[Vitani]

My Testimonial - Vitani

My testimonial is going to be a bit different then the ones we have seen so far. This because I want to share my story and experience in full. I'll add a short version as well. I hope you enjoy the read.

In short:
This is a quik summary for those who don't want to read the full thread.
Spoiler (Click to View)
I joined Hack Forums in 2013 because I was interested in things any script kiddie is interested in, hacking. I had a rough time in 2014 and 2015 but I always found my release on this website where I could relax and forget about the shitty things that happened that day. The community was and still is amazing in my opinion which is why I started to become more and more active. In 2016 I became more active then ever before and my life took a turn for the better, thanks to HF. You guys are amazing and I want to thank each and every one of you for the journey, the experience and most of all the fun times we have had together as a community.

2013:
On October the fourth, 2013 my journey on Hack Forums started out the same as many others who are active on this site to this day. I had always been interested in technology and the latest developments surrounding this topic. At this time I was still a teenager in my fourth year of highschool. In my class I was always the nerdy kid who people went to if their PC broke down. In my free time I was mostly browsing the internet, being a typical script kiddie searching for ways to DDoS and Hack things. When I stumbled upon Hack Forums I pretty much felt like I discovered a gold mine due to it's variety of topics which I, like many other users on this website, was interested in. I wasn't really posting a lot myself but I read through loads of tutorials, guides and other interesting threads.


2014:
If I remember correctly I got myself L33T somewhere in 2014, which I was very happy about. The features you get when upgrading are amazing, and definitely worth it if you are a regular on this forum. In this year, I wasn't doing to well. I was failing a lot of classes and I was being bullied in school, as well as having to deal with some troubling situations at home. These things caused me to fall into a depression which got me to a point where I wanted to end things just to be done with it all. This phenomenon is called tunnel vision, which basicly means that you are so depressed that you only see the one permanent "solution" to all your problems. If you are experiencing this I urge you to seek help, from a professional, family/friends or even online. There is always another actual solution, and there will always be people willing to help you achieve this if you let them in.


2015:
A bright side to the whole situation in 2014 was that I started being more active on HF. When I just needed to forget the shitty things that had happened that day I went on HF and joined in on conversations going on in the lounge, as well as read up on the latest happenings online. Hack Forums was a place for me where I could just be myself and didn't have to pretend to be anything else. This was where I really started to post more and become more active within the community. I started to see that even though I was in a bad place in my life I had the power to change that and develop myself further online as well as in real life. From this moment on I promised myself to stop sitting around and doing nothing and instead start working my ass off to improve my current situation. I started putting a lot more effort into school, and teach myself several coding languages in my free time.

Within a matter of months I saw my life change for the better. Not only did my grades go up and basicly skyrocketed in comparison to the grades I got before, I was also able to get myself help work on my depression. I'm not saying it was an easy road but it was definitely the best one. Thanks to my change of heart and setting my mind to achieving my goals I also ran into this amazing girl in November of this year, who is still my girlfriend today.
On Hack Forums I started being even more active. I donated some money, made a few tutorials and made several friends on to this amazing website. It's gonna sound really cheesy but at this point I fell in love with this community. I was online most days just to keep up with it, and the latest sitenews.
I want to thank the members of HF for helping me achieve this, without you this would not have been possible. Thanks for being there for me.


2016:
This year has honestly been the best year of my life. Not only was I able to completely ditch depression, I got accepted by a very prestigious university in my country. Currently I'm in the second year of the IT study I am attending. I'm happier then ever now that my life is back on track. I used to day dream a lot about a better life, and looking back at that, dreams are usefull for setting goals and challenging yourself time and time again to improve yourself and your life.
Without Hack Forums I would definitely NOT be where I am today. This forum is my life, I love the community and I hope it will continue to be as awesome as ever.

A few months ago I got accepted into the writers group which was an amazing personal achievement for me, as I've always loved the HFNews, and I've been wanting to contribute to it for a long time. Shoutout to IHydra for being a cool guy and by far one of the most high quality people on this website.
I like to think that I became a bit more known by the community itself this year, although there's still the occasional member who mistakes me for the much more recognizable member Vitani's Mate.


The Future:
An important personal goal for me is to make my mark on HF.
Hack Forums has had an enormous impact on my life. Because of this website I now have a steady (part time) job as IT consultant, I'm studying IT, which I love doing and I am able to afford my own place.
I'm currently working on another big guide on CCNA for the networking forum so expect that to be released in the near future.
If it's upto me I'll be part of this community for many more years to come, and hopefully one day people will know me for who I am, and not just "The guy who is Vitani's Mate's friend".


Conclusion:
I want to thank Hack Forum's and it's community for everything. The past few years on here have been an amazing experience for me. I wouldn't be where I am today without this website.

Also a specific thank you to our admin Omniscient. You have done an incredible job maintaining this website and it's community. I know for a fact that this is not nearly as easy as some might think. Back in the day I was kinda afraid of you but honestly you are a really nice guy. I'm glad that I get to be part of the community you created.

See you guys around.

- Vitani