I recently upgraded a forum (its still in progress, pardon my purple dust) using vBulletin software to its “holy shit you must buy me NOW!” 4.0 CMS version. I’ve been watching this particular package evolve as vBulletin was bought by Invision Power and seemingly forced many of the original vBulletin coders to move on to bigger and better things. That should have been a huge sign, but for so long, vBulletin was really the only board software worth my time, effort and devotion, so I stuck with the brand I could trust. So I thought.

4.0 just isn’t what vBulletin used to be. The support is dismal (there’s not even a manual for this version!) and, frankly, the aesthetics are horrible. While the boardware may be faster, better, stronger, if the visual aspect is clunky or confusing, a community will lose members. People are creatures of habit, and in a social setting, particularly, they want their changes to be gradual. Can you imagine if Facebook suddenly got a new way of streaming updates? Oh, wait, yeah, that just happened, and nobody liked it. Change is good. Drastic change is a recipe for disaster in the world of social media.

The online communities that are created with forums are “homes” to so many, and this aspect of community building was overlooked in what seems like an attempt to eradicate all former installations of vBulletin.  I feel there are egregious errors on the part of Invision Power in terms of understanding the basics of social networking and communities. Social media sites are run to exchange information, entertain, educate or socialize with others, yet, Invision Power has made it nearly impossible for an established community to transition between the different versions. What’s the point of an upgrade if it chases away the very members who keep your community active?

I think vBulletin’s 4.0 CMS was released far too early, and hyped far too much as a “right now” solution, and your “buy before you try” pre-launch offers were absolutely misleading. 4.0 not living up to the previous versions. Folks, save your money, or wait out the transition and hope that the new vBulletin team listens to the real issues, and isn’t just trying to reinvent the Invision Power wheel.