Running another database within a vBulletin page

[NickyDee]

I can connect to the second database in a test script, infact thats how its working at the moment. But I want to fully integrate it so I can use user permissions and the navbar from vbulletin.

Literally what I need is a page like this:

$Header
$header include
$navbar

-------

$second_database

-------

$footer

I understand that PHP Echo commands (which get used a lot in my stats database) break the vbulletin script, so I tried using my stats database HTML and PHP as a plugin, hooked to global start (with ob_clean etc) and entered as $second_database into the template. but it doesnt work. it just loads the page with the header/navbar and nothing in the middle.

Or perhaps I'm using the wrong hook? Surely global start applies to all files that reference /global.php? even custom ones.