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Are forums less popular than they used to be?

CM30

CM30

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Not in regards to this one or any in particular, but in general?

Because at the moment, every forum I'm on (including most Reddit sections) seems to have become rather quiet. Is there something that's changing in terms of people's mentality online?
 
Social media consumes a lot of peoples time, but I've found this is the type of user that either didn't use forums or at best was a lurker/casual poster on general discussion forums.

I still get the best information when searching the from web people posting on forums and forum-like platforms. Those platforms attract the type of people I like because they can actually post good content and engage in debate.
 
Social media has definitely raped the forum forms of media. Like the blue bomber said, I still prefer it for my means of finding information above all else. Sure, you get the occasional troll but for the most part people will respect and help your inquiries. mI also find it a much nicer way to find friends than social media, but I am admittedly biased against things like FaceBook anyway, so that may just be me. I still use IRC for information on occasion too.
 
I deactivated my facebook account a few months ago and my life has never been better. I've been going hiking, swiming, fishing at the lake, and just getting out and doing things. I told all my friends just to come see me or phone/text me if they want to get in touch. I'm actually thinking about ditching my phone too and going back to a landline.

I'm not a fan of this always connected social world. People just expect you to stop what you're doing and answer their calls and text messages. I had bad luck and any time I'm working on something my phone will just start constantly going off, but if I'm sitting at home bored I don't here a peep out of anyone.

Oh by the way, when I deactivated my facebook account I wanted to delete it permanently. They will not allow me to do this, there isn't an option to do it anywhere on the website. There used to be an option to do that but facebook removed it at some point. I've seriously been considering sending a letter to them and demanding my account be deleted plus a copy of all data they have collected about me. I believe by law they're required to do this.

I left because: It just causes drama between people. It is constantly showing you ads and monitoring your browsing habits so they can figure out how to make even more money off you. Another reason was I had a bad habit of using it while intoxicated, I didn't post or upload anything bad but I would often talk to people and not remember the next day. Finally I just found it boring, it's pretty much the same thing every day.

The only use I found for facebook was getting invited to local events and outdoor parties. I don't need facebook for that now because my friends let me know when that stuff is going on.

For kicks I re-activated the account a little while ago and it was like nothing changed. So even if you deactivate the account facebook still has everything. They even send me e-mails constantly begging me to come back and those e-mails always included status updates from people on my friends list.
 
I do think it does affect the ability and desire for people to go on forums. However, there are two upsides to it, in my opinion.
  • I don't think Facebook is sometimes the best medium for some niche communities.
  • I also think Facebook is a good leverage to promote your own website or forum.
 
el canadiano said:
I do think it does affect the ability and desire for people to go on forums. However, there are two upsides to it, in my opinion.
  • I don't think Facebook is sometimes the best medium for some niche communities.
  • I also think Facebook is a good leverage to promote your own website or forum.
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I've yet to see a facebook page or group to as many numbers/posts as an major online community. So, no I don't think forum are less popular than thy used to be. However, I'd honestly say that most are becoming more successful because of their use of social media and seo.
 
cpvr said:
I've yet to see a facebook page or group to as many numbers/posts as an major online community. So, no I don't think forum are less popular than thy used to be. However, I'd honestly say that most are becoming more successful because of their use of social media and seo.
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Your point about as many numbers and posts is true of Reddit as well. Haven't seen a subreddit compete with a specialised forum in terms of post count, with the Reddit version usually getting about one tenth the amount of activity of a dedicated forum.
 
CM30 said:
Your point about as many numbers and posts is true of Reddit as well. Haven't seen a subreddit compete with a specialised forum in terms of post count, with the Reddit version usually getting about one tenth the amount of activity of a dedicated forum.
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I just read about the news of their ceo on my twitter just the other day. Do you know why she resigned? Isn't gaia online still the most active and populated forum?
 
Short answer: Definitely.

I created my forum back in 2002 when forums were extremely popular, fantastic times to be a forum member. Nowadays, it's just not the same as it used to be. I don't think forums have the excitement they once had, it's strange. I can't quite put my finger on why, maybe i'm just getting old!
 
Elseb said:
Short answer: Definitely.

I created my forum back in 2002 when forums were extremely popular, fantastic times to be a forum member. Nowadays, it's just not the same as it used to be. I don't think forums have the excitement they once had, it's strange. I can't quite put my finger on why, maybe i'm just getting old!
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I know what you mean. Seems like a lot of forums have become really quiet and less interesting than they used to be.

Then again... perhaps it's just a matter of perspective. Before social media, forums felt active. After that, even an active forum feels quiet just because of how ridiculously active the likes of Twitter is.
 
CM30 said:
I know what you mean. Seems like a lot of forums have become really quiet and less interesting than they used to be.

Then again... perhaps it's just a matter of perspective. Before social media, forums felt active. After that, even an active forum feels quiet just because of how ridiculously active the likes of Twitter is.
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I feel similar to Elseb. Back in 2003 and 2004 I belonged to three forums for RPing plus owned my own. Went two or more years with no internet, so mine ended up closing off and dying due to me not signing in and by the time I went back to the others they had become damned-near dead as well even though they were lively as all get-out before. I think it really has a lot to do with the times and forums are, in fact, losing their popularity.

It is the same with IRC. Back during the 70's to early 2000's you would see "join us at #whatever" and know it was an IRC channel for that subject. Nowadays whenever you see a pound sign it is called a friggen 'hashtag' and no one knows wtf IRC is anymore.
 
I worry about the future to be honest. Seems like everyone around nowadays is just so boring and uninteresting that I honestly might stop playing video games or going online for a while. The way forums have lost popularity makes me worry all the interesting people have moved on and only the boring ones with the attention span of a gnat remain online.
 
Well, I can't deny that forums are losing their popularity but then again as long as people like me who prefer forums over social media sites exist, they will never go extinct.
So, relax and just post more threads and people will start talking again :grin:
 
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