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You Summed It Up (Public Board)

by Hillarys Colon, Sunday, April 16, 2023, 23:35 (347 days ago) @ Cornpop Sutton

Dictum presents the challenge:

It picked up 300-400 users in a nanosecond. The vision was, if someone got arrested, or a road blockaded, or something, a user would post the location/pics/video. Every user would become a reporter and post intel for everyone's safety. Instead of relying on MSM.

It worked kind of OK but eventually the posts started getting so far off topic that it lost all sense of direction. Mostly conservative stuff, granted but all over the place. The AWB failed and the group almost lost its raison d'être . Its still around with a few posters, with about the same level of participation as here. It's a zoo with no coherent bond between various posts. It's like they are not even in the same room talking to each other.


So that's on Telegram, and that's after recruiting a highly focused forum.

And it wound up like this after the "cause" that triggered your group to go away. Then the group devolved to the level of this place.

There's no magic to Telegram or any other host, repeat, there's no magic. The more I think about this idea of a move the less I like it.

Like an orchestra in an opera with each user playing his own symphony. Almost zero cohesiveness, whatever cohesiveness exists is purely accidental.

I could never figure out how to recruit the right people, how to build a foundation or the "anchor" in the shopping mall if you will. You can get membership numbers but they end up being token. But can you get quality membership with solid posts.


I'll say it one more time. I've said it before and the point gets lost.

YOU NEED STRONG CONTENT FIRST. Not discussions or posts, CONTENT.

THE STRONG CONTENT ATTRACTS READERS AND THINKERS WHO ARE THE CORE OF A GOOD (cohesive, thoughtful) FORUM.

You had a single cause, AWB, which attracted anyone and their brother with an interest in 2A but didn't really create any ideas or concepts in association.

Content that attracts smarties could be blog posts. Single voiced commentary on topics that a lot of people will want to read.

Content could also be videos. Same concept.

Content: SINGLE VOICE, ONE PERSON, from someone with depth, not a "post" inviting stupid people to debate with moronic pin headed narrow ideas.

The random people who endlessly debate minor points of bullshit come later after you have a great readership/viewership. They are average forumers.

JoS developed as a community well after many programmers started reading Joel's blog. Then the ideas in the blog provoked discussion, so he set up a forum.

Realrates the discussion board started and developed momentum because Janet R. wrote a lot and had some books on contracting. It attracted contractors, her readers.

THIS FORUM IS THE REMNANT OF TWO ONCE SUBSTANTIAL MESSAGE BOARDS. It is the users left after the boards shut down.

Identical dynamics.

A forum set up just because you want a forum is EMPTY, VOID, NO CONTENT.

How can anyone not fucking not see that?

Anyway. I said it. Now watch the idea itself not be preserved.

Because forum and because democracy and because the least insightful have a voice that clutters up good singular ideas.

That's the entire point of a forum - cherry pick and carp over minor garbage.

I'm a grumpy old man. Maybe I need to create that dictatorial, single voiced content that overrides individual normies who never have the full picture.

I'm also quite a bit of an elitist prick. But the above is honestly how I see the problem space.

I can't really add anything as your observations are correct.

I see the exact same thing going on via social media be it Reddit, Facebook, whatever... same deal.


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