Do You Find Nano-Reef Helpful?

[banasophia]

Build thread. Build thread. Build thread. 
 

[debbeach13]

01/13/24 Is time for my renewal. $24 to renew is probably one of the best deals I will get this year.

[InAtTheDeepEnd]

$24 for a whole year?

[The Rainy Day Aquarium]

On 11/15/2023 at 10:51 AM, NoOneLikesADryTang said:

Bumpity Bump. 
 

As a bonus incentive - if someone signs up to be a Nano Reef supporter this week, I will start a new build thread on an Innovative Marine 40 long the tank keeper and I just picked up. 
 

Should have done this a long time ago, I guess it just took you offering a new build thread to push me over the edge 

[NoOneLikesADryTang]

On 1/6/2024 at 11:01 AM, debbeach13 said:

01/13/24 Is time for my renewal. $24 to renew is probably one of the best deals I will get this year.

Thanks Deb! You continue to be one of my favorite nano reefers! 
 

 

23 hours ago, InAtTheDeepEnd said:

$24 for a whole year?

Yep. For the cost of a fish and crisps(Is that what you Brit’s call them?) and a cool beer you too could be a supporter of nano reef! 

 

22 hours ago, The Rainy Day Aquarium said:

Should have done this a long time ago, I guess it just took you offering a new build thread to push me over the edge 

Thank you! Now I guess I have to stop procrastinating and start a build thread. I’ll try to work on that sometime this week, when I’m trying to avoid doing it work, while at work. 

[braaap]

On 1/13/2022 at 12:11 AM, seabass said:

Thanks @NoOneLikesADryTang.   @StevieT used to do this annually.  Supporting Nano-Reef.com is a relatively small reefing expense which helps @Christopher Marks to keep the site up and running.  Most of us don't realize just how expensive the monthly expenses are, and that doesn't even consider the time it takes to keep it updated, provide featured tank profiles, offer contests, and site moderation.

 

So uhhhhh..... none of that happens anymore.

 

I have offered to help try and boost the site. Maybe attract new sponsors. But no response in over a month from CM. 

[seabass]

 

On 1/7/2024 at 8:51 PM, braaap said:

So uhhhhh..... none of that happens anymore.

Yeah, Chris hasn't been very active on the site lately.  I can't really speak for him; but I know that this isn't his primary source of income, and that he doesn't have as much time to dedicate to the site these days.  However, he still manages site updates, and the expenses to keep the site going don't ever go away.  Premium memberships still help to keep the doors open.

 

I've moderated some of the Nano-Reef contests in the past.  Unfortunately, the member participation in these events has also declined (making it harder to justify more contests).  It seems like a number of people have moved to other social media platforms or have quit reef keeping altogether.  That's too bad, because I feel that this site fills a niche which most of the other sites and platforms don't.

 

On 1/7/2024 at 8:51 PM, braaap said:

I have offered to help try and boost the site. Maybe attract new sponsors. But no response in over a month from CM. 

My messages/suggestions have also gone unread.  It's a little disheartening, but it is what it is.  I thank @Christopher Marks for keeping this site going, which provides this community to make of it what they want.  It's still a nice little community; although I miss the days when it was more active.

[braaap]

9 hours ago, seabass said:

 

Yeah, Chris hasn't been very active on the site lately.  I can't really speak for him; but I know that this isn't his primary source of income, and that he doesn't have as much time to dedicate to the site these days.  However, he still manages site updates, and the expenses to keep the site going don't ever go away.  Premium memberships still help to keep the doors open.

 

I've moderated some of the Nano-Reef contests in the past.  Unfortunately, the member participation in these events has also declined (making it harder to justify more contests).  It seems like a number of people have moved to other social media platforms or quit reef keeping.  That's too bad, because I feel that this site fills a niche which most of the other sites and platforms don't.

 

My messages/suggestions have also gone unread.  It's a little disheartening, but it is what it is.  I thank @Christopher Marks for keeping this site going, which provides this community to make of it what they want.  It's still a nice little community; although I miss the days when it was more active.

 

I agree 100%. But the only way to get it going and keep it going is to attract new users. R2R picks up 20-30 new users a day atleast because they are offering contests, giveaways, tank of the month, photo of the month etc. Personally I believe NR is a better community with far more knowledge than R2R. R2R is a corporate machine. They don't care about actual reef keepers. Just driving revenue. That should be obvious by it being run by a pastor.

 

All that said I would be more than willing to work with vendors and sponsors to help boost this site. Maybe have them do giveaways or something. Hell I would throw in to do a gift card giveaway. This site can become very active again. Because tons of people are reefing. I see dozens and dozens of new people per day posting on IG, R2R and facebook. All of those would be easy to push people here if NR just had an active presence on them.

 

@Christopher Marks we want to help. We want to rebuild this community. How do we do that?

[InAtTheDeepEnd]

Hard agree @braaap

 

I'm on other salty communities but the knowledge isn't there, the desire to help newbies and see them succeed isn't there, but the desire to bring money in absolutely is and often takes priority sadly.

[mcarroll]

How I got here...

 

Usenet > RC > R2R > n-r

 

Usenet was ruined by bots.  Mods and users ruined RC and R2R – the fact that so many folks are willing to tolerate them is discouraging, but I guess not that surprising.  There's certainly no detectable effort to improve any of them.

 

So not sure where I'd go from here, but surely not backward...and going to "social" media would be worse than backwards.

 

I still like n-r the best....even at low traffic volumes.

[ryans.salty.crew]

3 hours ago, mcarroll said:

How I got here...

 

Usenet > RC > R2R > n-r

 

Usenet was ruined by bots.  Mods and users ruined RC and R2R – the fact that so many folks are willing to tolerate them is discouraging, but I guess not that surprising.  There's certainly no detectable effort to improve any of them.

 

So not sure where I'd go from here, but surely not backward...and going to "social" media would be worse than backwards.

 

I still like n-r the best....even at low traffic volumes.

To piggy back off of this - I LOVE the low traffic volume and feel that N-R has. I see the same names, know their online personalities and find it easier to trust the information. There are always newbies here and there with the same questions, but it's exciting to help and watch there profile grow from "newbie" to "family. 

 

That's what N-R has become to me - family

[braaap]

3 hours ago, mcarroll said:

How I got here...

 

Usenet > RC > R2R > n-r

 

Usenet was ruined by bots.  Mods and users ruined RC and R2R – the fact that so many folks are willing to tolerate them is discouraging, but I guess not that surprising.  There's certainly no detectable effort to improve any of them.

 

So not sure where I'd go from here, but surely not backward...and going to "social" media would be worse than backwards.

 

I still like n-r the best....even at low traffic volumes.

 

Exactly. Over on R2R I got ripped off by a major vendor/sponsor there. I started BLASTING them because it was for $287. They refused to respond to my messages, emails, texts, calls etc. I was professional and appropriate in every message. Soon as I posted negative feedback R2R deleted it. Multiple times. I would comment my experience and they would delete it. They threatened to ban me. Why? Because that vendor is a diamond sponsor. They pay several hundred dollars per month to post on R2R. R2R is owned and operated by a pastor. So I am not surprised by the actions that occur there.

 

 

10 minutes ago, ryans.salty.crew said:

To piggy back off of this - I LOVE the low traffic volume and feel that N-R has. I see the same names, know their online personalities and find it easier to trust the information. There are always newbies here and there with the same questions, but it's exciting to help and watch there profile grow from "newbie" to "family. 

 

That's what N-R has become to me - family

 

I agree NR is like family. But it was much better when it was very active. We had 50+ very knowledgeable people active and online almost all of the time. And 3-4 for each subject like lighting or equipment etc. We don't have that now. And that sucks.

 

Sometimes major questions go 10+ hours unanswered or not answered at all. Meanwhile a post on FB will have 40 sarcastic replies and 1 useful one. But atleast it is getting some traction.

[mcarroll]

5 minutes ago, braaap said:

[....]it was much better when it was very active. We had 50+ very knowledgeable people active and online almost all of the time. And 3-4 for each subject like lighting or equipment etc. We don't have that now. And that sucks.

I think we can all thank Amazon (primarily) for that aspect of the problem.   Who goes out and asks a question on gear (in general) before they go out and check Amazon reviews?  Almost no-one.   (Apparently almost no-one even Googles first anymore.....straight to Amazon.)

 

It was funny all the time I worked at an LFS (part time during the slow hours, admittedly) I never once had someone come in to find out about getting an aquarium or to buy their first aquarium.  Plenty of folks would come in with a disaster "first tank" they learned how to set up on the internet though...we'd consistently get the low-profit, low-enjoyment end of the deal while the online vendors of the day would get the big payout from the initial build.  We mostly sold "free advice" so they could move on successfully...and replacement animals for those that didn't survive the "online method".   The problem has only compounded since those days.  Now they (mostly) don't even come here to "the internet" and most of the LFS are gone.  🤷‍♂️

 

IMO. n-r has a secure place in the ecosystem of reefing as long as @Christopher Marks wants to keep it rolling.  There's no accounting for "what's popular" though.

[braaap]

10 minutes ago, mcarroll said:

I think we can all thank Amazon (primarily) for that aspect of the problem.   Who goes out and asks a question on gear (in general) before they go out and check Amazon reviews?  Almost no-one.   (Apparently almost no-one even Googles first anymore.....straight to Amazon.)

 

It was funny all the time I worked at an LFS (part time during the slow hours, admittedly) I never once had someone come in to find out about getting an aquarium or to buy their first aquarium.  Plenty of folks would come in with a disaster "first tank" they learned how to set up on the internet though...we'd consistently get the low-profit, low-enjoyment end of the deal while the online vendors of the day would get the big payout from the initial build.  We mostly sold "free advice" so they could move on successfully...and replacement animals for those that didn't survive the "online method".   The problem has only compounded since those days.  Now they (mostly) don't even come here to "the internet" and most of the LFS are gone.  🤷‍♂️

 

IMO. n-r has a secure place in the ecosystem of reefing as long as @Christopher Marks wants to keep it rolling.  There's no accounting for "what's popular" though.

 

I would agree on almost every aspect. The only disagreement I have is I haven't seen any LFSs close. I've actually seen an explosion of them. Many more new shops or old shops who have expanded. Most are capitalizing on the internet craze and have turned alot of their business to online sales. They just keep a physical store to support that and help the few locals.

 

Hopefully CM chimes in. Hopefully he accepts our offers of help.

[Snow_Phoenix]

7 hours ago, braaap said:

 

I would agree on almost every aspect. The only disagreement I have is I haven't seen any LFSs close. I've actually seen an explosion of them. Many more new shops or old shops who have expanded. Most are capitalizing on the internet craze and have turned alot of their business to online sales. They just keep a physical store to support that and help the few locals.

 

Hopefully CM chimes in. Hopefully he accepts our offers of help.

I just read your signature. The last line made me laugh a lot. 😅

As for NR, it definitely is a family of sorts. A quirky one at times, but it works. Still family. 🌺

 

I still miss a lot of the older members though. Most of them have vanished. 😞 

[NoOneLikesADryTang]

I think all of us can agree, that we are here because we love Nano-Reef. It’s quite possibly the best community on the interwebz. 
 

With that said, I do agree that the site is struggling with users/activity level. I have no idea what is needed to keep a site going (all though I’m sure it’s plenty of work). 
 

The tank keeper and I offered to sponsor a photo of the month contest, when Marine Depot went out of business, and POTM contest was discontinued. The offer was politely declined. I’m not sure if it’s a time, cost or some other issue. I do believe that the loss of TOTM and POTM definitely slowed traffic to this site. 
 

On the other side of the coin, CM does a great job at letting things happen here. This site isn’t highly moderated/deleted. I for one, appreciate that. I may not agree with someone’s words, or viewpoints, but am glad that they are allowed to express them freely here. 

[InAtTheDeepEnd]

What was POTM?

[mcarroll]

1 hour ago, NoOneLikesADryTang said:

photo of the month

@InAtTheDeepEnd...for the photo nuts in the crowd. (As if reefing weren't expensive enough by itself!  Hah!  🤣)

[NoOneLikesADryTang]

1 hour ago, InAtTheDeepEnd said:

What was POTM?

It was a monthly photo contest. It had a different topic each contest. For example, one month it might be pictures of your fish. The next it could be the color orange. The one after that it might be shrimp. Etc.

 

I thought it was a fun and engaging part of this community, that we thought maybe just needed a sponsorship to continue. 

[GunslingerGirl]

17 hours ago, Snow_Phoenix said:

I still miss a lot of the older members though. Most of them have vanished. 😞 

👀OK I came back a few months ago, but I have been lurking. At least this time I remembered my login information. 😅

 

I feel like online presences come and go and that we all get caught up in things that take us away from the site. But N-R has and always will be the first place I research on. This site is super unique and niche and nothing will take that away.

 

That being said, I was surprised to see the state of the site when I returned.

[braaap]

18 hours ago, Snow_Phoenix said:

I just read your signature. The last line made me laugh a lot. 😅

As for NR, it definitely is a family of sorts. A quirky one at times, but it works. Still family. 🌺

 

I still miss a lot of the older members though. Most of them have vanished. 😞 

 

hahaha. Were you around for that thread? Dude tried to rip me off and then posted bad feedback. It then turned into a good feedback thread for me lol

 

7 hours ago, NoOneLikesADryTang said:

I think all of us can agree, that we are here because we love Nano-Reef. It’s quite possibly the best community on the interwebz. 
 

With that said, I do agree that the site is struggling with users/activity level. I have no idea what is needed to keep a site going (all though I’m sure it’s plenty of work). 
 

The tank keeper and I offered to sponsor a photo of the month contest, when Marine Depot went out of business, and POTM contest was discontinued. The offer was politely declined. I’m not sure if it’s a time, cost or some other issue. I do believe that the loss of TOTM and POTM definitely slowed traffic to this site. 
 

On the other side of the coin, CM does a great job at letting things happen here. This site isn’t highly moderated/deleted. I for one, appreciate that. I may not agree with someone’s words, or viewpoints, but am glad that they are allowed to express them freely here. 

 

Hosting etc is very expensive. It is also somewhat time consuming to make updates etc. I have run plenty of sites and forums and could help moderate/manage this to allow upgrades and new sponsors etc.

 

I would sponsor a TOTM and POTM as well. While I won't ever participate or win I think it drew a big crowd. I'm sure we could get it going again.

 

I 100% agree. The limited moderation is amazing. We don't need more moderation than we currently have. Some of the old mods were AWFUL and would remove/ban because they didn't like you or you proved them wrong on something. That was rare though.

[Snow_Phoenix]

6 hours ago, braaap said:

 

hahaha. Were you around for that thread? Dude tried to rip me off and then posted bad feedback. It then turned into a good feedback thread for me lol

I wasn't - is that thread still on NR though? I'd love to read it. 😅

[braaap]

11 hours ago, Snow_Phoenix said:

I wasn't - is that thread still on NR though? I'd love to read it. 😅

 

It is my "Braaap's lounge" link in my signature

[CD_Scapes]

19 hours ago, braaap said:

 

It is my "Braaap's lounge" link in my signature

Ya know what, on payday I’m buying a membership. I’ve realized I do love NR so much more than R2R. Yeah I might get more responses on R2R but they don’t seem as genuine and knowledgeable as they do here.

[braaap]

1 hour ago, CD_Scapes said:

Ya know what, on payday I’m buying a membership. I’ve realized I do love NR so much more than R2R. Yeah I might get more responses on R2R but they don’t seem as genuine and knowledgeable as they do here.

 

If @Christopher Marks comes back and says he wants some help revamping the site and getting it rolling again I will buy a membership too.