I have just registered at ScubaBoard, what a great resource for divers! Have been reading posts for a couple of hours before I registered. Well done! :luxhello:
(Mods: I am a bit overwhelmed by the number of forum topics, and can't find one that would fit my comment below so I hope it is Ok if I post it here... No spam intended :blinking: )
Almost two weeks ago, my website WorldDiveMap.com (http://www.WorldDiveMap.com) went live. This is a free website with 8000+ dive locations world wide, almost 300 underwater maps, 600+ photos, and it is getting bigger every day.
WorldDiveMap.com is a Google Maps based platform for all divers, where every user can add content and share info on dive locations, photos, maps and more. The site seems to fill a gap, with 3000 visits in 10 days. Please have a look and (better yet) contribute to this fast-growing site too!
Happy diving,
Marcel
MarcelT
April 1st, 2011, 08:25 PM
Just to let you know, I have just added weather forecasts for dive locations on WorldDiveMap.com. Hope this helps!
Happy diving,
Marcel
dgreenh
April 1st, 2011, 11:22 PM
Nice site. I added photos and description for Balmorhea, Texas
MarcelT
April 2nd, 2011, 07:50 AM
Thank you dgreenh!
The description and photos give a good impression of Balmorhea.
When everyone contributes, we can make this a good resource on diving locations worldwide!
Happy diving,
Marcel
sierrakilo
April 3rd, 2011, 11:21 AM
Hi Marcle
Excellent idea. May I suggest you add a diveshop icon, so that people may locate diveshops as well. Or perhaps add their diveshop to a relevant divesite. I think it would convince more people to contribute, if they could direct divers to their shop that way.
Currently I considering where I can best spend time marketing. If I had a way to link to my diveshop, I'd be much more inclined to do write ups and add photos of the local divesites. :coffee:
Just my five psi
SK
MarcelT
April 3rd, 2011, 04:06 PM
Hi SK,
Thank you for the suggestion. Yes, there will be some kind of dive center functionality on the site soon. I actually started with coding it, but decided to take it out of the current release to think a bit longer about the design.
By the way, there is an option to place banners on the site, to help cover some of the cost of running the server. This may be interesting to use as well, just have a look at WorldDiveMap.com - Ad Manager (http://ads.worlddivemap.com) [/END OF COMMERCIAL ;) ]
Anyway, any contribution to the site is greatly appreciated. A suggestion: you could use the name of your dive center as your username (this falls withing the ToS), and upload some photos and maps. Just select your username (dive center name) as the name of the author when uploading, and that will be placed under the map/photos. Visitors that look at the photos/maps will then see the name of your dive center under each photo/map you added.
Happy diving,
Marcel
MarcelT
April 12th, 2011, 06:03 PM
Hi,
By popular demand from several Scubaboard members: I added an advanced search option to WorldDiveMap.com today (on the main menu-dock).
This allows you to find dive locations by searching for a keyword and looks at the site name, city/region name and the current description. The search is case-insensitive and also shows any accents (for foreign site names).
Happy diving,
Marcel
Ps. I am inviting all Scubaboard members to add descriptions and underwater maps to the site. Please help extend this online resource for divers!
MarcelT
April 14th, 2011, 04:12 PM
Hi,
I received a lot of messages from people running dive centers, who asked if they could have a banner if they add underwater maps to WorldDiveMap.com.
Because I really want the site to become the #1 place where you can find information on dive locations, I just created a "Banner Deal". If you add underwater maps and a proper description to 10 dive locations, you will get a FREE banner for those locations for 1 year!
There is no catch or hidden cost involved - we get more underwater maps for everyone to use, and you get some free advertising on WorldDiveMap.com. That's the deal :cool2:
Happy diving,
Marcel
MarcelT
April 14th, 2011, 04:15 PM
Hi Marcle
Excellent idea. May I suggest you add a diveshop icon, so that people may locate diveshops as well. Or perhaps add their diveshop to a relevant divesite. I think it would convince more people to contribute, if they could direct divers to their shop that way.
Currently I considering where I can best spend time marketing. If I had a way to link to my diveshop, I'd be much more inclined to do write ups and add photos of the local divesites. :coffee:
Just my five psi
SK
Hi SierraKilo,
I have added a Banner Deal to WorldDiveMap.com, please have a look! If you open your favorite dive locations, the banner deal is shown at the top right. Hope this gives you (and others) the incentive you were looking for ;)
Thanks, Marcel
MarcelT
May 1st, 2011, 07:54 PM
Hi,
As promised, I have just added a "review" tab on WorldDiveMap.com too.
If you have dived a location, please take 5 seconds to rate it (1-5 stars)!
You can also list visibility and water temp, and (optionally) add comments.
Happy diving,
Marcel
MarcelT
May 7th, 2011, 01:59 PM
Hi,
It's now also possible to add reviews and videos to locations on WorldDiveMap.com!
