I want to start a forum to enable people to ask questions and receive help via our Wordpress blogsite.

One way to do this would be to let people write in directly to our email address and then we could post the questions and our answers on the site.

Another way would be to have the questions logged directly on our site in "forum fashion" where we would post Q&A real time directly on the site like we do here.

Can the forum model be incorporated into the blogsite or should we set up another location for the forum and then point to the blogsite for information? It sounds like this is the way to go (for multiple sites and traffic reasons), but I don't know what to do to start a forum. I don't think the google groups etc. would suit what we are trying to accomplish but I could be wrong. We really just want people to be able to have a place to send in their questions and then we would provide the answers, but we like the idea of the a community providing info as well.

I feel like this is really a naive question but is there does anyone have any suggestions or advice?

Thanks,
Bella

Hey Bellabinx,

You would have to install your forum in a different folder than your Wordpress blog, and then link to your forum from your blog.

You can install a PhpBB forum simply with a few clicks on a domain.

Let's say your the address for you blog is http://ourdomain.com/blog/

Your forum can go on the same domain as http://ourdomain.com/forum/

Then you can place a link from your blog to your forum!

There are many different forum platforms but, this is one easy way.

Cheers
Davin

Hey Davin,

So maybe I am missing something here. . .if I host domainname.com site on some host other than WordPress, does wordpress simply default to a CMS tool and I end up with mydomainname.com rather than mydomainname.wordpress.com? Hmm, given your comments re: Wordpress folders, I might be missing the point here though. . .

Slightly off topic but related. So I put mydomainname in its own wordpress folder and mydomain . . .never mind. I'm making it more confusing, right?

How do I install a PhpBB forum with a few clicks on a domain? Oh, so I just have another folder with another set of pages on the same domain but which contains my forum only! The Blog would reside on the same domain but in the blog folder. Then I put a link on the blog to the forum!


So how do I install a PhpBB forum with a few clicks on a domain again?

so one more thing, mydomain.com just is my home page at mydomain.com. so where does Wordpress fit in again?

Wow, my ignorance is really showing but I want to keep learning. . .

Thanks Davin,
Bella

Hmmm, well ok, I see you have your blog hosted on the actual Wordpress servers.

That is a limitation. I was under the impression you had your own hosting account with a Wordpress blog installed on it.

If you did have your own hosting account then you can have a Wordpress blog installed on it, and the address would be http://mydomain.com as long as it was in the root of the hosting account.

Then with your forum installed, this address would still remain http://www.yourdomain.com/forum/

Without you having your own hosting, it is limiting, that's why we always recommend having your own hosting accounts.

I hope that helps anyhow Bellabinx.

Cheers
Davin

Hey Davin,

I think we got our signals crossed. We absolutely are hosting OUTSIDE of Wordpress on our own hosting account. What you describe will work perfectly! That was exactly the information I was looking for. . .the lightbulb came on while I was typing my third paragraph in my last message.

That is good advice about separate hosting. I did the blogger thing and i was very dissatisfied with that.

Anyway, i'm just not sure where to get a Phpbb forum. Can you help with that? Will that be at Wordpress as well?

Thanks very much,
Bella

Hey Bellabinx,

Just get inside your Cpanel on your hosting account. Go into Fantastico, and you'll be blown away by all of the great things in there. PhpBB is inside there, it's a very easy installation and FREE!!

Cheers
Davin