Wow!!! This topic got locked.....
http://www.smfhacks.com/index.php/topic,160.msg967/topicseen.html#newI would have responded in it but it was locked.
I agree, the Lite version is way too light but that is what the developer wants so people will buy the Pro version. Its being business savy.
I dont knock smfhacks at all for trying to make a buck but I think that doing so with SMF which is FREE software and all other mods or 99% other mods being FREE is not in the best judgement.
Just to answer the question, Gallery is FREE and Coppermine is FREE.......both can be integrated into SMF with a little work and both are much more in depth programs than PRO(maybe). You will not have any problems with these programs as they have been out there and tested for several years. You do not need to uninstall and re-install new versions as updates occur because it just doesnt happen all too often. As I stated these are tried and true programs.
This all being said, the best thing about smfhacks gallery is the ease of installation. Most people would pay however much money just due to this alone because they have no clue about coding or where to start.
I would use the gallery myself due to just not wanting to hassle with the time and effort to code the integration. I however am with the rest of the bunch here thinking $50 is too much for a FREE platform.
As someone else stated on the other topic that is now locked......
we chose SMF because it was FREE, and we dont make money from it. If we had extra money to spend we would have gotten vBulletin.
vBulletin is $85 a year to lease the software or $160 for ever with one year of updates. This software has all the mods of SMF and a gallery plus more already!!
Now why would people choose SMF??? Not because its better but because its FREE..........