Are RV forums dying?
Seems to me we get less and less participation in this forum each year:
Forum Discussion
I have read every post in this topic up to this point and I have to say that several things jump out when taken as a Whole.
One is that there seems to be a division between what might be called those with "delicate sensibilities" or thin skin vs those who are more tolerant of disagreement, off beat humor and are not so offended by passionate posts.
There is a grain of truth in almost every post here about the reasons for a decline...if in fact it is declining (GSE will never release those figures for sure). And I agree with many in part.
But to my mind there is a lot of misunderstanding floating around about just what constitutes the Personal or Flaming or Off Topic and I agree with those that feel the site is over moderated.
But it is not just over-moderation that happens it's lack of "intelligent" moderation or at least "informed" moderation that is also a big factor.
Many times in very good discussions I find that the moderators will jump in and it is clear from their comments or actions that they neither understand nor appreciate the difference between Sarcasm and Satire, nor do they seem to have any understanding of the meaning or differences between Analogy, Metaphor or Irony. These are all long established tools of language and their use here makes this a much more interesting place...unfortunately a few moderators and a few members don't get it.
I personally don't come to a forum like this to engage in what I consider to be idle, feel-good chit chat. That rarely gets anyone the information they need. I also find it odd when a poster is told...go look it up...Time passes, things change, new products and ideas take shape every day, sending someone to a year-old post just doesn't make sense.
But along with the vast amount of good information herein there is an almost equal amount of misleading and downright wrong information being pandered by some with an axe to grind. Try as many might to bring actual facts to bear on an issue like ST Tires or Sway Bars there was a tendency by some to shout down those that thought that the former were just fine and that the latter was a marketing scam of the first order.
But I also think the Forum (as any is) is also a creature of the topics list that GSE has assigned. The most popular post by far is a story about a dog! (open disclosure: I have not read that specific post). The topics list seems to be a bit dated in some ways and provides shelter for those who want to gab about recipes or those that want to discuss the science of electronics.
Lastly I think if you participate in a forum like this you need to come to it with a bit of a thick skin, can tolerate discussion and disagreement (a fast diminishing art in this society), not take everything personally and realize that the "TONE of VOICE" in the authors head may be just the opposite of the Tone of Voice you read the post in and maybe you should take a deep breath and re-read with a different "Tone" before answering the post.
And for those who think this forum is paid for by GSE remember this: This forum/site is bought and paid for with income generated from customers of CW, Good Sam Club, the Insurance and Road Service, including those of us who use this forum. IE WE pay for it. It is NOT free, which is an oft repeated fallacy here.
I have no idea whether the Google analytics is correct or not but search engine results DO relate to overall usage as google has proved time and again.
I do agree with those that are calling for more up to date software and easier more informative interface. But lets not hold our breath.
Overall it's a good place and I feel better than many of the alternatives...that may speak more to the failing of the others than to the benefits of this one however.
One is that there seems to be a division between what might be called those with "delicate sensibilities" or thin skin vs those who are more tolerant of disagreement, off beat humor and are not so offended by passionate posts.
There is a grain of truth in almost every post here about the reasons for a decline...if in fact it is declining (GSE will never release those figures for sure). And I agree with many in part.
But to my mind there is a lot of misunderstanding floating around about just what constitutes the Personal or Flaming or Off Topic and I agree with those that feel the site is over moderated.
But it is not just over-moderation that happens it's lack of "intelligent" moderation or at least "informed" moderation that is also a big factor.
Many times in very good discussions I find that the moderators will jump in and it is clear from their comments or actions that they neither understand nor appreciate the difference between Sarcasm and Satire, nor do they seem to have any understanding of the meaning or differences between Analogy, Metaphor or Irony. These are all long established tools of language and their use here makes this a much more interesting place...unfortunately a few moderators and a few members don't get it.
I personally don't come to a forum like this to engage in what I consider to be idle, feel-good chit chat. That rarely gets anyone the information they need. I also find it odd when a poster is told...go look it up...Time passes, things change, new products and ideas take shape every day, sending someone to a year-old post just doesn't make sense.
But along with the vast amount of good information herein there is an almost equal amount of misleading and downright wrong information being pandered by some with an axe to grind. Try as many might to bring actual facts to bear on an issue like ST Tires or Sway Bars there was a tendency by some to shout down those that thought that the former were just fine and that the latter was a marketing scam of the first order.
But I also think the Forum (as any is) is also a creature of the topics list that GSE has assigned. The most popular post by far is a story about a dog! (open disclosure: I have not read that specific post). The topics list seems to be a bit dated in some ways and provides shelter for those who want to gab about recipes or those that want to discuss the science of electronics.
Lastly I think if you participate in a forum like this you need to come to it with a bit of a thick skin, can tolerate discussion and disagreement (a fast diminishing art in this society), not take everything personally and realize that the "TONE of VOICE" in the authors head may be just the opposite of the Tone of Voice you read the post in and maybe you should take a deep breath and re-read with a different "Tone" before answering the post.
And for those who think this forum is paid for by GSE remember this: This forum/site is bought and paid for with income generated from customers of CW, Good Sam Club, the Insurance and Road Service, including those of us who use this forum. IE WE pay for it. It is NOT free, which is an oft repeated fallacy here.
I have no idea whether the Google analytics is correct or not but search engine results DO relate to overall usage as google has proved time and again.
I do agree with those that are calling for more up to date software and easier more informative interface. But lets not hold our breath.
Overall it's a good place and I feel better than many of the alternatives...that may speak more to the failing of the others than to the benefits of this one however.
