HT: Setup your own hacking forum~

[OblivionMage]

Introduction.

So, I was looking around at all of the guides on this site, and trying to think of something that did not appear to be covered at all yet. I mean, I don't know of any good exploits or glitches or leaks right now that aren't already released and made common knowledge. Hopefully this will help some people (I have a slight fear that the admins might get angry that it *could* promote people to make competitors and branch away from the site, but that is kind of unrealistic :/). Here it is; (My first *real* contribution) This guide is in WoW Guides because it is designed to help users create a WoW forum/site. IMO it is just as on topic as FRAPS tutorials and the like, so please, ask me to explain before giving me more infractions ;P

(I had to finish it up in a hurry, I am finishing it right now. Oh, and how are the colors? What is their current DPS on your eyes?)


Index.
1. Choosing theme/name
1.1 - Goal
1.2 - Naming
2. Choosing a host
2.1 - Paid Hosts
2.2 - Free (General) hosts
2.3 - Free (Forum-Only) hosts
2.4 - Other hosts
3. Getting a domain name
3.1 - Getting a domain name
4. Setting up the site
4.1 Introduction
4.2 - Website (Primary Component) (Mambo/Joomla)
4.3 - Website (Primary Component) (No CMS/MySQL dependency)
4.4 - Website (Secondary Component)
4.5 - Forum (VBulletin)
4.6 - Forum (Proboards)
4.7 - Forum (Invisionfree)
4.8 - Where to buy/request custom templates/skins
4.9 - Installing/using the template/skin (Coming Soon!)
4.92 - Customing the site (Coming Soon!)
5. Promoting the site (Coming Soon!)
6. Monetizing the site (Coming Soon!)

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Choosing a theme/name
--------------------------

The first decision that you will come to is probably the most important, what will the site be about? Will it be all forums, or will it have a homepage/blog/downloads component as well? Will this be done within the forums or out of them? These are all things that you will have to think about when going through this guide.

1.1 - Goal:

-What exactly do you want your site to do? Do you want it to be based around a community forum or a site that primarily uses a download/submit section?

1.2 - Name:

-Choosing the name for your site/forum is (at times, and for some of us), a very difficult process, as it must be appealing to users while being something that they will remember. Name's with numbers in them, for example, wow343haxs! are generally something to stay away from, as well as acronyms. They should be simple and to the point, and should give away at least something of what the site is about.

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Choosing a host
-------------------------

-There are a LOT of choices for hosts, and different ways that you can arrange your site. Knowledge of HTML/CSS/MySQL will help a great deal for this step. You should use whatever host you think
is best, its mostly just preference. Here are some examples (Organized for your differing needs);

2. 1 - Paid hosts

-GoDaddy -

Introduction:
The best host in terms of reliablilty and reassurance, google even directs you here and buy's domains in accordance with them. They *are* the leader in webhosting (in terms of usage), and I very much recommend them.
Site: Link

Information from site:

-Bluehost -

I don't know much about them from personal experiance, but I have been told that they are very dilligent and have definately been around for a while.
Site: Link

Information from site:

2. 2 - Free (General) hosts

-110mb -

These guys have been around forever, and their forums are extremely active to prove it. They offer a very fast free hosting service with 5gb space, 300gb monthly bandwidth, and an array of management features. Unfortunately, they droppedthe free MySQL support not too long ago as it was degrading everyone's site's performance.However, this can be activated again (Its unlimited mySql) with a one-time 10$ payment or350 forum posts. (There are no forced ads and they allow you to put advertisements on yoursite). They allow CMS's, although Mambo/Joomla have to be specifically requested andallowed by an admin (They don't want abusers).

-Site: Link

2.3 - Free (Forum-Only) hosts

-Proboards -

Offers a free forum service, they are fairly good with some nice mods and skins, although they do force some banner ads onto your site.

Site: Link

-Invisionfree

-Offer a service much like Proboards, but with some *imo nicer* skins and features. However, none of these free forum-only hosts come even close to vBulletin (It costs a lot of money, although most people use cracked versions). Ultimately, it is best not to use a free forum provider if you want to make money off of your site.

Site: Link

2. 4 - Other freehosts

-There are many other free hosts, but I have not found any that are as reliable as 110mb. An example of some of these would be 'Freewebs', who offer very limited bandwidth and force banner advertisements.

Feel free to request an addition to this list

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Getting a Domain Name
-------------------------

3.1- Getting a proper or good domain name is another issue that alot of people seem to run into. If you are willing to spend some money on the project, I would advise that you go with GoDaddy to get your domain name. Going with a smaller company is never good in this regard, as if they go under you will generally lose the name as well. Some free alternatives to paid domain names are:

-Uni.cc -
Site: Link
Uni.cc domain names are given out freely (Ex: YOU.uni.cc) There are no ads included whatsoever. Both of these free sub-domain names have some management features.

Example URL: YOU.uni.cc

-Co.nr -
Site: Link
Domain names are given out freely (Ex: YOU.co.nr). There are no ads included in this one either, but a link back to co.nr is required on the front-page (small icon ink).

Example URL: YOU.co.nr

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Setting up the site
----------------------

4.1 - In this section you will create the forum sections, as well as find a template/skin for your site.

Themes or templates can be requested or even payed for via a great deal of professionals and free communities. Picking one that works for your site can be a challenge, but it is very rewarding when you finally find the right one. Below I have included some lists to look through, but you can find more very easily.

For:
4.2 - Website (Primary Component) (Mambo/Joomla)
4.3 - Website (Primary Component) (No CMS/MySQL dependency)
4.4 - Website (Secondary Component)
4.5 - Forum (VBulletin)
4.6 - Forum (Proboards)
4.7 - Forum (Invisionfree)
4.8 - Where to buy/request custom templates/skins
4.9 - Installing/using the template/skin (Coming Soon!)
4.92 - Customing the site (Coming Soon!)


4.2 - Templates for a site that primarily uses their website and not forums and uses Joomla! or Mambo

Recommended

Joomla:

• -A World of Warcraft specific template, this one should go quite well as a front-site. It requires some extra components (all free) to be installed on your Joomla! however.
• Link

Mambo:
-
PHP-Fusion:
-
Web Template:
-

More

Mambo:

• -This template has an unprofessional feel, maybe I'm crazy but I still think that it looks nice
• Link

Joomla:

• -Here is a relatively simply Joomla template that can be very easily customized
• Link

• -This template has a fairly nice feel to it and an easy look
• Link

• -This template is very clean and will work well for most sites
• Link

• -Looks nice even though its cheesy and kind of pointless, a winter theme
• Link

Normal Web Template:

• -Very nice WoW template. Its a bit too dark for my personal tastes, but it is well done
• Link
• -WoW template that looks quite nice, meant for a guild but can be easily modified
• Link

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Promoting the Site
----------------------

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Monetizing the Site
----------------------

Still working on this...

[Strife117]

Very nice thanks! will +Rep when can