building a web community

[dirtybbq]

Hi, I am really interested in moving on from my site http://www.dirtybbq.com which I developed just for experience and for the enjoyment of my friends at college. Now I want to develop a site, or web community really, that can appeal to a much broader range of people instead of just people who know me. I am amazed at some sites I see that are message boards/user profiles but have thousands of members who actively participate in discussions, arguments, photo sharing, advice etc. daily. How can I build a community like this? I can definitely add a ton of great functionality but I'm want a clearer idea of how to get people involved before I spend the time and energy to build it. I am not looking to make any money, just have a good time developing and attract a wide array of viewers/participants. I don't know where to go for advice on this. Any suggestions? Thanks.

[Sux0rZh@jc0rz]

make it first. websites usually go best if u make them, check them, edit, recheck, ect. before releasing it to the public. cause if u tell everyone first, they all get excited and then get bored while u work and stop checking back by the time it is ready. then u go talk about it again and their all like... yeah whatever and dont go to ur site. so make it then go talk about it on forums and tell everyone you know and try to advertise.(in ur sig, ect.) and eventually it will gain momentum.