Today is my (THWACK) Anniversary

My anniversary is September 20, 2004. 

Thwack's helped me get a lot more out of my Solarwinds products by being a place where I can:

• Ask questions
• Receive answers more quickly than provided by Solarwinds Support
• Search for topics, phrases, commands, solutions
• Download tools (pollers, reports, etc.) created by others and apply them to my environment
• Learn about changes to product lines
• Commiserate with my peers about problems my SW environment may be experiencing
• Help others overcome their challenges by providing timely answers to their questions
• Make suggestions to improve the product line
• Earn points that let me get some useful (and non-useful) swag
• Create a history of answers, questions, suggestions, and more that builds a reputation
• Compete with others for points and status based on participation in many different areas
• Submit white papers for review and sharing to make others' lives better
• Be exposed to industry experts and products with which I'm not familiar
• Learn best practices
• Avoid mistakes, or correct them
• Improve my team's ability to leverage the capabilities of SW products we own
• Test new products and recommend them for purchase (or not)
• Take a break from the stress of the day by researching some new technology topic.  e.g.:  Alternate Actuator: The Bacon Edition
• Let loose the muse:  https://thwack.solarwinds.com/community/solarwinds-community/geek-speak/blog/2019/02/04/network-flowetry?sr=search&searc…   or https://thwack.solarwinds.com/polls/2428?sr=search&searchId=89ba4fda-60a7-43df-b67c-67095a0a8890&searchIndex=2#comment-2…
• Be entertained by the creative and nerdy ideas of people who think differently / better than I in so many other areas!
• See how a product forum SHOULD be run.

THWACK has done so many things for me as a person and a professional, it's difficult to describe how thankful I am.

- Never have to buy shirts, socks, or polos ever again

- I've overcome my horrible presentation anxiety by speaking at SWUGs

- THWACK has pushed me to learn new things like Powershell and APIs, far from the route/switch work I normally do

- Found a sense of community that is so rare, and I cherish it

- Also found hundreds of answers to questions that would otherwise be mysteries

- There's something amazing about seeing your feedback make it into a product

- It's rewarding when you're able to help someone who is in the same shoes you were wearing a few years ago

- I've had the privilege of making many friends and I'll never forget the time we spend together at Solarwinds/THWACK events

- I never would have tried limoncello because I hate lemon flavoring, yet here we are

I joined Thwack to get answers to questions I had. Little did I know that I would be helping others solve problems, get lots of free stuff, meet new people and learn heaps along the way!

Thwack is thwacktastic

We're glad to have you hear, you bring a lot to the community.

I agree that Thwack is a true community. When I first joined Thwack I was not expecting a lot. Pretty much every IT community that I have been a part if makes great promises, but in the end provides a stale, non-active little more than FAQ list, lethargic website. Thwack has many active people ready and willing the help and take on others challenges. I've found it fun to be a part of Thwack and both give an take from the community.