Rikki-UK:
The restrictions are more that the owners of the servers we wil be moving to do not allow any open source software on them.
That’s just bizzare - if it were me I’d choose a different host and save yourselves a lot of cash.
It’s a forum, not a banking or military system or something. Half the web runs on open source Apache servers just fine.
It is true that TruckNet UK is just a forum, but the Data Centre we will be hosted in also hosts all Reed Business websites (and there is a lot of them !! ) Reed Elsevier’s internal and External business aplications (including the corporate intranet) and some quite sensitive tools used by Reed Elsevier companies working with outside organisations.
That to me would be just asking for trouble hosting a forum or any open source on such a server,far easier and cost affective to host it on another server away from the main frame there for not conflicting with the security…i would go as far to say that Reeds server host would not allow such script on the server…
i would go as far to say that Reeds server host would not allow such script on the server…
Which is why we are changing from open source . There are already a large number of forums run by Reed. TruckNet UK is the only one using open source and hosted outside of the datacentre.
Reeds host is itself, it owns and manages its own datacentre for all its companies worldwide.
Once we are hosted on Reeds own servers it opens up a lot of applications we can use on the website, for example via the website interface I can import automatically any articles/features within Reed that are of possible interest. Journalists can publish to print and on-line at the same time. and we can access the Reed database and extract stuff in detailed searches such as old road tests etc.
for example… a search for DAF XF105 on the forums could at some point in the future give you One or all of the following depending on what you choose to get back as results
a) Anything on the forum
b) Latest news on DAF from RT.com
c) Latest Road tests from CM
d) Archived roadtests
e) Drivers cab reports from T&D
f) Financial reports on DAF from Motor Transport
g) DAF XF for sale in classified
h) Technical spec sheets
i) Archived articles from Truck and T&D featuring DAF’s
j) etc etc etc etc etc etc etc ( I think you get the idea)
While it may be cheaper to use an outside host, than uppgrade the forums and current CMS, in the long term using the same system as all the other Reed websites and integrating some applications means that via economy of scale as the web develops we develope with it. A single website running an incompatible system to the rest of the literaly 100’s of websites will not get any developement time or money.
But I’d noticed you there as well though 
