Here we go....
LPA vs LPL!
I used to be a lurker at LPA a few years back. The site was fantastic, especially for new Linkin Park related news. This was still back when LPL was simply text files. I loved it at LPA. I would visit the site everyday, hoping something new from LP was announced. The one MAIN problem I had with LPA is their forum. You literally had to go through a mission to be able to post there.
I remember trying to register on several different occasions, and posting, and then waiting to have a moderator approve the post, and it never happened. It sucked because I had to wait for who knows how long to see my post on their forum, and it never happened. After a few years of trying to be a member on LPA, and it never happening, I became interested in LPL.
Believe it or not, at the time, I didn't really care about the set lists of each show. All I wanted to see was whenever LP played a song I liked, and I would remember youtubing that date and trying to find a live version of that specific song. I love live videos. lol.
At the time, I believe it was LPL V2, they had that PHPBB forum, which was cool. I remember thats when I became really active, just as a regular member and then I remember getting some kind of VIP status or whatever. I just remember my name being in like an orangy-yellow color. Contributor was it? I don't know. lol.
But once the whole thing went down where Fisico went and left, Mark put me on the Admin team, I set up this forum and started working on v4. Complications came up, which I won't get into, and even though Im no longer on the admin team, I still visit LPL for hours and hours on end, everyday, and always jot down new ideas, which I will pass on to the staff team one day.
Ever since I first became active on LPL, I never looked back towards LPA. However, LPA will always have a little place in my heart, and their new design is awesome!
As for the forum software... I work with multiple forum softwares for a living. I work for one of the largest vBulletin design companies online, and I'm telling you right now... LPL going to vBulletin 4.0 would be a mistake. I have no problem whatsoever with 3.8.x, but updates for it in the future will not be possible. 4.0 is a failure, and IPB grows stronger everyday. As long as LPL stays with this forum, and keeps the security on it up to date, and of course the design, LPL as a community has a very strong future. Very.