I'd like to propose an open discussion regarding the different social media modules out there so that we may share experiences, thoughts and solutions. I am NOT looking for anyone to bash or hate, so if there's a negative experience, please post in a professional and non-bashing manner. As we all know, individual experiences can also be directed related to that individual's knowledge of DNN and the module they're using. So with that said, let's discuss, if we may.
There's 2 major players in this field as far as I can tell. Active Social and Vivosocial or Vivo Social. I don't have a ton of experience with either one, which is why I started this thread. However, I've been studying them and reading about them as much as possible for over a year, and it's this study that has stopped me from purchasing either one during that time. Nobody really has a lot to say in a positive fashion about either one.
However, I'm at a point where we need to use one or the other on a new website, OR ditch DNN for that site and use another CMS. We intend to use the module as a meeting place for people and businesses coming to the area for a specific industry. We want previous customers of the business  to post info, photos, comments, etc about the business, and to allow the individuals to input certain criteria that will help match them with businesses who meet that criteria.

A recent discussion with a seasoned user of both suggested this to me...

"With Active Social coming out as a core DotNetNuke product later this year it could be good or bad (if you implement Vivo and DNN 6.1 blows it up with active social in it) or if you implement active social and it becomes a dead product (like all other intellectual property acquired by DNN in the past) or you implement active social in DNN Community Edition only to find out that you have to buy Pro edition to upgrade to DNN 6. If it were me I’d  stay away from them until the dust settles later this year.  We’ve had two $75,000+ contracts that we’ve advised the clients to hold on implementation until more is made clear.  I’d hate to implement either of them at the moment."

So, anyone? Thoughts, experiences, complaints, etc? Let's keep it clean, but honest and informative.

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Hawaii Web Design and SEO by One Wave Designs

Thanks for the notes Cathal, as I mentioned, I was quoting another developer.
However, here's my concerns. At least 75-80% of the time, the site www.activesocial.com does not in most browsers. The only browser that has any reliability of loading the site is Chrome. When I try to go to the site in IE (any version 7, 8 or 9), Firefox or Safari, it will not load. It hangs for about 60 seconds then gets an error page. This is also what happens when I go to www.activemodules.com and try and login.
Internet explorer error says...

"Internet Explorer cannot display the webpage
What you can try:
"This problem can be caused by a variety of issues, including:
•Internet connectivity has been lost.
•The website is temporarily unavailable.
•The Domain Name Server (DNS) is not reachable.
•The Domain Name Server (DNS) does not have a listing for the website's domain.
•There might be a typing error in the address.
•If this is an HTTPS (secure) address, click Tools, click Internet Options, click Advanced, and check to be sure the SSL and TLS protocols are enabled under the security section."

Firefox says...
"The connection was reset
The connection to the server was reset while the page was loading.
The site could be temporarily unavailable or too busy. Try again in a few
moments.
If you are unable to load any pages, check your computer's network
connection.
If your computer or network is protected by a firewall or proxy, make sure
that Firefox is permitted to access the Web."

When I use Snowcovered's support to request a phone call so I can ask some questions about the product, I can't get one. Yes, the gentleman who has answered a few questions has been polite and answered most of them, but this is a paying module, at $400.00 for a single install, is a phone call to get some info before making the purchase and committing to such an in-depth and time consuming module too much to ask?
here is the dialogue..

"Me: I would like to speak to someone in depth about this module before I purchase. Whom may I call? My email is XXX@XXXX.com and my direct line is XXX-XXX-XXXX, Hawaii Time. Thank you. "
Answer: Hi Paul,
"The best way for us to help you would be for you to provide us with the questions you have. You can click the button on this page to move this to the help desk so that you can ask additional questions.
Thanks":

Ok, so I promise I'm not being a needy customer, I prefer to spend several days trying to fix problems before I contact support, and on most forums, I like to give help more than ask for it, but I also need to make sure that my customer is happy. If I have to explain to them several times a week why their site won't load in IE or Firefox, I'll lose them.
Make sense?
Mahalo

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Hawaii Web Design and SEO by One Wave Designs

Thanks for the suggestions. It actually only has problems on the home page and when I try to sign in. I can use the interior pages of activesocial.com. To make it more interesting, sometimes then the home page will work in safari and chrome, but not firefox and ie. I have reset everything to default on all browesers and still get the error.
Nevertheless, I'll still keep studying. I'm not really seeking support in this thread, but more other DNN developers' experience and such.

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Hawaii Web Design and SEO by One Wave Designs