That's right folks, 5 years ago today we set up www.reefs.org and the #reefs chat channel, making us one of the oldest and most respected aquarium websites on the internet. You'll have to forgive me, but I'd like to take a minute to "wax nostalgic." Hopefully it doesn't sound like I'm tooting our own horn - because that's certainly not my intention - rather, I'd like to look back and mention some of the things that we have done together.
On March 31st 1997 we hosted the very first chat in #reefs, given by David (DC) Potts. When I think back to that day, I was in a different city, doing a different trade, and had a completely different set of friends. Where were you all 5 years ago? Did you have a reef aquarium then? Did you even know what a "reef aquarium" was?
We've been educating marine hobbyists on the internet and sharing information for a very long time and we are committed to doing so in the future. Heck, when we started out, discussion boards were just starting. Back then, Usenet was just about it. The internet wasn't yet the interactive organism that it is today.
We have grown tremendously since then obviously, and we have adapted and changed some along the way - for the good of course. I'd like to take a "walk down memory lane" and reminisce about some of our more worth-while activities over the last 5 years:
<ul type="square">Chat Room #reefs: We opened the chat room #reefs. This was the first aquarium chatroom that you could access through the internet using a web browser or MIRC. Before that you had to use Telnet to connect to a MUD. Remember that?
HHFAQ: We collaborated with Rob Toonen and Ron Shimek to set up the Hitchikers FAQ and the Hitchikers Discussion Forum on our bulletin board.
Contests We've had literally dozens of contests in the last 5 years - giving away literally THOUSANDS of dollars in prizes. Do you all remember the "What is That???" contest?
MACO: In 1998 and 1999, we collaborated with a dedicated group of aquarium hobbyists and educators to put together the Marine Aquarium Conference Online. We hosted the first course, taught by Dr. Ron Shimek - Invertebrate Zoology for Reef Enthusiasts. Since then, we have hosted two more MACOS with Ron and Eric Borneman. These courses are an INCREDIBLE amount of work for us, but they have been worth it.
Industry Forum: This year, we set up the Industry Forum on our bulletin board. The goal of the Industry Forum is to bring together hobbyists and Fish Stores/Wholesalers/Importers/Exporters so that we can have a dialog about the hobby where ALL of the stakeholders can participate. This forum has seen some heated debates, but progress is being made.
Essay Competitions: A few years ago we held an essay competition where users were asked to tell us what THEY could do to help stop destruction of Coral Reefs. This competition required some sincere thought and work on the part of the entrants, but the prize was worth it. We later held a second essay contest where the theme was "Should difficult to keep animals be imported for the hobby?"
Advanced Aquarist Online Magazine: Our latest effort has been our online magazine. AAOLM is a collaboration with the creaters of Aquarium Frontiers - Terry Siegel and Craig Bingman. With AAOLM, we have moved up a level, offering the hobbyist peer reviewed QUALITY information from respected writers in our hobby. We are getting our 4th issue ready for publication now and it will be our biggest ever. If you all keep visiting and supporting the magazine, it is going to keep growing and expanding.[/list]
Well, that's a short list. Feel free to jump in if you can think of anything I missed. I'm hoping that at least a few of you are still around from the "olden days."
To wrap this up, I'd like to thank all of you - our users. Thanks to your support and suggestions, we've been able to grow and get better every year. It has always been our philosophy here to happily accept criticism. If you see a way that you think we can improve, then tell us! We have an "open door" policy.
We are a team here at www.reefs.org working together to help the hobby. No-one here has "executive power" to make decisions about how we run our website. I think this philosophy is the reason that we have been able to last and last and the reason that we have gained the respect that we have earned. In the last 5 years, we have seen a lot of aquarium websites come and go - yet we are still here. You have to wonder why that is?
Happy birthday!
The staff at www.reefs.org
On March 31st 1997 we hosted the very first chat in #reefs, given by David (DC) Potts. When I think back to that day, I was in a different city, doing a different trade, and had a completely different set of friends. Where were you all 5 years ago? Did you have a reef aquarium then? Did you even know what a "reef aquarium" was?
We've been educating marine hobbyists on the internet and sharing information for a very long time and we are committed to doing so in the future. Heck, when we started out, discussion boards were just starting. Back then, Usenet was just about it. The internet wasn't yet the interactive organism that it is today.
We have grown tremendously since then obviously, and we have adapted and changed some along the way - for the good of course. I'd like to take a "walk down memory lane" and reminisce about some of our more worth-while activities over the last 5 years:
<ul type="square">Chat Room #reefs: We opened the chat room #reefs. This was the first aquarium chatroom that you could access through the internet using a web browser or MIRC. Before that you had to use Telnet to connect to a MUD. Remember that?
HHFAQ: We collaborated with Rob Toonen and Ron Shimek to set up the Hitchikers FAQ and the Hitchikers Discussion Forum on our bulletin board.
Contests We've had literally dozens of contests in the last 5 years - giving away literally THOUSANDS of dollars in prizes. Do you all remember the "What is That???" contest?
MACO: In 1998 and 1999, we collaborated with a dedicated group of aquarium hobbyists and educators to put together the Marine Aquarium Conference Online. We hosted the first course, taught by Dr. Ron Shimek - Invertebrate Zoology for Reef Enthusiasts. Since then, we have hosted two more MACOS with Ron and Eric Borneman. These courses are an INCREDIBLE amount of work for us, but they have been worth it.
Industry Forum: This year, we set up the Industry Forum on our bulletin board. The goal of the Industry Forum is to bring together hobbyists and Fish Stores/Wholesalers/Importers/Exporters so that we can have a dialog about the hobby where ALL of the stakeholders can participate. This forum has seen some heated debates, but progress is being made.
Essay Competitions: A few years ago we held an essay competition where users were asked to tell us what THEY could do to help stop destruction of Coral Reefs. This competition required some sincere thought and work on the part of the entrants, but the prize was worth it. We later held a second essay contest where the theme was "Should difficult to keep animals be imported for the hobby?"
Advanced Aquarist Online Magazine: Our latest effort has been our online magazine. AAOLM is a collaboration with the creaters of Aquarium Frontiers - Terry Siegel and Craig Bingman. With AAOLM, we have moved up a level, offering the hobbyist peer reviewed QUALITY information from respected writers in our hobby. We are getting our 4th issue ready for publication now and it will be our biggest ever. If you all keep visiting and supporting the magazine, it is going to keep growing and expanding.[/list]
Well, that's a short list. Feel free to jump in if you can think of anything I missed. I'm hoping that at least a few of you are still around from the "olden days."
To wrap this up, I'd like to thank all of you - our users. Thanks to your support and suggestions, we've been able to grow and get better every year. It has always been our philosophy here to happily accept criticism. If you see a way that you think we can improve, then tell us! We have an "open door" policy.
We are a team here at www.reefs.org working together to help the hobby. No-one here has "executive power" to make decisions about how we run our website. I think this philosophy is the reason that we have been able to last and last and the reason that we have gained the respect that we have earned. In the last 5 years, we have seen a lot of aquarium websites come and go - yet we are still here. You have to wonder why that is?
Happy birthday!
The staff at www.reefs.org
