Nabble Review
| Last Version | Hosted (Daily updates). | Released under | Proprietary License. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Resources |
 Nabble Website
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 Host your Forum...
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| Company | Nabble. | ||
| Price | Free. | ||
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Pros & Cons
Nabble Demo
Status: Offline.
Accounts and Passwords
| No available accounts. |
Show Notes...
Recent User Reviews
-
12 years 46 weeks ago. -
13 years 30 weeks ago.
-
13 years 43 weeks ago.
What is Nabble?
Nabble is mainly known on Internet for providing Mailing List archiving. Many mailing lists are available and browseable from Nabble website, that everybody has a day encountered, for example when searching something on Google.
It was supposed to be a forum software, not a mailing list...
Don't worry! In addition to mailing list management and archiving, Nabble also provides a collection of embeddable applications: photo gallery, news, blog,... and obviously, embeddable forum software.
These embeddable apps are all web applications, that include the following features: classic search, user profile, ACL, email notifications, XML feed, moderation, CSS customization, unlimited uploading of pictures and files, threading, cataloging, Youtube video embedding with Javascript,...
The embeddable technology provided by Nabble is more advanced than a classic frame widget. With them, you won't have any problem of content underflow or overflow (frame scrolling is your only option), because Nabble embeddable app adjusts its height automatically and always fit seamlessly into a site.
Review Updates:
- April 8, 2011: Additional Update.
- February 15, 2011: Update of Nabble Forum.
- August 12, 2009: First Review of Nabble Forum.
Nabble is recommended for Large Community.
(and supports smaller communities perfectly as well.)
Client Requirements
| Browser & Client Requirements | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Compatible Browsers
List of Compatible Browsers.
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Required Plugins/Technologies
Additional or Basic Requirements from Client Side.
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HTML, Javascript, AJAX, CSS. | |||||||
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Localization
Languages supported by Nabble.
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No.
No.
New Languages will be soon supported. |
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Mozilla Firefox
Internet Explorer
Google Chrome
Opera
Apple Safari
Konqueror
Mozilla SeaMonkeyAs usual with Hosted Forum, server architecture is always really simple because everything is compatible with web based applications. You just need to integrate the embedded HTML code that Nabble provides to put a new forum to your website.
Here is an example of the HTML script you have to import:
<a id="nabblelink"
href="http://n2.nabble.com/Nabble-Forum-reviewed-f3274075.html">
Nabble Forum reviewed by Forum Software Reviews
</a>
<script src="http://n2.nabble.com/embed/f3274075"></script>
| Compatibility with Smartphones | |
|---|---|
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Compatible SmartPhones
Compatible Cellphone Brands and Manufacturers.
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No. |
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Application Distribution / Type
How it is distributed / App Store Availability
|
No. |
Forum Threads & Posts
| Forum Threads / Topics | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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Forum Style
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Flat/Threaded |
Forum Organization
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Thread Icons
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No |
Topic Tags
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No |
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Hot Topics
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Yes |
Unread Topics
|
Yes |
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Hidden Topics
|
Yes |
Sticky Threads
|
Yes |
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Related Threads
|
No |
Detect Duplicate Threads
|
No |
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Announcements
|
No | ||
| Posting Messages / Answers | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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Message Editing Form
How to Post Messages.
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Post Editing Format
Supported Markup Language (HTML, Wiki, BBCode,...).
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Spell Checker
Checks typos on posts and topics.
|
No | ||
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Image Attachment
How Images can be Attached and Displayed in Message Posts.
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Embedded Videos
Videos and Media Websites Supported in Message Posts.
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No. | ||
| Posting Features | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Quick Reply Box | No |
Smileys
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Yes |
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Attachments
|
Yes |
Syntax Highlighting
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No |
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Message Rating
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Yes |
Message Quoting
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Yes |
Nabble is still really connected with mailing list, so the Post by Email feature is of course included.
Additional & Technical Features
| Additional Forum Features | |
|---|---|
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Poll Creation
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Plugin |
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Private Messages
Users Can Communicate using an Internal Messaging System.
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Yes |
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Instant Messaging
Discuss with Visitors and Members in a Chat Window.
|
No |
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Calendar
Topic, Member Birthdays, Events are available from the perspective of a calendar.
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No |
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Online Users List
Connected User List (Often Found in the Forum Footer).
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Yes |
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Members List
Search and Consult the List of Members.
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Yes |
| Technical Features | |
|---|---|
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Bundled Software
Additional Software Available with the Forum.
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RSS/Atom Syndication
Posts and Threads Exported to Feeds Aggregators
 .
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No. |
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Friendly URLs
URLs are clear and contain information about the topic (title, message,...).
Highly recommended for SEO purposes.
|
Yes |
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Post by Email
Post Directly From your Email Box.
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Yes |
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Remote Control
Remote Control from External Software/Websites.
|
No. |
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Cache System
Cache pages to optimize bandwidth and load times.
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No |
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Template Engine
It is easier to theme a forum using a known template engine (more docs & examples,...).
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No. |
Thread icons are limited to the avatar of the person who creates the topic.
There is no user ranks, but you can consult the profile of each user, and this profile could inform you about the activity of this user. A major point is that you are able to see the activity of a specific user on any forum that rely on Nabble.
Online users is an option that the administrator needs to enable (disable by default). Note that polls are supported through the PollDaddy service, which provides an embedded view of a poll, with nice statistic charts and look.
User Profiles & Options
Some details about Nabble features regarding members.
| Member Options & Features | |
|---|---|
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Bookmark Threads
User Profiles Keep a List of Followed Posts and Topics.
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No |
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Email Notifications
Receive Emails When New Messages are Posted in Followed Threads.
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Yes |
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Export private messages
Private Messages can be Downloaded by Users.
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No |
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Payment Subscriptions
Paying Membership Subscription.
|
No |
| User Profiles | |
|---|---|
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User Profile
User Information and Settings.
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Yes |
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Avatars
Pictures of Members, Useful to Easily Identify their Posts.
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Yes |
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Signature
Signatures Added at the Bottom of Each Message.
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Yes |
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Ranks
Tags and Labels Identifying the Members, based on specific criteria (Total Posts Count, Credits, Moderation Level...)
|
No |
All forum created in Nabble are public. That means that Nabble will not satisfy your needs if you want to create a private forum, for your friends for example. Please note that even if you integrate your forum on your website, it will still be accessible from the Nabble Forum Directory.
Private messages are replaced by a email sending, that is, actually, really more simple and convenient.
Moderation & Users Management
| Moderation & Threads Management | ||
|---|---|---|
| Moderation |
Post-Moderation
The moderation is done afterwards, if an administrator notices a problem or if a member reports something wrong. Each message is therefore directly published.
Reactive Moderation
By reporting any problems, members are reactive against moderation problems.
Moderators' main objective is to regularly check user reports, without having to follow each threads.
Distributed Moderation
By organizing the forum around moderators, who are usually power and experienced users, moderation is self-powered and only depends on the community.
|
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| Moderator per section | Yes | |
| Global Moderator | Yes | |
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Move Threads
Move Threads from Topics
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Yes | |
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Shadow Topics
When a thread is moved, the previous position is kept in order to inform users of this modification.
|
No | |
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Close/Lock Threads
Close/Lock Problematic Threads
|
Yes | |
| Users Management | |
|---|---|
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User Groups
Organize and define groups of users, and apply different actions and settings on them.
Common Groups: Guests, Members, Moderators, Administrators,... |
Yes |
| User Registration |
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Limit Features For New Users
Features are limited if a user has created a small number of posts.
|
No |
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Guest Posting
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Yes |
| Multiple Administrators | Yes |
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Send Warnings to Users
Inform users by email or PM that they infringe the board rules, and could be excluded for such behavior.
|
No |
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Forum/Section Restricted Access
ACL could be use to determine if a user or a group of users can access (in read only, post message) to some sections
and topics.
|
Yes |
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User Banishment
|
Yes |
Administration & Support
| Database Management | |
|---|---|
|
Backup Database
Backup forum datas that you could store somewhere else.
|
Yes |
|
Prune Database
Remove old and unused datas from your forum.
|
No |
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Restore Database
Restore a backup of your database if the previous install crashed.
|
Yes |
| Administration Tools | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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Statistics
Statistics about posts count, users, traffic...
|
Plugin |
Error/Notice Log Viewer
Forum Logs could be consulted.
|
No |
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Tasks Scheduler
Maintenance tasks are regularly launched and could be scheduled.
|
No |
Mass Mailing
Send an email (newsletters, advertisements, information,...) to all users.
|
Yes |
| Installation & Upgrading | |
|---|---|
|
Installation Method
How this forum software could be installed.
|
Installation Wizard |
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Upgrading Method
How this forum software could be upgraded.
|
|
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Updates Notifications
The Admin Panel informs you when a new version is released.
|
No |
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Forum Migration
Convert an existing forum to Nabble.
|
No. |
Nabble allows you to backup and export your database if needed, which is particularly useful if you want to migrate your data to a new forum software. For this, simply go to Options and Download archives.
For people interesting in monitoring their forum, Nabble has a way to embed the Google Analytics script to your forum by simply entering your Google Analytics Identifier.
Security & Spam Protection
| Security & Spam Protection | ||
|---|---|---|
|
CAPTCHA
Captcha protects your forum against spam bots.
e.g.,
|
Yes
Complexity:
    Normal |
|
|
Abnormal Behavior Detection
Detect users or request strange behaviors, and try to process proactive actions.
|
No | |
|
Words Filtering
Offensing Words are automatically replaced.
|
Yes | |
|
User Blacklist
Prevent specific user accounts to register (based on email address, name,...) and disable potentially harmful members.
|
Yes | |
|
IP Blocking
Prevent access to spam robots and other scripts that could attempt
DDOS or Brute Force attacks on your forum.
|
No | |
Customization & Social Networks
| Customization | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Plugins
Add new features to your forum installation.
|
No.
|
||
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Themes
Modify the style of your forum easily.
|
Yes. | ||
| Custom BBCodes | No | Smiley Packs | No |
|
Custom Thread Icons |
No |
Additional User Profile Fields
Ask more about your members with custom fields.
|
No |
| Integration with Applications, Social Networks, Intranet... | |
|---|---|
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Social Networks
Users can share information from their social network account...
|
|
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CMS / Blog Bridges
Integration with existing Web publishing tools.
|
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User Accounts Integration
Do users be able to log in with their corporate, Google, Facebook,... accounts?
|
No. |
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Content Aggregation
Forum allows to integrate news and content from other website,
using an aggregation protocol (RSS, RDF, Atom,...).
|
No. |
Creating a forum on Nabble is really really simple, because you don't even need to create an account for this! Attaching a forum could be done after creating an account. It proves the simplicity and the public form that Nabble wants to assume to its software.
W3C Norms & Accessibility
| Norms & Accessibility | |
|---|---|
|
HTML / XHTML Markup
See W3C HTML Definition.
|
HTML 4.01.
Click to see if it respects HTML norms.
|
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CSS Stylesheets
See W3C CSS Definition.
|
CSS 2. 
Click to see if it respects CSS norms.
|
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Accessibility (WAI)
Web Accessibility ensures that the forum is usable by people of all abilities and disabilities.
|
Conformance to AA level.
|
|
UTF-8 Support
Default encoding used to support all locales and countries.
|
Yes |
|
Conformance to W3C Norms
Does Nabble correctly follow (X)HTML and CSS norms?
|
Yes. |
Unique Features
Key points and major differences that make Nabble unique:
- Easy to integrate, easy to create, really everything is easy with Nabble.
- Nabble Embeddable Forum is just a part of what Nabble provides (pictures, news, blog, mailing lists,...)
Final Words
Good.
Nabble is really useful if you need a forum software immediately, and that you don't care about advanced features and manage your own forum solution,... If this is not a problem, it is clear that Nabble is the perfect tool to add forum facilities to any website.
The simple style provided by default by Nabble ensure a fast page loading and an easy way to theme the forum (no need to first revert default style behavior). Pages load really fast and you have more chance to increase the loading time because of the site that integrates a Nabble forum.
Nabble forum software is clearly service oriented, in the point that it will provide you a good service, and in a really short time.
Additional Resources:
- Experiment the Nabble Demo.
- Compare Nabble vs PhpBB 3 vs Simple Machines 2.
- Ask your questions to the Nabble Community Forum.
- Get Users Reviews about Nabble and Share your experience.
Found a Mistake? Tell us »
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