Lack of new people is killing the backroom and the entire forum

[a completely inoffensive name]

On the other hand old topics never change and sooner or later most people will get tired of discussing them over and over again anyway, whether someone brings a slightly new opinion or not. If you can think of some truly revolutionary topics, feel free to post them though.

Looking at the totalwar center backroom here are some conversation we seemed to have skipped over:

"US will lose it's AAA rating if tax extension is passed."
"Number of uninsured in US rises" (up to 50 million now)
"China reveals aircraft carrier plans"
"Actually, America has the most progressive taxation system in the world"

Here is what we have which the center has skipped over:
"What is better then sex?" Really?

Our wikileaks thread hasn't been posted in since the 16th. 14 days ago.

[GeneralHankerchief]

At the present time there is discussion to open up the Backroom to all members - i.e. not to have to ask for permission to join first, so that may help a little.

[Alexander the Pretty Good]

The arena is doing fine so I don't really mind...

[Beskar]

Looking at the totalwar center backroom here are some conversation we seemed to have skipped over:

"US will lose it's AAA rating if tax extension is passed."
"Number of uninsured in US rises" (up to 50 million now)
"China reveals aircraft carrier plans"
"Actually, America has the most progressive taxation system in the world"

Here is what we have which the center has skipped over:
"What is better then sex?" Really?

Our wikileaks thread hasn't been posted in since the 16th. 14 days ago.

The last I looked, the content was to be desired. They were arguing like: "Hitler was an atheist, and he killed millions of people! Atheists are evil."

[a completely inoffensive name]

The last I looked, the content was to be desired. They were arguing like: "Hitler was an atheist, and he killed millions of people! Atheists are evil."

It's not on the level you would find at a university, or here, but it's not FreeRepublic. More like high school level. People post links and I would say it is about 75% arguments, 25% talking points.

[Motep]

I am sorry for not doing my part. I do not argue in the depths of the backroom so that I remain a pure and still org-wanting individual. In person, I would argue. Over the computer, not for me. : / I give my sorrows for the backroom ails.

And yes, it is a great shame that the guild has been stricken so. I left (for the second time) in a time of great bounty. The community was not so disgusted with the, and the forum was growing even. But I returned to find this. Almost no life in my most sacred halls. The chapter house was nearly vacant. The frontroom was reduced to nameless spam just to stay alive. The gameroom.....well....the gameroom is still pretty fun, but the rest has slowed dramatically. These are dark times for the org, I am afraid....dark times indeed for us all.

The backroom should be opened for its own survival, I agree. It needs fresh blood. As for the rest of this place....the only thing to do is pray. Pray to the god(s) above that Shogun 2 won't suck. And maybe sacrifice a goat...

[InsaneApache]

Speaking for myself there's only so many times that you can comment on gunbortion etc. threads without repeating yourself. Also it can be a wee bit tiresome being right all the time.

[Riedquat]

Shouldn't be the other way around? The lack of people is killing the entire forum included the Backroom?
Still there is a lot of people around, if you don't believe me, just ask the lurkers to say hi! Of course we are not very talkative but still... in my humble opinion the forum is far from being dead.

I'm not sure opening the backroom to the general public is a good idea, perhaps making it visible while not open to post for a while could serve as projection of future activity.

By the way, Hi!

+0

[drone]

I'm not sure opening the backroom to the general public is a good idea, perhaps making it visible while not open to post for a while could serve as projection of future activity.

I would agree with this. Access should still be controlled, but members should be at least aware of it.

[Andres]

Looking at the totalwar center backroom here are some conversation we seemed to have skipped over:

"US will lose it's AAA rating if tax extension is passed."
"Number of uninsured in US rises" (up to 50 million now)
"China reveals aircraft carrier plans"
"Actually, America has the most progressive taxation system in the world"

Here is what we have which the center has skipped over:
"What is better then sex?" Really?

Our wikileaks thread hasn't been posted in since the 16th. 14 days ago.

That's a fair enough point.

But look back at my previous post in this thread.

Yes, you've been naughty in the past, but I also know that you're an ok guy, intelligent and with a good sense of humour.

If those topics you mentioned interest you, then why don't YOU start a thread in the BR about it? Are you shy or lacking in self confidence? I, for one, like you ACIN, and, as I told you a while ago through pm, I have been enjoying some of your posts in the BR very much.

You seem to care about this place

Nobody is holding you back taking a leading role in bringing the BR, or other parts of the forum, for that matter, back to its' glory days.

If you want things to change, then usually sitting around and screaming that you want to see things changing is not enough. Take the first steps yourself. Lead by example. I'm sure you're one of those patrons who can help to improve this forum.

Many members started off "bad" and became seniors or even mods later on.
Why not you?

You want to talk about the new chinese stealth plane? Open a thread about it. A thread about taxes? Well, make an interesting OP and other people will post.

Yelling at each other won't help, au contraire. Working together will.

[a completely inoffensive name]

That's a fair enough point.

But look back at my previous post in this thread.

Yes, you've been naughty in the past, but I also know that you're an ok guy, intelligent and with a good sense of humour.

If those topics you mentioned interest you, then why don't YOU start a thread in the BR about it? Are you shy or lacking in self confidence? I, for one, like you ACIN, and, as I told you a while ago through pm, I have been enjoying some of your posts in the BR very much.

You seem to care about this place

Nobody is holding you back taking a leading role in bringing the BR, or other parts of the forum, for that matter, back to its' glory days.

If you want things to change, then usually sitting around and screaming that you want to see things changing is not enough. Take the first steps yourself. Lead by example. I'm sure you're one of those patrons who can help to improve this forum.

Many members started off "bad" and became seniors or even mods later on.
Why not you?

You want to talk about the new chinese stealth plane? Open a thread about it. A thread about taxes? Well, make an interesting OP and other people will post.

Yelling at each other won't help, au contraire. Working together will.

I will try to make more threads, but I think it still goes without saying that I cannot do it all by myself.

[Louis VI the Fat]

I will try to make more threads, but I think it still goes without saying that I cannot do it all by myself.

While you're at it, may I suggest you consider your temper and attitude too?

Outbursts like the ones in this thread are what drive mature posters away. With them gone, everything else discussed in this thread becomes rather moot.

[Csargo]

That's a fair enough point.

But look back at my previous post in this thread.

Yes, you've been naughty in the past, but I also know that you're an ok guy, intelligent and with a good sense of humour.

If those topics you mentioned interest you, then why don't YOU start a thread in the BR about it? Are you shy or lacking in self confidence? I, for one, like you ACIN, and, as I told you a while ago through pm, I have been enjoying some of your posts in the BR very much.

You seem to care about this place

Nobody is holding you back taking a leading role in bringing the BR, or other parts of the forum, for that matter, back to its' glory days.

If you want things to change, then usually sitting around and screaming that you want to see things changing is not enough. Take the first steps yourself. Lead by example. I'm sure you're one of those patrons who can help to improve this forum.

Many members started off "bad" and became seniors or even mods later on.
Why not you?

You want to talk about the new chinese stealth plane? Open a thread about it. A thread about taxes? Well, make an interesting OP and other people will post.

Yelling at each other won't help, au contraire. Working together will.

[A Nerd]

New members must be welcomed and interacted with. If they are ignored or treated poorly, they won't stick around. That is what I think anyway.

Later when they have become used to the forum and post more often or regularly, then, you can treat them poorly. Tis a good acceptance ritual.

[tibilicus]

So much fighting in one thread, where's the love?

Anyway, as much as the OT area is the .org, the forum cannot survive if the TW series continues to deteriorate. That is essentially the main pull and if the series continues to dip then so will the forum. Then again saying that, sales at least would suggest TW has gone from strength to strength. If that's the case, the staff and the patrons need to seriously look at this community and ask the question; "why are places like TWC getting a far larger share of the traffic than here?"

For my part the reason I don't post as much is simply because the OT has become of limited interest. I posted in the STW2 MP forums a few months back but that settled down a bit. I'll probably post there again when the game is nearer release however. As for the Backroom and other Tavern sub-forums, the simple reason I don't post as much is because activity is down and as a result there's a lack of interesting topics. If you look about 8 months back when there were lots of British/ world politics threads on to go, I was very active. Now the scope of threads tend to be very narrow and topic either don't interest me or lack the depth I used to expect from a Backroom thread. The Frontroom activity has also dipped significantly, although I never posted there as much.

Although I don't post as often, I still visit the .org more than once a day. It's still my most viewed web page apparently. Part of that's down to new commitments in real life which quite simply leaves me with less time, part of it is the reasons stated above. Regardless however, I will be here as long as this forum is here. I've not stopped visiting yet and I don't plan to any time in the near future.

[Andres]

While you're at it, may I suggest you consider your temper and attitude too?

Outbursts like the ones in this thread are what drive mature posters away. With them gone, everything else discussed in this thread becomes rather moot.

Lecturing people can also drive posters away, certainly when done in a public thread.

Besides, outbursts like that, while not always acceptable, can also be read as "I care about this place" While he could have chosen his words more carefully, the outburst doesn't mean ACIN is a bad patron.

ACIN cares, so he gets emotional. Some of us can keep their emotions better under control than others

So much fighting in one thread, where's the love?

Anyway, as much as the OT area is the .org, the forum cannot survive if the TW series continues to deteriorate. That is essentially the main pull and if the series continues to dip then so will the forum. Then again saying that, sales at least would suggest TW has gone from strength to strength. If that's the case, the staff and the patrons need to seriously look at this community and ask the question; "why are places like TWC getting a far larger share of the traffic than here?"

For my part the reason I don't post as much is simply because the OT has become of limited interest. I posted in the STW2 MP forums a few months back but that settled down a bit. I'll probably post there again when the game is nearer release however. As for the Backroom and other Tavern sub-forums, the simple reason I don't post as much is because activity is down and as a result there's a lack of interesting topics. If you look about 8 months back when there were lots of British/ world politics threads on to go, I was very active. Now the scope of threads tend to be very narrow and topic either don't interest me or lack the depth I used to expect from a Backroom thread. The Frontroom activity has also dipped significantly, although I never posted there as much.

Although I don't post as often, I still visit the .org more than once a day. It's still my most viewed web page apparently. Part of that's down to new commitments in real life which quite simply leaves me with less time, part of it is the reasons stated above. Regardless however, I will be here as long as this forum is here. I've not stopped visiting yet and I don't plan to any time in the near future.

It's a vicious circle, isn't it?

Not much activity -> I no longer post -> even less activity -> others no longer post.

If you want the BR to stay alive, you have to keep posting. If you make your posts quality posts, they will attract new contributors. If you, however, run away, then no new people will get attracted.

Other members used to play the leading role in the subforum; they left, for a variety of reasons. Maybe it's time for those left to step up and play the leading role those that left used to play.

I will try to make more threads, but I think it still goes without saying that I cannot do it all by myself.

And you shouldn't. But the least you can do, if you truly care, is trying

[Yoyoma1910]

Maybe it's time for those left to step up and play the leading role those that left used to play.

But they were so strong... and we are so... so... weak.

[Louis VI the Fat]

Lecturing people can also drive posters away, certainly when done in a public thread.

Lecturing in a public thread....like you are doing right now you mean?

[tibilicus]

It's a vicious circle, isn't it?

Not much activity -> I no longer post -> even less activity -> others no longer post.

If you want the BR to stay alive, you have to keep posting. If you make your posts quality posts, they will attract new contributors. If you, however, run away, then no new people will get attracted.

Other members used to play the leading role in the subforum; they left, for a variety of reasons. Maybe it's time for those left to step up and play the leading role those that left used to play.

Yes, yes it is a vicious circle, the point is though I can't force myself to be interested. If I post a British related thread in the Backroom now it will normally only reach 2 pages/ 3 pages tops. There used to be a time where it could go on for multiple pages but that time is no more. I largely stopped posting them because of that and also because they tended to follow the same formality of debate.