Should I ditch Subdreamer?

On one of my sites I'm using the free version of Subdreamer as my index page, with the forums in the /forum subdirectory, separate link directory, and zip code search both in other directories. The only feature of Subdreamer I'm really using is it's ability to display the latest 10 posts on the index page, which seems like a waste of time to me. Do you think I should ditch Subdreamer and put the forums in root, or keep them where they are and install vBadvanced for more features on the index page?

 

I for sure say ditch subdreamer, its honestly the most useless CMS i have ever seen, only reason a few people use it is because its 'paid' and it gives off a good impression like 'oh they have money to spend', as for move to index or vBadvanced, I've never played with vBadvanced so I can't help there but I always like forums in the root directory or maybe just do like a redirect from the root to the forums incase you ever want to use something else later on.

~ Randy

 

That's not completely sure, because more times than not, people are using the free version, like Mich.

And can you explain why it is useless.

 

Seeing as you're using vBulletin - why not use vB CMPS? It's free too and is much better than the free version of Subdreamer IMO.

 

Well if you're using the free version and not using the CMS features of the software than vBAdvanced might be a better fit for you. I found that was easier to create new pages of custom content with Subdreamer than vBAdvanced though. Not exactly fond of storing content in templates and/or instead of having its own editing interface.

Though currently I would choose Wordpress over both even though its a pain to integrate.

 

Absolutely agree. Here's a bridge for vb 3.8 and Wordpress.

 

I'm not familiar with either vB CMPS or vBAdvanced, what makes WordPress a better choice than either of them?

 

vBAdvanced CMPS is the proper name. Check out the site I linked in my first post, there's screenshots there. It's a portal for vBulletin.

As for Wordpress: it has a great editor that lets you create content with real ease. You got categories for your posts, you got pages you can create, a SH*TLOAD of plugins and vBulletin integration.
Wordpress was originally just a blogging software, but these days a lot of people use it as a CMS because of its ease of use and amount of features and plugins.

 

vBAdvanced is not bad, but a lot of people just don't like it. It's what most sites use as their portal, which a lot of people despise. Therefore, people automatically associate "vBAdvanced" with "ugly portal; I don't want to touch it."

The only real way to know what's best for you is to try the different options out. vBAdvanced is free, so there's no harm.

And good luck finding Wordpress/vB integration that actually works. I tried the one that was linked to (mentioned above) and not only does it not work properly (some people got lucky and it works, but for most, such is not the case) but it is unsupported by the author.

 

Another option is Joomla. It is (IMO) the best free CMS and there are two integration options with vBulletin that I am aware of.
There is JFusion which is free and there's the jvbPlugin which also does the job. The latter costs $35 to download, but it is released under the GPL so anyone can give you their copy and you can use it legally (without support though, but that's no biggie).
The jvbPlugin also includes a "who is online in the forum" module/block for your CMS, a login form (using vBulletin login) and a "latest posts" module/block as well.

 

I wouldn't say that people automatically associated "vBadvanced" & "ugly portal" together as much as "stock vBa CMPS installation using the stock modules & stock layouts with nothing custom at all" & "ugly portal" together. :2cents:

 

This... The default layout is crowded and unappealing. However if someone takes a little time in customizing vBAdvanced, it can create a great entry page along with a few custom pages to do what you need. Using custom module wrappers and not having to use every module known to mankind is a good start.

 

I have another choice that I don't think anyone mentioned yet. Maybe you could move the forum to the root directory for now and try something with the vBulletin 4 CMS when it's ready. Unless you didn't intend on upgrading - that idea's out the window, then.

 

That's pretty much what I meant, but I didn't really say it in my post.

You are absolutely correct. The problem is that very few people customize their vBAdvanced installation, which is why so many people make the connection that I stated. To a viewer who has no clue what vBAdvanced is, the default portal looks like crap - and they naturally discredit vBAdvanced for it rather than the site owner's lack of creativity and modification.