This is quite possibly one of the biggest debates in the pre-sale sections of both official sites, vBulletin.com and invisionboard.com. Before choosing a software, potential customers want to hear from people who use it. The biggest problem is asking which one is better on the respective sites, is like asking the CEO of Coca Cola if he thinks Pepsi is better than Coke.
First and foremost, both software systems are great. Each team has created some well-written OOP code, and support their products very well. I have yet to use the vBulletin ticketing system, as all my questions were answered in their general community forums. IPB's trouble ticket system is creative and easy to use, even offering some “Did you try this†suggestions based on the subject of the ticket being submitted. More than once, this saved me and them time, as my question was answered on the spot in their knowledge base.
Installation
Both systems have easy to use installers which require nothing more than setting up a database, and plugging in the connection information such as usernames and passwords into a config file. vBulletin requires the file be edited by hand in a text editor. IPB asks for the information in a form on the first step and writes to a chmod'ed 777 config file for you and tests the connection before moving on. vBulletin simply fails saying it can't connect to the database. After that, both feature web-based “Next, Next, Next†installs.
Winner: IPB
Administration
Both systems offer a secure admin panel interface with unique sessions and timeout functions to keep your board secure even if you access your Admin Panel on public computers. vB's admin panel is very lack-luster. It uses frames with every admin option in the left sidebar. Categories are expanded with javascript for the sub-commands of the option. IPB uses a beautiful tabbed interface divided into 4 or 5 major sections (depending on component installs). I find the IPB interface much more user friendly offering common tasks such as member look up right up on the initial page load. After I got used to the vB admin panel, I found it to be fairly easy to use. It just has a steep learning curve of where to find everything, as the framed menu options are not really in any order.
Forum category and actual forums management is similar in both systems with the exception of one thing: Permissions. The IPB interface blows vB's out of the water on this respect. It took me several hours to get all my permissions down for each user group on each forum with vB. Their duplication interface is counter-intuitive and makes for a hard time of setting up multi-level permissions. It only got worse as I had to do it once per each of my 40-odd forums I had just created. I hope I never have to do that again, and with version 4 that they address this system.
Winner: IPB
Modding, Templates, and Styles
If there is one thing vB has over IPB, it's ease of modifications. Even if you don't plan to code anything yourself, there are tons of useful addons that can be downloaded for free at various sites. In 3.5.4, vB offers a Product feature which is very similar to IPB's Component system. Both use XML data strings to make installs a breeze. But when it comes to the actual template code, vB has an advantage in this respect. IPB's template system is very complex, but for a programmer like me, I find it easy enough to use. Some folks without coding experience might find it very intimidating. Along the same lines, vB's style sheet editor is something I find very annoying. vB uses a huge form with color pop-outs for selecting colors for each attribute. This is great for beginners, but for people like me, it simply makes things harder. Plus, it won't let you download the file, make changed and re-upload it. vB puts a error on it and won't let you re-upload the file. This is because their CSS sheet is a template. So, even if you take out ALL the style attributes, you still have a large file with tons of empty class names. I assume this is for their form to work properly. I wish I could just disable the whole thing and show me the flat CSS file so I can edit it how I see fit with my choice of CSS editor.
Winner: Tie
Markup
Both systems are heavy on tables. IPB is slightly better at using div's and more semantic markup, but both should be overhauled. Both say they are xhtml transitional, but neither oem installation validates against the W3. If you're a standards nazi like I am, both systems will leave you with a huge task of cleaning up the mark up. I have done some cleaning on both systems for the headers, footers, navigation menus and other small things, but the main post and forum view areas remain tables on my sites. Can it be done? Sure. But I don't have the time to figure it out…. just yet
Winner: Tie
Bandwidth and Caching
IPB's caching system is way better than vB's, and thus, IPB will use less bandwidth and is noticeably faster on most oem clean installs. There are modifications available for vB to enhance the caching system, but I have yet to try them out.
Winner: IPB
Aftermarket Support / Additions
Both systems have official support sites for modders. IPSBeyond.com and vBulletin.org respectively. You will need to hold a license to either software to access either site's features. vB.org is much more active and there are a lot more mods available. Most of their popular mod threads are well over 50 pages of user comments, help requests, and suggestions. The availability of certain mods was the main reason why I chose to use vB on my latest endeavor. The feature I wanted to use for my new site was simply not developed for IPB. If you are chosing a software based on how extensible it is, be sure to look around both sites before deciding. Both have many different mods available.
From a coder's perspective, the vB Hooks system is great, and IPB doesn't have anything similar. vB also seems to be easier to code for. For that, vB gets the nod.
Winner: vB
After all this, if you are still unsure which way to go, please leave a comment to this post, and I will gladly give you my honest answer about each system.
First and foremost, both software systems are great. Each team has created some well-written OOP code, and support their products very well. I have yet to use the vBulletin ticketing system, as all my questions were answered in their general community forums. IPB's trouble ticket system is creative and easy to use, even offering some “Did you try this†suggestions based on the subject of the ticket being submitted. More than once, this saved me and them time, as my question was answered on the spot in their knowledge base.
Installation
Both systems have easy to use installers which require nothing more than setting up a database, and plugging in the connection information such as usernames and passwords into a config file. vBulletin requires the file be edited by hand in a text editor. IPB asks for the information in a form on the first step and writes to a chmod'ed 777 config file for you and tests the connection before moving on. vBulletin simply fails saying it can't connect to the database. After that, both feature web-based “Next, Next, Next†installs.
Winner: IPB
Administration
Both systems offer a secure admin panel interface with unique sessions and timeout functions to keep your board secure even if you access your Admin Panel on public computers. vB's admin panel is very lack-luster. It uses frames with every admin option in the left sidebar. Categories are expanded with javascript for the sub-commands of the option. IPB uses a beautiful tabbed interface divided into 4 or 5 major sections (depending on component installs). I find the IPB interface much more user friendly offering common tasks such as member look up right up on the initial page load. After I got used to the vB admin panel, I found it to be fairly easy to use. It just has a steep learning curve of where to find everything, as the framed menu options are not really in any order.
Forum category and actual forums management is similar in both systems with the exception of one thing: Permissions. The IPB interface blows vB's out of the water on this respect. It took me several hours to get all my permissions down for each user group on each forum with vB. Their duplication interface is counter-intuitive and makes for a hard time of setting up multi-level permissions. It only got worse as I had to do it once per each of my 40-odd forums I had just created. I hope I never have to do that again, and with version 4 that they address this system.
Winner: IPB
Modding, Templates, and Styles
If there is one thing vB has over IPB, it's ease of modifications. Even if you don't plan to code anything yourself, there are tons of useful addons that can be downloaded for free at various sites. In 3.5.4, vB offers a Product feature which is very similar to IPB's Component system. Both use XML data strings to make installs a breeze. But when it comes to the actual template code, vB has an advantage in this respect. IPB's template system is very complex, but for a programmer like me, I find it easy enough to use. Some folks without coding experience might find it very intimidating. Along the same lines, vB's style sheet editor is something I find very annoying. vB uses a huge form with color pop-outs for selecting colors for each attribute. This is great for beginners, but for people like me, it simply makes things harder. Plus, it won't let you download the file, make changed and re-upload it. vB puts a error on it and won't let you re-upload the file. This is because their CSS sheet is a template. So, even if you take out ALL the style attributes, you still have a large file with tons of empty class names. I assume this is for their form to work properly. I wish I could just disable the whole thing and show me the flat CSS file so I can edit it how I see fit with my choice of CSS editor.
Winner: Tie
Markup
Both systems are heavy on tables. IPB is slightly better at using div's and more semantic markup, but both should be overhauled. Both say they are xhtml transitional, but neither oem installation validates against the W3. If you're a standards nazi like I am, both systems will leave you with a huge task of cleaning up the mark up. I have done some cleaning on both systems for the headers, footers, navigation menus and other small things, but the main post and forum view areas remain tables on my sites. Can it be done? Sure. But I don't have the time to figure it out…. just yet
Winner: Tie
Bandwidth and Caching
IPB's caching system is way better than vB's, and thus, IPB will use less bandwidth and is noticeably faster on most oem clean installs. There are modifications available for vB to enhance the caching system, but I have yet to try them out.
Winner: IPB
Aftermarket Support / Additions
Both systems have official support sites for modders. IPSBeyond.com and vBulletin.org respectively. You will need to hold a license to either software to access either site's features. vB.org is much more active and there are a lot more mods available. Most of their popular mod threads are well over 50 pages of user comments, help requests, and suggestions. The availability of certain mods was the main reason why I chose to use vB on my latest endeavor. The feature I wanted to use for my new site was simply not developed for IPB. If you are chosing a software based on how extensible it is, be sure to look around both sites before deciding. Both have many different mods available.
From a coder's perspective, the vB Hooks system is great, and IPB doesn't have anything similar. vB also seems to be easier to code for. For that, vB gets the nod.
Winner: vB
After all this, if you are still unsure which way to go, please leave a comment to this post, and I will gladly give you my honest answer about each system.