we have looked into new software, many times. Lot of 'fancier' and 'more up to date' forum software out there BUT THERE IS A MAJOR PROBLEM....

None, that we have found, allows for the type of formatting we've all grown accustomed too. What I mean by that is the way you see the threads and replies displayed.

Fully threaded view, which is what we use now and have always used, is extinct today in ALL new BBS Software. There are some 'hybrid' threaded views available but it's a VERY different look than what we're accustomed too.

While I'm sure some will disagree with me here... the way we use the board makes 'Fully Threaded' as close to absolutely mandatory as it gets. ALL the other software packages would mean NOT being able to see each reply, who replies to who, etc etc etc. Not on a single page view that is.

Why are new BBS packages not offering this? Good question, I can only guess... and here's my guess:

This board is interactive in a very 'live' manner.. meaning conversions proceed, and are displayed, almost like face to face conversation. In nearly EVERY other forum on the Internet this is not the case. Replies can be hours, days, weeks, months apart... 'immediate interaction' is not really a factor.

Put more simply... most other forums, and the way it's going to be everywhere eventually, are like 'research'. LIVE interaction is now only available via the 'chat' route... totally impractical for our purposes.

So why am I bringing all this up? We'd like to have some of the newer and more efficient tech features but NOT at the sacrifice of what we feel makes this board special and 'easier' to use in the way we use a BBS.

Lastly, if anyone is aware of something out there that DOES offer Fully Threaded Views AND lots of new tech please let us know. - JamesJM