The story of how we got started is pretty well known by now. SW had announced they were shutting down the old forum and pushing us all to the SWYM, and @Glenn Schroeder suggested that someone should start a new forum. I had most of the pieces in place, just needed the software, so I registered a new domain name, installed the PHPBB software and within a couple of hours we were up and going. Since then it's been all you guys and gals suggesting functionality to add, adjustments, little things, big things...
And since we're talking about PHPBB... I recognize PHPBB has all sorts of stupid limitations. Customizing it is easy enough, but takes some dedication and a little know how. It's very minimalist forum software. I recognize that the SWYM is the new state of the art (maybe 30 years from now) so advanced, I definitely don't understand it. The options were another big Facebook group, but I don't do Facebook, or a Discord, Reddit... but I felt that the PHPBB if nothing else, gives us a lot of control and independence.
The goal I set out early was to be to have a place where CAD users can talk to CAD users about CAD, and it was important to me if no one else to make it multi-CAD so we can talk about anything. Of course we need all the ancillary topics as well like PDM, CNC, simulation, 3dprint, etc... And of course to use minimal rules and minimal moderation. We need a place for civil discourse, but that doesn't mean we always have to agree.
I've been open to advertising, but we've been able to maintain independence without it to this point. Traffic is certainly good, and people are curious about products. I don't want to turn the site into a giant commercial boondoggle, but some relevant sponsors would be a benefit going forward.
If you're looking for the first posts ever made on the forum, you can find them here: viewtopic.php?p=2#p2 We've had a couple of notable characters move on, such as @flaw and @Roasted By John and @MJuric. We're always sorry to see people go, but such is life.
The first mention of the CADForum.net on the Dezignstuff blog is here: https://dezignstuff.com/new-cad-forum-site/ There has been surprisingly little interaction between CADForum and Dezignstuff, even given the overlap of topics. I guess one is more passive and the other more active, and that appeal overrides the draw of the topic. I try to be as hands-off on the forum as possible, but I do get riled into posting some times. The blog is another story...
Here is a chart from Google analytics of users. Users are defined by Google as people who visit the site, not necessarily registered users. You have to register to post and access some of the special functions, but you can read and browse as much as you want without registering. This is what we call lurking. @Zhen-Wei Tee posted some other statistics about registered users.
So, we have just under 600 registered users, and most of those have made at least a couple of posts, which I think makes them pretty legitimate. Fortunately the amount of actual spam that gets through has been very low.
There have been a couple of admin mistakes, but aside from the one last April or May where many images got corrupted, none of the damage has been permanent. I hired someone to help me clean up the mess. That, along with a server upgrade have been the only real expenses incurred to this point. Some generous donations have made it all possible.
Thanks again so much to y'all for being a part of building this web destination. It is a benefit to many people who need a place to turn for honest answers. And it seems to have become a social outlet for people waiting for history-based models to rebuild.
Here's to another great year of questions, answers, content, links, jokes, personal anecdotes, and most of all, snarky responses.
If you read all the way to the bottom, here's another post you might want to read: https://dezignstuff.com/?p=12425
