phpBB

phpBB is a stable, open-source, bulletin board script available as a free download from phpbb.com. It allows you to set up an unlimited number of forums and categories. Users, moderators and user groups with varying permissions can be created. In short, it provides everything you'd expect of a bulletin board service. For a complete list of all supported features, see phpbb.com/features.

This software can easily be installed using FTP and a browser. It will run on any PHP-enabled server and requires any one of the following databases: MySQL, PostgreSQL, MS SQL or Access via ODBC.

It doesn't matter whether your server is running IIS or Apache, though setup tends to be simpler on an Apache Web server. Any Website administrator should be able to install and configure phpBB in a minimum amount of time.

The administrator's interface allows for ongoing maintenance, so that styles can be changed and topics added or removed. In fact, any administrative duties can be easily performed.

The installation instructions provided at the phpBB site are clear and straightforward. This article does not attempt to replace those instructions but to supplement them and to assist site administrators who are not familiar with PHP. It will help you determine whether you can run phpBB on your server, and if so, how to upload, install and configure it.

phpBB is a free, open-source Internet community application, with outstanding discussion forums and membership management. Written in the PHP scripting language, and making use of the popular MySQL database, phpBB is a standard among webhosting companies throughout the world, and is one of the most widely used bulletin board packages in the world. phpBB short-circuits the need for you to be a web development master in order to create and manage massive online communities.

• phpBB is free. And it seems like it's going to stay this way. There have already been offers from companies to buy phpBB, but those were refused.
• phpBB is one of the most popular forum software. All those webmasters out there cannot be wrong. Continued usage of phpBB to power their web communities are their best testimonial.
• People know phpBB. Being so popular, it's very likely that your visitors have seen and used it already. They don't have to learn an entirely new system, and can start posting at once, feeling comfortable in a known environment.
• phpBB is mature. It has been around for more than four years of active and heavy use, which in Internet terms is a pretty long period.
• phpBB is feature rich and is open for custom feature additions. You can code your own custom features or you can use one or more of the numerous phpBB add-ons, also known as MODs or hacks, contributed by the community of phpBB users.
• phpBB's looks are customizable. You can easily change fonts and colors. You can even change the layout or use an existing layout contributed by other phpBB users.

Conclusion

With little effort and no cost, you've installed a professional bulletin board service on your Website, regardless of the server you're using and your level of knowledge of PHP and databases. The style of this bulletin board can be easily configured to match the look and feel of the rest of your site, so give it a try!