Social Media and Reefing: How does it effect you?

[drblakjak55]

R2R, like all social media, is full of information. Some good. Some very anecdotal. You need to research for yourself and decide what works for your ecosystem

 

[JLynn]

It is almost entirely positive IMO. Especially Instagram - you just get to see a lot more of people's smaller, daily successes and failures, which helps you in turn with your own little successes and failures. Youtube is excellent for tutorials (video is a better medium for those than books or magazine articles) and also has lots of interviews with experts from channels like ReefDudes and BRSTV. Not to mention BRS posting all the MACNA talks there every year so that those who can't go for one reason or another can still benefit from bounty of information they provide. And forums are an excellent source of information too, even though sifting through contrary information can be frustrating. Plus the advent of forums brought about the advent of the build thread, and there's a special kind of enjoyment you get from following along the journey of one reef from start to finish, and a goldmine of information if there's a successful reef tank you want to base yours off of.

The only thing I consider negative about it is the way it encourages the trend of overpriced, named strains of corals. I don't those would be half as common if it weren't for forums and FB and IG. Social media unfortunate does promote that kind of consumerism and elitism in every area of life, and reefing is no exception. That's really my only complaint about any of it.

 

[Chefwheredyougo]

I only have R2R as social media. It's great to be apart of the group. I get to learn new things everyday. Seems like I get to miss out on a ton of reefing sales and even local clubs by choosing not to be apart of facebook, IG, etc. So that's a negative.

 

[Admann]

Since the only social media my Wife and I use are a shared email account, R2R, pinterest and LaReefClub I suppose we are the Fred and Wilma Flintstone of social media. She doesn't look at R2R and I don't look at pinterest unless she makes me.

 

[Mehul]

Its all full of ads and sponsors, most expensive equipment is the best, whoever can buy the most ad space wins the show, hobbyist are now influence rs, pushing products sometimes they dont even believe in. when did we need a $800 light so a $10 coral can survive. Sorry for the rant.

 

[sleepingdeep]

maybe im in the minority in this poll, but i feel like social media impacts my reef the same way it does with my life. social media is the place where people post their optimal experiences. not their everyday struggles. Its hard to look at reef after reef of $1,000 corals, people who have had nothing but success. it makes my reef at home feel like it can never measure up. There are a couple accounts out there who tell it like it is (CJsaquariums, innappropriatereefer, telegraham, etc) and its really great knowing that im not the only one who may be struggling with something. i unfollowed a TON of people lately on instagram and its helped me grow and love my reef for what it is.

 

[AndrewB]

This site and YouTube have given me loads of information and inspiration.

 

[Tuffloud1]

maybe im in the minority in this poll, but i feel like social media impacts my reef the same way it does with my life. social media is the place where people post their optimal experiences. not their everyday struggles. Its hard to look at reef after reef of $1,000 corals, people who have had nothing but success. it makes my reef at home feel like it can never measure up. There are a couple accounts out there who tell it like it is (CJsaquariums, innappropriatereefer, telegraham, etc) and its really great knowing that im not the only one who may be struggling with something. i unfollowed a TON of people lately on instagram and its helped me grow and love my reef for what it is.

Lol! You don’t see any people struggling on here? Not trying to be rude, but try looking harder.

Look at how many threads start with the word “HELP!” Lord knows I’ve reached out for help with tons of struggles.

The Vibrant thread alone shows tons that struggle with algae for instance.

 

[shred5]

Social media for reefing is no different than social media for anything else. I participate in online forums for all my hobbies. Definitely an overall positive, though not without some negatives. The ability to connect with people that you otherwise would not connect with and be exposed to clever new ideas are all strong positives. Social media is also just as good at disseminating mis-information and perpetuating myths. Online has also effectively killed off the reef book publishing business which is a shame. I get that no book can provide the real time information that an online forum can, but writing and publishing a book also requires some experience and knowledge. Making a forum post or a youtuvbe video requires neither.

Agreed online has got rid of books which is sad. Books make a good guideline and are usually by authors with lots of experience.
It helps the new person because in most cases you can trust the advise because it comes from Experienced person.

Talking with Julian Sprung who was asking if he did a book what would people want to read about. But he seemed really skeptical about even doing one.

These online mags will take an article from anyone. I was reading a article on anemones not to long ago and the author did not even identify the anemone right.

So many YouTube videos are so full of garbage. It really hurts the person with very little experience that does not know better. Some are just to push product.

 

[Jordan Prather]

While social media is awesome for information and knowledge if used properly. I also believe that it is the reason for the huge increase in price and the whole name game crap. So its 50/50 for me

 

[don_chuwish]

Early on I'd have been hopeless without forums like AquariumAdvice and ReefCentral. Then moved on to R2R and haven't really looked back. Some FB groups are OK but the discussion format there just isn't as useful. I read things but rarely post on FB.
R2R has been 100% positive for me, but I must admit that I've probably spent a lot more on the hobby than I would have without it. Just too many great ideas being shared - leads to wanting things you never knew existed!

 

[stevieduk]

dont do social media, as long as there are sites like this where i can get a answer to a problem, thats all i need.
Why do i want to tell the world what i had for breakfast

 

[Cheche]

In my point of view. Look like this social media outlet is helping everyone from customers to vendors.. now I can order stuff on line and from many many miles away .. plus this social media brought me here same as all of y’all .. now we can write,read and actually learn from all this reefers .. so for me is 100% positive

 

[Salty Squid USN]

As an aspiring reefer converting from the FW side I've used social media/internet quite extensively. R2R is my go to along with YouTube and some other forums. Hands down I've learned the most here and anything I watch or read elsewhere I circle back here to check validity. I'm still 2 months out before going wet but have been researching for 3+ months and have found a lot of useful insight while sifting thru just as much that's not useful...I won't say it's all wrong, just others preference or what works for them. That said... I love this site

 

[VictoryBell]

I find social media can be a good and bad thing. On one hand, it's a place for me to connect with people who are as nutter butters about aquariums as me. On the other, there is a lot of misinformation and "parroting" that goes on (the internet sort of becomes and echo chamber and that can be a bad thing when it comes to figuring out new ways to approach things).

 

[fuelman]

i do use Facebook for local reef groups to stay in touch with other reefers close by & up on all the local frag swaps but that's about all its good for. i will use utube if a video will help to actually see something, but its rare. 99.9% comes from R2R, if it wasn't for this forum & everything i have learned here i wouldn't have set up a reef tank & wouldn't be part of this hobby. the majority of "real" experts in reefing are right here. learning from all of you has given me an advantage i couldn't get anywhere else. R2R is the social media of the reefing world in my opinion.

 

[sleepingdeep]

Lol! You don’t see any people struggling on here? Not trying to be rude, but try looking harder.

Look at how many threads start with the word “HELP!” Lord knows I’ve reached out for help with tons of struggles.

The Vibrant thread alone shows tons that struggle with algae for instance.

i wasn't talking about R2R, really. I dont visit here often and maybe thats my problem. I was talking mainly towards facebook and instagram when it comes to social media. R2R is not social media to me, but rather a forum for discussion.

 

[Mickeyt1reef]

Got me back into it. Especially YouTube, EatSleepReef, BRS then I saw DrewsLagoon. Super impressed with what they achieved in smaller tanks. Yep, got the bug, binge watched BRS to get caught up on what I missed out on over the last oh, 10 years. Joined Reef2reef.

 

[madweazl]

I dont look at any of the social media outlets for reefing information. With as much bogus info that gets passed regarding topics that dont matter at all, I cant imagine how much bogus advice is given for something like reefing.

 

[CuzzA]

So today I want to pick your brain a little and in return we get a nice topic and I get some talking points for an upcoming presentation! I'm sinister I know! Muhaaaaa! (evil grin)

With the advancement of social media we have had a tremendous growth in the popularity of our hobby as well as an advancement in reefing knowledge and education. People use many different outlets of social media to discuss, and learn about saltwater aquariums. These outlets include, but are not limited to, Forums, Facebook, Instagram, Youtube, Reddit and more. Social media impacts reefing in so many ways both positive and negative and that's what I would like for us to talk about today.

How has social media (forums, facebook etc.) impacted you in a positive or negative way? Talk about both if you will.

"Modern" Social Media is terrible for research, data collection, discussion and dissemination. They are designed to share picture of cats and your lunch for the 30 second attention span. Which is backed up, for example, by their "best practices" of videos should be no more than 30 seconds. Sadly many forum based media outlets have fallen to the way side and with it goes invaluable information. Furthermore, everyday in our hobby I see poor advice or myths constantly being spread.

I think from a business or political perspective they are great because you can rapidly get your message out, but for research and hobby type platforms they are not good. I was glad to see FB ban the sales of fish and coral, hopefully more people will find their way back to forums where data is compiled and searchable, and questions can be asked where even if a poor response is given, there's a greater likelihood someone with greater knowledge will come in and set the record straight.