It’s with great sadness that I have to announce Tom Moore (Tomm M on the community forums) has decided to depart from the MyBB Team.

Since joining the dev team in 2009, Tom has been at the forefront of MyBB development, even more so after the departure of Ryan Gordon. Having led the 1.6 series throughout its life, fixing countless bugs and issues, and putting his ideas and talent in to 1.8, MyBB today lies upon Tom’s vision and hard work. His dedication and will has been undeniable and we wish him the best for the future, and with whatever comes next.

What does this mean for MyBB?

While it’s sad to see such a talented developer leave the team, it’s often something which is expected with open source software. We believe that even though we no longer have Tom, there will always be developers out there willing to carry on his vision and continue to bring MyBB to the people. We’re very excited to see what comes next for MyBB, and we hope you are too.

A message from Tom to all…

To all at MyBB,

It’s with a heavy heart that I’ll be departing from the MyBB Team who, in every respect, has been more of a family over the last 5 years. We’ve fought, argued and definitely fallen out more than a few times but a single aim has always been at the front of thinking for every team member (past and present): to create the best free forum software for your community.

This niche software industry, which many thought would be swallowed by social networks, is thriving with seemingly new competitors every week. Each with their own gimmick, of course. But they often fail where MyBB succeeds due to 3 basic principles that haven’t changed in its 10 year history: extensibility, ease of use and functionality.

It’s inevitable that MyBB must change for the modern user, and you shouldn’t fear this, as by following these principles and focusing on putting great content at the heart of the software can only mean another great product from one of the most talented teams I’ve had the privilege to be a part of. The future of this forum software is exciting and I can’t wait for everyone to (eventually!) use it.

I wish you and your communities the very best of luck.

– Tomm