How has VB Cloud been for You ?

[TravelTalk]

Sorry if this is in the wrong place ( Mods can move it if needed )

I started a new VB Forum 8 months ago and used a Outside Hosting company for all that time. Only because they hosted a Site that I used to work for and figured
since they knew the business model already, it would be all good.

Problem was I was just waiting before I launch the site but was still paying a lot of money to keep it up and running while I built it.
I questioned them on a lower monthly package, and even though they agreed to lower it by $60 a month, I took my time building my site because I only planned to start promoting it around now.

Someone said you would be Much better letting VB Host the site all this time, and you should get out of the place I'm using.

So I'm looking for a little info like Pros or Cons ?

I'm guessing the best thing to do is start out in either the lower tier or Middle Tier until the Forum starts building.

Thank you for any Help

[Mrs.T]

We use Cloud and have no regrets having moved from self hosting.

On Cloud you have no worries over uploading or maintaining the files, database, doing backups and upgrades, it is all done for you.

You can't use hacks and add ons or access the files so if they are important to you then cloud probably isn't for you.

Having run our site self hosted for 10 years out of the blue the hosting company said our database was now too big and we must move to a dedicated server, they looked so complicated to manage and beyond our capabilities, plus the cost was high. Cloud options made the decision to move very easy.

So, it has to be your decision on what you expect from your site and your confidence in managing it self hosted plus the comparison of costs.

If you do change to Cloud you can always ask for a copy of your database and go back to self hosting at any time.

[TravelTalk]

We use Cloud and have no regrets having moved from self hosting.

On Cloud you have no worries over uploading or maintaining the files, database, doing backups and upgrades, it is all done for you.

You can't use hacks and add ons or access the files so if they are important to you then cloud probably isn't for you.

Having run our site self hosted for 10 years out of the blue the hosting company said our database was now too big and we must move to a dedicated server, they looked so complicated to manage and beyond our capabilities, plus the cost was high. Cloud options made the decision to move very easy.

So, it has to be your decision on what you expect from your site and your confidence in managing it self hosted plus the comparison of costs.

If you do change to Cloud you can always ask for a copy of your database and go back to self hosting at any time.

Thank you for your answers.

I wouldn't need and don't use any hacks, but I was thinking if an addon that's needed, maybe. My forum is Sports related and currently use Newsbots to post some sports articles
would like to be able to add a widget with Sports scores, but that could be a linkable tab

My main thing is putting up advertising banners on the top of the forum page, so as long I can do that, I'm fine with everything else.

Yeah think these guys were trying to rip me off as they started right with a dedicated server. I'm like why would I need that right off the top ?? It's not easy to get people to a new forum
I needed to go smaller, much smaller to start. Still can't believe I let them rope me in for the first 3 months. But they kept talking security for the site, ddos attacks, etc..

Again Thank you for the information

[Mrs.T]

We have no problems adding advertising banners both with Google AdSense and our own image links. You can add them in lots of places, not just the top.

Can't advise on the widget links but I'm sure someone from support will be along soon to answer you

[TravelTalk]

We have no problems adding advertising banners both with Google AdSense and our own image links. You can add them in lots of places, not just the top.

Can't advise on the widget links but I'm sure someone from support will be along soon to answer you

Thank you again for getting back to me.

Yes I believe I can add Banners in the header for the Front end of the Admin, but I don't know the full details.
I sure Google adsense is good but I'm talking Sponsor banners, a size like 728x90, and better to have rotating ones if you have more than one to place on your site.
That way every time the click to another sub forum, the banner on the top changes.

One I find out if I can do this, and how to do this, I'm switching over to VB Cloud and save some money

[Wayne Luke]

With the Ad Module in vBulletin cloud, you can place any advertising you want on the screen. This can be your own custom HTML, Google Adsense, Amazon Ads, etc... Any HTML can be used. You can create custom styles per channel (forum) and display custom logos, colors, backgrounds, etc... if you wish as well. You have many ways to show sponsorships. With the HTML module, you can pull in widgets from other sites to display scores, news tickers and so forth. You can create content carousel's with your featured content or create custom searches to expose specific content at specific times (say Playoff season). Even without access to templates or addons, there are a lot of customization options on vBulletin Cloud.

The only restriction on Cloud's Site Builder functionality is using the PHP Module in vBulletin Connect. The main restrictions on the AdminCP side is that we hide some advanced settings that we maintain for you and you cannot access templates.

[TravelTalk]

With the Ad Module in vBulletin cloud, you can place any advertising you want on the screen. This can be your own custom HTML, Google Adsense, Amazon Ads, etc... Any HTML can be used. You can create custom styles per channel (forum) and display custom logos, colors, backgrounds, etc... if you wish as well. You have many ways to show sponsorships. With the HTML module, you can pull in widgets from other sites to display scores, news tickers and so forth. You can create content carousel's with your featured content or create custom searches to expose specific content at specific times (say Playoff season). Even without access to templates or addons, there are a lot of customization options on vBulletin Cloud.

The only restriction on Cloud's Site Builder functionality is using the PHP Module in vBulletin Connect. The main restrictions on the AdminCP side is that we hide some advanced settings that we maintain for you and you cannot access templates.

Thank you Wayne, I'm going to change over with VB Cloud

by any chance is there a guide for working with the VB Ad Module ?

again Thank you