Are RV forums dying?

tpi wrote:

I also agree with many of the posters who have said the forum software is getting long in the tooth. I'd love to see better searching, ability to like posts, ability to upvote and downvote posts, iOS or Android app integration, better highlighting of new posts, etc.

This.. if the posts can be upvoted/downvoted, liked etc. that could help the tenor of the forum. Upvote someone who's put a lot of thought into a helpful reply. Downvote sarcastic, grouchy, petty, unhelpful, etc.

If there is a problem attracting new users, then I would say the first place to look is the old, grumpy, and conservative angle-and try to minimize it somehow. Maybe some kind of free for all forum to divert it to. But if you can interact and don't have a thin skin, there is a lot of good here!

Great idea in concept - not so great in reality. In reality, people don't vote in an unbiased manner. They vote according to their biases. That means when someone like WesternRVParkOwner makes a quality, informative post, it will be "downvoted" because people won't like his park owner viewpoint regardless of how pertinent and how much thought was put in his post (let alone how accurate his information is). Instead, the posts that reiterate the "popular" or "cliche approved" opinion will get upvoted. And, yes, even those sarcastic, grouchy, petty, unhelpful posts will get upvoted because the poster once gave helpful advice.

As for updating the software, sounds like an easy solution. Except for the fact that updating software pisses people off (no matter how much they complain about the current software). 90% of the users will complain about the new software during the first 90 days. They will rant and whine and threaten to leave because "you were supposed to make it better and now I can't do X like I did before". For every thing the new software makes better, there will be something changed that people don't like. And they will have to voice that dislike ad nauseum.

nevadanick wrote:
Too much censorship here as far as i am concerned.

HA, you should try IRV2! I was kicked off for trying to sell my truck and RV. A while back I did say I had something for sale and was told it was a NO NO so I made sure I did not mention sale from that point on. What happened to get me banished for two weeks was someone was looking to buy a truck and RV and wanted opinions. So I posted a pic of my truck and RV and said "look no further" and proceeded to tell about my truck and RV's capabilities and how I liked them. I was told that was my last warning, I asked what I did wrong and they would not specifically tell my but I finally figured out they were accusing me of trying to sell my combo to this guy. So later on a different topic I said "just be sure not to mention the word SALE" and guess what that was the final straw! BANNED for two weeks.

So this site IMHO is MUCH better!

I also agree with many of the posters who have said the forum software is getting long in the tooth. I'd love to see better searching, ability to like posts, ability to upvote and downvote posts, iOS or Android app integration, better highlighting of new posts, etc.

This.. if the posts can be upvoted/downvoted, liked etc. that could help the tenor of the forum. Upvote someone who's put a lot of thought into a helpful reply. Downvote sarcastic, grouchy, petty, unhelpful, etc.

If there is a problem attracting new users, then I would say the first place to look is the old, grumpy, and conservative angle-and try to minimize it somehow. Maybe some kind of free for all forum to divert it to. But if you can interact and don't have a thin skin, there is a lot of good here!

holstein13 wrote:

If we really want to know how traffic has trended, we'd have to hear from the webmasters at RV.net. I'd love to know what they are seing.

Just to try and answer part of your Question.

This Site shows a lot of things about RV.Net,Trending,who posts the most and a lot of other things if you click around.

Bob Vaughn wrote:
A lot of people don't like being made fun of when they ask a question that others know the answer to and post a sarcastic remark about the question.....

X2

cmcdar wrote:
Google trends does NOT reflect actual traffic to websites. It reflects search engine searches!!!!

True, but it's the only data we have and it does tell us something. How do you interpret the data?

If we really want to know how traffic has trended, we'd have to hear from the webmasters at RV.net. I'd love to know what they are seing.

I also agree with many of the posters who have said the forum software is getting long in the tooth. I'd love to see better searching, ability to like posts, ability to upvote and downvote posts, iOS or Android app integration, better highlighting of new posts, etc.

It seems to me that forum software has improved dramatically in the past 5-10 years yet I've never seen any upgrades to this forum's software.

Lots of discussion which is good but I would like to see one of the Moderators post actual data of posts vs years and the number of members vs years and new members vs years. I would think that data would be available and would tell a more accurate story.

nevadanick wrote:
Too much censorship here as far as i am concerned.

^^Absolutely correct.^^ If someone doesn't like what you say, you get dis-membered never to be heard from again. Tireman9 for example has a wealth of invaluable tire info. but someone got him banned last year, however he's just fine on every other RV forum out there.

How does RV.net useage compare to the other RV forums - general or brand specific? With all the RVs being sold now, you'd expect to see an upward trend in RV forum useage.

One problem with RV.net is the way it looks and works compared to other forums. It looks decades out of date compared to say the Forest River forum or iRV2.com. With all the $$ Mr. CW and his empire makes off RV-ers, he can't spare some to do a site make-over?

Glitches don't get fixed like the percent symbol thing for example. Site was shut down for a day or more in the past couple of weeks.

You aren't allowed to sell anything or even mention you have something you want to sell somewhere else. Classifieds aren't an issue on any other forum...

Threads end up going sideways all too often with no intervention to bring a topic back on course.

jarata1 wrote:
There are a few people on this board that seem to only make wise cracks, wish they would just keep comments to themselves I think they know who they are

And it is the Barney Fifes of these forums who feel their way is the only way to post on a forum that have helped run off many of the members. (and they know who they are as well) And to a bunch of others who have posted, since when are forums only supposed to be used for questions and answers? I thought the meaning of a forum is a place of 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.