carrot
Flashaholic
A friend of mine got me reminiscing about what CPF was like 5 years ago, when I joined. I feel pretty comfortable in saying I'm no longer one of the newest members of CPF, but I recognize I am still not one of the oldest members of CPF. Even still, it also seems appropriate to remember some things about CPF when I first joined.
I would like to invite all other members to join me in reminiscing about the "good old days," especially in things that no longer hold true today. Let's not get into flashlight politics, and let's not make veiled insults at each other.
I remember when LEDs were still in their infancy, when incans still reigned supreme and power LEDs were simply durable alternatives to the warmer, higher output hotwire. Back then you didn't really get any more peak runtime, just a longer tail of decreasing light.
I remember when not all lights had a converter board in them. So many were simply dumb circuits of lamp, tube, battery, switch.
I remember when nearly all lights had only one mode. Two modes was golden. More? Preposterous.
I remember when clickies weren't so popular (or common). When they were looked down upon as the twisty's less reliable, less preferable cousin.
I remember when the Nichia CS was the big thing. How could Nichia have doubled the output without any downsides?!
I remember when you either had an Arc-AAA on your keys, or a Photon II. That subject was all the rage -- which do I get? There really wasn't any other option, unless you wanted an E1e on your keys instead.
I remember when Peak was an ugly Arc clone. They've certainly made great strides today, and oh how Arc has fallen.
I remember the Luxeon lottery. You'd buy an expensive light and cross your fingers that when it arrived it wouldn't be pee green (think nuclear cat ****), an unpleasant shade of purple, or some angry blue tint. Most of the complaints you get with today's tints... well, if you'd were playing the Luxeon lottery you'd have been pretty satisfied. (I won!!!)
I remember "Cree rings". Since the Cree XR-E didn't have quite the same beam distribution, and all LED reflectors were for Luxeons, it resulted in weird dark spots or ringed beams.
I remember when HDS wasn't every other recommendation. I remember that if you liked HDS, you were a little weird, because you were the only one on the forums who had to input morse code into your flashlight to turn it on. (Exaggeration!!)
I remember when we considered budget lights to be an Arc-AAA, a Surefire G2, or a Fenix L1P. And maybe a couple of Inovas.
I remember when my first Fenix (an L1P) arrived, forever changing the scenery of CPF. Did they revolutionize CPF? Or are they simply symbolic of the change in the flashlight industry that shaped how things are today? If not for Fenix, it certainly would have been someone else...
I would like to invite all other members to join me in reminiscing about the "good old days," especially in things that no longer hold true today. Let's not get into flashlight politics, and let's not make veiled insults at each other.
I remember when LEDs were still in their infancy, when incans still reigned supreme and power LEDs were simply durable alternatives to the warmer, higher output hotwire. Back then you didn't really get any more peak runtime, just a longer tail of decreasing light.
I remember when not all lights had a converter board in them. So many were simply dumb circuits of lamp, tube, battery, switch.
I remember when nearly all lights had only one mode. Two modes was golden. More? Preposterous.
I remember when clickies weren't so popular (or common). When they were looked down upon as the twisty's less reliable, less preferable cousin.
I remember when the Nichia CS was the big thing. How could Nichia have doubled the output without any downsides?!
I remember when you either had an Arc-AAA on your keys, or a Photon II. That subject was all the rage -- which do I get? There really wasn't any other option, unless you wanted an E1e on your keys instead.
I remember when Peak was an ugly Arc clone. They've certainly made great strides today, and oh how Arc has fallen.
I remember the Luxeon lottery. You'd buy an expensive light and cross your fingers that when it arrived it wouldn't be pee green (think nuclear cat ****), an unpleasant shade of purple, or some angry blue tint. Most of the complaints you get with today's tints... well, if you'd were playing the Luxeon lottery you'd have been pretty satisfied. (I won!!!)
I remember "Cree rings". Since the Cree XR-E didn't have quite the same beam distribution, and all LED reflectors were for Luxeons, it resulted in weird dark spots or ringed beams.
I remember when HDS wasn't every other recommendation. I remember that if you liked HDS, you were a little weird, because you were the only one on the forums who had to input morse code into your flashlight to turn it on. (Exaggeration!!)
I remember when we considered budget lights to be an Arc-AAA, a Surefire G2, or a Fenix L1P. And maybe a couple of Inovas.
I remember when my first Fenix (an L1P) arrived, forever changing the scenery of CPF. Did they revolutionize CPF? Or are they simply symbolic of the change in the flashlight industry that shaped how things are today? If not for Fenix, it certainly would have been someone else...
But I wanted to highlight this. That's kinda the impression I get attempting to sift through the instruction manuals, quick reference cards and FAQs. 
