It's been a few weeks since the old forum was shut down and this new forum opened up, but I only see a few old members have joined and not really much for posts (20 total members as of the last few days). I really liked all of the knowledgeable folks on the old forum who were so helpful with camper repairs and maintenance, but most didn't transition over. I miss my daily morning reading on Good Sam, I guess Facebook camper pages are the future for now?

I just took several minutes to write that these forums died down because a lot of people got tired of a few individuals that were trolls, knew everything, done everything and had done it better. That is much in part why I became inactive and probably will go back to being inactive. There are a lot of nice folks in the community but a few bad apples turned a lot of good folks away.That's at least what I had written only to lose what I wrote when I clicked the "Reply" button after writing my post only to find out that I wasn't logged in (daily automatic loggout apparently). Clicking back to try to copy my post text so I didn't have to rewrite it takes me back but the text I had spent several minutes writing wasn't there to be copied. This is like the second or third time this has happened. Why are you showing a reply field if a user isn't logged in?So... I see a lot of people will get tired of this new system. There is nothing that shows you are not logged in until you try to submit your post and then lose what you wrote. At least the old RV.net site it didn't log you out automatically and if by chance you were not logged in, you could click the back button and retrieve what you wrote.It's like GoodSam is going everything they can to shoot this new platform in the foot for the few of us that are still around.

Agreed. At least on the old site I could count on a few posts each day. Here there are many days in a row without a post. I though maybe I was looking in the wrong place, but I guess not. Disappointing.

this forum activity died off 3 weeks before the switch over. over the last 4 years when I started paying atention to the truck camper forum I have found it is very seasonal, most people seam to put away their computer, at least for coming here, when they winterize their truck camper. overall the whole forum slows down to a painfull pace during the winter.

Many people who have replied have already nailed it on the head.The bullying that went on here by a few of the members if you disagreed with them got to be ridiculous. Loved it when someone argued with me about camping in -30° weather when they lived in Arizona and had never done it. But that's the same on all forums. Some just like to be pushy!!I sold my truck camper a number of years ago but I still came back to this forum because the class b forum on here is even worse. The moderator deletes any post that gets going because they don't like the way it's going. NOTHING WRONG WITH THE POST, just the moderator does not like it. Really not worth wasting time to answer somebody's question only to see it deleted. AND in a good month only one post anyhow!I also think a lot of it has to do with the fact that people don't post on forums anymore. They just Google it, or they go to YouTube and look it up. I teach photography and if I hear one more person say I watch it on YouTube and they do it that way I'm going to lose it. Many people, and yes by that I mean younger people, will believe anything on YouTube or Google, even if it is wrong!!As for the comment earlier about truck campers costing a lot of money today I agree with that 100%. I think many of the people that spend insane amounts of money on a brand new truck and a brand new camper aren't going to come on here and ask any questions, they're just going to go back to the dealer. They are not going to drill a hole in the $78,000 camper - they will let the tech do it. BUT again this is the way a lot of things are going not just with truck campers. MANY people do not do it themselves, JUST PAY SOMEONE!I had a couple senior neighbors pass away in the last 2 years. Both of them had garages jammed with tools. Wood working, Machine shop, misc, etc. After both the families had several garage sales they both ended up bringing in giant garbage bins and tossed all these perfectly good tools. The garage sales only help them clear out one or two items and that was at fire sale prices. Because again people nowadays don't do the work themselves.I learned a lot on this forum but don't see that happening anymore, it is sad!!

I haven't been active on the old forums myself for a while due to kids and life. The only reason I posted at all was because I had posted about our Mini Truck Camper rally in March we are hosting and that got mixed up in the shuffle. A lot of folks have probably moved on to Facebook Groups which sucks in my opinion. FB Groups are just a cheap version of forums. Sure, you get easier methods of posting pictures and stuff but instead of a good detailed discussion about a topic, you end up with a couple of likes, a couple of one line comments and the post disappears.If I had more time, I would due my best to be active in here to try to keep it going but I've got way too many things on my plate at the moment. Best advise I have is for those of you that are interested in keeping this group going, make an effort to be active daily. There is a limited window to grow the group and that will only happen if people see activity. If a handful of folks can commit to doing that regularly, the chances of this forum surviving and growing would be much better.

Any Hope for This New GS Truck Camper Group? | Good Sam Community

srschang
Nomad
Dec 03, 2023
Agreed. At least on the old site I could count on a few posts each day. Here there are many days in a row without a post. I though maybe I was looking in the wrong place, but I guess not. Disappointing.
- monkey44
  Nomad II
  Dec 04, 2023
  I dislike the format here,. It's difficult to catch up with new posts, or old posts. Not sure I'll bother with it if it remains as cumbersome as it first appears. I'm not tech-smart, and don't want to learn another entire method to gather information I need - or spread information on subject I know about. A member since 2002, I'll probably delete myself, or just ignore it. I've enjoyed RV.net over twenty-years ... this site is a bit of a headache to find info. Keep moving and clicking and can't see the entire menu as before. 😞
- mkirsch
  Nomad II
  Dec 05, 2023
  "A few?" The old Truck Camper forum had maybe 1-2 updated threads a day. More than that, and/or a new thread, was a banner day.
  - adamis
    Nomad II
    Dec 05, 2023
    I just took several minutes to write that these forums died down because a lot of people got tired of a few individuals that were trolls, knew everything, done everything and had done it better. That is much in part why I became inactive and probably will go back to being inactive. There are a lot of nice folks in the community but a few bad apples turned a lot of good folks away.
    That's at least what I had written only to lose what I wrote when I clicked the "Reply" button after writing my post only to find out that I wasn't logged in (daily automatic loggout apparently). Clicking back to try to copy my post text so I didn't have to rewrite it takes me back but the text I had spent several minutes writing wasn't there to be copied. This is like the second or third time this has happened. Why are you showing a reply field if a user isn't logged in?
    So... I see a lot of people will get tired of this new system. There is nothing that shows you are not logged in until you try to submit your post and then lose what you wrote. At least the old RV.net site it didn't log you out automatically and if by chance you were not logged in, you could click the back button and retrieve what you wrote.
    It's like GoodSam is going everything they can to shoot this new platform in the foot for the few of us that are still around.
StirCrazy
Moderator
Dec 04, 2023
this forum activity died off 3 weeks before the switch over. over the last 4 years when I started paying atention to the truck camper forum I have found it is very seasonal, most people seam to put away their computer, at least for coming here, when they winterize their truck camper. overall the whole forum slows down to a painfull pace during the winter.
Photomike
Explorer III
Dec 07, 2023
Many people who have replied have already nailed it on the head.

The bullying that went on here by a few of the members if you disagreed with them got to be ridiculous. Loved it when someone argued with me about camping in -30° weather when they lived in Arizona and had never done it. But that's the same on all forums. Some just like to be pushy!!

I sold my truck camper a number of years ago but I still came back to this forum because the class b forum on here is even worse. The moderator deletes any post that gets going because they don't like the way it's going. NOTHING WRONG WITH THE POST, just the moderator does not like it. Really not worth wasting time to answer somebody's question only to see it deleted. AND in a good month only one post anyhow!

I also think a lot of it has to do with the fact that people don't post on forums anymore. They just Google it, or they go to YouTube and look it up. I teach photography and if I hear one more person say I watch it on YouTube and they do it that way I'm going to lose it. Many people, and yes by that I mean younger people, will believe anything on YouTube or Google, even if it is wrong!!

As for the comment earlier about truck campers costing a lot of money today I agree with that 100%. I think many of the people that spend insane amounts of money on a brand new truck and a brand new camper aren't going to come on here and ask any questions, they're just going to go back to the dealer. They are not going to drill a hole in the $78,000 camper - they will let the tech do it. BUT again this is the way a lot of things are going not just with truck campers. MANY people do not do it themselves, JUST PAY SOMEONE!

I had a couple senior neighbors pass away in the last 2 years. Both of them had garages jammed with tools. Wood working, Machine shop, misc, etc. After both the families had several garage sales they both ended up bringing in giant garbage bins and tossed all these perfectly good tools. The garage sales only help them clear out one or two items and that was at fire sale prices. Because again people nowadays don't do the work themselves.

I learned a lot on this forum but don't see that happening anymore, it is sad!!
- notsobigjoe
  Nomad III
  Dec 07, 2023
  
  Bingo!
  As for the comment earlier about truck campers costing a lot of money today I agree with that 100%. I think many of the people that spend insane amounts of money on a brand new truck and a brand new camper aren't going to come on here and ask any questions, they're just going to go back to the dealer. They are not going to drill a hole in the $78,000 camper - they will let the tech do it. BUT again this is the way a lot of things are going not just with truck campers. MANY people do not do it themselves, JUST PAY SOMEONE!
  Your post is well thought out but I disagree with the last part. The bullying part is true and kept me away and forced me to look things up for myself so your points are dead on. The TCF has been dying with it's members who were to smart and set in their ways for everyone else. Truck campers as a whole are now marketed for the modern wealthy computer genius, not the whole family going camping cheaply. This started with the slide out and ended with the triple slide. Now their building them tiny but it hasn't changed the price. My god 100.000.00 for a truck camper? You could get a mansion RV for that price. But that's who they're marketing too. The part about people not doing it themselves I just respectfully don't agree with. The more government latches down of freedoms the more people will do for themselves. My analysis is that this forum is not and can not fix RVnet truck camper forum as it died some time ago. I am having absolutely no problems anymore with the layout of the new forum and was glad to see bedlam as the moderator "I think". Should I put my RVnet disclaimer that I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings? We shall see.
  - StirCrazy
    Moderator
    Dec 08, 2023
    notsobigjoe wrote:
    Now their building them tiny but it hasn't changed the price. My god 100.000.00 for a truck camper? You could get a mansion RV for that price. But that's who they're marketing too. The part about people not doing it themselves I just respectfully don't agree with.
    I totaly agree, they are very expensive. we are in the process of looking to replace our 1991 slumberqueen with in the next couple years and it has been great to see prices starting to come down now. two years ago a new big foor was 94K (cdn) as of last week they are in the mid 70's again so hopfully the covid pricing craze is finaly comeing to an end. I also see a lot of people doing work on their campers/rv and I know for my self, I would have no issues drilling holes or making repairs in my 100K rig (if I had a 100K rig 😁) especialy after seeing the quality of work that comes out of the suposid RV tech's at the dealership.
adamis
Nomad II
Dec 03, 2023
I haven't been active on the old forums myself for a while due to kids and life. The only reason I posted at all was because I had posted about our Mini Truck Camper rally in March we are hosting and that got mixed up in the shuffle. A lot of folks have probably moved on to Facebook Groups which sucks in my opinion. FB Groups are just a cheap version of forums. Sure, you get easier methods of posting pictures and stuff but instead of a good detailed discussion about a topic, you end up with a couple of likes, a couple of one line comments and the post disappears.
If I had more time, I would due my best to be active in here to try to keep it going but I've got way too many things on my plate at the moment. Best advise I have is for those of you that are interested in keeping this group going, make an effort to be active daily. There is a limited window to grow the group and that will only happen if people see activity. If a handful of folks can commit to doing that regularly, the chances of this forum surviving and growing would be much better.
notsobigjoe
Nomad III
Dec 05, 2023
Personally I thought the old Truck camper forum was holding on by a thread for some time. The same people posted about the same thing over and over, occasionally a newbie would ask a question but the same responses from the same people, me included. For the most part I've lost my interest and was hoping to get to see some new blood here. It will take time...
- StirCrazy
  Moderator
  Dec 05, 2023
  notsobigjoe wrote:
  hoping to get to see some new blood here. It will take time...
  to get that you have to get new people to buy truck campers then come here. I don't know what TC's are like in the US but most dealers don't have them up here, and if they do they are so overpriced. TC is a pretty limited purpose driven unit, I can tow a 40 foot 5th whith my truck but I am on the edge of what I can handle at the TC we are looking to upgrade to, so usaly a TC involves two purchases, the camper and the truck to handle it.
John_S_
Explorer II
Dec 04, 2023
I know I had an issue getting logged in and with the slow old forum it was just not a priority. If this is slower it will die a sad death m
greenno1
Explorer II
Dec 06, 2023
This new website sucks. sorry to say.
Latest post firsts lame it should be first post first so you can see the direction of the thread.
I definitly won't be a regular poster here or occasional for that matter.
I'll be at the rally in Redding and such so hopefully Adamis will keep me updated on email.
Lame just lame.
- StirCrazy
  Moderator
  Dec 07, 2023
  you can chage the default order of the post layoutsso it does go like it was ie. oldest first. but anyone who think it is all because of the new site that this forum isn't doing that well right now obviously hasnt been following it for over 5 years. every year I get puzzeled that the truck camper just dies off when camping season is over then starts up again when it starts, its just the way it has always been.. does the new forum suck.. well now that I am figuring some stuff out playing around, it doesnt suck as bad, but it is still not my prefered format for a forum. one thing is the spell check I have built into my browser doesnt seam to work on the new forum so you guys will have to forgive me of my spelling at times haha
- AnEv942
  Nomad
  Dec 07, 2023
  You can change how threads display under settings/preferences/liner layout.
user113
Explorer III
Dec 07, 2023
Logistically it seems that making a switch like this in the "off season" might not have been a bright idea.
- mkirsch
  Nomad II
  Dec 18, 2023
  Actually making the (forum) change during the off season is strategic genius. It reduces the grumping and grousing about how they don't like change to a dull roar so it doesn't drive off everyone. They get used to it and help the rest when they come back in the spring. New members won't know any different.
  - MORSNOW
    Navigator II
    Dec 19, 2023
    mkirsch wrote:
    Actually making the (forum) change during the off season is strategic genius. It reduces the grumping and grousing about how they don't like change to a dull roar so it doesn't drive off everyone. They get used to it and help the rest when they come back in the spring. New members won't know any different.
    I hope you're correct! I still think it's a hard to read and navigate the site compared to every other forum I've been a part of or moderator of. As I am getting a little more used to this weird layout, I still miss being able to right to the unread posts on a thread. I have to scroll through pages and watch the date and time stamps and figure out where I left off. Maybe if the unread were bold type like the main threads are until read?
greenno1
Explorer II
Dec 07, 2023
The original first posting that comes up for me is dated 12-03-23 6:59am.
The very next reply is the LAST one in the thread dated 12-06-23 6:17pm.
Which means I have to scroll all the way to the bottom and follow the topic upward,
Exactly opposite in chronological order as far as I can tell.
Any other site I participate in is much more user friendly, this is just my opinion, but that's what matters to me personally so ya got that.
- user113
  Explorer III
  Dec 07, 2023
  Right below where it tells you how many replies there are is a line that reads:
  Sort: Newest to Oldest ^
  Where you can change the default listing order.
- adamis
  Nomad II
  Dec 07, 2023
  I think the default order is that the original post appears at the top and if I am to draw any conclusion, the idea is that people will always be reminded about what the topic is about each time they come to the post. Then, the first actual post below the topic post is the newest post made by a member. That's how it works in my opinion. This might be one of the actual features I don't mind (though it does take a bit of an adjustment to get used to it). So often these threads go into rabbit holes that the original conversation is lost. That is kind of just human nature but at least folks will have a quick and easy way to see what the post is about each time they check in.
  - adamis
    Nomad II
    Dec 07, 2023
    Oh... this is interesting! When you reply to someone else's post, it doesn't get inserted as the last post in the thread, at least with the default sort order. The reply appears after the post you replied to. That is interesting. In one sense, that is kind of nice but wow you gotta know that is what it is doing or your going to winder what happened to your post!
MORSNOW
Navigator II
Dec 07, 2023
Lots of good points brought up! It is the "off season" so yes, the forum always slows down which is to be expected, lets just hope it picks back up towards spring. I figured out the sorting and number of threads/posts per page, but the one feature I miss most is the ability to go directly to the first unread post in a thread. Currently I open a thread and then have to scroll to the bottom of each page, go to the next page, and then on the last page watch the posted dates to find out what is new.