Doing a study on Forums

A conversation i had with a fellow member recently:

I don't think the site is the problem, it's a place to help people, some of the members have been on for a long time some take breaks and reemerge every few months and some are avid and live search religiously.

For the most part for me I am the same, been on the forums long enough. At one point I walked away for 8 months. There wasn't much difference when I revisited. Times change and so does the hobby.

I feel overwhelmed sometimes with so much coral. While I do enjoy looking at corals sometimes I need a break

The problems is self inflictedWhen you get so consumed into a product then you are reliant on the next quick fix, which is for most of us corals.

They are like gardens, some can keep it lush others not so much, it's the coral thumb.

All the problems caused is self error

do you think due to the hobby some people want to go out and travel but can't?

As the weather gets better we find ourselves packing the lawn chairs and camping gear to get some of the wonderful outdoors we pay so dearly for*

Yes as the weather is nice people don't visit the forums as much

Forsure man, I don't want to go for vacation because 12k in corals need to be tended to

But there comes a time when we all need to fly, the menautiny (not sure if I spelled it correct) of same same gets boring, we as humans need challenge that is what keeps us ticking so vacations or changing things up becomes second natureSent from Samsung Mobile

[Reef Pilot]

Originally Posted by -LMAO_

However, the main question that I would like to ask is in what ways has Canreef aided to their reefing hobby as well as created problems and issues in there every day life. Either it be issues regarding time expenditure, family and friend issues or problems of any kind attributed to directly using a forum of this kind?

Haha, do you really want to open this can of worms?... Forums can be very helpful by tapping the experience, breadth and depth of knowledge of the members. And for getting quick answers to pressing questions or problems. But forums can also be misleading and confusing with often opposing views and opinions. And is popular opinion always correct?

I've only been in the hobby a few years, and got to experience first hand some of the bad advice that is often doled out to newbies. Fortunately, I was able to sift out much of the bad information, and who to trust and who not to, and eventually learned from my own experiences. But I have also seen a lot of frustrated new hobbyists call it quits after a couple years (or less) because of various problems and unfulfilled expectations due to bad advice.

There are some common debate topics, though, including managing water parameters, nutrients, pest control, disease, lighting, and coral growth. Even seemingly simple tasks such as what test kits to use and how, can bring out a lot of opposing opinions. Of course there is more than one way to be successful, and there is always opportunity to experiment and learn about new methods. And some things are just personal preference. But quite often, too, old myths live on, and the same mistakes are made over and over.

So how does one try to decipher all these various opinions, and decide what is best for you? Well, you can go with popular opinion, but is that always the best? Forums (not just this one) are full of people that want to help. But often much of that advice is based on 2nd or 3rd hand information from other posts or articles, and not necessarily fact.

With myself, I look at the experience and success of the one giving advice. Are they just spouting popular opinion, or are they describing the facts of their own experience with respect to a particular topic or question? I think this is very important. It's certainly OK to quote others and reference articles. But how do they apply that knowledge to their own experiences?

I think the best way to do that is look at hobbyist's tank journals, or their posting history. What problems or issues have they dealt with? What were their successes and failures? Are they speaking from direct experience, or are they just quick to express their opinions? To me, that is most telling.

Unfortunately, though, I have found that many of the most successful hobbyists are also the least quick to give advice or express their opinions. I am not sure if that is just their nature, or if they have just gotten tired of giving the same advice, and being ignored or not being appreciated. I suspect some of the latter may be the case.

I should mention, too, that I also participate in aircraft building and flying forums, which is another hobby of mine. And there, too, I often see bad advice, which sometimes can even be downright dangerous. But in the end, success can be determined by the end product and performance of the completed aircraft. So, I think the same criteria to evaluate advice can be applied to many hobbies and forums, or indeed to many decisions in everyday life.

And popular opinion is not always correct,... IMHO,...LOL.

[H2o2]

And that my friend is just good advice ,well done Walter

[Reef Pilot]

Thanks, Harry. Am surprised actually there hasn't been more discussion on this topic. I just explored one aspect of forums, but I think the OP was looking for other issues or effects.

How much time do you spend at work reading these forums? What do your co-workers think of that?... Or your boss... haha.

Why do people participate on forums? To learn,... or to gloat...., or sell frags... haha.

And vendors, surprised more don't participate on forums, like Denny at Concept. Has to be good for business...

Come on guys, he's a student, and looking for material for his paper.... Help him out...

I appreciate your help so much reef pilot. Like you were saying theres so many aspects that can be illustrated, the amount of time we spend on this forum for various reasons is exponential.

I didnt want to post questions because it creates bias but I guess I have to


How much time do you spend at work reading these forums?

What do your co-workers think of that?... Or your boss?

Why do people participate on forums? To learn,... or to gloat...., or sell frags?

Does your wife support you or not?

what does your chidren think about your hobby?

Have you ever been ridiculed/ made fun of, because of your hobby by other people?

has spending money on your aquarium caused serious financial problems?

Has meeting anyone on canreef caused you problems?

Hopefully this stirs up some debate
Thanx guys

[jorjef]

Originally Posted by -LMAO_

I didnt want to post questions because it creates bias but I guess I have to


How much time do you spend at work reading these forums?

Off and during the day 20 minutes



What do your co-workers think of that?... Or your boss?

Meh they are on websites or their choice..



Why do people participate on forums? To learn,... or to gloat...., or sell frags?

For me, I'm bored. Check out peoples reviews of equipment



Does your wife support you or not?

Ptth riiiiight



what does your chidren think about your hobby?

I am refereed to as "The fish dork"



Have you ever been ridiculed/ made fun of, because of your hobby by other people?

on costs sometimes.



has spending money on your aquarium caused serious financial problems?

Serious second guessing of sanity maybe...



Has meeting anyone on canreef caused you problems?

No

Hopefully this stirs up some debate
Thanx guys

,..

[SeaHorse_Fanatic]

Originally Posted by -LMAO_

I didnt want to post questions because it creates bias but I guess I have to


How much time do you spend at work reading these forums?

Well I am on both Canreef and BCAquaria multiple times a day (Head mod on the latter). Altogether probably between half an hour to an hour a day reading and posting on threads.


What do your co-workers think of that?... Or your boss?

I am self-employed so my boss says it A-Okay with him.


Why do people participate on forums? To learn,... or to gloat...., or sell frags?

I participate to learn cooperatively. Reefing is an art as much as it is a science. What works for one person may not work for someone else. I also come here looking for what is for sale. I don't often post frags for sale any more but I have probably met over 100 local reefers & fish keepers during the last decade or so. I joined almost a decade ago but was a lurker for a while before that.

Does your wife support you or not?

She was the one who got us started on reefing after watching Finding Nemo, she says "I want a sw tank with an anemone and a pair of clownfish. Ok?" Well, I'm OCD and ran with that. She was very happy when I downsized from a max of about 1000 gallons total volume in our small 2 bedroom suite but I still have 4 tanks (largest is 165g with 90g sump) and as long as they look good and everything stays healthy and presentable, she's fine with it. We used to go to the LFS together but now she sends me with the kids.


what does your chidren think about your hobby?

They love it. Both daughters (2.5yrs old Isabella and 5.5 years old Felicia) love to watch the fish, feed the tanks and they both help with water changes. Felicia has been helping by holding the hoses when I do my siphoning or pumping since she was 2 and Isabella has also been doing it for almost a year now.

Have you ever been ridiculed/ made fun of, because of your hobby by other people?

Not really. They are more amazed that everything is alive in there. Then they go home and decide that freshwater is boring and colourless so a lot of them switch to sw.

has spending money on your aquarium caused serious financial problems?

Sometimes. It is a very expensive addiction which is the first thing I tell anyone asking for advice about maybe setting up a reef tank. I used to sell enough frags and other stuff to cover most of my expenses. Lately, its been more in the red.

Has meeting anyone on canreef caused you problems?

Nope. A lot of my best friends are "fish friends" from Canreef and BCAquaria. I find that most local reefers I have met are pretty standup people. I wish I was better with names because more often than not, I can remember someone's screenname than their real name.

Hopefully this stirs up some debate
Thanx guys

Hope that helps. Anthony.