News

The Reefuge

Administrator
Jul 9, 2011
4,152
1,929
Tank Journal Rundown
Hello everyone,

We encourage all users to start a new journal now, as the old journals are going to be archived.

I would like to tell you all about how the tank journals work and how to use them. Before we start, please take a look at @Buddy 's tank journal. This journal is laid out and kept in the way a tank journal should be. You can find it at http://www.thereefuge.com.au/social-forums/lukes-mixed-reef.22/


Now, let's get to it.


Creating a new tank journal:
When you go to the Tank Journals page, you will see a list of tank sizes. Please select the appropriate category for your tank. Once this is selected, you will be taken to the desired category.

Click on "Create New Tank Journal" located in the top right hand page (Usually where Post New Thread is located).

  • Title - Please give your journal a title. This is usually a very small description, as an example - "The Reefuge 100l Reef".
  • Description - This should be around one paragraph in size. It allows formatting and images. However, it is suggested that you keep it very short and very simple.

Example of TJ description (by @Buddy)
Display System:
  • Initial Fill Date: March 2013
  • Display Tank Dimensions: 6 x 2.5 x 2
  • Display Lighting: DIY LED
  • Stand: Wooden stand with four front doors and a handy side door, stained in 'black japan'
  • Hood or Rimless: Wooden hood, stained to match the stand
  • Sump Design: 4x18x18 - Three sections - Refugium | Return | Skimmer
Support systems:
  • NSW or ASW: NSW
  • Display Water circulation: 2x tunze 6105 with 6205 shrouds + Vortech backup
  • Return Pump: Laguna 6000
  • Skimmer: Bubble Magus BM220-CS2
  • Evaporation Top Up: Tunze ATO
You can then submit it and your tank journal will be operational. You can edit this information at any time by navigating to "Tank Journal Tools" > "Edit Tank Journal". The tank journal tools can be found above the thread listings.

Now that you have created your journal, it is time to set an avatar for your journal. This is done by clicking on the avatar in the sidebar and then uploading an image of your tank. You can change this as many times as you like. Alternatively, you can select "Tank Journal Tools" > "Edit Avatar". Your tank journal now has its own avatar.





Creating an Update:
You can now create an update to your journal. You can do this by going into your tank journal and selecting "Post New Journal Update" in the top right hand corner (located where the Post New Thread button is usually located).

You will then be taken to a page to post your update.

  • Title - The title should be unique to the update. For example, "Added A New Fish". Something short and informative.
  • Post - Post as you normally would post. Give information on what you have done, add photos, etc.

You have now created an update to your journal. You repeat the exact same process with each update you make to your journal. This breaks up your updates in an easy to read format. Users can also comment on your updates as usual.

Journal Tools:
Your journal gives you the exact same permissions a moderator has on the forums. This means you can stick posts, lock posts, etc. This is useful if you would like to make posts such as "Monthly FTS thread". For example, you can create this as a journal update, then lock and stick the post. This will mean users can not reply to the thread, but you can reply with monthly FTS of your tank.

To see a list of the features you can do with your posts, please create the update and view your main journal page. At the start of the thread title you will see a check box. Tick this box and you will be prompted with options.



If anyone has questions, please ask here and I will keep the first post updated.

Thanks.
 
Last edited:

TheJordans

Member
Mar 29, 2013
722
369
Sunbury
Ain't nobody got time for dat!
:P lol

Meh. Mine's not as pretty as @Buddy's, but hey, I've got a limited amount of time that I can dedicate to re-creating something I'd already done ;) I'll edit it when and if I have the time or inclination :)
 

The Reefuge

Administrator
Jul 9, 2011
4,152
1,929
Ain't nobody got time for dat!
:p lol

Meh. Mine's not as pretty as @Buddy's, but hey, I've got a limited amount of time that I can dedicate to re-creating something I'd already done ;) I'll edit it when and if I have the time or inclination :)
Hello @TheJordans,

A neat, well presented tank journal will encourage users to read it more. Tank Journals are personal to the owners, however, they should all be neatly laid out with only a paragraph or so of text in the main description.

Thanks.
 

Buddy

Member
Mar 13, 2012
3,142
1,526
Ain't nobody got time for dat!
:p lol

Meh. Mine's not as pretty as @Buddy's, but hey, I've got a limited amount of time that I can dedicate to re-creating something I'd already done ;) I'll edit it when and if I have the time or inclination :)
Making the intro was a quick and easy job, I found that moving all the pictures over was the most tedious part and I can see why you don't have time for that!
 

Ian G

Member
Sep 11, 2012
808
393
Nowhere
Mate I'm just over everything. I started changing over my TJ & part way through the pics would no longer display (yes I had copied code) & my TJ is very extensive.. Then the new micro community I made for macro sharing disappeared along with whose turn, etc etc. & there's no way to retrieve that info.

Also new TJ's were located under micro communities on the main page, now that same spot is old TJ's and there is no menu link to the new TJ's for anyone to follow anyway.

Just to make matters worse, now that reefuge is global, I've got stupid yanks answering my marketplace entries, trying to sell me shit or telling me they've got stuff that we can't import anyway.:banghead

Can it get any harder?????
 

The Reefuge

Administrator
Jul 9, 2011
4,152
1,929
Mate I'm just over everything. I started changing over my TJ & part way through the pics would no longer display (yes I had copied code) & my TJ is very extensive...
Hello @Ian G,

As stated before, due to the primitive and inefficient way the old tank journals operated, an automatic transfer was simply not possible. If it was possible, it would have been done rather than having the user do the work. A lot of work has gone into the new system and it was a trade-off that is worth the end result. If a user chose to transfer their old journal, they would need to do the work in order to transfer it. Alternatively they could have started fresh.

You can read about how to solve your image issues here.

Then the new micro community I made for macro sharing disappeared along with whose turn, etc etc. & there's no way to retrieve that info.
Unfortunately due to the servers hard drive failing the other week, some information was lost. This happened to unfortunately include the micro-communities. The server costs a lot of money to run, and upgrading the server to make sure a repeat of the incident does not happen again cost quite a bit of money. It has been fixed and a failure of the main drive will no longer end in data loss. This does mean that the cost of the hosting of the website has gone up. If people would like, they are free to buy gold to help financially support the site. This will give the website better features, faster implementation and more stability.


Also new TJ's were located under micro communities on the main page, now that same spot is old TJ's and there is no menu link to the new TJ's for anyone to follow anyway.
As the new Tank Journals are the default now (meaning you can no longer create a new journal in the old system) they have been moved to the main navigation menu as the default tank journals. You can access them by clicking on 'Tank Journals' in the main forum navigation (under the logo).

If you do go to the old journals, there is a notice telling you that your are viewing the old journals and it also links you to the new ones. This is located at the top of every page in the old tank journals.


Just to make matters worse, now that reefuge is global, I've got stupid yanks answering my marketplace entries, trying to sell me shit or telling me they've got stuff that we can't import anyway.:banghead

Can it get any harder?????
The Reefuge has not gone global. The Reefuge still only has its Australian branch online. No other Reefuge wings have been launched.

The Reefuge is an open community none the less, so users from other countries are still free to participate and have the same rights as Australian users. Information is free and available to anyone who wishes to acquire it.

I would also appreciate if you did not refer to non-Australian members as 'stupid', it is not in the spirit of the community, it does not achieve anything and it also breaks the rules.

If you are getting offers for products in the marketplace please feel free to report it, as it could be spam users sending these requests.
 
Last edited:

aussieant32

Team Leader
Feb 19, 2012
3,337
914
Sutherland, Australia
I for one would actually like to thank @The Reefuge . I am one of the obvious few that can see how much more efficient this way of journalling is. Twice already I have wated to find a photo from my journal, both times it took me about 20 seconds as I knew what stage of my tank it was, so clicked the appropriate update, as opposed to trawling through 74 pages of the old journal.

The only advice I have for the people that cannot be bothered or do not have the time is just link your old journal to the new and go from there, even make your first update title 'old journal' and then lock it, should take you all of 3 minutes.


Anyway I will leave it there, thanks again. I appreciate the time and effort you have put into this.
 

jacobC

Member
Jul 3, 2013
1
1
I lurk these forums but I don't post, but this has made me post. I am originally from the USA, however, I do not feel this is a problem as The Reefuge has always seemed to be an open and friendly community. I am very offended at @Ian G for his derogatory comments about 'stupid yanks'. What give you the right to make a comment like this, because someone enquired about something you were selling? What an absolute disgrace, I expected a lot better from a member of this community. I did not think that someone on this site would have that attitude towards a fellow reefer just because of the country they were born in.
I am sorry to post so negatively, but this has really angered and upset me.
 

Buddy

Member
Mar 13, 2012
3,142
1,526
Yeah I should have added to my last post that now that I've gone to the effort of moving my journal, I can navigate through it much easier.
 

DavidS

The Resident Loony
Jul 17, 2011
3,337
1,033
Ballarat, Victoria
Well done to @The Reefuge for getting the system in place, and to everyone who has gone through the process of migrating their journals across. There's effort involved, and it's not the easiest task for even the more savvy users, but there is plenty of effort and cost that goes into a place like this, and its easy to forget that for a little bit of time we need to spend dealing with change, that the poor bugger that runs the place has had to put in ten times the effort - and don't think for a second that knowing what you're doing somehow makes these kinds of changes "easy" - often it doesn't..

:welcome @jacobC it's a bit of a bugger that your first post had to come about like that, but hey, welcome!
 

TheJordans

Member
Mar 29, 2013
722
369
Sunbury
Given that @The Reefuge was on chat with me while I was editing my journals to come across to the new format, I'd hope that he recognises that my post was cheeky :-D I support all that he's implemented wholeheartedly bc I get so much back by being part of this great community.

My full thanks go out to him! running a forum is such a thankless task; the huge personal expense in both money and TIME. The man answers our countless questions, listens (and implements) our suggestions, and fixes every little problem we have IN HIS OWN TIME. The poor guy has a life too ;-)

So kudos, @The Reefuge. You're doing an awesome job and I look forward to being a part of this place for years to come :-)
 

Dr. Schell

The Fuckin' Doc
Jul 12, 2011
1,972
1,228
Brisbane
Mate I'm just over everything. I started changing over my TJ & part way through the pics would no longer display (yes I had copied code) & my TJ is very extensive.. Then the new micro community I made for macro sharing disappeared along with whose turn, etc etc. & there's no way to retrieve that info.

Also new TJ's were located under micro communities on the main page, now that same spot is old TJ's and there is no menu link to the new TJ's for anyone to follow anyway.

Just to make matters worse, now that reefuge is global, I've got stupid yanks answering my marketplace entries, trying to sell me shit or telling me they've got stuff that we can't import anyway.:banghead

Can it get any harder?????
Given that this site it free, you should feel previlaged to be able to post here. If you disagree with the new format, simple don't post a TJ, easy problem solved. There is nothing hard about that.

HOWEVER if you want to CONTRIBUTE positively, I suggest you MAKE AN EFFORT to conform and give credit where it is due.
Many thanks to @The Reefuge for the opportunity to post here!
 

Dr. Schell

The Fuckin' Doc
Jul 12, 2011
1,972
1,228
Brisbane
I lurk these forums but I don't post, but this has made me post. I am originally from the USA, however, I do not feel this is a problem as The Reefuge has always seemed to be an open and friendly community. I am very offended at @Ian G for his derogatory comments about 'stupid yanks'. What give you the right to make a comment like this, because someone enquired about something you were selling? What an absolute disgrace, I expected a lot better from a member of this community. I did not think that someone on this site would have that attitude towards a fellow reefer just because of the country they were born in.
I am sorry to post so negatively, but this has really angered and upset me.
@jacobC I understand your concern. However, please remember that @Ian G is but one member of this community. Please do not tar us all with the same brush!
 

Brekel

Member
Jun 8, 2012
273
109
Hobart
Another question with the new journals:

How do we edit a thread we've saved (other than the introductory description)?
There is an edit option in the Thread Tools, but it only allows me to edit the thread title and the open/sticky properties. Can we edit the content of the post? I'm sure I'm just overlooking it, but I couldn't see where to do it.

Thanks in advance.
 

Brekel

Member
Jun 8, 2012
273
109
Hobart
for additional posts on the thread, there are edit, delete and report links at the bottom, but for the opening post in the thread there is only delete and report.
 

OSCAR85

Member
Jan 8, 2013
1,529
792
St Kilda, Melbourne
Its all in the too hard basket for me. Starting a new tj. But still thank you to the reefuge for all your hard work that goes into this site. I have gained so much information for being on here in a short amount of time. :D
 

macca_75

Member
Apr 22, 2012
2,125
844
@jacobC - Welcome and as others have said before sorry your first post had to be negative...

I wasn't aware the US site had gone live but wow - going global. You'll find this place pretty relaxed compared to other forums.
 

The Reefuge

Administrator
Jul 9, 2011
4,152
1,929
Another question with the new journals:

How do we edit a thread we've saved (other than the introductory description)?
There is an edit option in the Thread Tools, but it only allows me to edit the thread title and the open/sticky properties. Can we edit the content of the post? I'm sure I'm just overlooking it, but I couldn't see where to do it.

Thanks in advance.
Hello @Brekel

Click on the thread you wish to edit. This will take you to the thread page. Then just edit your first post as you usually would a normal post.

Thanks.