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Unread 09/19/2018, 07:31 AM   #1
TheCamaroShow
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How to make RC more active

So we all know we have a lot of reef forums but how can we get more people on here. I think we need more vendors and some live sales and promotions just for RC members.


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Unread 09/19/2018, 09:20 PM   #2
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At one time this was super active. I remember when the reef discussion pages would go pages in a days time. Your right, not anymore.

I’m not sure if other forums have the activity now, (not a member on any other forum) or if it’s social media.
I do know, this site has a reputation for a large number of members that like to be very expressive about their opinions and this upsets a lot of members. (It’s drove me to take long breaks before)Driving them to some other means on tank discussions.

I currently have an issue staying logged in and I’m not always given the option to check the remember me box. This in itself is about to make me never post again. Just read on the sidelines and watch. Ultimately never to return. User interface is a huge deal.


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Unread 09/19/2018, 09:51 PM   #3
cvrle1
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Perhaps this should be moved into the Lounge, as its not to do with reef discussion.

IMO forums in general are dying breed. A lot of people have turned to facebook groups, discord and reddit and are staying away from forums for various reasons. In regards to RC specifically, I will say that forum software used is quite old looking and limited. If you compare just the look of RC to another forum I shall not mention, RC looks old and boring.

I really dont think that having more vendors and live sales will make RC more active. If anything, there will be new people signing up just to take advantage of sales, and then never to be seen or heard from again (until next sale perhaps)

Issue these days again with forums in general is that people also get their feelings hurt really easily, and some of the older members are quick to jump on and perhaps not make that member feel welcome. How does one prevent this is a million dollar question, and one that many other forums have been asking for years.

With all this said, I am glad to be part of this community and I am thankful for all the help and info that has been provided so far. I am sure same will happen in the future as I keep going on this adventure of reef aquariums.


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Unread 09/20/2018, 06:03 AM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TheCamaroShow View Post
So we all know we have a lot of reef forums but how can we get more people on here. I think we need more vendors and some live sales and promotions just for RC members.
This forum is what it is and they are happy keeping it what it is..
They do not want it to turn into those other sites..
If that is the type of forums,etc... that you like then its been suggested that you just go there for that type of "activity"..


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Unread 09/20/2018, 06:38 AM   #5
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Our Mission
Reef Central is an online community where quality information about the marine and reef aquarium hobby can be exchanged among all levels of hobbyist from beginner to advanced. Our goal is to help educate people about the saltwater aquarium hobby and enhance awareness of the fragility of coral reefs around the world. We hope you will join us and that you find this site useful.


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Unread 09/20/2018, 10:36 AM   #6
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Our Mission
Reef Central is an online community where quality information about the marine and reef aquarium hobby can be exchanged among all levels of hobbyist from beginner to advanced. Our goal is to help educate people about the saltwater aquarium hobby and enhance awareness of the fragility of coral reefs around the world. We hope you will join us and that you find this site useful.

The forum is definitely slowing down though. I posted a question about turf algae and what eats it, not a single answer on it until I said something and even then I still only got one post.


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Unread 09/20/2018, 12:25 PM   #7
Michael Hoaster
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I'm a big fan of RC. I like the look of it and I like the content. But I have noticed the dwindling numbers of posts, in the last four years. This is a bummer. I crave attention.

So I went over to _2_ to see if it was any better. What I found was an obvious knock-off of RC, but with ugly graphics. More importantly, I found the content to be no more compelling. I saw no reason join.

Maybe RC's success has spawned too many 'me too' forums, and they are diluting the postings down to a trickle on each one. Maybe, after some time, some will disappear, and more folks will post on fewer forums.

How do you attract more people to RC? Here are some random thoughts off the top of my head. If I'm being honest, my main motivation for posting is to show off. What if RC gave us more opportunity to show off? Tank of the Month has always been a dream for me. Do they still even do that? How about some other contests? Look what aquascaping contests have done for fresh water planted tanks! People could submit photo entries for all kinds of contests and using the polling feature, we could all vote.

Another motivation for me to be here is to learn. I love reading articles by knowledgable experts in the field. Of course, good articles aren't free. So they'd need to be sponsored. 'This article is brought to you by (insert aquarium industry company name here)', seems like a good solution.

So there's a few ideas…


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Unread 09/20/2018, 01:06 PM   #8
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I sense a significant slow down here as well. I thought it might be the summer doldrums.

This site used to be hot. I have reviewed posts for several topics of interest. Five to ten years ago, there were some great debates and tons of information and references to articles. I learned a bunch. Things have definitely quited down since. The “big” names have left or seldom post anymore.

I continue to check out the posts though and post potentialy interesting information from my lab.

Dan


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Unread 09/20/2018, 03:33 PM   #9
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IMO many forums are slowing down simply because more people are learning to just search the internet and read to get the information they want instantly...
While I am active on this site I never post questions because I don't have the patience to wait for an answer.


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Unread 09/20/2018, 03:39 PM   #10
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I see forums of all types slowing down. I'm a member of multiple watch forums and they are all slowing due to social media - people posting on Facebook and Instagram and having discussions there rather than a formal forum. I like RC and don't frequent any other reef sites. I am trying to participate more than I used to. I've learned a ton here and appreciate the mission here.


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Unread 09/20/2018, 05:17 PM   #11
Dan_P
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mcgyvr View Post
IMO many forums are slowing down simply because more people are learning to just search the internet and read to get the information they want instantly...
While I am active on this site I never post questions because I don't have the patience to wait for an answer.
Just maybe we have reached the point where every orignal question on maintaining a reef aquarium has been asked and answered. In addition, since the science of reef keeping does not seem to be on a steep learning or discovering curve, the old searchable answers remain the latest information. As you say, a Google search digs up an answer very quickly.


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Unread 09/20/2018, 05:34 PM   #12
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It just begins with those in charge... lol

Have I seen you someplace else? Answer me?


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Unread 09/20/2018, 05:36 PM   #13
mcgyvr
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Originally Posted by Dan_P View Post
Just maybe we have reached the point where every orignal question on maintaining a reef aquarium has been asked and answered. In addition, since the science of reef keeping does not seem to be on a steep learning or discovering curve, the old searchable answers remain the latest information. As you say, a Google search digs up an answer very quickly.
That point was reached a long time ago for 99.9% of questions. But for many people in the past and even still the ability to "Google" is something they havent been able to master..
The only new questions are about specific new products..


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Unread 09/20/2018, 06:06 PM   #14
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It just begins with those in charge... lol

Have I seen you someplace else? Answer me?
ok


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Unread 09/20/2018, 06:12 PM   #15
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lol

So have I haven't seen you before? "Misled" isn't really the right answer right now.


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Unread 09/20/2018, 08:31 PM   #16
2_zoa
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That point was reached a long time ago for 99.9% of questions. But for many people in the past and even still the ability to "Google" is something they havent been able to master..
The only new questions are about specific new products..
Is this reality.....or your reality?

Answers can be right in front of ones face. They may have even read the answer to their question 50 times. However, a lack of knowledge or experience on said subject. Gives the person nothing to relate to. Therefore an inability to determine heads or tails of the subject matter.
A solid number of individuals will then ask instead of just doing in an attempt to improve their efforts towards success. Hoping that one conversation is out there with the correct words in the correct order that they’ll grasp the concept from.


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Unread 09/20/2018, 08:39 PM   #17
TheCamaroShow
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Thank you all, This question wasn't meant to hate on rc but to just brighten it up. I can't say how many nice helpful people are on here compared to other sites. I feel that this community is really what drives the reefing hobby.

Thank you RC!


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Unread 09/20/2018, 08:47 PM   #18
mcgyvr
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Originally Posted by 2_zoa View Post
Is this reality.....or your reality?

Answers can be right in front of ones face. They may have even read the answer to their question 50 times. However, a lack of knowledge or experience on said subject. Gives the person nothing to relate to. Therefore an inability to determine heads or tails of the subject matter.
A solid number of individuals will then ask instead of just doing in an attempt to improve their efforts towards success. Hoping that one conversation is out there with the correct words in the correct order that they’ll grasp the concept from.
The reality is that the answers to most questions are a search button away..
Reasoning though is a skill many are not sufficiently capable of.. And somehow asking the question again only to get the same answers their searches yielded seems to deliver the warm fuzzy feeling...personalized reassurance it seems..
Some can learn on their own...others must be taught.


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Unread 09/20/2018, 08:54 PM   #19
2_zoa
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The reality is that the answers to most questions are a search button away..
Reasoning though is a skill many are not sufficiently capable of.. And somehow asking the question again only to get the same answers their searches yielded seems to deliver the warm fuzzy feeling...personalized reassurance it seems..
Some can learn on their own...others must be taught.
Sure, that feeling that their setup is different and therefore must need a different approach. I get where your coming from.
Does that not fall under lack of experience? A persons ability to apply information to their situation?

I’ll say, some just need a push to just start something. So they can see change and then tweak it as it goes.


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Unread 09/20/2018, 09:05 PM   #20
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Originally Posted by mcgyvr View Post
This forum is what it is and they are happy keeping it what it is..
They do not want it to turn into those other sites..
If that is the type of forums,etc... that you like then its been suggested that you just go there for that type of "activity"..
I understand that the other site has some negative aspects, but it seems to me that the op would just like there to be more people & thus more interaction here. Nothing wrong with that.


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Unread 09/20/2018, 09:07 PM   #21
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IMO many forums are slowing down simply because more people are learning to just search the internet and read to get the information they want instantly...
While I am active on this site I never post questions because I don't have the patience to wait for an answer.
Everyone can surf to get answers to most questions, the basics, but I believe most people just like to interact with other people who share the same interest


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Unread 09/20/2018, 09:15 PM   #22
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The traffic here does appear to be way down. Many reasons I’m sure and most are out of our control I do like posting questions still to see what people say to me personally, I’m also pretty adept at searching

Forums have a wealth of knowledge unlike FB and other popular sites. Everything goes full circle and I’m pretty sure forums are here to stay.


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Unread 09/20/2018, 10:28 PM   #23
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If RC would host photos so that they show in the actual post (instead of clicking on the thumbnail), I know I'd post a lot more. I no longer have the patience to use a third party site to host my photos. I was planning to start a build thread then remembered how much of a PITA is it to post photos. I'm still feeling the sting of using Photobucket.


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Unread 09/20/2018, 10:52 PM   #24
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Yes the photo bucket thing just caused a loss of valuable information in the old threads . When I do a search for answers I am lost because many of the diy info is destroyed due to missing pictures . There are still old timers here that have a wealth of information that I still seek . I only know about 25% of the hobby and still rely upon everyone else’s input . I also see it as a duty to newer members to answer their questions for I was once there and was helped by many others that took time to answer . Yes I wish that some older members didn’t leave cause I still need their input . I have been away for awhile and came back to see that many questions in the disease treatment section were going unanswered. Yes I want to say do a search to the posters but then again parasites don’t wait a few days to kill off the fish while they are searching thru old posts


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Unread 09/21/2018, 05:40 AM   #25
mcgyvr
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Yes the photo bucket thing just caused a loss of valuable information in the old threads . When I do a search for answers I am lost because many of the diy info is destroyed due to missing pictures .
Those photos are not totally missing... Just being blocked..
There is a simple fix to return them.. One being a browser extension for the Chrome browser (probably one for Firefox too) that does it automatically the other simply appending ~original to the URL


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