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Post by HStorm on Feb 20, 2006 19:30:11 GMT
It can't have escaped anyone's notice that this site is dying on its backside. Most of the members who used to use it have moved on, many new members have joined but then not joined in, and the two main admin can no longer log in due to technical/geographical problems. Attempts to plug theCritique on other forums have been almost entirely unsuccessful, as have various attempts to coax back inactive members.
The upshot of all this is that there are only three regular posters at the moment, and it's making the activity on the forum look a bit futile.
I've therefore decided to ask whether it's time to consider one of two drastic courses of action; -
The first suggestion is the more obvious one, and the more painful one. All things considered, two years, three hundred topics, and over four thousand posts all constitute a decent innings when we consider the modest beginnings the site and the forum had. It's been less than a total success, sure, but theCritique hasn't been a total failure either. So it would be no disgrace if we were to swallow our pride and call it a day.
Alternatively, the second suggestion is a less drastic sacrifice. Seeing a major part of the problem - and indeed other problems - is that Proboards keeps malfunctioning, should we perhaps close down just the forum, and then open a new one on a different server or site?
Whatever the case, I think I speak for us all when I say that there's simply no point in things carrying on the way they are.
Please, whenever you can do so, reply to this post with your thoughts.
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Post by modeski on Feb 22, 2006 2:45:27 GMT
I've been watching the forum die a death recently and I must say that it is pretty disheartening. I really don't want the place to shut down, but then, as you say, there's only really three of us keeping the place going at the minute. I'd love for everyone here to join www.somethingawful.com 's forums (70,000+ members!), they have an excellent forum called Debate and Discussion, but it's $10US and you need a credit card, so that'd rule out a lot of the people here. So, out of the options given, perhaps finding a different host is the way to go? There should be a way to archive what's here so far, perhaps by using the httrack (google it) to do it? That's just one idea anyway, if anyone has any better ones...? |
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Post by Naselus on Feb 22, 2006 14:58:01 GMT
I'd personally suggest moving the forum to another site, simply because proboards is getting dodgier. The pop-up ads that display when I open the site stop the forum from opening properly if I shut them down, and they seem to be multiplying. I suspect this may be related to the problems some members have had logging in; are you using automatic pop-up blockers?
What I'm most concerned about is, of course, that everything here is preserved perfectly somewhere where I can not only access it, but where the bountiful wonders of Millet's-related warfare can be shared with the entire world. If we can continue the forum at the same time, then great; if not, it's not going to make that big a difference any more.
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Post by TheCritique on Feb 24, 2006 13:21:39 GMT
All things considered, I believe a complete shutdown would be too drastic, for several reasons. Firstly, the technical problems are the main constituents of the problem. In my particular case, I don't spend a lot of time on the college computers, and, not being able to access the forum at home, has seen me neglect it. Rob has a similar predicament. Wish as we might to contribute more to the site, there are obstacles preventing us and others from doing so.
Secondly, the site has been running for nearly, two years, and I believe it would be a wasted opportunity to shut it down. With existing members we are able to conduct intelligent discussion, and to ‘rebuild’ such a site from square one would be impossible, especially considering many active members here today were attracted by advertisements on other sites.
The site can improve provided the technical difficulties can be solved. I therefore suggest a change of forum and redirecting site (cjb.net perhaps – one without that ghastly opening screen), which will allow domestic access to the administrators and others, and this should reinvigorate the site. Admittedly, this doesn’t solve the problem of active member shortages, but it’s a start.
Any comments?
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Post by Naselus on Feb 24, 2006 19:01:04 GMT
How many of our active members were attracted from other sites, exactly? Given the current technical difficulties, which have been going on for about six months now, the only people who I would class as active in the slightest are myself, Modeski, Storm, Rob and you. Given you and Rob are partially responsible for creating the site, and me and Mod joined through Hstorm, I'd say it wouldn't really make a difference if we restart from scratch.
Not that I'm in favour of a shutdown, there's far too much good stuff here. We need to get away from Proboards ASAP, since it's getting worse every day, and we need to increase posting density and advertising on other sites. If we're on a server that will actually let half our members access it, and the 'main' posters all try to get a few posts a day in, then the forum will look considerably more attractive. I just get the feeling a lot of potential members looked here, saw that the last 10 posts were by three people spread across a week and a half, and thought "Sod that".
Just out of interest, Will, which browser and firewall are you using at home, and do you have any pop-up killers, virtual proxies, etc? Same question to you as well, Rob. I reckon I may be able to find out what's screwing your access up if I can get enough information together and chat to the 3rd-line web dudes at work.
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Post by TheCritique on Feb 27, 2006 11:24:45 GMT
I do have a firewall (the default Microsoft one), Sophos Anti-Virus, and a pop-up killer (the default Internet Explorer one). However, Rob has already attempted turning such software off on his own computer, and the forum is still inaccessable.
Furthermore, if the forum was accessable if they were turned off, it isn't really a solution, as I'd be putting myself at enormous risk. It would therefore seem sensible to replace the forum with one that actually works.
I agree with everything else said.
Two questions...
1: If we were to replace the forum and re-directing site, what would we replace them with?
2: Are other ProBoards forums having similar problems?
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Post by HStorm on Feb 27, 2006 21:18:24 GMT
1. Another forum but on a more reliable server.
2. As far as I know, all the ProBoards servers have regular problems, both of the kinds we keep experiencing here, and other kinds as well.
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Post by ringmasterrob on Feb 28, 2006 13:35:10 GMT
Well I'm in favour of getting a new forum up and running as it would mean I could actually post here from home (I've never had any similar problems on other forum providers). I think proboards would let us set the forum to read-only mode so we could leave a link to it on the main site whilst setting up a new forum.
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Post by HStorm on Feb 28, 2006 14:02:39 GMT
Sounds like a plan. Are we all in agreement?
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Post by Naselus on Feb 28, 2006 14:41:56 GMT
Yeah, why not? Oh, and may I suggest that anyone still using it ditches the microsoft firewall and gets one of the free ones from www.majorgeeks.com - the microsoft default's buggy and generally rather untrustworthy. I belive the general description used by my collegues is 'porous', if that clarifies any better. I personally recommend Zonealarm free, or Kerio. |
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Post by modeski on Feb 28, 2006 21:56:00 GMT
I agree with this plan.
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Post by The Tommunist on Mar 9, 2006 15:27:36 GMT
Just to say that I regularly log on to a different proboard (savdd.proboards70.com) and have had no such problems. However, it is on one of the newer servers, so perhaps all that is needed is a fresh new proboard.
Rob/Will, I think we're all in the same boat when it comes to access problems; I can't access the site from home, but I don't have any popups whatsoever. Rob, I recommend you do a sweep of your internet cookies and get rid of any spyware/adware, this might be triggering the popups.
Oh, and hello by the way; long time no posting.
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Post by HStorm on Mar 9, 2006 16:57:35 GMT
Welcome back, Liquidus. Can we assume you're in favour of switching to a new forum as well?
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Post by Naselus on Mar 9, 2006 18:56:58 GMT
Rob/Will, I think we're all in the same boat when it comes to access problems; I can't access the site from home, but I don't have any popups whatsoever. Rob, I recommend you do a sweep of your internet cookies and get rid of any spyware/adware, this might be triggering the popups. The pop-ups are proboard's own, and they're not malware related. Your browser's probably killing them before they bite. At a pinch, I'd guess that proboard's firewall objects to your IP addresses somehow. |
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Post by ringmasterrob on Mar 10, 2006 8:31:02 GMT
Rob, I recommend you do a sweep of your internet cookies and get rid of any spyware/adware, this might be triggering the popups. Already done it, to no avail I'm afraid...  |
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Post by The Tommunist on Mar 11, 2006 13:35:11 GMT
Welcome back, Liquidus. Can we assume you're in favour of switching to a new forum as well? I don't see why not - you all seem to have prospered during my absence. Don't kill off the forum yet; there may not be many contributing members but there's still some fantastic discussion going on. By the way, I'm logged on to TheCritique via my mum's laptop at home, which means it's now accessible on personal computers again!  All hail the mighty internet. |
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Post by HStorm on Mar 12, 2006 19:57:30 GMT
Excellent news. Will has also managed to log in from home, so it looks like the mechanical difficulties have passed. For the time being a change of forum looks unnecessary.
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Post by ringmasterrob on Mar 12, 2006 23:29:20 GMT
Since my last post on this topic I recieved some emails from regulars telling me to try and access the forum from home again and I am pleased to announce that I have succeeded in getting on! In addition, it seems that proboards is working fine at the moment. Therefore do we still feel it is necessary to switch forum providers?
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Post by HStorm on Mar 13, 2006 8:54:34 GMT
As I say, not for the time-being, as the auto-locking problem seems to have ceased as well. Shouldn't write it out indefinitely, but for now, let furious arguments re-commence!
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Post by HStorm on Mar 14, 2006 8:57:34 GMT
Wow, what a refreshing couple of days we've had! Loads of posts and activity, and we even managed to have four people online at once for the first time in about six months yesterday. Big smile, everyone, please!
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Post by modeski on May 4, 2006 2:06:29 GMT
It's been two weeks since anyone posted anything. Does anyone else think we should just call it a day here? The discussion on this board has been between four and five people this year, and no one seems to give a shit anymore.
I've deliberately not posted anything since the 21st of last month to see if anyone else would start a topic. No one has. Is it time to bite the bullet, archive this place and shut it down?
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Post by ringmasterrob on May 4, 2006 23:28:22 GMT
To be perfectly honest, I think that you're absolutely right. We haven't seen a new article for six months and no one seems to be working on one, despite needing a redesign for well over a year we have been unable to find the time or the ability to improve the site's appearance and now the forum has ground to a halt too. Although the inactivity of management members in recent weeks is down to a private matter, I agree that the forum has been stagnant for a long time. Most regulars have opinions on a similar end of the political scale which has only served to make the debate about more minor and pedantic details rather than the broader aspects of issues. Quite a lot of original regulars have moved on to other forums or acquired a more hectic schedule that leaves less time to devote to the forum. I think that after more than two years of debate and critique it's time to call it a day.
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Post by HStorm on May 5, 2006 18:54:33 GMT
I don't agree.
For one thing, activity should get back to something like normal now that the 'private matter' is resolved.
Further, as you very well know, Rob, I am working on a series of articles about the Gunpowder Treason, I just happen to be having real problems with them. If you feel that a constant flow of new articles is essential, you could try writing some yourself instead of always sitting back and waiting for someone else to do them. I know your life's busy, but no more so than mine, and yet it's been nearly a year-and-a-half since you wrote one, and less than six months since I wrote one.
The forum keeps having stagnant spells, yes, but if you don't like it, the way of keeping it from happening is, again, not always leaving it to others to take responsibility for getting things moving. (Mod, why were you waiting to post again? You don't need permission, if you've got something to say or a new topic to start, for heaven's sake, just go for it, and don't be too put out if we're slow to respond; we may be busy for a while but we'll get round to it eventually.)
On that issue, here are a couple of questions that I'd like everyone to think about and answer, please; -
When is the last time you started a seriously-intentioned new thread on this forum?
How many times have you started a new thread on this forum overall?
(These are questions, by the way, not accusations, but in some cases the answers you come up with may tell you something.)
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Post by ringmasterrob on May 5, 2006 19:37:00 GMT
If you feel that a constant flow of new articles is essential, you could try writing some yourself instead of always sitting back and waiting for someone else to do them. I know your life's busy, but no more so than mine, and yet it's been nearly a year-and-a-half since you wrote one, and less than six months since I wrote one. Look, at no point did I say that a constant flow of articles was needed nor did I criticise any individual for not having written one recently. What I said was that having had no articles for 6 months the site does not look too enticing to new members, even an article or two every month would make a difference. I'm not sitting waiting for anyone to do anything, I was reiterating a criticism of the site (not any individuals) that has been made previously by other people (including Modeski). |
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Post by HStorm on May 6, 2006 13:16:24 GMT
Look, at no point did I say that a constant flow of articles was needed nor did I criticise any individual for not having written one recently. What I said was that having had no articles for 6 months the site does not look too enticing to new members Actually you made no mention of new members whatsoever, you seemed to be telling the people who are already here not to bother anymore. But either way, what I'm saying is, rather than grumbling about it and discouraging everyone else from making an effort, why don't you do, or suggest, something positive? |
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All hail the mighty internet.