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Thanks for taking an interest in the storied history of 411mania.com. Today, 411mania.com serves 15-20 million impressions per month, has been mentioned on/in mainstream media outlets such as CNN, TNT, TBS, USA Network, ****eTV, FOX News, MSNBC, ESPN, ESPN The Magazine, MTV, and VH1. Hell, even stars like actor Jack Black and rock band Death Cab for Cutie visit 411 regularly. In fact, 411 is one of the largest independently owned media sites remaining on the internet. Sadly, over 90% of the media sites on the internet are now owned by a major corporation. Thus, those sites present everything with a bias that favors the goals and beliefs of the major corporation that backs them. Not here. 411 is proud to be independently owned, allowing us to write what we want, when we want, without concerns about what the “higher-ups” will say. Independence gives 411 an edge, a heartbeat, and a unique voice. Our hundreds of writers are able to share their views and opinions without the censorship and bias that has taken over the internet.
It’s been a wild ride for 411. It wasn’t easy getting here. 411 has had a long and storied history on the internet. Let’s take a look back, shall we?
411mania.com started out as a tiny little Geocities website in August of 1996. Founder Ashish Pabari created the site with little knowledge of website design and no experience with basic website tools such as HTML. The original site featured nothing except a single column by Ashish and hell, that column didn’t even have line breaks until ’97!
Ashish spent hours upon hours jumping from AOL chat room to AOL chat room promoting the new site, begging people to visit. And slowly, people did. The word of mouth, along with the divine intervention of Dinferno, started to turn 411 from a little site lost in a rapidly growing internet to a site that began to reach…gasp…hundreds of people!
At the end of 1997 and start of 1998, the internet was a hot place to be. Everything was booming. Millions of new people were discovering the ‘net each day, and many of them found their way to 411. 411 moved on from Geocities to other shady homes (MDK anyone?) and eventually to its own domain. It was a proud day for 411 when the site finally shed the long URLs for its own domain. Traffic boomed. And soon, other writers were brought aboard such as a young whipper-snapper named Dave Gagnon and even an aspiring young Ron Gamble.
Few journeys, however, are complete without some hurdles. As the year turned to 2001, the dotcom bubble burst. 411 resorted to losing money daily as Ashish paid money out of his pocket to keep the site alive. But where there is a will, there is a way, and 411 would soon grow to new heights.
As the years went by, 411 continued to expand. Soon new sections popped up and dozens of new writers came to share their voices via 411. Others such as Jonathan Widro (who can choke on it) also contributed in administrative capacities to help 411 grow. Widro was promoted to Managing Partner in 2003 and remained on in that capacity until 2004. 411’s online forum community was also reaching new heights. In 2003, 03.03.03 to be exact, 411 celebrated with a ****, launching a new design, one of the more infamous in 411 history, and continuing to grow.
In the months that followed 03.03.03, 411 grew at a rapid pace. It became normal to hear about 411mania.com on channels such as MTV, ESPN, or VH1. It became normal to see 411mania.com signs being held up during TV broadcasts that aired on channels such as the USA Network and ****eTV. It became normal to see 411mania.com mentioned in publications such as ESPN The Magazine, Yahoo! WebBound, The Houston Chronicle, and Maxim Magazine.
New writers continued to make their presence known at 411, including aspiring go-getter Larry Csonka and resident know-it-all J.D. Dunn, and the site recorded record traffic in 2003 which was topped in 2004 which was topped in 2005 which was topped in 2006 which was topped in … well, you get the idea.
While the dozens of other sites that once competed with 411 (cough :: SCOOPS :: cough) have fallen by the wayside, 411 continues to expand and thrive!
And that brings us to the present. 411 continues to set traffic records on a nearly monthly basis. Founder Ashish Pabari remains at the helm, over a decade after founding 411, continuing to evolve the site to new heights. Co-webmaster Larry Csonka, editors Chad Webb, Mitch Michaels, and Ramon Aranda, and tech guy Ben Czajkowski help immensely in making 411 what it is. The site would not be where it is today without the contributions of 411 editors and writers.
411 would also like to thank the following individuals who, over the years, have made a significant impact in helping 411 grow but weren’t mentioned in the above history. So thanks to: Leonard Hayhurst, Michael Melchor, Caleb Newby, Mike Watters, Jazob Ziegler, Daniels, Chris Hyatte, Patrick Kitt, and Wayne.
For a full list of the current staff, head over to the 411 Family Tree.
how about learning how to read first before operating a computer? hooked on phonics before windows pc.
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