What features do you like in a discussion forum?

[Rajah]

I've been charged to come up with a discussion forum / system for our intranet for work so wanted to get some input from those who are quite familiar with existing discussion forums (I have my opinions of course, but the more input the better). These have to be written in-house (less expensive than buying a pre-written one, plus we get more customization control), but I'll be having a lot of fun with it.

So, not counting the people, what features do you like in discussion forums that you've participated in over the years? Again, do not include people or subject matter, I'm talking about the software. I'd like to write something that includes a lot of the features that people like to see.

Thanks!!

 

[Banzai]

The Dot! I love the black dot.

 

[JohnTBap]

Originally posted by Rajah


So, not counting the people,

Darn.

 

[Beauty]

I like the Private Messaging Feature and also the Search option is extremly helpful at times.

 

[Dan Murphy]

Search, members online section, usable forum jump, 'the dot', private messaging, email links. Here is a list of features from this platform, vBulletin, which is quite feature rich.

http://www.vbulletin.com/features/index.html

 

[helenabear]

Search, black dot, member lists, private messages and set ups like this one (not fond of the ones with many branches off for replies).

 

[iNTeNSeBLue98]

I like when you can see all the replies to a thread without having to open each one separately. I don't like trying to figure out which person you're replying to.

The DIS is an excellent example of how a discussion board should work.

 

[browneyes]

Incorporating colors and sounds is something I like to see. Lots of drop down boxes on the pages so I can navigate how and when I want. The PM feature is a must. Counters are a definate must.

What language are you going to be writing this in?

 

[Rajah]

Originally posted by browneyes
What language are you going to be writing this in?

A combo of Cold Fusion, SQL, HTML, and Javascript.