally I would be interested in "why they wouldn't take vB5 back to beta" as it would be a prudent business decision considering the hundreds of thousand of dollars in lost revenue it is facing.
And I'm just a little curious why you as an employee and thus a representative would be assisting in the denigration of IB/VB reputation and integrity.

 

A good post.

It could be that it is now almost impossible to defend VB, while the management is allowing the VB staff to cop all the flack .

The management appears to be throwing the "lower" replaceable staff members to the wolves.
A shame that Paul and Joe etc cannot see this and so they continue to paint themselves into a corner.

When VB degenerates into a financial black hole then I would say that the staff could be the first to go.

Maybe the smart ones have already, left hence the large number that have already jumped ship.

 

I've been sensible the whole time and to suggest anything else is an insult to me. That is the kind of indirect insult you constantly throw into conversations, when they don't go the way you think they should. You need to get a grip on that problem, because it doesn't help you at all.

You and whoever else from the IB staff, who stick their heads out of vB.com to comment on anything vBulletin take the risk of representing the nonsense called "IB management decision making" and the ridiculous position those decisions have put me, you and most importantly, the vBulletin customers in.

Some people chalk that ridiculousness up to a "normal corporate management". I chalk it up to incompetency, total missing passion for the vBulletin business and a lack humbleness to admit to mistakes. You, as a representative of the results of the IB management decision making, will almost always fail with customers, if you can't communicate any change or any positive direction in that continued poor decision making and lack of transparency. Yet you and other staff come in here and add to it. Why? If you cannot show competence and passion for the product Paul, then you shouldn't be making any comments at all, because you will loose each and every time in the eyes of every customer, current and even prospective ones. You are not being a proper ambassador for the product at all.

As you can see, all I am doing is showing just a little passion and competency for the product vBulletin and even though my words are only words, other people are defending them and me. Thank you for that BigAl and Autopilot!

But why is that? It is because what I am saying is right. It is the right thing to do. vB5 is still beta software and selling it as anything else is simply stupid. It is dangerous and is very damaging to the vBulletin business (as if it could get even worse). vB5 is a complete insult to current customers, who don't take the time to read the experiences of other vBulletin owners. IB is inviting them to run into a serious wall at full speed and....they don't seem to care and continue to sell it that way? And you sit there with your arms crossed and say to me, "It ain't going to happen. vB5 won't be taken back to beta. You should know better and it is pointless to say it?" LOL!

It isn't pointless, because if it were to happen, with one simple decision, with one relatively easy action, IB could right a whole lot of wrong they have done. They just have to admit it was a mistake to release vB5 as a "non-beta" product. That in itself is a joke. Non-Beta...puh! Such nonsense!

The missing humbleness is what you probably think isn't going to change and that is exactly why vBulletin is doomed. Along with the missing ability to admit to a mistake, the incompetency and lack of passion will prevail at IB and kill vBulletin. It is practically dead already.

Until you can lead and lead correctly Paul and until the decision makers above you can too, then maybe it is better you stay off these forums. My suggestion to you is simply help customers with technical problems, which you can actually solve. You should stop commenting on the things, which you think are never going to change, which are killing vBulletin, because....

you seem to know much better than I, those people making the decisions will never change, so its rather pointless to keep defending them or their decisions.

And, just for fun. I'll say it again.

vBulletin 5 Connect needs to be taken back to beta status! Customers should be given their 30 days support back. If customers want their money back, who have upgraded to vB5 or installed it and are using it, then they get their money back and can still use it. It might be a way to get your beta testers back. vBulletin 5 needs to be worked on, until it is a viable product for MOST customers and then be released as a proper gold product, with NO major or critical bugs in it.

It is a very easy decision, just someone needs to swallow their false pride and do it. It wouldn't hurt IB's business much financially, not as much as a failing vBulletin business would, and it would make a world of difference for everyone involved. It is NOT pointless to say it either!

Scott

 

@ s.molinari. Well said.
It would be great if they could admit their mistakes and set things right.
However, past inaction does not make me hopeful that this will happen.
So the train wreck is set to continue.

 

How can you call anyone a troll. LOL ?

 

@Paul M.
NO Paul, because some one disagrees with you does NOT make them a troll.
The posting of the truth and the facts does NOT make anyone a troll.

I think that you should apologize for calling the members here Trolls. You can call me what you like, as it will not alter anything but it is the act of a loser to label the members here as trolls. You may not like hearing the facts, but they cannot be altered and will always remain as stated.

As you seem to be unable to grasp reality, let me try to help you, most of us here are:

CUSTOMERS!

A customer is NOT an interruption to your work they are the REASON for it.
Please wake up to what you are doing as it is bringing you and VB into disrepute.

Banning, deleting, backing up unethical colleagues and posting propaganda as well as deriding CUSTOMERS cannot succeed.

My take on things are, that you should apologize and start to act like some one who actually cares for the customers who you ultimately work for.

 

That is a good question. I, personally, am not trying to save the sinking ship. That is for others to try and do. I am simply trying to leave the sinking ship with honor, as I consider my responsibilities fairly high up in the "chain of command", considering vBulletin-Germany.com used to generate about 10% of the vBulletin business in the past.

Funny thing of it is though, I guess I was also told to walk the plank, just before the Captain shot the cannon in the floor of the ship and started the huge leak. I also couldn't jump from the plank, because I can't. I still have a responsibility to help the passengers on the German vB4 deck. LOL! What a great analogy.

Edit- And to continue the analogy, only some last strong German passengers are left on deck, looking for a way to jump ship. Their need for my help is little to none. The time to finally leave the ship and start to even make a new and much better one is getting much, much closer.

Scott

 

It is highly unlikely as things stand that I will be using VB in the future. I am currently using VB4 and looking at moving.

I am currently helping some young webmasters to get their sites up and running and they are using VB.
While purchasing a new non VB license would not be any financial burden to me, it would possibly make it hard for the young webmasters to have to fork out more money for new licences. So it is best if VB keeps going for their sakes.

IF VB do the Right thing and correct the situation ( at this stage looking unlikely) then I am sure that it could once again be a good product.

The disconcerting part is that many experienced users have all said similar things, yet they continue to be ignored and insulted.

I now consider the VB/IB management and support staff to be akin to "The keystone cops"
Blundering from one disaster to another in high farce.

 

I really wish php 5.4 support was here now. We had to rollback our server because it was throwing errors.

 

That's modern forum software for you

 

No, it's the world's leading community software!

Scott