Back after a few years - very quiet here

[Ageofaquariums]

That makes me feel better XD
Also thanks for that bit of history, helps bring the hobby alive for me.
Have to admit that even after all these years Borneman is still a bit of a hero to me.
It was a good golden age, but we are certainly a smarter hive mind these days.... just not as helpful in some ways.

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/blog/er ... n-arrested

[shrimpman]

How things have changed so much in a decade.

Whilst most things are the same the two standouts for me are LED lighting and carbon dosing ( Adding organic carbon i.e vodka to remove nitrates and phosphate). To think some reefers are dosing nitrate and adding more fish their SPS tanks to add more nutrients to tank is simply unbelievable.

[saltydog]

How things have changed so much in a decade.
carbon dosing ( Adding organic carbon i.e vodka to remove nitrates and phosphate).

If you look closely you will find vodka discussions preceding 2003 and organic carbon discussions preceding 2000 (vinegar, sugar, fruit juice and products like coral vital.....).

To think some reefers are dosing nitrate and adding more fish their SPS tanks to add more nutrients to tank is simply unbelievable.

Again, that was happening and being discussed about pre 2005.

Which sort of highlights the problem. If you found it hard to find that information 15 years ago, image how hard it is to find now that information is so fragmented (facebook, twitter, forums, blogs.....)

Chris

[shrimpman]

I totally missed vodka dosing back then. The fragmentation of forums is not unique to reefing. Its happened in just about every other hobby too with little FB groups all over the place. It really is quite damaging to these hobbies.

I find the advice in those groups is more an echo chamber of seeking opinions they wish to hear. The rest are shills with affiliate codes ready to share a link where they are rewarded if the transaction takes place.

[Ageofaquariums]

Honestly a party is only as good as the host. Many facebook groups, any post that disagrees with the admins thoughts is just deleted by them. On others the host is welcoming to the whole diverse spectrum of reefing people. Many of us here chat together each night on MAFA. The same people are here and on facebook. There should always be a place on the reefing scene for MASA, its the giant upon whose shoulders many of these groups are built. People still talk about this place with respect, its just much of the talking is not done here.As n00b as it sounds, theres likely some sort of gimmick needed to lure back the hordes. The hordes bring the content and the content is what brings more people.

[Punchanello]

I'm new to the hobby and even though there isn't much traffic on RTAW it has been invaluable to my learning.

I'm a bit OCD so I was literally reading this forum for over a year before I even bought a tank. I was using the search function and reading about anything I was curious about. At first it's all a bit overwhelming because this hobby is complex. It was also a bit disorientating because when you search something you rarely check the date. So here I was thinking the great debate on the denitrifying capacity of a DSB was the hot contemporary topic when in fact I was reading a 10 year old thread .

It's been a good education though. I understand the history and evolution of the hobby and have a grasp of the concepts and theoretical stuff even though I don't have a wealth of practical experience. It's saved me a ton of money and I can sniff out BS pretty quickly especially on FB. I just can't imagine getting a solid understanding of the hobby or making good decisions based on the rapid fire, unqualified advice on FB.

That said I'm all over the face book groups stalking and creeping on peoples tank photos

[Aydee]

It's an odd one.
Like I've said, I really want to have the forum upgrade happen. (I've given a prod in the relevant mod forum) I'm mindful of the fact that it really is volunteer hours/time to do the work.

The facebook posts I enjoy the photos, but the discussions are not really my cup of tea. I prefer to be able to read through things and mull it over for a while. Facebook is not conducive to this.

Dave

[shrimpman]

Facebook is a poor place for discussions to take place. Topics and knowledge are lost far too easily.

RTAW is a wealth of knowledge and it's all searchable for as long as this forum exists.

Forums can be daunting places to noobs if they are not made to feel welcomed.

[Aydee]

Exactly. Which is why I want there to be integration between the 2.

To be able to link facebook galleries, but also to be able to start a discussion on one and carry it across to another medium.

Lots of work to do. I maybe part of the circus, I may enjoy the monkeys. But they're not my monkeys. So I have to leave this to the monkey trainer.

Dave

[shrimpman]

Sounds like an excellent idea.