It is an age-old debate, and no single software is ever the clear-cut winner. Whether your budget is in the thousands, or you don’t have a penny, running a forum can be very affordable. I’ll go over some of the vast number of available options, and explain what software is best for different applications. I have created a short but helpful glossary of terms at the end of this article.

The Basics
Before you consider different forum software, you need primitive knowledge of how forum software works. Most forum software, and the ones I’ll be covering in this article, are powered by PHP, a recursive acronym for Hypertext Preprocessor. There are alternatives to PHP, however, they are not as widely developed.

Most shared hosting providers will provide PHP, or will offer to install it if it is not already.

Secondly, is MySQL. MySQL is a database system that allows forums (or other software) to efficiently store their data in a organized table system. While there are other SQL options available, MySQL is most commonly used in data storage for forums. Installing MySQL is not trivial for a novice, and since most shared hosting providers will provide or install it for free, this is another thing to ask about.

List your forum
I invite readers to reply to this article with links to their forums. Please describe the software you are using, and what you like and dislike about it

Choosing your software
Provided your server has PHP and MySQL installed, its time to move onto the next step, which is choosing software. Make sure you know the amount of disk-space and data-transfer your hosting account offers. Additionally, find out your MySQL information. (Database Type, Database Username, Password, and Database Name, and, location to phpMyAdmin)

The Common Three

PHPBB – Without question, PHPBB is the most popular free forum software available. PHPBB is currently at version 2.0.8, and is available for download on the PHPBB website. The download, in zip format, is 673kb. There are a vast number of modifications available for PHPBB, as well as many CMS’s, Styles, and more.

PHPBB Website - Download PHPBB - PHPBB Welcome Package - Demo

Invision Power Board (IPB) - I’ve never been a big fan of IPB, and I’ve taken lots of heat for my dislike of IPB. However, in defense of this shareware forum software, its absolutely crammed full of features. IPB is shareware, which means they’ll allow you to run it as a functional trial for an unlimited time. Some features are disabled, and you must display a free-trial notice.

IPB Website - Purchase - Tour - Download Free

vBulletin – I’ll admit, vBulletin is my favorite forum software. This software is probably the most famous ‘paid’ software. It is not cheap, however, it, like IPB, is absolutely crammed with features. I can say off hand the support at vBulletin is the utmost friendly and helpful. VBulletin is seen on some of the world’s most popular forums, such as WebHostingTalk, Offtopic Forums, Yaxyay, and even on GeekValley!

vB Website - vB Features - Documentation - Live forums - Purchase

The Distant Others

Glossary of Terms (Unordered)
PHP – Hypertext Preprocessor (Recursive acronym) - Open source software that generates dynamic pages. Files end in *.php. For more information, visit http://php.net

MySQL – An open source database system commonly used for forums. Files end in *.sql. There are other types of SQL databases. For more information, visit http://mysql.com.

BBS – An acronym for Bulletin Board System.

Hosting Account – Every website needs to be placed onto a computer which then serves files to other computers. The computer that serves the files is a server. Servers act as "hosts" for websites. Many people purchase accounts on servers to store their files/websites. Hence, a Hosting Account.

Bandwidth – The amount of data that can be transferred through a connection at any given time. Commonly mistaken for Data Transfer.

Data Transfer – The amount of data that can be transferred from a server in a given time period. Example: Company XYZ offers 5GB of Data Transfer a month.

Usergroups – Groups users are placed in on forums.

Thread – Sometimes referred to as a topic, it is a continuous group of posts. Example: User 1 posts a message, and User 2 responds.

Post – A message ‘posted’ for public viewing.

Post Count – Number of messages that have been posted.

URL – An acronym for Uniform Resource Locator. Usually starts with http:// or www.

POP3 – An acronym for Post Office Protocol. Usually used for downloading email messages.

SPAM – A internet jargon used to describe unwanted messages. Example: A graphic designer is advertising his services in a forum specified for political discussion.

Avatar – A small image usually placed below a username when posting a message.

JPEG/GIF/PNG – Common formats for images on the Internet. Endings include: *.jpg, *.jpeg, *.gif, *.png.

GNU – An acronym for "GNU’s Not UNIX" (recursive). Public ‘open source’ software license. See http://www.gnu.org/ for more information.