[billybob128]

ok ok before flaming this should be in the software forum or somewhere else. but to be honest i wanted a quicked and broader response that people get over there. + the people in here are loads better!!!

anyways. i need to start up my own forum on the net and i am starting from basics. i have literally nothing at the moment including webspace!!!

the catch it need to be done for free. to make it easier for me though it doesnt need to be as slick as these. only good enough for about 8 or 9 people to use on a weekly basis.

i have read up a bit on phpbb and i think for this buget operation its the best option. programms such as dreamweaver i already have so those are not a problem.

so the question is: help me!?!? please.

where can i get PHPbb stuff from for my mac?

[El Gato]

if it's only for 8 or 9 people, why don't you just do a yahoo group?

i don't think it makes sense to set up anything more elaborate...

[historylme]

Look at E's Lil Theorem form page. His sexy tummies forum is great.

http://www.sexytummies.com/forum/index.php

[jasonsRX7]

phpbb is a breeze to set up. I've done it several times. First though, you need somewhere to host your forums! Are you planning on getting a hosting service, or do you have access to a server thru work, or do you want to run it from home? If you have an always-on broadband connection at home, it's easier than you think to host your own, as long as you don't expect it to be a high traffic site.

There's a little linux distro called SME server (or E-Smith for the SME old timers) and it is wonderful for small office or home office use, and great for hobbists. You can get it from www.contribs.org, and it's free. If hosting it at home is what you want to do, I'll be glad to give you a lot more information about how to get SME up and running, and how to install phpbb on it.

[turtle777]

Originally Posted by billybob128

i have literally nothing at the moment including webspace!!!

*SCNR*

-t

[E's Lil Theorem]

Originally Posted by history1me

Look at E's Lil Theorem form page. His sexy tummies forum is great.

http://www.sexytummies.com/forum/index.php

Thanks

Originally Posted by jasonsRX7

phpbb is a breeze to set up. I've done it several times. First though, you need somewhere to host your forums! Are you planning on getting a hosting service, or do you have access to a server thru work, or do you want to run it from home? If you have an always-on broadband connection at home, it's easier than you think to host your own, as long as you don't expect it to be a high traffic site.

There's a little linux distro called SME server (or E-Smith for the SME old timers) and it is wonderful for small office or home office use, and great for hobbists. You can get it from www.contribs.org, and it's free. If hosting it at home is what you want to do, I'll be glad to give you a lot more information about how to get SME up and running, and how to install phpbb on it.

phpBB is very, very easy to set up and customize to your liking. The cheapest way to go would be to host everything yourself and jasonsRX7 is even offering to lend a hand with setting up your own server. If you don't want to deal with setting up and maintaining your own server and thus pay for hosting I recommend www.dreamhost.com. They have 1-click installations for a lot of common web applications, including phpBB.

Good luck!

[CMYKid]

if you can deal with (literally) a few dollars per month then just get a host that offers phpBB for free. Most good ones have that or vBoard as a one-click install. I use FuitadNet. Cheap, easy, reliable.

Whats the topic of the forum?

[billybob128]

i would be happy to host it from my G5 been always on with a constant broadband link. so i suppose im all ears over here jasonsRX7

thanks a lot for this very kind

[jasonsRX7]

Originally Posted by billybob128

i would be happy to host it from my G5 been always on with a constant broadband link. so i suppose im all ears over here jasonsRX7

thanks a lot for this very kind

I've never set it up on OS X before, but I imagine it'll be just as easy. I'm going to assume that you're like me, in that you don't need handholding in every step, you just need to get pointed in the right direction and you can take it from there. But if you need extra info anywhere, just let me know.

The first thing we're going to do is to get incoming web requests directed at your system.

1. You probably don't want to pay for a domain name, so you need to get a dynamc address that changes if your IP address changes. For that, I usually use DynDNS. Register an account with them, and make a note of their support site if we have trouble later on. There are programs you can get that will automatically update DynDNS with your IP should it change, but we'll do it manually for now.

2. You need to know if your ISP is blocking any ports. Lots of providers block certain ports (like 80) to prevent people from running their own servers. If your ISP does, there are ways to get around it, but we'll worry about that if necessary. Check on your ISPs support site to see if/what they're blocking.

3. Is your G5 directly connected to the net, or do you connect thru a router (like the Airport)? If so, you will need to set up port forwarding to redirect incoming traffic to your system. I'm guessing that if you have a router, you've seen the configuration page/program for it at some point. As a note, it's possible you have a router that supports DynDNS and if so that'll be helpful with step 1 above.

4. I've never set up apache on OS X before, and I'm not in front of my mac now, but you will need to enable it. Maybe someone else can confirm this until I get back at my mac, but I think all you do is go into the system preferences, then sharing, and check the box for web sharing. You will also need to allow it if you have the firewall enabled.

Those are you first steps and should keep you busy for a while Post any questions that you have.

[billybob128]

ok step one and four are done. however when i try to go to the site it asks me for a netgeardg834 login and password.

i believe my brother has these so i should be able to get them.

i am going through an airport router here but again for the configuration i need the user and password for it untill i get these i believe i am stuck right?

[kikkoman]

even easier...

http://www.freebb.com

[mitchell_pgh]

nine people... just start a blog...

[jasonsRX7]

Originally Posted by billybob128

ok step one and four are done. however when i try to go to the site it asks me for a netgeardg834 login and password.

This is good, it means that your isp isn't blocking any ports. However you will need to get the l/p to the Netgear router so that you can:
1. disable the ability to configure it remotely (not good unless it's absolutely necessary)
2. redirect port 80 to your machine

Once we get that we'll start with phpBB on your system. I'll even install it on mine along with you.

Yeah there are easier options for doing this, like the freebb thing, but that kind of takes all the fun out of learning to do it yourself, doesn't it...

[billybob128]

yep thats one reason im doin it so i can learn. looks like i got a good teacher too