So I had an idea...

[sswang00]

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With the CAS applications in submission and everyone waiting for calls and emails from programs...I had an idea.
I know this forum will be full of people with interview invites and experiences very soon, so I wanted to make a place for everyone to talk about their experiences, rant, and drive each other a little crazy. I also realized there is no official forum for us ophtho guys aside from sdn (like the ortho guys have orthogate)... Don't get me wrong, I love SDN. The advice on here is priceless! But I made a simple forum for everything ophtho.

Its not only for students, but there are sections for residents, attendings, and much more. This was just an idea (maybe a dumb one). But I thought it might be helpful.

Check it out! www.ophthoboard.com

Also, I would love to hear any comments or suggestions. Feel free to post here or PM me any time. Thanks!!

 

[sswang00]

..

 

[breezethrusd]

So I think I'm the first poster on your forum lol. I do a little web designing on the side and have some ideas for you.

1. The site is dead. I know it just started off but there are literally NO posts on it. You need to bring something new to the table to make people want to join. What can I get there that I can't get here? How are you letting people know about the site?

2. Maybe have an incentive or promotion to get the ball rolling.

I think its a cool idea but it needs some work. PM me if you're looking for help web designing or for Admins.

 

[odieoh]

Its a nice concept, but honestly I don't see that it will add much beyond whats already going on in this forum. The only niche I could see you filling that isn't filled here is a forum with job listings. The academy site used to have such a great section for job listings, and then they changed it to where I think they make people pay to list job openings. It seems like a ghost town now, and honestly I don't know where new job seekers are going to look for jobs. If you could fill that niche, you may have something going, but just a general ophtho forum likely isn't going to get much traction IMO.

Edit: I guess this eyehound thing that was just recently posted is maybe going after that exact market. I haven't had time to look at it so I don't know how useful it is.

 

[sswang00]

Its a nice concept, but honestly I don't see that it will add much beyond whats already going on in this forum. The only niche I could see you filling that isn't filled here is a forum with job listings. The academy site used to have such a great section for job listings, and then they changed it to where I think they make people pay to list job openings. It seems like a ghost town now, and honestly I don't know where new job seekers are going to look for jobs. If you could fill that niche, you may have something going, but just a general ophtho forum likely isn't going to get much traction IMO.

Edit: I guess this eyehound thing that was just recently posted is maybe going after that exact market. I haven't had time to look at it so I don't know how useful it is.

I thought it would be a good idea to have a site with separate sections for students, residents, and attendings. Instead of having a thread on cornea fellowships next to ones on job openings and med student away rotations, I wanted to keep it a little more organized. Its amazing how much valuable information there is on SDN, but the topics are all mixed together. Plus, I feel there are not too many attendings on this site. If a site has a section for job listings (a free one at that), it may attract more attendings. With more attendings, students/residents' questions may receive more input.

I also wanted a classifieds section..After emailing my entire class on buying a used ophthalmoscope, I thought it would be nice to have a community based forum for buying/selling material. I thought a section for conferences/events such as ARVO would also be useful. We could discuss interesting topics, who will be attending, and network. i.e.- what is there to do for fun after the conference.

And I felt more people would remember the name ophthoboard instead of going to sdn and clicking through a few pages before coming to the ophthalmology section. I know the ophtho community is relatively small, but I also feel theres no common place for us all to come together. Thanks for your input! I appreciate any and all feedback

 

[breezethrusd]

Did you think about what I wrote? I see the site has a few posts this week, but try an incentive to join. Also, are you looking for any forum moderators? I have plenty of ideas to get the site moving. Let me know

 

[sswang00]

breezethrusd, thanks for the offer. I sent you a PM. I would love to hear your ideas!