Monte Carlo Forum: HISTORY ? ?
#1
06-05-2011, 11:04 PM
Monte Carlo Forum: HISTORY ? ?
i got on the mcf today and i was just lookin through everything and i started wondering about the history and beginnigs of this awesome forum. all input appreciated 
Last edited by Space; 06-06-2011 at 11:46 AM. Reason: To add question Mark (Good ?)
#2
06-05-2011, 11:19 PM
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Pittsburgh, PA
Posts: 11,978
I showed up here a little over 2 years ago! I've heard many times about the forum getting shut down/infected/corrupted with a virus or something and there was a bunch of info/links/pics being lost. I haven't really heard the whole story though, maybe Taz (Lou, admin) could elaborate more? I've also heard that the forum was taken over by aliens who only like Monte Carlos......
#4
06-05-2011, 11:28 PM
i joined in 2009. it was a funny story. i was in school, and this was the only website that wasnt blocked so i joined it to learn more about my 5th gen. im glad i did. but sometimes i wonder how i only have like 164 posts in 2 years. >_<
I havent been around long enough to know about the forum, but I have been around long enough to meet new members and to see a lot of the old members leave.
#8
06-06-2011, 11:15 AM
Well, the forum obviously pre-dates my joining also. But here's some info on the forum.
Monte Carlo Forum was created on May 21, 2004, but went live to the public on July 27, 2004. The original owners were named Ralph and Amanda. They created MCF with the intention of giving all Monte Carlo enthusiasts, (all generations of Monte) a world wide forum to discuss all things Monte Carlo.
After a couple of successful years on MCF, the forum was sold to an internet company called Auto Forum Universe. In mid 2007, a company named Internet Brands acquired Auto Forum Universe's forums. The company that owns Internet Brands also owns the software company Jelsoft. Jelsoft is the company that creates the vBulletin forum operating system used by many forums across the internet. Internet Brands still owns MCF to this day.
In 2008, MCF was still using the same old forum software it started with 4 years earlier. Needless to say, it was very outdated and very vulnerable to new viruses and hackers. In June 2008, the server that MCF was being hosted on was successfully hacked and infected with a virus. Since MCF hadn't been switched to vBulletin's software yet, MCF took a massive hit. And suffered a lot of damage. The tech department had to rebuild the forum from the ground up. They saved as much of the info on the forum as they could. Including members accounts and threads. However, many of them were heavily damaged.
Some members had to abandon their original account, and create a new one. Legendary member "Spacerider" became "KidSpace". Many of the original threads were damaged beyond repair and had to be deleted. But every effort was made to save as many as we could. One casualty was the original members photo gallery. All the pictures from the original forum had gotten damaged by the virus, and had to be deleted from the server.
After almost a year of having to work with a badly damaged forum, in 2009 the "new" MCF suddenly appeared online during the overnight hours. Replacing the old forum.
The new forum was designed to look as much like the old forum as possible. The same colors (blue and purple). And the same forum logo at the top of the page. Below is a screen capture from the old forum before it got damaged. It's SpaceRider's original MOTM Winner's Gallery.
The old logo was purple with a black 2004 supercharged Monte. (common mis-conception was that it was an Intimidator edition. -- It wasn't! The picture was taken from the 2004 Monte Carlo dealership brochure. The silver badge on the side read "Supercharged" not "Intimidator" like most people thought!) But the logo had gotten damaged also, so half of the car was missing from the picture.
In 2010, after many discussions with "the powers that be", I managed to convince them that it was best to trash the broken logo from the old forum. Since it was just a constant reminder of a bad time in the forum's history. Also, since it only had a picture of a 6th gen, it gave the impression that only 6th gens were welcome here. Moderator JJ ("The Popcorn King" aka "JJsRYD") created a new logo with a sample from every generation of Monte. Which I submitted to the owners as a more accurate example of what the forum is supposed to represent.
After a long wait, the tech department unveiled a pleasant surprise. Our new forum logo. It contained three Montes. Gone was the broken picture of a black 6th gen. The new one contained a 1st gen, a 4th gen, a 6th gen, and a large "SS" badge. Also gone was the purple and blue colored logo. Instead, the new logo was black, grey, red, and white. With the words "Monte Carlo" being in a font very much like the font used on the 5th and 7th gens.
But the rest of the forum still had the same blue and purple theme to it. The last remnants of the old forum. Which now looked horrible next to our new logo. Again, after many conversations. In the spring of 2011, the tech department finally replaced the blue and purple theme with red, grey and black. The MCF was now "complete" with a look and feel that everyone could be proud of.
Monte Carlo Forum was created on May 21, 2004, but went live to the public on July 27, 2004. The original owners were named Ralph and Amanda. They created MCF with the intention of giving all Monte Carlo enthusiasts, (all generations of Monte) a world wide forum to discuss all things Monte Carlo.
After a couple of successful years on MCF, the forum was sold to an internet company called Auto Forum Universe. In mid 2007, a company named Internet Brands acquired Auto Forum Universe's forums. The company that owns Internet Brands also owns the software company Jelsoft. Jelsoft is the company that creates the vBulletin forum operating system used by many forums across the internet. Internet Brands still owns MCF to this day.
In 2008, MCF was still using the same old forum software it started with 4 years earlier. Needless to say, it was very outdated and very vulnerable to new viruses and hackers. In June 2008, the server that MCF was being hosted on was successfully hacked and infected with a virus. Since MCF hadn't been switched to vBulletin's software yet, MCF took a massive hit. And suffered a lot of damage. The tech department had to rebuild the forum from the ground up. They saved as much of the info on the forum as they could. Including members accounts and threads. However, many of them were heavily damaged.
Some members had to abandon their original account, and create a new one. Legendary member "Spacerider" became "KidSpace". Many of the original threads were damaged beyond repair and had to be deleted. But every effort was made to save as many as we could. One casualty was the original members photo gallery. All the pictures from the original forum had gotten damaged by the virus, and had to be deleted from the server.
After almost a year of having to work with a badly damaged forum, in 2009 the "new" MCF suddenly appeared online during the overnight hours. Replacing the old forum.
The new forum was designed to look as much like the old forum as possible. The same colors (blue and purple). And the same forum logo at the top of the page. Below is a screen capture from the old forum before it got damaged. It's SpaceRider's original MOTM Winner's Gallery.
The old logo was purple with a black 2004 supercharged Monte. (common mis-conception was that it was an Intimidator edition. -- It wasn't! The picture was taken from the 2004 Monte Carlo dealership brochure. The silver badge on the side read "Supercharged" not "Intimidator" like most people thought!) But the logo had gotten damaged also, so half of the car was missing from the picture.
In 2010, after many discussions with "the powers that be", I managed to convince them that it was best to trash the broken logo from the old forum. Since it was just a constant reminder of a bad time in the forum's history. Also, since it only had a picture of a 6th gen, it gave the impression that only 6th gens were welcome here. Moderator JJ ("The Popcorn King" aka "JJsRYD") created a new logo with a sample from every generation of Monte. Which I submitted to the owners as a more accurate example of what the forum is supposed to represent.
After a long wait, the tech department unveiled a pleasant surprise. Our new forum logo. It contained three Montes. Gone was the broken picture of a black 6th gen. The new one contained a 1st gen, a 4th gen, a 6th gen, and a large "SS" badge. Also gone was the purple and blue colored logo. Instead, the new logo was black, grey, red, and white. With the words "Monte Carlo" being in a font very much like the font used on the 5th and 7th gens.
But the rest of the forum still had the same blue and purple theme to it. The last remnants of the old forum. Which now looked horrible next to our new logo. Again, after many conversations. In the spring of 2011, the tech department finally replaced the blue and purple theme with red, grey and black. The MCF was now "complete" with a look and feel that everyone could be proud of.
#9
06-06-2011, 11:35 AM
Administrator `Taz
- `Lou -
For your great recap of our Monte Carlo Forum History.
It's been a test of patience, 4-Sure.
Plus, a Big Thanks for all your time & dedication
for rebuilding so many threads, plus the multiple times
rebuilding the "Winner's Thread"
Your intense dedication to our member's makes the MCF
the best automotive forum on the
World Wide Web.
#10
06-06-2011, 11:43 AM
Thanks Space.
You deserve a lot more credit than you're willing to take too though.
Thank you for all you do also!
And can't forget all the members on MCF. Without great members, there wouldn't be an MCF.
You deserve a lot more credit than you're willing to take too though.
Thank you for all you do also!
And can't forget all the members on MCF. Without great members, there wouldn't be an MCF.