Rick Steffers wrote:
> Also, If you care to point out the divisiveness you seem to see, I
> would welcome an opportunity to change it What is exclusive about my
> forum? Like this mailing list I have seasoned people as well as new
> people to the hobby, and we welcome all people.
The division is you require people to perform a task to get to you.
They must first go online, then go to your site then sign in then search
for any changes in many threads. Each step is a division each separate
thread another. I may not be interested in some aspect of modeling so in
a forum I can easily ignore it and any useful ideas it may contain. In a
list there is is, offered to me and I may, against my will, learn
something I can use. Forums remove serendipity by there very structure.
They force people to post which removes many people who are not adept
enough in expressing themselves in English but can read it well enough
to be of use to them. Forums also have no coherent structure. Each one
stands alone and must, for the English (or other language) challenged be
labouriously figured out. Many simply give up in frustration, further
fractioning the community.
The very act of demanding members come to you rather than you
"visiting" them divides community. Take a look at how social
communication on the net has deteriorated since the virtual dissolution
of the UUNET by ISPs. For a while mail lists and groups were holding
things together until the community they built was attacked by "forums"
and "social networking" that thrived on breaking the community into bite
sized morsels so that the delivery of advertising and group control was
more easily exercised. Many Forum operators swallowed the "this is good"
idea never understanding they were just being played by advertisers.
After all someone has to pay for the site, don't they?
Forums further divided people by language and age and more and more
specific interest until the community had been so shattered it started
to devolve.
> How does my forum or any forum do irreparable damage or harm? I would
> like to see examples if you can provide it.
This has been covered to death in social science publications and
things like the Journal of Communications and all agree that the
"online" move has fractionalized and weakened the proto community the
Internet started. About the only voices saying otherwise are the forum
operators, and the advertisers.
> Many of the members of my forum are members of various other forums
> and mailing lists.
True and that is evidence of fractionilism right there. A community is
unified and does not have to run all over to get their info. The more
forums there are the less community there is.
cat
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