Exploring the Essence of Invision Community: A Conversation with CharlesW

[Cedric]

This thread is for the general discussion of the Article Exploring the Essence of Invision Community: A Conversation with CharlesW. Please add to the discussion here.

 

[Dismal_Bliss]

Nice article.

He said "some enjoy running their own servers but really most do not" and when you step back and look at the average customer base, I am sure this is true. However, those who run their own servers are not your average customer. I simply CAN'T migrate to the cloud because I host over 15 domains on my own server, 2 of which are Invision Communities. It simply doesn't make financial sense to move these communities to the cloud, especially since the monthly cost of just a single Community in the Cloud is more than double the monthly cost of the server. Why pay twice?

It's simple enough to continue offering the Classic package all nice and zipped up. It will be a terrible day if self-hosting were to actually disappear.

 

[Empire]

It's a very good interview however it has not answered the questions respectfully. Part regards search engine optimization that would help improve to all networks out there was in short terms replied to look and feel. Even though I'm looking forward to the new offerings coming to V5 sounds very promising. It's been over 20 plus years already and IOB will go on for another 20 more years right, Xd Just imagine what IPB be like in 10 years' time.

Most of us clients, like myself would be in talks with running their own servers. Yes, the new licence has helped regards being cheaper. It's cheaper for me. Yes, I still run my own server via a hosting company for the last seven years that allows me to host one of my sites and plus I feel freer to do things regards hosting domains and more sites if I want to. So while most clients have moved over to your cloud, it isn't going to be for everyone, in terms of myself it's the cost. I would be paying more a month via what IPB servers offer, In the future the cost would drop or increase, if the price wasn't a problem and only ran one single site then I would move over, but no. At least those who are on the IPB cloud do get far more support and do not have to worry about running the server.

 

[Dismal_Bliss]

On a positive note, v5 will be available for self-hosted. Honestly, I can't imagine self-hosted every going away. A lot of users in these types of forums preach gloom and doom about the future of Invision and their supposed conspiracy to force everyone to the cloud. Invision on the other hand is like "chill out. We bringeth to you version 5" lol

 

[Reverie]

The big thing that makes us different to social media platforms and I think makes us stand out is the focus on the conversation. Social media is less about WHAT you post than WHO did the posting. Social media is not designed to have ongoing conversation as you shout out your thought, people get angry, and then everyone forgets about it as someone else has shouted something. Think about it: when was the last time you followed up on a conversation on social media that happened more than a day ago? In Invision Community we really focus on the content and conversation and those conversations can go on and create deep connections.

That is true - Social Media is more so about WHO is doing the posting. I think Forums have the potential be more than about the who and more about the WHAT, due to categories, titling/descriptions.

Invision Community 5 will have a whole new look and feel. Not only will you get a new design but you will have a huge amount of design options. By toggling various options, you have thousands and thousands of possible combinations to customize your community. And that’s before you even think about things like custom CSS. We want everyone, regardless of their background, to be able to create a unique community using Invision Community. Sure, you can insert custom CSS or JavaScript but most people have no idea what those terms even mean and just want a nice community. I really cannot wait for people to see how far you can take Invision Community 5.

This is an interesting concept that it will allow for more customization, so even less knowledgeable users will be able to customize their community more. I am curious how many different "options" there will be and how that will look.

It's also insightful to hear a bit about Charles' history and journey getting to where he is today.

Pretty great interview, I'm looking forward to the future of Invision Community!

 

[Uncrowned]

Very good write-up and interview! I am now more excited for IC5!

 

[JoshB]

Really enjoyed this interview. Realizing that IC5 is going to be big change, probably similar to how it was coming into v4.

 

[Sinistra]

Sinistra posted a new comment on the Article Exploring the Essence of Invision Community: A Conversation with CharlesW

I have been using Invision for years, and I have loved every aspect of the software. None of it is never out dated each version comes with great features. I always thought that when they went to a paid platform that would of been the end, but as you can see. I was wrong and that's saying something. And with IC v5 in the works they have done a great job.

 

[Arantor]

However, those who run their own servers are not your average customer.

This is a huge fact that gets lost in the mix. No, the people who run their own servers are *not* the average customer, and that means additional resources have to be spent on accommodating them vs just building for one set of known infrastructure. Not enough attention gets paid to how much that *actually* costs to do in practice.