15 years ago today I embarked on a journey that I never really expected. I joined Namepros on October 18, 2004 out of boredom. I had been registering domain names since 1997 but outside of spending time at the original Afternic I did not spend much time discussing domains with others. Friends and family thought domaining was one of the dumbest things they had ever heard about.
Namepros October 2004
I joined Namepros and really got into looking to sell things fast. This was a mistake when I look back at some of the names I sold at Namepros on a wholesale level, (Sayy.com, 880.com NNL not NNN, R75.com, 7499.com, 7599.com, etc…) It was a combination of boredom and being impatient.
In 2005 3Character.com was born out of the Namepros chatroom which at the time was real discussion and not the spamming of domain names for sale already listed in the marketplace.
Later in 2005 I started the Dot TV subforum which was the first extension specific discussion area on the forum. There was good and bad that came along with that. Dealing with trolls, a 20 hour a day unpaid job, something that at times started to feel like a cult. On the good side of the coin there were a decent number of members who made good money in the extension, being asked for quotes and having some articles republished in mainstream publications and the people I became friends with.
I spent 12 years as a mod, helped to put in some features and rules that are now standard practice, so that’s been nice. I wrote the seller’s guide to Namepros.
Namepros 2019 is nothing like Namepros 2004 or Namepros 2012. I thank RJ for everything he did to help build a community that looked to be the Superman to DNForum’s Lex Luthor. Old timers like Kenny and Michelle and those more recent like Eric Lyon have helped to keep some of that nostalgia from a time gone by. Older members like Stub, Brad Mugford, wwwweb and Biggie, just to name a few provide consistent contributions on a day in, day out basis.
The Namepros of today benefits from a guy who really knows tech in Paul Buonopane and the helpful members like Bob Hawkes, James Iles, MapleDots, XyNames and many more.
I don’t know if it’s been the best use of my time but it has been an interesting 15 years and 13,000 posts.
You are by far one of the most important members Raymond. I would never have joined if it was not for you and the tv sub.
I owned no dot coms and learned about domaining through that forum. I owe you big time, many thx.
Thanks you have not been around in years on the forum, hope you are well.
You have been a tremendous asset, the time spent there has been enriched by people like you, Eric and Rob. Congrats on 15 years.
Thanks Ronald, yes Eric is an asset and Rob is starting to be the king of Namepros.
Way to go Ray Ray.
Thanks Mark
I don’t think congratulations is the right thing to say because is it something that has been good for you? Your life probably better without all that stress.
I will say you are the best blogger in this weird industry, so congratulations there.
Thanks man.
Raymond, You have been a tremendous help to me personally from day 1 and still today.
You are one of the straightest shooters w/no agenda except helping everyone here in this crazy little domaining world.
Thank You!
Thanks Vito
I pissed my pants at this “Namepros chatroom which at the time was real discussion and not the spamming of domain names for sale already listed in the marketplace.”
So true, thanks for all you do man.
P.S. It was not the best use of your time.
I don’t know you very well, but from your contributions that I come across on the forums, twitter, domain blogs, including this one, you should be receiving every good award the industry has to offer, including money, MVP, Lifetime awards, etc etc
Congrats on the first 15 years!
Domenclature.com
Thank you Domenclature, very kind.
Thanks and Regards
You all contributors are real gem to the community 💯
Thank you
Everybody loves Raymond… True story.
He is a class act and an industry treasure. Walking in the footsteps of Mike Berkens, another industry legend.
Thank you Rob
15 years is a long time. I am glad you are still around as you contribute a lot to the domain community.
Here’s to another 15…
Brad
Thanks Brad, yeah it has felt like a long time. So much has changed about this business, to be honest I forgot about how Namepros looked until I did the archive search, I used to love that blue with the dimpled dots on the side.
It is nice to read about namepros legacy. Namepros is a fantastic place created, nurtured and maintained by fantastic people – and you’re definitely one of them! Thank you!
Thank you
Thanks for all the great articles.
Not covered here: did domaining provide you enough income to be busy with all that?
What’s the story behind the forum nickname?
Glad you enjoy the articles, thank you.
Yes domaining and blogging has provided enough to do this for so long.
The forum nickname means absolutely nothing, for years people would offer me equity names and assume it meant a lot to me. I would always reply it means nothing to me. In the early days of the net I would always tell friends, family and coworkers that were just getting involved to make their username something that meant nothing to them, that they could never be identified with, don’t be from New Jersey and born in 83 and make your username JerseyGirl83. Most of the people I worked with and hung around with were not techie in anyway so they did not understand hacking, social engineering, doxxing, breadcrumbs you leave along the way. Most of them would laugh at me but when one girl got tracked down by someone in a chatroom based off of info from her username and profile, she called me and said, “I used to think you were nuts, but now I understand. I am golfer21 from now on in every profile.” She hated golf so she thought that would be funny.
Raymond, I’ve learned a lot from you over the years and this is a good opportunity to say “thank you!”
So glad your there! You rock Raymond!
I’ve appreciated and enjoyed you through the years…
My NP Join Date: Feb 7, 2006