What's the history behind the Zigga Zoomba Lounge?
- Thread starter Rock
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The IC site is an evolution of many things. Others were there before me.
It started as two separate sites - one for basketball and one for football…..owned and run by different people…..they merged.
Many on here date back to Dave Chen’s site; I don’t. Based on long-term posters, I wish I’d found it. IIRC, Dave’s site predates IC.
I joined in 2002 or 2003 and almost exclusively posted on the free hoops board (UNC Football was EXCESSIVELY depressing in that era).
My poasts in that era were as data-driven as they could be. Nothing comparable to today’s data-driven posts.
The posters on IC Free Hoops would comment about how fierce and ferocious ZZL poasters were…….and that you didn’t want to go over there. They’d chew you up and spit you out.
So, I immediately went over to ZZL. Which in those days was non-UNC sports, politics, Pep’s fishing trips, movies, books, stupid shit, Cooper’s crazy neighbor, Cooper’s dead bodies in hotels, glove department and police compartment, glass of Brie, I’m going to Charleston and need vacation advice……..
And, maybe the best part of ZZL - stealth game threads.
Ben and the PTB decreed no UNC sports on ZZL….so, game threads on ZZL were stomped out QUICKLY……well, ZZLers had no interest in discussing games with the cretins on free hoops or free football or the cretinous people who paid for premium and poasted about games on either board.
So, someone (I haven’t a clue) created Stealth Game Threads……some were so well crafted they’d go 20-30-50-75 poasts before it was apparent it was the stealth thread…..no one knew it was the stealth thread AND it was popular enough to sustain itself for dozens or hundreds of posts……someone was the Stealth Thread coordinator (the only person who knew who was starting each Stealth Thread). At some point, IC gave up on opposing talking sports on ZZL.
At some point, ZZL had the most traffic on IC. By far.
IIRC, there were 5 boards when I joined:
- Free Hoops
- Free Football
- Premium Hoops
- Premium Football
- ZZL - off-topic
If we could get Pep and Lurid back…..
4heels4evr
Well-Known Member
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dumps like a truck
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He's Not Here
Exceptional Member
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I had forgotten about the dead bodies in the hotel. That was gold.
Was Kiki from the bball board or was that on the Zizzle?
Was Kiki from the bball board or was that on the Zizzle?
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Basketball board. I think I have it saved somewhere
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Aye! Zigga Zoomba
Aye zigga zoomba zoomba zoomba
Aye zigga zoomba zoomba zay
Aye zigga zoomba zoomba zoomba
Aye zigga zoomba zoomba zay
Roll ’em down you Tar Heel Warriors
Roll ’em down and fight for Carolina
Aye zigga zoomba zoomba zoomba
Aye zigga zoomba zoomba zay
Aye zigga zoomba zoomba zoomba
Aye zigga zoomba zoomba zay
Aye zigga zoomba zoomba zoomba
Aye zigga zoomba zoomba zay
Roll ’em down you Tar Heel Warriors
Roll ’em down and fight for Carolina
Aye zigga zoomba zoomba zoomba
Aye zigga zoomba zoomba zay
Centerpiece
Iconic Member
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Not sure, but why exactly was there a need to create ZZL-P? I’m assuming when the politics angle on the regular Zigga Zoomba Lounge went sideways with the advent of Trump?
And a follow up: when and why did ZZL-P get labeled “a lib echo chamber”? I was late to the game and was almost exclusively on the free b’ball board before stumbling in over there and noticed a relative dearth of pubs poasting.
And a follow up: when and why did ZZL-P get labeled “a lib echo chamber”? I was late to the game and was almost exclusively on the free b’ball board before stumbling in over there and noticed a relative dearth of pubs poasting.
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I started posting on the old goheels board. It was the 8-20 season (2001-02) and I was living in Los Angeles and looking for other fans with whom I could commiserate. We talked about basketball (or given the circumstances, avoided talking about basketball) but that group also starting talking about other interests; TV shows, movies, what kind of car you drove, a little politics, anything. Ultimately, there were far fewer threads about Tar Heel sports than those “off-topic” subjects.
Something happened and the board had to shut down. As I recall it had something to do with the domain name or URL or the trademark of “goheels” or something like that. The group was trying to figure out what to do (not unlike the current situation with the ZZL-P) and several people brought up the ZZL, an off-topic board on an UNC sports site, but others warned that board was a bunch of opinionated jerks who were not welcoming to new people disrupting their clique.
I lurked at the ZZL for a while and got the lay of the land and figured out who the strong personalities were. Ultimately, I determined they weren’t jerks at all, just a collection of damn smart and mostly funny people with highly tuned bullshit detectors and a willingness to challenge it. I began to participate on the board but felt invisible for a while. It was sort of like moving to a new town, finding a neighborhood bar you feel comfortable with, but which is populated by a lot of regulars and it takes time to be noticed, much less included. Then after a while you realize you are one of those regulars as others new people start to show up.
Over time, I met for drinks with a few other posters who lived in LA or some who were visiting and wanted to have a gathering. I have taken a few breaks over the years, once almost a year long but others for a few months when other issues in my life left little time for the time suck that a message board can be. Over the years, ZZLers have moved to new towns, gotten married, raised kids, lost loved ones, just generally lived their lives but stayed connected to a group people, most of whose real names they didn’t even know. Some folks drift away, other show up, and some have passed away. Maybe we don’t know what happened to some, but on occasion we have lost a poster and someone in their family understood enough about their ZZL activities to share their loss with us.
Something happened and the board had to shut down. As I recall it had something to do with the domain name or URL or the trademark of “goheels” or something like that. The group was trying to figure out what to do (not unlike the current situation with the ZZL-P) and several people brought up the ZZL, an off-topic board on an UNC sports site, but others warned that board was a bunch of opinionated jerks who were not welcoming to new people disrupting their clique.
I lurked at the ZZL for a while and got the lay of the land and figured out who the strong personalities were. Ultimately, I determined they weren’t jerks at all, just a collection of damn smart and mostly funny people with highly tuned bullshit detectors and a willingness to challenge it. I began to participate on the board but felt invisible for a while. It was sort of like moving to a new town, finding a neighborhood bar you feel comfortable with, but which is populated by a lot of regulars and it takes time to be noticed, much less included. Then after a while you realize you are one of those regulars as others new people start to show up.
Over time, I met for drinks with a few other posters who lived in LA or some who were visiting and wanted to have a gathering. I have taken a few breaks over the years, once almost a year long but others for a few months when other issues in my life left little time for the time suck that a message board can be. Over the years, ZZLers have moved to new towns, gotten married, raised kids, lost loved ones, just generally lived their lives but stayed connected to a group people, most of whose real names they didn’t even know. Some folks drift away, other show up, and some have passed away. Maybe we don’t know what happened to some, but on occasion we have lost a poster and someone in their family understood enough about their ZZL activities to share their loss with us.
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I just noticed Dave Chen is now posting here on this site. This site is already hitting the big time!
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There's been lots of drama over the years and classic poster flameouts.
I remember a HoyaMandy or something, a Georgetown girl that liked the Heels. She was on the basketball boards so maybe it was there, but something got real contentious so I'm thinking ZZL. I remember a very pretty girl, either in her icon photo or when she got outted. Some dookies or wuffies had infiltrated and really hated her. Someone discovered her real identity, revealed it, and it wasn't good or something. Big drama then she disappeared.
Some of the old names I remember, that were very entertaining but gone for years. Probably vanished over a decade ago.... Dumpslikeatruck and BillWaltonIsGod.
I remember a HoyaMandy or something, a Georgetown girl that liked the Heels. She was on the basketball boards so maybe it was there, but something got real contentious so I'm thinking ZZL. I remember a very pretty girl, either in her icon photo or when she got outted. Some dookies or wuffies had infiltrated and really hated her. Someone discovered her real identity, revealed it, and it wasn't good or something. Big drama then she disappeared.
Some of the old names I remember, that were very entertaining but gone for years. Probably vanished over a decade ago.... Dumpslikeatruck and BillWaltonIsGod.
- Messages
- 432
Another classic theme were the "goodbye cruel zzl" threads. When certain posters had enough, in an attempt to take their ball and go home, they would post a long "goodbye cruel zzl" post. They would name all the posters they hated and why, and list all the reasons they were pissed off.
Then after that post everyone would just brutalize that poster. Invariably, the original poster could not resist responding, and would be back for several more days.
Most did eventually leave. But a few came back apologizing emphatically and begging for mercy.
Those were classics. The history of the ZZLP really began on the original ZZL board. Though it was a general off topic board, the bulk of the activity was around politics or current events. When members started complaining about how nasty and contentious things got, that was when they decided to split off a separate politics only board. But most of the history dates back to original ZZL.
When the ZZLP branched off, the old ZZL basically became a wasteland and useless. Most activity moved to the ZZLP and the ZZL was pretty lifeless. So it basically backfired.
Then after that post everyone would just brutalize that poster. Invariably, the original poster could not resist responding, and would be back for several more days.
Most did eventually leave. But a few came back apologizing emphatically and begging for mercy.
Those were classics. The history of the ZZLP really began on the original ZZL board. Though it was a general off topic board, the bulk of the activity was around politics or current events. When members started complaining about how nasty and contentious things got, that was when they decided to split off a separate politics only board. But most of the history dates back to original ZZL.
When the ZZLP branched off, the old ZZL basically became a wasteland and useless. Most activity moved to the ZZLP and the ZZL was pretty lifeless. So it basically backfired.
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First there was Dave Chen's board and all was right in the world but that was before dark times, before the empire...
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ZZL watercooler for all the noobs
wIpL posting in the 3rd person
wIpL posting in the 3rd person
WaynetheDrain
Esteemed Member
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Stealth threads were amazingly fun.
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Let me know when Stephanie shows up to poast