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09/21/2018, 06:38 AM | #26 |
Team RC Member
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: NY
Posts: 17,749
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I'd rather have low traffic than vendor and "live sale" background noise all the time. I tried to get active in a local reef Facebook group but the traffic was 90% fly by night chop shops yelling about live frag sales of whatever the hottest trend coral was. "THIS FRIDAY ONLY THE FIRST EVER RELEASE OF ATOMIC SUPERMAN DONKEYNIPPLES!!!!!" followed by a dozen Instagram-filtered photos of a sad looking frag plug with a freshly cut coral glued to it. To each his own, but I have no interest in that. I'm here to build a little reef, not pursue money or bragging rights based on a tank stuffed with frags someone else has decided are popular or rare. These are living creatures to me, not pokemon cards.
Meanwhile I can come To RC and occasionally stumble into a debate between actual marine biologists about how nutrient ratios impact bacterial populations, or a DIY thread a hundred pages long showing off arduino projects or 3D printing. At one point I was of the opinion that forums should focus on traffic and should do everything they can to retain and engage members. Now I feel like a more organic approach where you let a community find its own focus, regardless of size, is much more interesting and effective.
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Inconveniencing marine life since 1992 "It is my personal belief that reef aquaria should be thriving communities of biodiversity, representative of their wild counterparts, and not merely collections of pretty specimens growing on tidy clean rock shelves covered in purple coralline algae." (Eric Borneman) |
09/21/2018, 06:55 AM | #27 |
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Location: Zuehl, Texas
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I belong to three forums one being my local club. There are probably only 3 to 4 members that now post on our website, Of course two of the four post on here also. On the FB page of the same club it is booming. I was on FB until the day I spotted a picture that came from my phone, that I did not post. Seeing that I removed everything and deleted FB from my life. I have enjoyed RC for many years, and will continue
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09/21/2018, 07:14 AM | #28 |
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Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Rehoboth, MA
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Going to other sites is like spending the summer at your aunt's house.
Fun and exciting at first, but you can't wait to go home. I have ventured over the fence, got some information, don't care for the format, I'll stay here thank you.
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Pete "I never make mistakes... I thought I did once, but I was wrong" Current Tank Info: In the process - http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2661614 |
09/21/2018, 07:52 AM | #29 |
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Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Wichita KS
Posts: 2,621
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I do miss the monster threads debating the value or this or that and TOTM threads to provide goals and inspiration.
Maybe a "Guided Discussion" forum would spark some interest. In this type of forum, a moderator or guide kicks off a thread focused on a particular topic and keeps the posts relevant and helpful. I don't know what sort of permissions might be required or if it's even possible, but something new like that might spur some interest. Maybe "guides" would have to have provided a minimum number of posts or something.
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John, Current Tank Info: In-process, 90 Gallon SPS Reef |
09/21/2018, 12:37 PM | #30 | |
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09/21/2018, 02:31 PM | #31 | |
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Location: northen Wv
Posts: 192
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Quote:
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09/21/2018, 04:38 PM | #32 |
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Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Montgomery
Posts: 1,257
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The guided forum would shorten the length of many of these threads . In order to have information readily accessible. Something to pull information from without having to go thru each page of a long thread . And if someone needs to read the whole thread they can as. It is referenced or linked
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09/23/2018, 08:33 AM | #33 |
Grizzled & Cynical
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: Stamford, CT
Posts: 17,319
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As folks have noted, many factors in play. Easy to search for something rather than posting a new question. More competition for eyeballs. The photobucket thing - a lot of my old threads are completely pointless now, and I have no interest in investing the time to fix them.
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Simon Got back into the hobby ..... planned to keep it simple ..... yeah, right ..... clearly I need a new plan! Pet peeve: anemones host clowns; clowns do not host anemones! Current Tank Info: 450 Reef; 120 refugium; 60 Frag Tank, 30 Introduction tank; multiple QTs |
09/23/2018, 09:46 AM | #34 | |
SALTWATER since '73
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: Katonah, NY/ San Fernando Ca./ Sea Isle City NJ
Posts: 6,210
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Quote:
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______________________________________ Jan. '11 TOTM Manhattan Reefs Current Tank Info: 500g & 200g acrylic DTs/2 separate reef systems |
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09/23/2018, 06:31 PM | #35 |
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Join Date: Aug 2018
Location: northen Wv
Posts: 192
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seems like some clubs are very active on here
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09/24/2018, 05:33 AM | #36 |
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Location: Zuehl, Texas
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09/24/2018, 12:09 PM | #37 |
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Location: northen Wv
Posts: 192
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Thanks everyone!
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09/25/2018, 10:23 AM | #38 |
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Location: TX
Posts: 1,090
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Good read. This was the first forum I joined when I got back into saltwater.
I love the info here. I think its good to discuss ways to drive traffic back within the boundaries and mission of RC. I admin our local clubs site and we have seen the decline in traffic as well. I am also on a couple of forums related to forum admin and all seem to conclude that fb and other social media are a big driver in that traffic decline. I guess I am old and cantankerous... I don't like fb. never have never will, but I get the instant gratification thing. And.. greedy photobucket sucks.. yes they did destroy tons of how to threads/articles with their thoughtless policy change.
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Steve My Tanks 50x30 ABS Tub & a 48x24 frag tank at the moment Steve's Reef 265 Build In Progress Last edited by Steveb; 09/25/2018 at 10:27 AM. Reason: my brain works faster than my fingers |
09/25/2018, 10:50 AM | #39 |
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Join Date: May 2001
Location: Bay Area, CA
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If there's any good that's come out of this, it feels like there's a lot less bickering with threads getting shut down a lot less than a few years ago. Even though the traffic may have gone down, I do think the quality of posts has gone up.
I think people are also being more respectful in that they're searching for information before posting a question. Many start with "I've searched for [blank] and can't find the any info. so I'm creating a new thread..." This in itself leads to less posting than in the past.
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Tank info: 120 gallon 48x30x20 high DT. Clownfish breeding rack in full swing: C-Quest Onyx, Bali Aquarich P1 Picasso + Rod's Onyx, wild percula + Rod's Onyx. |
09/25/2018, 11:50 AM | #40 | |
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Location: Zuehl, Texas
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Quote:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UE6iAjEv9dQ |
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09/25/2018, 02:30 PM | #41 |
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Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: Madison, WI
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Long live Reef Central!
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09/25/2018, 02:49 PM | #42 |
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Location: Rehoboth, MA
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Did anyone happen to notice that most of the responders have been on RC since the early to mid 2000's!
I joined in March 2005! 13+ Years for me!
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Pete "I never make mistakes... I thought I did once, but I was wrong" Current Tank Info: In the process - http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2661614 |
09/25/2018, 03:24 PM | #43 |
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09/25/2018, 03:33 PM | #44 |
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John, Current Tank Info: In-process, 90 Gallon SPS Reef |
09/25/2018, 08:20 PM | #45 | |
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Quote:
Then got sidetracked because I’m getting old and senile. Lol Oh, shiny.... Edit: a quick run through the thread.......showed me most of the old timers have low post counts to go along with several years of membership. Sure Ca1ore and der_willie have some posts going on |
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09/26/2018, 03:09 AM | #46 | |
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Quote:
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Pete "I never make mistakes... I thought I did once, but I was wrong" Current Tank Info: In the process - http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2661614 |
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09/26/2018, 08:38 AM | #47 |
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09/26/2018, 10:05 AM | #49 |
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That only works if users actually searched to benefit from those few "quality" posts..
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Who me? |
09/26/2018, 10:06 AM | #50 |
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I originally was steered to RC by an LFS owner who was trying to do internet sales and maintain a brick & mortar store. He failed, but I found a great resource. I can't imagine most LFSs steering their customers to RC. If you're selling a $25 bottle of "Miracle Nitrate Reducer", you don't want your customers to find out a $1 bottle of vinegar works just as well. Who steers new members to RC these days?
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John, Current Tank Info: In-process, 90 Gallon SPS Reef |
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