Hi, I'm considering using ElkArte for my forums, but I'm having a hard time finding information about what the interface is like for admin?
Will I need to be able to code to run these forums? Or is it manageable through a GUI, like PHPBB forums and such? How user-friendly are these for the admin?
Hi and welcome to elkarte forum!
The admin control panel is easy to use, imo much easier than phpBB. I start my first forum in 2004-2005 and it was based on phpBB, then I discovered Simple Machines Forum and never looked back to phpbb. Elkarte is a fork of SMF.
I advice you to download the software and install it in localhost to test it (you can use WAMPserver or any similar package). If you have other questions just ask ;)
I'm really only familiar with UBB forums, a really old version of them, and I didn't have anything to do with uploading them.
I might as well be a total newb compared to you guys. When you say "install it in local host" what exactly do you mean?
Don't worry about being a newbie. Everyone starts somewhere. What the localhost means is you can install WAMP to run a forum on your PC. WAMP is software allowing your PC to act as a local server visible only to you. Well, technically it can be configured to allow outside access, but it isn't advised for numerous reasons. Anyway, a localhost or local install allows you to test software without messing up a production server environment. A sandbox. It's a great way to learn!
I've attached some screenshots from the admin interface, they might help regarding user-friendliness.