Highlights on MyBroadband over the last 10 years: Your views needed

[rpm]

Hi there

MyBroadband was launched 10 years ago, a few months after Telkom launched its ADSL service in South Africa. Since then there were many highlights on MyBroadband, including Sentech’s MyWireless launch and the fight for better service levels, Vodacom’s 3G launch with Vodacom3G on the forums, the ADSL regulations, MWEB’s uncapped ADSL announcements, the start of Threadkiller and the like.

Can you please tell us what you think the highlights were on MyBroadband over the last 10 years? What do you remember the best?

Please post your highlights in this thread.

 

[supersunbird]

The Person = Brian Gibello saga

My first and only MyBB meet I attended ages ago, think I gave a lift to Xenophon.

The hopes on the new ADSL regulations that amounted to nothing.

Just the first 3 that immediately came to mind from the 8 years I've been a member. First started lurking in beginning 2004, there had been a article about MyADSL in SA Computer Magazine.

 

[kimbo]

I won a Nokia Lumia 800 three days after my birthday last year. MyBB made my year, thank you again for the smile you put on my face with that great "birthday gift"

 

[cerebus]

Winning the iPhone4 was my personal highlight. This forum has been very good to me over the years.

 

[marine1]

The saga with Celemasiko, Mweb uncapped.
There are so many.......

 

[copacetic]

Marking thread.

 

[Datura]

12-10-2006 I joined.

 

[waynegohl]

Highlights are the first meet at Jannies house and meeting the gang and winning an ipod nano and the ipad mini and getting honourable mentions and other gifts and making a very good friend in kilo and making online friends here on the forum.

popcorn moments are to die for too.

 

[GreGorGy]

Cell C's whooooosh launch (minus Trevor) was big.

Paul Main Man is a legend.

...so far.

Actually, the Banning of the DJ...
(but that's still a fresh wound)

 

[cjimme]

Vodacom launching LTE at the MyBB conference last year was pretty cool.

 

[Datura]

The day the mods banned one another. I won a Nokia N900, an iPod and a Justin Bieber life size cut out.

 

[Kornhub]

Just meeting with forum members and some who are now good friends

 

[blunomore]

My personal highlights on MyBB .... when I battle with an IT issue and some clever dudes here solve it for me, whoooosh, like it's nothing! Thanks guys

 

[morkhans]

The mampara awards were always fun. Maybe you should have a lifetime (under)achievement award at the MBB conf this year?

The coverage on the inflated streaming radio figures was a pretty eventful saga.

 

[biometrics]

The great avatar crisis of 2011.

 

[Paul Hjul]

My personal prime highlights of course was accepting a nomination for the ICT Policy Review Panel and receiving an ipad which has since been appropriated by my mother - which is a life highlight considering her aversion computers.

Highlights for me almost all involve being part of doing something right, a bit of advocacy:

[1] Getting Telkom to guarantee minimum speeds in the bounds of the then ADSL regulations (the regulations have since been abandoned but getting Telkom to start complying as far as the lack of clarity allowed - even with requirements the ISPs weren't - at least until uncapped became a norm was I believe a big deal in moving the industry forward). It was a highlight personally because even though I wasn't an ADSL customer I was involved in getting pressure on them by taking the matter up with the ASA.

[2] ICASA's LLU public hearings - and more importantly the engagement on an IRC chat and streaming. The delay in response to my question was wonderful.

[3] The NetDynamics fiasco and more importantly when the legal threats evaporated.

Of course the forming friendships with really decent and intelligent people is a continuous highlight.

 

[satanboy]

When biometrics showed me how to download the interwebz

 

[marine1]

When biometrics showed me how to download the interwebz

Same day the poles of earth flipped

 

[MyWorld]

This pre dates the MyBB forums, but that is what lead me here. The early 2000's was a very unstable era for telecoms, lots of fights and bloodied noses.
Only the highlights, not going to mention people and dig up articles:
* The first mention of the site in PCFormat and on PlanetMars, the site of the then editor of PCFormat, Mars Mlodzinski.
* Hellkom and MyBB start the fight for better, cheaper internet access.
* R7-00 callmore internet
* ISDN on R7-00 callmore
* Phone bill shock - redialling modems causes phone bills of well over R1k
* 3Gb 512k ADSL!
* The crash of PlanetMars, SystemShock forums with a few of us ending up here
* Telkom increase cap to 5Gb at no extra charge!
* 4Mb ADSL
* ICASSA and Telkom monopoly fight
* NeoTel enters the market - slated as Telkom killer
* Stable and affordable WIFI connectivity for home users
* WUG's take off all over the country
* Afrihost revolutionised capped internet
* Mweb revolutionised ADSL with "affordable" uncapped - goes from villain to hero overnight!
* TOS, AUP and FUP - uncapped not so uncapped after all (most ISPs)
* 10Mb ADSL
* Seacom cable finished!!!
* EASSy finished
* WACS finished

I probably left out a few important events, but that is what comes to mind.

 

[ShaunSA]

Cell C's whoosh.

Telkom's adsl speed increases.

Afrihost's cheap uncapped packages.

LLU Regulations that wasn't.

Neotel's much anticipated arrival that turned into a damp squib.

8ta's Launch.

Jannie's On/Off Tower fables.

The Brian Gibello farce.

Oh and the Paul Mainman saga

Blu's failed attempt at post deletion