I have used phpBB for the last 4-5 years and even though I can't say I am a 100% confident with it, I can usually install MODs fine. The skins available are great and it's a great forum for start-ups.
However, I have been researching MyBB all day, and can see already the benefits of converting. MOD installs are automatic, they have a great support/community forum were I receive replies not even 2minutes after I create a thread (which is great).
I was just wondering what is everyones views on converting, would you recommend switching from phpBB to MyBB and why?
I will still be able to keep members and their details, and the topics/posts created. The only thing would be all members would have to reset their password, which isn't much hassle at all.
The grass may not be greener on the other side. Its all up to what you like. Something else may look attractive at the moment but once you make the switch you may want to go back to what you started with. I think you should make a test forum and play around with it for a while.
MyBB converts passwords, just letting you know. If you feel that in a demo, MyBB is the thing for you, then go for it, then if not, then there should be nothing wrong sticking with phpBB if you know it. For most forum software, the front-end is all the same, so it really is about the back-end.
As for success stories? Teekay here converted The Tech Zone from phpBB 3 to MyBB and AJS (not on this forum) also converted Pets Mania (now Pet Forums). I never asked why Teekay did it, but I know AJS primarily did it because he was fed up on the Coppermine-phpBB bridge. Does it mean you should as well? Of course not, but it's all up to you at the end of the day.
Theme shouldn't really be a matter. If you're just going to slap Absolution together with the default icons and some logo from MS Paint, what's the point of running a site? All my themes (regardless of forum software, because I've used multiple) are heavily modified to at least make things unique. For all you know, you could compare a better-designed MyBB theme to a crappy phpBB theme, and vice-versa, so what's the point on blindly supporting one or the other in that regard?
I didn't even mention the custom designers. Those are the guys who create the best themes. Murder he Wrote (phpBB), Audentio (MyBB/vBulletin), Jessie S. (MyBB), Evanescence (IPB 2.3/3) you name it. Those are the guys who are making the special themes in forums, and they can easily top any premade theme you find on any site.
But going back to converting to MyBB, you should let John1 do it if he's more comfortable with MyBB over phpBB. As I said, frontend is essentially the same in any forum software so it really should be entirely up to backend. So Dragoth, if you really want to use phpBB for a forum, I respect that, and if it works, then it works. Most forum software now has proper conversion services anyways.
