The Gun Counter

This isn't really a bitch, but I didn't know where to put it.

People have been noting how dead it is around here lately. I get to the forum by a link to active topics. Every time since the migration, it says something like "you do not have permission to search the system." You have to log on to see active topics.

I used to hit that link, browse active topics and log in if I had something to say. So, I'm wondering how many former participators were doing the same thing, and maybe quit coming because they didn't want to bother to log in.

Also, I search forums a lot without logging in. Especially forums I may be interested in joining. So, I also wonder if we've had a drop in new joiners because they can't find information of value to them without lots of digging.

So, my question is, would it harm the forum to allow people not logged in or not joined to search for information? If not, maybe we'd get more life around here.

Getting more life would be a good thing. We are looking a little bit like a non-socialist Venezuela. Lots of intellectual flight. The less we talk, the less we visit...which of course means the less we talk...and the vicious cycle.

This place is always on my every-day must-visit list.

I have to admit, in the last year I have gone weeks without even checking in. It just seems like most of our more active and interesting characters have either disappeared or been banned.

Ther are probably no more than a dozen or so of us left on here. At least, that's how it seems.

I use the active topics page as my homepage. This is the first place I see when I fire up the 'puter. I just don't have much to talk about. I don't think the people here want to hear me whine about my bad knees and back continually.

Ray

skb12172 wrote: ↑Mon Mar 04, 2019 4:04 am I have to admit, in the last year I have gone weeks without even checking in.

That explains the flurries of replies to weeks old posts.

When we go more civil it got less interesting and engaging.

Yeah I understand the ban hammer being applied to certain large personalities here in the past but it makes for a much quieter bar. Most notably Chris and Aesop.

Spitballing here....

Lack of fun.

There was a time when a lot of the talk revolved around shooting and collecting guns and the associated excitement of it all.

We'd made it through the Clinton shit sandwich and life was good again.

The gun climate has changed. The milsurp boom is over. Parts kits have dried up. Now its more niche stuff that may not have as wide of appeal (or availability) to a lot of people. We're all a lot older and either have a lot of the stuff we can afford to get or have moved on to other interests.

A lot of talk now is news, politics and health. All valid things to discuss. Sometimes interesting and/or informative, but, especially these days, not that much fun.

As skb noted, several of the more interesting posters have gone, for whatever reason, and that has diminished the random interesting topics that appear. Bad blood between members, even if justified, has hurt the forum.

This forum has the most members of any forum I read who behave like adults for the most part. A lot people these days seem to gravitate toward forums where shit throwing seems to be the main activity. I'm not wanting any changes to the former, but the latter may be why we don't see more new blood.

I do miss the old lively times, but like a lot of things these days, I'm not sure how to make it better or if its even possible.

Honestly I typed "Aesop" I don't know why it came through as Ass-op. I swear. I even went to edit it and it was spelled correctly in the edit window.

LOL

Hey it did it again. So the mod's have hard coded that in apparently...