CrazyInWeston Posted May 2, 2017 Report Share Posted May 2, 2017 Like the thread title suggest, how did this site come to be, and how the hell is it as popular like a premiership sides forum despite the fact we've never been so? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dollymarie Posted May 2, 2017 Report Share Posted May 2, 2017 Tagging @Tomarse as forum overlord he can probably answer this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 2, 2017 Report Share Posted May 2, 2017 In a galaxy far far away.. Actually will reply tomorrow when I'm awake... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrazyInWeston Posted May 2, 2017 Author Report Share Posted May 2, 2017 1 minute ago, Tomarse said: In a galaxy far far away.. Actually will reply tomorrow when I'm awake... Im waiting Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 3, 2017 Report Share Posted May 3, 2017 Keeping it brief: 1997 - Scott Davidson then chairman of BCFC (and director at Clik at that time) asked Geoff/Clik to register bcfc.co.uk and setup a club website and forum 1997-2001 Forum (running forum software called DC Forum) remains as official club forum 2001 - PTV/FL deal means club website is centrally controled, they try to force a poor alternative forum on every club. 2002 - BCFC continue to fund OTIB for around 12 months until PTV change stratergy and allow clubs to have own self hosted forums. Oct 2003 - Forum software changed to Invision Power Board 2004 - Invision Power Board 2.x released/installed Jan 2005 - First dedicated server for OTIB purchased Jan 2007 - Club decide they no longer want an official forum and passed onto Supporters Trust (now supporters club & trust) 2009 - Invision Power Board 3.x released/installed Jan 2010 - New Server for OTIB 2011 - Board database changed from MSSQL to mySQL 2012 - Invisoin Power Board 4.x released/installed Jan 2016 - New Server for OTIB July 2017 - 20th Aniversary of OTIB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WhistleHappy Posted May 3, 2017 Report Share Posted May 3, 2017 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B1ackbird Posted May 3, 2017 Report Share Posted May 3, 2017 I thought it was the love child of the Green-un and Bristol city Club call... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigTone Posted May 3, 2017 Report Share Posted May 3, 2017 2 hours ago, Tomarse said: Keeping it brief: 1997 - Scott Davidson then chairman of BCFC (and director at Clik at that time) asked Geoff/Clik to register bcfc.co.uk and setup a club website and forum 1997-2001 Forum (running forum software called DC Forum) remains as official club forum 2001 - PTV/FL deal means club website is centrally controled, they try to force a poor alternative forum on every club. 2002 - BCFC continue to fund OTIB for around 12 months until PTV change stratergy and allow clubs to have own self hosted forums. Oct 2003 - Forum software changed to Invision Power Board 2004 - Invision Power Board 2.x released/installed Jan 2005 - First dedicated server for OTIB purchased Jan 2007 - Club decide they no longer want an official forum and passed onto Supporters Trust (now supporters club & trust) 2009 - Invision Power Board 3.x released/installed Jan 2010 - New Server for OTIB 2011 - Board database changed from MSSQL to mySQL 2012 - Invisoin Power Board 4.x released/installed Jan 2016 - New Server for OTIB July 2017 - 20th Aniversary of OTIB You have forgotten the wedding of Kelly and Giles (Ok, proposed wedding) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harry may Posted May 3, 2017 Report Share Posted May 3, 2017 I was working at Rank Xerox at the time up in Mitcheldean. It was the late 90s and I didn't have a computer at home. I was bored 5hitless on a nightshift and I stumbled across the website by accident. It got me through many a nightshift. As well as being the only alternative source of City info - there were some really original and knowledgable posters. If I remember correctly Ole was RobF, City Rocker was on there, Red Goblin, Kustard, Red Top as well as some other posters who are sadly no longer with us. When I eventually got made redundant , I was forced to buy a computer at home purely to get my fix of OTIB. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
... Posted May 3, 2017 Report Share Posted May 3, 2017 18 hours ago, CrazyInWeston said: Like the thread title suggest, how did this site come to be, and how the hell is it as popular like a premiership sides forum despite the fact we've never been so? They had to do something to stop Collis1 bursting. tfj Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrazyInWeston Posted May 3, 2017 Author Report Share Posted May 3, 2017 9 hours ago, Tomarse said: Keeping it brief: Blah blah. *Edited to make the post shorter Thanks for the reply. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 3, 2017 Report Share Posted May 3, 2017 Once upon a Time In Bristol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
City Rocker Posted May 3, 2017 Report Share Posted May 3, 2017 9 hours ago, harry may said: I was working at Rank Xerox at the time up in Mitcheldean. It was the late 90s and I didn't have a computer at home. I was bored 5hitless on a nightshift and I stumbled across the website by accident. It got me through many a nightshift. As well as being the only alternative source of City info - there were some really original and knowledgable posters. If I remember correctly Ole was RobF, City Rocker was on there, Red Goblin, Kustard, Red Top as well as some other posters who are sadly no longer with us. When I eventually got made redundant , I was forced to buy a computer at home purely to get my fix of OTIB. I'm still here geezer, on and off. Red Alert back then, wasn't it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Major Isewater Posted May 4, 2017 Report Share Posted May 4, 2017 10 hours ago, City Rocker said: I'm still here geezer, on and off. Red Alert back then, wasn't it? Source ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harry may Posted May 4, 2017 Report Share Posted May 4, 2017 Well City Rocker , it's been a while old mate ! You got a bl00dy good memory , first it was Caldicot Red, then Red Alert ,then Gary Gilmore's Eyes , then Harry May.- then I took a sabbatical when my life became consumed by work - now it's plain old harry may. 13 hours ago, City Rocker said: I'm still here geezer, on and off. Red Alert back then, wasn't it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrazyInWeston Posted May 16, 2017 Author Report Share Posted May 16, 2017 Was it always called "OTIB"?? As a dig towards the gassy lot? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 16, 2017 Report Share Posted May 16, 2017 6 hours ago, CrazyInWeston said: Was it always called "OTIB"?? As a dig towards the gassy lot? No used to be just http://forum.bcfc.co.uk but that URL went with the club when it went under the FL72 deal in 2001 - and we used otib.co.uk thereafter as the main address - it had previously redirected to the old addy. Weve always just referred to it as the bristol city fans forum to be honest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CyderInACan Posted May 16, 2017 Report Share Posted May 16, 2017 What about bristolcitynet, the old Rivals site run by @Olé, how does that fit into the timeline? Did they run alongside each other then? Certainly remember that being decent, with @GrahamC and @SuperDziek among others on here frequenting it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 16, 2017 Report Share Posted May 16, 2017 Bristol City Net Centre wasn't it - pre dated the forum and the official site c. 1995 I think but expect Rob will clarify. The oldest board still going must be the reading board hob nob anyone which was about 93/94 era Do miss rivals, such a great single point of login for multiple sites.. nothing really ever matched it since Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbored Posted May 16, 2017 Report Share Posted May 16, 2017 It was Richieb who told me about otib so I signed up. The old regulars will remember Richieb quite a controversial poster back then. Didnt realise how many different servers there'd been. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CyderInACan Posted May 16, 2017 Report Share Posted May 16, 2017 2 hours ago, Tomarse said: Bristol City Net Centre wasn't it - pre dated the forum and the official site c. 1995 I think but expect Rob will clarify. The oldest board still going must be the reading board hob nob anyone which was about 93/94 era Do miss rivals, such a great single point of login for multiple sites.. nothing really ever matched it since Yes it was excellent and even back then sparked some good debates - we can be a pleasant bunch at times! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AirlieBeachRed Posted May 17, 2017 Report Share Posted May 17, 2017 I remember an old email service of some sort at some stage. If you didn't pick the right option you ended up with hundreds of emails instead of one condensed email Hahahaha Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Red Rich Posted May 17, 2017 Report Share Posted May 17, 2017 i love posts like this, takes me way back. Other posters of notes were Sox, Jude & Percy Parrot. I remember i used to use the 6th form computer (we had 1 back then!) and you didnt need an account to post, you entered your desired username each post! Bizarre. Tomarse - you haven't included the forum meets in your timeline?!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 17, 2017 Report Share Posted May 17, 2017 7 hours ago, AirlieBeachRed said: I remember an old email service of some sort at some stage. If you didn't pick the right option you ended up with hundreds of emails instead of one condensed email Hahahaha The CityList. It's still technically running https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/bristolcity/info Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harry may Posted May 17, 2017 Report Share Posted May 17, 2017 I remember the old rivals website - it was really good. Didn't it shut down after somebody was putting multiple posts under different user names to generate interest ? The main rivals site I mean - not the City one . Also remember an excellent site ran by Red Un - full of stats about every player who had pulled on the hallowed red shirt. Looking at some of the posts on this thread makes me realise how the years have flown by............... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olé Posted May 17, 2017 Report Share Posted May 17, 2017 On 16/05/2017 at 12:48, Tomarse said: Bristol City Net Centre wasn't it - pre dated the forum and the official site c. 1995 I think but expect Rob will clarify. The oldest board still going must be the reading board hob nob anyone which was about 93/94 era Do miss rivals, such a great single point of login for multiple sites.. nothing really ever matched it since Boom! Mine was 97 too but I think before there was anything at bcfc.co.uk. Version 1 was absolutely shocking, 4 IFRAMES around a console so all the stories loaded into the page like some crappy dashboard. Version 2 was proper, in 98 and 99, it was based on the depth of content on websites like the NBA and NFL, 3 columns, news stories everywhere, stats and links galore. It was what football official sites should have been like, engrossing and more than the sum of their parts, linking content from across the web. Very few clubs are managing it even now. Version 3 was in 2000 when Rivals took on the site around the time Danny Wilson took over in 2000. Generic but very busy, tonnes of content and lots going on across the different sites. Did anti-Gas Christmas Cards before THAT local derby. Had a City Top Trumps game. Broke an original "ITK" story passed to me that resulted in SL going through the phone book and ringing my mum. Ran a Guess The Attendance competition with a £100 prize, started the City fans derby. Tried to reboot Rivals design when they didn't want to, I think circa summer 2003 we started doing big tabloid headline graphics. In the end working in another startup took over my life, handed the site onto @cheshire_red, who did a sterling job for a few more years battling against a declining network overrun by popup ads, and I think even helping re-boot on a follow up network too. I'll go back to where it all started pre-Rivals. MAKE SURE YOU HAVE IE5 OR NETSCAPE 4.7 MIND. (I have never recommended Internet Explorer since). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olé Posted May 17, 2017 Report Share Posted May 17, 2017 p.s. the site I remember was Zybereds, run by Geoff somebody, which actually posted up full .avi videos of our goals. It was City player, but in 1998. The slight disadvantage was it took about two days to download one goal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
City Rocker Posted May 17, 2017 Report Share Posted May 17, 2017 Zybereds was brilliantly off the wall, typically for so many websites in those days before commercial overkill and the hateful social media took their stranglehold on the internet. Another extraordinary early bcfc site was Adibillah Daturfup (or something like that), utterly surreal, anyone remember it? The Net Centre had a good little community, even before the legendary Tinman graced the forum. They were simpler times in them days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WTFiGO!?! Posted May 18, 2017 Report Share Posted May 18, 2017 I remember being wholly unimpressed by this whole internet bollox circa 1999 - thought it was a total load of bollox. My mate 'Duffy' announcing to me that we'd gone Pulis not David Moyes and what the **** is Scott Davidson doing!! We need fu*king Moyes, not that long ball gas head tw*t!" ..... was my first meaningful relationship with the internet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olé Posted May 18, 2017 Report Share Posted May 18, 2017 17 hours ago, City Rocker said: Another extraordinary early bcfc site was Adibillah Daturfup (or something like that), utterly surreal, anyone remember it? That was Kat and Jer (who went on to do the season long bike ride to City games). It was definitely surreal. They were certainly simpler times in those days - the Evening Post website for a start! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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