[Zeke]

Originally Posted by tlhInganHom

I didn't know phpBB has a guest feature! (Or is it a hack?) Nifty!

That's the one feature I've always refused to compromise on, no matter what forum software we use. I've never liked forums that won't let you post at all without going whole hog and signing up as a member. There's no need for an online forum to be so official. It's a difference of philosophy -- some people see their forums like a club, I see mine like a water cooler chat. People come and go according to their own schedules, and if you have something to add to the conversation, you don't have to sign a form or pass a drug test, you can just say it.

That said, I do get why most forum admins prefer all posters to be registered. I don't like such policies, but I don't loathe them either. The loathing comes in when I encounter a forum whose threads and posts are SO SACRED that the admins dare not let the heathen unregistereds even READ them. No, it's far too dangerous to let just anybody read the contents of your forum. Only those who have proven themselves trustworthy by supplying a working email address and being able to type the same password twice may be safely permitted to gaze upon the golden words within.