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NOTE: This method of integrating PhpBB and Joomla/Mambo is no longer supported. For the new, updated method, visit Using phpBB as your Joomla Comments Engine.

This article remains published only for historical purposes.

OK - that was annoying. The PhpBB component in Joomla was laughably insecure. So I removed it. That means that this whole article doesn't work anymore. I'm working on a fix, but it will be with a separate PhpBB installation. It's just a question of waiting for PhpBB3 or not.

I had hoped to wait for Joomla 1.5 and PhpBB3 so I could use the userbot and not have to modify much core code at all, but since it appears that 1.5 may not be released for another 20 or 30 years, that has fallen by the wayside. So, I cross my fingers and hope for the two necessary mods to be updated, PhpBB3 to be released,buy viagra online pharmacy buy amoxicillin phentermine and then maybe some collaboration with Fluffy. We'll see.

PhpBB/Mambo Comments has been updated to reflect the new changes in Joomla - up through 1.0.7. So I guess it's PhpBB/Joomla Comments now. As if the first name wasn't lame enough. The hack instructions continue below...

I'd also like to thank those who tried this hack and gave me feedback on how it works. I only kinda know what I'm doing, so it helps. Also, thanks to Terracon from Houston Vehicles for pointing out my laziness on some of the documentation. If you ever notice anything wrong or confusing, just click on the link at the bottom and add your comment.

So, like this site, you want to have comments after all of your articles.  However, AkoComment doesn't do exactly what you want because you also have an integrated PhpBB forum, and you want to better integrate the two halves not in a technical way, but in a content-driven way - so that vistors who visit one half will find many strings connecting the two, and hopefully will then explore both sides.

This is a step-by-step article on how to do just that. It would not be possible without the work of TIM_online's PhpBB Component for Mambo and Fluffy's Movable Type / PhpBB integration.

Before you get into this, you must understand that it requires hacking the core files of both PhpBB and Mambo, meaning that if you ever upgrade those two, you will need to do so manually, or you will lose the hacks. Or, in the case of the last Mambo upgrade - apply the upgrade, then reapply the hack. The good news is that all of the content is kept in the database, so you don't lose the comments, you just lose links to them.

Why did I do it this way? First, I don't know much about Mambots or creating Modules or Components. This will become one of those things shortly, I hope. Secondly, I wanted comments added automatically to every piece of content I created, not just things I remembered to put a mambot at the end of. There's probably a way to do that. If you know it, tell me.

So, let's go on with it...

Prerequisites:

1. A passing knowledge of PHP. This does not mean you need to know how to program, just that your head won't explode if you have to look around at some code when things break. Like how you forgot to add a semicolon at the end of a line.
2. A functioning install of Mambo and TIM_online's PhpBB Component. Make sure you have all of those integration bugs settled before you attempt this.
3. Note: This is no longer needed after version 1.2.4 RC3 of Tim-Online's Component.
   I also recommend Adam's new session handler, which will hopefully reduce some of the logout problems with the PhpBB component. (It still doesn't completely solve the problem) This is not actually a prerequisite, but it is nice and it's easy to make sure it works before you go hacking about.
4. The ability to add another table to your Mambo/PhpBB database. This will handle the linking of comments and the content they are commenting on.
5. A backup of that setup. I'm serious. You're going to be messing with the core files of Mambo and the PhpBB component, so you might mess things up in a way that renders your site non-functional. Good times.
6. An understanding that the open-source movement is one of the best damn things to happen in the computer world. Without it, I am not nearly skilled enough to pull this off. Thanks again to the people of Mambo, TIM_online, and Fluffy.