Are forums in decline?

[Shut Up Legs]

It probably helps that this forum is very user friendly, for which I assume we can thank @Shaun . Some others I might have been interested in were a complete PITA to use. From viewing, to posting, or trying to add photos. If you are short on patience, as I tend to be, it is easier just to move on.

I wholeheartedly agree with that . This is a very friendly forum. There are two Australian cycling forums I used to use, but there was a bit too much "in-crowd" and hostility on them. CycleChat is much more pleasant, so thanks, @Shaun!

 

[w00hoo_kent]

Forums in general are dying and have been for a while, they are going the way of mailing lists (which forums overtook) it's because in the main the next generation of users aren't using forums. They were using Facebook, but they moved on to tumblr, instagram, snapchat and whatever else has got big since that I don't know about.

However

Some mailing lists never died, and some forums are unlikely to die either, at least in the short to mid-term. As long as the mods here are happy to run it, I'd expect Cycle Chat to stay around. This is primarily because it's a local place for local people. To a degree I mean this a bit tongue in cheek (the people that have been here since the mass exodus will probably stay here in slowly dwindling numbers and will keep the home fires burning while they do it) but more importantly I mean this because people on this forum meet other people on this forum face to face at times and socialise that way as well as just posting here. That creates a secondary mesh of relationships that give the forum a completely different feel to the global ones where the vast majority of people can only build up pictures of the other posters from assumptions based on their on-line persona. Internet groups where the posters meet each other occasionally have a vastly different flavour to them and a completely different manner of policing themselves which hugely increases their likelihood of surviving.

 

[fossyant]

Forums are a bit different. It's up to the members, especially the long standing ones, to contribute to it, builds a knowledge base. But it can be dragged down by members too. We all have responsibility.

Same with mods, none of them are paid, they don't get any better rights than everyone else, but they try to keep it fair. There are lots of characters on a forum, so a balance is needed. This is supposed to be family friendly. The mods do what they can with a light touch, but has anyone actually looked at mumsnet, good god the swearing and stuff on there is shocking. We wouldn't stand a chance.

 

[CopperBrompton]

This place seems as busy as ever. WK is right that forums are not where the Kool Kids hang out, but the rest of us are still here, I think. :-)

 

[Fab Foodie]

I like to keep my crap quota up on cc.

You're doing magnificently on that score!

 

[MacB]

This is one of the few places I frequent that still feels old school, YACF being another one. Other forums I used to use have been monetised to death and the pain of the ads, and not upsetting the advertisers, have driven the communities away. I can think of a few that have self imploded as well with infighting dodgy moderation and the like.

Monetisation is the killer though, I still fondly remember Yahoo auctions especially when I grimace at the amount e-bay and paypal swipe from me.

Never been on FB, Twitter or the like so don't know but I'll live with what I'm missing

 

[Haitch]

Seem's like cc is one of the exceptions then.

My footy club forum has become far too busy now though and they changed the format which is a mess so I frequent it less

Is that the one set up by Jax and run by Ian(?). If so, i used to be on it as well!

 

[Bollo]

This is one of the few places I frequent that still feels old school, YACF being another one. Other forums I used to use have been monetised to death and the pain of the ads, and not upsetting the advertisers, have driven the communities away. I can think of a few that have self imploded as well with infighting dodgy moderation and the like.

Monetisation is the killer though, I still fondly remember Yahoo auctions especially when I grimace at the amount e-bay and paypal swipe from me.

Never been on FB, Twitter or the like so don't know but I'll live with what I'm missing

Buy 'Bludge's 100 best posts commemorative tea towel for only £9.99! Free guide "Turn your handlebars in cash" with every purchase!!!

 

[Louch]

On here has the most positivity, and self policing of any forum I have been on.

 

[rich p]

This is one of the few places I frequent that still feels old school, YACF being another one. Other forums I used to use have been monetised to death and the pain of the ads, and not upsetting the advertisers, have driven the communities away. I can think of a few that have self imploded as well with infighting dodgy moderation and the like.

Monetisation is the killer though, I still fondly remember Yahoo auctions especially when I grimace at the amount e-bay and paypal swipe from me.

Never been on FB, Twitter or the like so don't know but I'll live with what I'm missing

I don't frequent any other forums so I can't offer any meaningful opinions ()
www.shagyourwife'sbestfriend.co.uk isn't really a forum.

 

[classic33]

I don't frequent any other forums so I can't offer any meaningful opinions ()
www.shagyourwife'sbestfriend.co.uk isn't really a forum.

Take your word on that part.

 

[rich p]

I don't frequent any other forums so I can't offer any meaningful opinions ()
www.shagyourwife'sbestfriend.co.uk isn't really a forum.

Take your word on that part.

If only you were my best friend C33, I could help you out.
p.s Thank Gawd she doesn't read the shite I write on here.

 

[threebikesmcginty]

...Thank Gawd she doesn't read the ****e I write on here.

rich, no one reads the shíte you write on here.

 

[ianrauk]

Is that the one set up by Jax and run by Ian(?). If so, i used to be on it as well!

Yep. Was on there for many years. One of the first proper forums.

 

[Ganymede]

I've noticed it myself recently, I go on SA which is one if, if not the, biggest "traditional" forum in in the world, and I would say in the last 3 years or so posts have dropped by 50%.

The answer is Reddit. For those that don't know Reddit is a link sharing site with comments sections on each one. Links are divided into subreddits and upvoted or downvoted. The most heavily upvoted links go to the top of All. Upvotes give you karma points. Comments have a separate up and downvoting set of points. There are lots of phone apps for reddit and there is a divide between people who look at the links on phones and people who comment on them. Reddit was good 2 years ago and then it became the home of the 14 year old American teenager.

It is a hell hole for two reasons. Firstly, what people do most of the time is take something original, rehost it on imgur and then create a reddit link to that imgur without crediting the original creator, sometimes it's original content but this is increasingly rare. The second reason it is the worst place on the internet is that a worryingly large amount of the people who comment are absolute scum, devoid of all empathy. Eugenics, neo-nazism, racism, sexism, people who "hate" religion, people who legitimately hate children, people who think that normal parenting is child abuse, people who refer to their pets as their children - these opinions are not the minority they are the majority and it's a self moderating community, with up and downvotes for posts and these downrigth nasty opinions keep on floating to the top over and over again.

Yes there are a few secret subreddits that are quite nice (there is no real list of subs) , but they are dying. What was the absolute last straw for me was when the sewing subforum that had happily been keeping it's head down and off the radar was invaded by a huge group of kids for a day or so and they made it perfectly clear that they felt that a sub mainly frequented by women did not belong there (because screw you mom) and that as there were more of them than us there was nothing we could do.

edit: I think some hobby forums are surviving when larger ones are not is because the bigger places tend to confine you to one small area and there are too many different aspects of something like cycling for that to work

Interesting analysis. That thing about the sewing forum getting invaded is really awful. There's a huge knitting forum called Ravelry which is international and an amazing resource for crafty types and seems to be carrying on fine. I wonder if there's something about forums that have genuine useful information on them surviving? It's not just "click on this cos it's clever".

Forums in general are dying and have been for a while, they are going the way of mailing lists (which forums overtook) it's because in the main the next generation of users aren't using forums. They were using Facebook, but they moved on to tumblr, instagram, snapchat and whatever else has got big since that I don't know about.

However

Some mailing lists never died, and some forums are unlikely to die either, at least in the short to mid-term. As long as the mods here are happy to run it, I'd expect Cycle Chat to stay around. This is primarily because it's a local place for local people. To a degree I mean this a bit tongue in cheek (the people that have been here since the mass exodus will probably stay here in slowly dwindling numbers and will keep the home fires burning while they do it) but more importantly I mean this because people on this forum meet other people on this forum face to face at times and socialise that way as well as just posting here. That creates a secondary mesh of relationships that give the forum a completely different feel to the global ones where the vast majority of people can only build up pictures of the other posters from assumptions based on their on-line persona. Internet groups where the posters meet each other occasionally have a vastly different flavour to them and a completely different manner of policing themselves which hugely increases their likelihood of surviving.

Funnily enough I think this really helps in spite of the fact that I never expect to join any of the rides. I'd like to in theory but I just know it's really unlikely. But the relationships within the forum made by those who do meet up don't seem to me to have a cliquey, excluding feel, and genuinely contribute to the whole "world of cycling" feel.