WordReference Forums' 10th--now 15th-- birthday!

[mkellogg]

Hello everybody,
​Today is the 10th anniversary of the opening of the WordReference Forums!

We have accomplished a lot here since 2004:
- We have given direct advice to over a half-million people.
- Our advice has been recorded for posterity.
- 150 million people visited the forums in the last year to see your advice. 150 million.
- We possibly provide more information about our forum's major languages of English, Spanish, French and Italian than any other reference source.
- Our advice about English is over 20 times the size of the OED (the Oxford English Dictionary).
- And we have made some great friends around the world!


Some statistics:
Over 50 forums covering many languages and language pairs
2.6 million threads
14 million posts
5.5 Gigabytes of posts
Over 10,000 active members (when it isn't summertime)
More than a few weddings and relationships.

I am proud of what we have accomplished together and you should be, too. None of it would be possible without the excellent contributions of the moderators and the entire community.

We are going to transform the Comments and Suggestions forum into our celebration forum. I know the moderators have a thread or two that they want to start. Feel free to start your own threads here, too. Tell us about your favorite threads and moments here in the forums. I will also invite many former members who were once very active. I hope we get to see some of them here!

Again, thank you all for making this the special place that it has become!

Mike

(Facebook post about this)

 

[Already-Seen]

Impressive numbers. Thanks for creating this place!

 

[Parla]

Indeed a very special place, Mike.
Congratulations!

 

[swift]

Hello, Mike.

I was brought here by that invitation banner to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the forums.

I just wanted to say I'm very happy to be a part of this community. Thanks for the wonderful tools you have developed and thanks for creating one of the most special places on the WWW!

José

 

[Copyright]

Congratulations, Mike ... and thanks for creating a place for all of us to land.

(Now is there any way to make the big banner go away after you click on it? It covers the Sticky threads people are supposed to read in English Only -- and then part of the first post of each thread, which is perhaps the most important one.)

 

[aloofsocialite]

Congratulations to everyone. WR is an amazing and impressive undertaking. (I'd also love to know how to get rid of the banner covering the top part of the screen.)

 

[mkellogg]

(I'd also love to know how to get rid of the banner covering the top part of the screen.)

Aloof, I reduced the size some, but I think you are just going to have to live with it for the next 24 hours or so!

 

[aloofsocialite]

Not a problem, the reduced size definitely helps! Thanks again, and congratulations!

 

[Sowka]

Hello Mike

Happy anniversary! Thank you so much for creating this place and developing it the way you did. And all my best wishes for the years to come!

I'd like to contribute a historical view: The ancient foundation stones of the German forum.

 

[swift]

¡I'd like to contribute a historical view: The ancient foundation stones of the German forum.

Oh my God, Mike. Where was your own attempt? And what happened with that one-topic-per-thread rule?

Thank you, Sowka, for reminding us that we have all been newbies!

Oh! And may I just add that I love Cagey's "Occupations". I have discovered several authors thanks to her. Cagey, are you there? Thank you so much!

 

[jann]

Oh my God, Mike. Where was your own attempt?

That's fabulous.

We have come a long way since 2004, haven't we? And just think, the worst of the ancient threads have mostly made their way to the great trashcan in the sky by now!

 

[Copyright]

Just checked the repositioned banner and it's safely and beautifully up at the top -- away from everything. Thanks, Mike! And thanks every day for your WordReference!

 

[tphuong122002]

Congratulations Mike and all the mods! I have been using this Forum for years and am so grateful to the extremely thorough and helpful explanation/suggestions/advice from you for my threads. And they are very fast, too! You have become my teacher and last resort whenever I am stumped in my English study. I wish you all good health and success in maintaining and expanding this wonderful site!

Tphuong

 

[boozer]

Impressive figures and an impressive forum!

 

[swift]

And just think, the worst of the ancient threads have mostly made their way to the great trashcan in the sky by now!

Oh yes they have! I admire the dedication of the moderators who have carried out that clean-up task!

 

[Teerex51]

Happy Birthday WRF and thank you Mike for making it happen.

 

[behavebabyyeah]

I couldn't live without Wordreference, so a very, very happy anniversary to you/us all!!
You should take the day off to celebrate

 

[morgana]

Happy Anniversary to the best language forum in the world!

I know I'm not very active in the forums anymore, but I check some term every day. I really don't know what I would do without WR

 

[Gemmenita]

What a good day today!

Hi Mike,
I congratulate you the 10th birthday of our wonderful Forum and thank you very much for all you have done and are doing for it.

My best wishes for more and more success

 

[DearPrudence]

Thanks for all the figures: very impressive! It makes me proud to be part of this wonderful community. You can add more than a few friendships as well!


Joyeux anniversaire et un énorme bravo, Mike !!!!

 

[VicNicSor]

It's so great when a lot of people from all over the world are ready to help you in your language-questions. Thank you, Mike, and WRF-team for this possibility!
Happy anniversary!

 

[atcheque]

Bonjour,

Glad to be here

 

[Pedro y La Torre]

A special place, with first-class contributors. Onward and upward. Congratulations.

 

[IsisYang]

Happy birthday congratulations and thank you!!!
WR has been helping me a lot for years now in learning English and French as foreign languages and I hope some day you will have Chinese too!

 

[Copyright]

... and I hope some day you will have Chinese too!

I think you're in luck.

 

[Cintia&Martine]

Happy anniversary, thanks you Mike, and thanks to all to be there, day after day.

Un beso.
Martine

 

[Chimel]

WR-Forum: clustering of knowledge and resources, mutual respect between contributors (even when you are ab-so-lu-te-ly sure that you are right and that the other one writes nonsense...), a touch of humour now and then, smart and tactful moderation when necessary. In a word: internet on its best, an example for so many.

To have been able to keep this spirit alive 10 years long and with so many new contributors is a real achievement. Congratulations and thanks to everybody, especially the moderators !

 

[lingpil]

A great place on the WWW. I'm very glad to be a part of it and meet (at least virtually) interesting people from all over the world. I am myself a member for roughly a year, but it seems like an eternity. I can't even imagine that there was a time I didn't know about WRF. Thank you very much Mike, the mod crew and all of the wonderful members for making this forum so special! I'm looking forward to the 20th anniversary!!!

 

[ACQM]

Thank you so much!!

It is really amazing to see that those forums can exist and work so well! Thank you to create and mantain them, thank you to let me in, and thank you to let me joint the mods team.

 

[Liam Lew's]

This is the best place to go to for language questions in my opinion. You find the best teachers and the most accurate answers here. Thank you for enabling that, Mike and everyone else.

 

[turi]

Happy anniversary, WR!! Happy anniversary, Mike!!

These forums are ace!!!

 

[jienveh]

Happy Anniversary Wordreference.com!!!

 

[Tampiqueña]

¡Feliz aniversario! Y que WR siga creciendo, ayudando a la gente, abriendo caminos y cosechando muchos éxitos.

 

[slovac]

The best forum I have ever visited. The WRF team taught me a lot, I am extremely grateful, thank you for your patience, willingness to help...
HAPPY BIRTHDAY - VSETKO NAJLEPSIE K NARODENINAM

 

[speedier]

Wow! Those are impressive statistics indeed, and in such a relatively short space of time! Happy Birthday WR!!!!

 

[kahroba]

Thank you dear Mike for creating this great wonderful forum. I have been enjoying it for almost seven years now and I have learnt so much from it. I can't say how much I owe you, your colleagues, mods and members.
Thanks again!

 

[ufoseeker]

Ten years!! By Jove! That explain why there is a hieroglyph section"
Happy birthday WordReference

 

[Zsanna]

Hello all,

It seems we are right to be proud of and happy for the forum... so let's celebrate!

Boldog 10. születésnapot, WordReference!

 

[sam1978]

Congratulations! Happy birthday, Wordreference!
What was the first question of this dictionary-forum? Does anyone know?

 

[Vanda]

OBRIGADA, MIKINHO!
Thanks for providing us this place, our 2nd home, to learn and get to know so many people. I learn something new - even in my own language - everyday! And I have so many new real besides virtual new friends thanks to WR! We are the best! Best forum ever!

 

[Pablo Peligroso]

Indeed WR has accomplishments to be proud of. Thanks for creating and maintaining this space (a LOT of work!) for those of us who can appreciate it and use it to help us learn.

5.5 gigabytes of data doesn't sound like much to the video and music collectors! It's a lot of text though. Try creating 5.5 gigabytes of text with Notepad! OK, there are a few extra bytes when we format the text, but you know what I mean.

 

[amanda_45]

OOOOooooOOOOh
What's up here??? I am like you veryyyyy happy for WR....My best wishes for more and more and more success...

Now sing with me:
Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday to you!
Happy birthday to you!
Happy birthday to you!
Happy birthday to you!
Happy birthday to you!
Happy birthday to you!
Happy birthday to you!!

 

[Gope]

My comments on the Forum's tenth anniversary:
This is a great place for learning. It has been made so by learned and considerate members who have always readily placed their knowledge at the disposal of knowledge seekers. I have made considerable progress in learning Urdu from scratch because of the incomparable and swift responses from forum members. This Indo-Iranian languages forum is blessed with members with immense learning and commitment to one's language and culture. I notice this particularly in respect of Urdu and Persian. The forum has enriched my life in a way I could never have imagined, now I am an addict to this place, populated by wonderful people.

 

[colombinegrant]

Hola,
Bonjour et bon anniversaire.


Feliz cumpleaños WordReferences.
Gracias por todas las informaciones que aprendemos gracias a este sitio.
Cordialmente

 

[Soledad Medina]

Congratulations, Mike, for a job very well done!!! Thank you for creating this wonderful site.

I became a member of WR in February of 2006. There are no words to express my gratitude for all the help received during these years. Some of the forum members became very good friends with whom I keep in touch frequently through my personal e-mail. WR changed my life in many ways. It has been a blessing. Even though at the present moment I don’t participate in the forum asking or answering questions, I still go to WR every time I have a doubt regarding any of my translations.

Happy 10th anniversary!!! My best wishes for more and more success.
A big hug,
Soledad

 

[Wordsmyth]

Congratulations, Mike ... and all the Mods, past and present, ... and everyone else who makes WR a great place to be.

10 years already!! My only 'regret' is that I missed the first 6 months — but not really: because of the excellent way the forum is conceived, organised and moderated, I was able to delve back into those early threads right from day one.

You started this thread with some stats, Mike, so let me add: Only a few hours since the 10-year anniversary threads started, and over 1000 views and around 100 replies already — and growing fast! That says something about how alive WRF is!

Thanks again, keep up the good work. I'm looking forward to the next 10 years.

Ws

 

[BrightonNative]

Many Happy Returns of the Day for the Word Reference Forums!
​

The Word Reference Forums are a fantastic achievement for which you deserve congratulations, Mike! Amongst other things, what I like to see is people coming together on one forum from places all over the world. Language is their passion, from Wollongong to Wallonia; and from Manhattan to the depths of the Mayenne countryside (me!)

Bonne continuation, as they say here!

 

[bondia]

Mike, here's one of those once very active members very happy to have received your invitation and hoping to meet up with some old friends at this party!
Congratulations to everyone.

 

[ajo fresco]

Happy 10th Birthday, WR! They grow up so fast.
Here's to the next 10 years and beyond!

 

[Vanda]

Nice to know that, Gope. Besides being addicted - no recuperation at this point, totally damage - I've polished my writing in tons, and learn, everyday, a bit!