About db.etree.org
db.etree.org is the most popular web site for storing information about live music collections you own.
Started in Aug. 1999, this web site has [grown] into one of the best resources for storing information about [live audio recordings] you own, [finding other people] to trade these recording with, and [tracking which recordings are in circulation].
Tom Anderson created and still maintains db.etree.org. A team of volunteers help maintain the data and add [sources in circulation] for specific bands they have volunteered to admin.
My first phish show was 11/2/98 and I got a copy in .ra soon after. I got into regular downloading of lossless sources later that month. I downloaded heavily and traded occasionally through the mail for the next 10 months, but I'm an admittedly bad trader, delaying my end of the trade for days or even weeks. In August I traded through the mail for an '87 Dead show I already had two copies of. I knew I needed a better way to keep track of my shows.
I wanted complete show information but didn't want to enter all the setlist info myself. I looked at Phishhook but decided the database structure was too weak (having worked as a database designer and programmer for the last two years, I knew what I was looking for). Tape Tracker, a desktop app, fit the bill but I didn't want to pay for it....I wanted an online version.
I took a lot of good source info ideas from TT and created my first PHP application. I started dating Bev at the time I started writing what would become db.etree. I wrote a Visual Basic app to import data from setlist.com into my MySQL?? database and soon had around 25-30k setlist entries. I knew I needed a database abstraction layer and found dbMySQL in Sept. Disappointed with that class, I found phplib in the middle of November and made toma.dhs.org multi-user within a couple days. By the end of December I was getting about 2k hits per day.
My second festival ever was Big Cypress. I missed the etree gathering there. Around March or April I started writing code to import Diana's SHN's in Circulation web pages into my db. I got the db.etree.org domain sometime during the spring. I bought a house in June and spent the 4th of July doing the final import. The site was receiving 10-12k of hits per day after this.
I owned the house for three years and did a lot of development during that time. Living in BFU meant I spent way too much time at home to the benefit of the community. Active development slowed to a crawl around June 2003 but, since the site runs itself thanks to so many volunteers, no further work was necessary day-to-day. However, the site has fallen behind the times. I've done some work to enhance it recently and continue to improve it with tools and techniques unseen thoughout the rest of the web.
Tom Anderson
Last Update: 7/26/2006
To get started, read the BasicRules then [create a userid] and [add some shows] to your list.
This site is graciously hosted by http://www.ibiblio.org

Started in Aug. 1999, this web site has [grown] into one of the best resources for storing information about [live audio recordings] you own, [finding other people] to trade these recording with, and [tracking which recordings are in circulation].
Tom Anderson created and still maintains db.etree.org. A team of volunteers help maintain the data and add [sources in circulation] for specific bands they have volunteered to admin.
History
In 1998 my next-door neighbor broke into my truck and stole my radio and most of my cds, leaving the changer. Not wanting to pay to replace them, I started looking for bit-for-bit copies of Dead shows online. I didn't know anyone in the community but knew there were perfect sources of performances somewhere. I found http://www.sugarmegs.org/ right away and got my first taste of Phish through real audio. I also grabbed some choice GD recordings. I found the IRC channel one day and spent the next week downloading Phish 8/16/98.My first phish show was 11/2/98 and I got a copy in .ra soon after. I got into regular downloading of lossless sources later that month. I downloaded heavily and traded occasionally through the mail for the next 10 months, but I'm an admittedly bad trader, delaying my end of the trade for days or even weeks. In August I traded through the mail for an '87 Dead show I already had two copies of. I knew I needed a better way to keep track of my shows.
I wanted complete show information but didn't want to enter all the setlist info myself. I looked at Phishhook but decided the database structure was too weak (having worked as a database designer and programmer for the last two years, I knew what I was looking for). Tape Tracker, a desktop app, fit the bill but I didn't want to pay for it....I wanted an online version.
I took a lot of good source info ideas from TT and created my first PHP application. I started dating Bev at the time I started writing what would become db.etree. I wrote a Visual Basic app to import data from setlist.com into my MySQL?? database and soon had around 25-30k setlist entries. I knew I needed a database abstraction layer and found dbMySQL in Sept. Disappointed with that class, I found phplib in the middle of November and made toma.dhs.org multi-user within a couple days. By the end of December I was getting about 2k hits per day.
My second festival ever was Big Cypress. I missed the etree gathering there. Around March or April I started writing code to import Diana's SHN's in Circulation web pages into my db. I got the db.etree.org domain sometime during the spring. I bought a house in June and spent the 4th of July doing the final import. The site was receiving 10-12k of hits per day after this.
I owned the house for three years and did a lot of development during that time. Living in BFU meant I spent way too much time at home to the benefit of the community. Active development slowed to a crawl around June 2003 but, since the site runs itself thanks to so many volunteers, no further work was necessary day-to-day. However, the site has fallen behind the times. I've done some work to enhance it recently and continue to improve it with tools and techniques unseen thoughout the rest of the web.
Tom Anderson
Last Update: 7/26/2006
To get started, read the BasicRules then [create a userid] and [add some shows] to your list.
This site is graciously hosted by http://www.ibiblio.org

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