I'm trying to decide which bulletin board to go with. I like the many features of vBulletin but also like the relatively low pricing of DCForum.

Can anybody offer a comparison of the two? I'd especially be interested in hearing a comparison based on the installation, configuration and control panel of the two boards.

Also, I am somewhat proficient with computers, especially networking, but have no experience with Perl or PHP/MySQL. Whichever board I choose, should I pay the software company to install it for me? If I don't and attempt to install it myself, but then can't do so, will it be a big hassle to go back to the company several days after purchase and then pay to have them install it?

Thanks,
'tog'

The installation of vBulletin is exceedingly simple. All you really need is to upload the necessary files, edit one for your MySQL username/password/DB name, and then run the install script from your browser. It walks you through the rest.

I have not installed DCForum, but I've seen it in action, and I'm not amazingly impressed. It has it's place, but I don't know if anyone will doubt that vB is the best available.

Now, if price is an issue, I can't offer much advice, as I don't know all about your situation.