Forum activity??

[derekcohen]

I have not visited the forums for some months, previously having been quite active here. On my return I find a significant drop in posts. It seems like a ghost town. Is this my imagination, or where has everyone gone?

Regards from Perth

Derek

[JohnG]

 

[BonPacific]

I come and go, but it feels pretty normal to me. We could always start another Bench thread if we want to up those posting numbers.

[Coop]

I think most of us have been busy planting tomatoes! 

[Tpt life]

Many committed members became content creators (and so began their own smaller crowds), several grew tired of repeated queries and drifted. You are not alone in feeling the decline. 

[wtnhighlander]

Thankfully, we still have a solid core membership, however much smaller it may be these days. There is still a wealth of experience and knowledge ready to be shared, and there seems to be a reasonable amount of 'lurking' traffic. I suppose the younger crowd is more attracted to the bells and whistles experience of platforms like Facebook and TicToc.

[sjeff70]

Yea I thought everyone went Facebook, specifically the Guild Forum.  During its decline Marc suggested forums like these might be dated or something to that affect. 

[Coop]

On 3/10/2022 at 7:22 PM, wtnhighlander said:

Thankfully, we still have a solid core membership, however much smaller it may be these days. There is still a wealth of experience and knowledge ready to be shared, and there seems to be a reasonable amount of 'lurking' traffic. I suppose the younger crowd is more attracted to the bells and whistles experience of platforms like Facebook and TicToc.

As I don’t do Facebook nor TicToc, I’m not so old that I can’t navigate a you Tube video now and then. However, I cut my Woodworking teeth on forums and enjoy the camaraderie and the personal opinions, whether solicited or not. I have a couple of Woodworking friends that I can’t entice to join and they seem to do ok on their own. 

Members on here are like having a buddy in my shop with me! 

[Woodworking_Hobby]

I totally agree!  I do find the knowledge on here very helpful and just reading through posts I will find a new tip or trick.  I like the text and photo format by thread; way easier to follow than random posts on FB or IG in my opinion. I know I am a little late to the game and might ask a question that has been posted 109 times before, but people always seem willing to answer and help a newbie where needed. 

[Immortan D]

Yeah, fewer posts, but still a great place to hang out. I'm taking a break from woodworking so I don't have much to contribute, but I visit every day because I really like this community.

[Mark J]

What others have said.  I've been a member for 6+ years and activity just seems to ebb and flow. 

I have no interest in ever setting foot in the facebook space.

It's good to see you posting again, Derek.

[gee-dub]

TIme marches on.  I was in I.T. for 37 years.  Call me a Luddite, call me old fashion, just don't call me late for dinner (rimshot).  I take a perverse pride in never having sent a tweet.  I don't even know what the interface looks like.  I still regret creating a Facebook account to get free shipping from Rockler a decade or so ago.  Despite numerous attempts to close said account, it still appears here and there.

Now that we know I cut my teeth on bus and tag cables we can frame my position in that I prefer the forum format.  It's a graphical bulletin board .  Yes the level of activity seems to come and go.  Life is ever changing and we all have biorhythms of shop (or in the case of the professional, market) activity.  Since retiring I plan to rarely make items for others unless they are friends and family.  I owe LOML enough furniture to keep me busy for many years at the pace I can now maintain .  Who knew getting old happened so fast?

[Tom King]

Add me to the list that don't do social media other than forums.  I'm not interested in reading everything anyone  has to say.  I like the forums format, and only do one internet forums in each of the subjects I participate in, other than woodworking.  I've been doing forums for as long as there has been such a thing. I get to choose which topic I want to bother reading, or following, or contributing to.

I do two woodworking forums.  One just because of the size of it, and the number of participants, and this one because I like the company best.

[BillyJack]

There's only so much to say on a woodworking forum. It can only be repeated so much.

Router forums I think has been dead for sometime. Its become more of a CNC forum.

Lumberjocks seems to have more Off topic posts 

Sawmillcreek requires a donation to look at photos

Woodworkingtalk seems to be moving it there not arguing...lol

Patriot woodworker. For me use to be a nice forum, but it's similiar to this one...

[Coop]

On 3/11/2022 at 10:47 AM, BillyJack said:

Patriot woodworker. For me use to be a nice forum, but it's similiar to this one...

But, this is a nice forum? 

[Chestnut]

I don't really think the activity has changed a ton in the last year.... I typically read every post and there has usually been around 5-10 active threads every day.

[Ronn W]

Does seem like less traffic.  Regarding repeated questions.  If we are patient and enthusiastic with newcomers we may see an increase.  I would love help out a begineer in my shop, but my insurance company would probably have a fit.

[BillyJack]

I offered to help new woodworkers for years in my shop , atleast the last 15. Either because of a lack of tooling or a lack of know how, but many would rather DIY than learn correctly.

[BillyJack]

Forums should be fun, but many don't see it that way and leave. 

[wtnhighlander]

Forums that allow silly rants and flame wars to drag on seem to keep a good run of traffic, but IMO, generate more noise than useful info. I like the environment here much better, and find it far more helpful.

[BillyJack]

There all the same. 

 

I was actually dissapointed  with Patriot Woodworker as I found even if it's the wrong answer like the little rascals clubhouse if your not a member of the group your instantly wtong, even if your actually correct...

 

The reason I'm on many forums...

[Chet]

On 3/12/2022 at 8:40 AM, BillyJack said:

There all the same. 

I can't agree with this, some keep my attention and some don't no matter how many trys I give them.

[BillyJack]

Woodnet, sawmillcreek and woodworkingtalk are fast forums. Even lumberjocks has slowed a bit. The rest are just slow..

Wasn't Jim Becker a member here years ago?

[drzaius]

I've been away from here for a while. I just needed to leave, but I see that the mod who was, if not the source then the facilitator of my grief, has left so I think it's safe to return :).

To fill the gap, I have looked to other forums. Sawmill Creek is still very active & a good forum. Likewise for Canadian Woodworking forum, for a more local flavor. I think this one is still one of the better ones.

I tried a couple of facebook groups, The Wood Whisperer Guild and the SawStop user group. Oh my gosh! Facebook has to be about the worst substitute for a real forum. There's no structure for categories or subforums, no easy way to return to a thread a couple of days later and no sense of community. The Guild group is the better of the two, but seems like it's mostly populated by beginners asking basic questions. Nothing wrong with that, but it just doesn't make it very interesting without the balance of members that a good forum has. The SawStop group, in spite of having an excellent guy for an admin, is just a waste of time. If you spend more than a few days there, you notice that the vast majority of the posts are new users asking the same dozen or so questions (the answers to which are easy  to find in the manual) about how to use their new 'SawStop'. Rinse & repeat, rinse & repeat. The enthusiasm they feel for their shiny excellent new tool is fun (and I felt the same before the new wore off), but it doesn't make for a very good woodworking fix. There are virtually no threads, like project journals, that last more than a couple of days.

@derekcohen, you were still active on here when you left and I hope you stick around. I've always enjoyed your contributions and perspectives. In fact, coming across this thread is what made me decide to ditch the waste of time that is facebook & come back here. Thanks for that.

[wtnhighlander]

Nice to see you back, @drzaius!