I really wish....

[IKD]

Badges.... careful, lol, wait until you're pm box gets maxed out.
So, at one time, I was in fact in the industry, and was sponsored, but also employed by the company who represented this said company.
@revhtree
I no longer work or am a representative anymore, and the "sponsor " badge is more negative than positive, because many sps gurus that knew me associate me, 3 years later with that said company. While the people who run this company are awesome people, and I feel their products are great, I feel it's a falsehood, and put off to some, when in reality, I am a humble happy reefer. Another words, I do not deserve this badge if you will.
I have had success with some tanks in the past, and in modern reefing, I have failed, over and over. Things have changed, and in a way that I am forced to re-learn certain to date, more realistic methods. So, while I try to help from time to time, I too look to those around here, lurking, and studying their success. My experience is invaluable, but in many cases irrelevant. I agree with @ycnibrc regarding zeovit, and how these type of methods should be worked out in a separate area, as they are not methods easily used, but trying to assist someone without advanced reefing knowledge is a whole different challenge.
@jda To me he really covers the quite broad knowledge of sps, as well as general reefing, I lurk and study his info and insight.
@Chaswood79 I follow because of up to date info, a shift in the reefing paradigm has occurred, he seems to be in the know. I could go on and on regarding my mentors in the hobby, but that's another thread another day.
My 2 cents

I see new methodology badges more in the sense of “I’ll show you what I do” so you can follow or not instead of being a target for hundreds of repetitive questions that make you avoid the forum. I would like to see experienced and seasoned reefers sharing their knowledge through articles and threads versus trying to answer targeted/incomplete questions. This makes the information available without pestering and driving the grey-beards away from those that seek knowledge

 

[tautog83]

well i mean have you watched the news? lol All jokes aside plenty of people give bad advice EVERYDAY . iN a perfect world , it would be nice to read something and be like wow thats great advice im going to do that. There is still ownership on our end to be like yea , that sounds made up and research it ourselves. the thing with reefing is there is more than one way to be successful. I mean sure there are basics , but there are tons and tons of people who have the best equipment in the world and have crappy tanks . Ive seen some amazing acros on here and then you zoom out and their tank is filled with algae and looks like crap. what works for some people , may be something that you would never do . its all about getting opinions and then coming to your own conclusion on where to go from there.

 

[mrpizzaface]

Maybe I should apply the same principles to accepting criticism about R2R as you want for those helping people with their sps tanks?

Number one criteria: Must be a productive member of the community.

While I recognize some of these criticisms may be difficult to hear, I think they are productive in spirit, and their intent is to help this forum.

 

[revhtree]

While I recognize some of these criticisms may be difficult to hear, I think they are productive in spirit, and their intent is to help this forum.

I can respect this post but I still disagree with your assessment.

 

[SeaDweller]

Well, what defines being an expert in the SPS world? Growing large colonies (of what, birdsnest and monties or stags?)? Coloring up difficult pieces? Knowing what “to do” and what “not to do”?

honestly, all of this boils down to one simple principle: the basics. Keep your source water pristine always, stay on top of your husbandry, feed your fish, keep nutrients/N and P/stuff in your tanks at low but not zero levels, and have competent lighting and flow. All of the large colonies and beautiful colors will come out from just that. KEEPING UP WITH YOUR ISH.

I believe most of the outstanding tanks on here follow those basic principles, and if one is not, then one should.

 

[maroun.c]

Well, what defines being an expert in the SPS world? Growing large colonies (of what, birdsnest and monties or stags?)? Coloring up difficult pieces? Knowing what “to do” and what “not to do”?

All of the above plus IMHO the ability to setup systems taking into account specific conditions and stocking wish lists to avoid mishaps.
Mishaps will still happen, then the ability to deal with them without panic moves that cause more damage.
Unfortunately, like in all other aspects of life u need to verify the person giving advice or answering questions, or your setting up urself for disaster. Checking the tank of someone or better yet reading their build threads speaks a lot of a persons knowledge and their ability to give solid advice. There will always be people who pretend to know but its ones responsibility to make his own research and match it with advice given, and the experience level of the person behind the answers and make an informed guess..

 

[melanotaenia]

@jda hit the nail on the head in that many things that worked long ago still work today. There are so many new products and chemicals to throw into tanks, and guess what? Most of that stuff won't help you grow an SPS system if you don't have the experience.

And I do agree that a lot of people can talk on this forum, but there is a big difference between talk and having an aquarium with the kind of SPS growth and development that can back up that talk.

 

[Mastiffsrule]

Hi all.

Where are the positives on what this forum has done for folks? These answers bum me out on a lot of levels. I was going to quote several posts but I decided not to. Instead I just want to throw a few points out there as thinkers.

1. Who is to say who is qualified. I will not quote user names but a recent thread involved a discussion in testing and doing the math. (Not Randy) The OP did not know who was giving advice and was debating a person who had done studies in the field. You can’t just go by a user name or profile alone.

2. Saying you would not take advice from Reefsquad is a really broad statement. I will leave it at that.

3. I do reefsquad not because I know something, I do it because I actually like interacting with everyone .Some more than others. It’s not an act. It’s me. I could do other things than run thru unanswered threads or check or builds or say hi, but I enjoy it and I hope all our members do the same.

4. Reefsquad is a squad. We work as a team. I try to never answer something I do not know and will tag a fellow squad member, or even a non squad member.

Here is my resume, my 180 before my reset last year..long story. It is in my 180 build

Do you even lift bro?! Lol!!

It is the same thing with working out and weight training. It always amuzes me when guys at the gym would stop someone to correct their form, etc and they were smaller than the person they were trying to "teach". If I was trying to gain muscle then I would want to talk to someone who has been lifting for a while and knows what they are talking about. Weightlifting takes patience just like reefkeeping.

Again, a simple PRO badge for the the area of reefkeeping they know is good. Click on the badge and it goes to their page showcasing their tank and experience. Just like TANK OF THE MONTH on the "other" forum. Should be a list also so you could click on it and display all the users that have a certain badge.

I mentioned this same thing in the other thread. Their are a lot of people on this forum with 30 messages to their name but have tons of experience and outstanding tanks. If you came across them then wouldn't even know.

Vetting isnt hard. We all know who most of them are.

Just for you bro,

 

[Brew12]

Well, what defines being an expert in the SPS world? Growing large colonies (of what, birdsnest and monties or stags?)? Coloring up difficult pieces? Knowing what “to do” and what “not to do”?

Interestingly, I fall into this category. I grow a wide variety of SPS in my 187g system. I end up removing around 1.5 pounds of coral skeleton from my system on the average week to keep things from overgrowing. And you know what? I don't consider myself qualified to give advice on keeping SPS in general. I will help with some aspects of it, but I tend to not answer questions in the SPS section because I don't feel I know enough. It is so complex....
Oh... and my tank is under 3 years old and I set up my very first aquarium less than 4 years ago. Started it with dry rock.

I do reefsquad not because I know something, I do it because I actually like interacting with everyone .Some more than others. It’s not an act. It’s me. I could do other things than run thru unanswered threads or check or builds or say hi, but I enjoy it and I hope all our members do the same.

Thank you, I should have mentioned this earlier.

The Reef Squad isn't intended to be a group of experts, although some definitely are. It is a group of volunteers who love helping people. Sometimes that means helping them feel welcome. It may mean teaching them to use a forum. It may mean offering encouragement. If they see a thread with a question not being answered they may try to bring attention to it. And yes, some of them have written peer reviewed papers on reefing subjects. But... R2R has always been about members helping other members and I hope it stays that way.

 

[revhtree]

Hi all.

Where are the positives on what this forum has done for folks? These answers bum me out on a lot of levels. I was going to quote several posts but I decided not to. Instead I just want to throw a few points out there as thinkers.

1. Who is to say who is qualified. I will not quote user names but a recent thread involved a discussion in testing and doing the math. (Not Randy) The OP did not know who was giving advice and was debating a person who had done studies in the field. You can’t just go by a user name or profile alone.

2. Saying you would not take advice from Reefsquad is a really broad statement. I will leave it at that.

3. I do reefsquad not because I know something, I do it because I actually like interacting with everyone .Some more than others. It’s not an act. It’s me. I could do other things than run thru unanswered threads or check or builds or say hi, but I enjoy it and I hope all our members do the same.

4. Reefsquad is a squad. We work as a team. I try to never answer something I do not know and will tag a fellow squad member, or even a non squad member.

Here is my resume, my 180 before my reset last year..long story. It is in my 180 build

Just for you bro,

Bad butt!!

 

[Charlie’s Frags]

Bad butt!!

See everyone
Even Rev’s posts get edited

 

[sixty_reefer]

hopefully the experts with the new badge would have to give at list 6 hours a day for free answering questions to keep the badge? Being a group you all could even rotate on shift to made sure all questions get a quality answer.

In all seriousness this is the worst idea I’ve reed in days.

 

[JCOLE]

hopefully the experts with the new badge would have to give at list 6 hours a day for free answering questions to keep the badge? Being a group you all could even rotate on shift to made sure all questions get a quality answer.

In all seriousness this is the worst idea I’ve reed in days.

The struggle is real on your end if this is seriously the worst idea you have heard in days. Lol.

It's easy. If they get bombarded then ask to remove the badge. This is the mentality of why I got off that "other" forum. I knew who the "PRO'S" were over there. When I was just starting out in the early 00's and asking them questions I would get very condescending answers that would make me never want to ask a single question.

If I was at the top of this hobby then I would love to answer all questions thrown at me. This isn't just an exclusive club. Why are we on a forum anyway if we cannot communicate and learn from each other? Isn't that the point or do we just want to post pictures and say "look at what I can do, don't you wish you were as cool as me" Now leave me alone and don't talk to me you humble minions. LOL

 

[Erick Armanii]

Everyone should be able to chime in on every conversation. Provide a different view point and perspective on a topic either being a leader in the field or new to reefing.

With that said, I would like to see a badge of some sort for what type of tank you keep. A verification process would be cool too. Upload current pic of tank, parameters, type of tank/corals, years of experience etc..

Also a way for other members or the thread starter to rate your feedback. This would help encourage more accurate information to be shared amongst the forum.

someone with a 4.7 star review with a few badges that say: “6year member” “sps dominate” “verfied” etc etc is going to provide me with more feedback then someone with a 2.4 star review and “fish only” “ new member” “no photo”

 

[JCOLE]

Hi all.

Where are the positives on what this forum has done for folks? These answers bum me out on a lot of levels. I was going to quote several posts but I decided not to. Instead I just want to throw a few points out there as thinkers.

1. Who is to say who is qualified. I will not quote user names but a recent thread involved a discussion in testing and doing the math. (Not Randy) The OP did not know who was giving advice and was debating a person who had done studies in the field. You can’t just go by a user name or profile alone.

2. Saying you would not take advice from Reefsquad is a really broad statement. I will leave it at that.

3. I do reefsquad not because I know something, I do it because I actually like interacting with everyone .Some more than others. It’s not an act. It’s me. I could do other things than run thru unanswered threads or check or builds or say hi, but I enjoy it and I hope all our members do the same.

4. Reefsquad is a squad. We work as a team. I try to never answer something I do not know and will tag a fellow squad member, or even a non squad member.

Here is my resume, my 180 before my reset last year..long story. It is in my 180 build

Just for you bro,

I hear ya!!! Are you back in the Gym? I had to cancel my membership and found a gym that is open by my work. After 5 months off I am finally back at it!

 

[Mastiffsrule]

I hear ya!!! Are you back in the Gym? I had to cancel my membership and found a gym that is open by my work. After 5 months off I am finally back at it!

No, they are closed. They let me take a bar, incline bench and 315 pounds in plates home with some dumbels and mats. No rack though so kinda limited . Lots of deadlifts

 

[sixty_reefer]

The struggle is real on your end if this is seriously the worst idea you have heard in days. Lol.

It's easy. If they get bombarded then ask to remove the badge. This is the mentality of why I got off that "other" forum. I knew who the "PRO'S" were over there. When I was just starting out in the early 00's and asking them questions I would get very condescending answers that would make me never want to ask a single question.

If I was at the top of this hobby then I would love to answer all questions thrown at me. This isn't just an exclusive club. Why are we on a forum anyway if we cannot communicate and learn from each other? Isn't that the point or do we just want to post pictures and say "look at what I can do, don't you wish you were as cool as me" Now leave me alone and don't talk to me you humble minions. LOL

I did read some bad things this week, still not close though.

am also wondering if they going to have a sub badge, as someone doing triton won’t Be able to answer on DSR, Zeo, ATI etc... as they’re expertises are on triton. As the op suggested if you dnt keep acropora then don’t give advice on acropora. Same will have to be implemented on the dosing method I believe to make them “experts” . Will the “expert” light affect also the thread were they can participate? Like if you don’t own a MH kinda thing?

 

[JCOLE]

I did read some bad things this week, still not close though.

am also wondering if they going to have a sub badge, as someone doing triton won’t Be able to answer on DSR, Zeo, ATI etc... as they’re expertises are on triton. As the op suggested if you dnt keep acropora then don’t give advice on acropora. Same will have to be implemented on the dosing method I believe to make them “experts” .

Absolutely. The badges would just be a benefit to others when receiving advice that hopefully they are receiving creditable advice.

 

[sixty_reefer]

Absolutely. The badges would just be a benefit to others when receiving advice that hopefully they are receiving creditable advice.

Isn’t that discrimination? Someone could be giving good advice without a badge and be totally ignored, and if you come on here to be ignored what’s the point of coming here in the first place? Imagine if this cool idea spreads over the rest of the forum.

 

[JCOLE]

Isn’t that descriminariam? Someone could be giving good advice without a badge and be totally ignored, and if you come on here to be ignored what’s the point of coming here in the first place? Imagine if this cool idea spreads over the rest of the forum.

I dont see it that way. Might be thinking about this too much. I dont see this becoming an issue. If it does, then remove it. Plan and simple.

Maybe someone's feelings might get hurt if they aren't considered a "PRO" even though they think they are. If that's the case then I can't help that.