Do forums have shelf lives?

Ralphy1

Ralphy1

Well-known Member
It seems that people tire of the usual topics like gun control, abortion, and politics in general after awhile and just disappear. I have noticed this on other forums and this could be happening here...
 

Hmm, there are many other places to go for that stuff. FB immediately comes to mind, and there you can also bring up kids, grandkids, aunts, uncles, and what you had for lunch...
 

As in the media, the topics that keep coming up tend to be the ones that do get passionate responses.
Here is something different but not getting much attention.
Take a look and see whether posts like this one will keep people interested.

In the meantime... ya gets wot ya gets.
 
Well, Ralphy will be here until the final bell is rung, but I might be talking to myself, which I have already started to do...��
 
I suspect there is a core group among us who will be talking about politics here for some time. Assuming that Clinton prevails, those who supported Trump will I'm sure be watching for things to criticize her for. Those of us who are "anti-Trump", will no doubt be reporting on his post-election activities because he's not going to stop being in the headlines.

With respect to gun control, I think we see that topic rear up in response to horrific events, but otherwise it's been beaten to death. It's a divisive issue and folks do get tired of each sides' arguments. Same with abortion.

Some folks who come here initially may be put off by the high number of more contentious debates around politics and quickly lose interest. We also seem to find folks who make their way here after doing a Google search, seeking an answer to a question, but then once answered feel no further need to participate.

It would be interesting if the moderators had a survey of forum members to see what they like/dislike about the forum, where they're from, ages, etc. I'd be curious to know how diverse we are as a group.
 
Bobw235 said:
I suspect there is a core group among us who will be talking about politics here for some time. Assuming that Clinton prevails, those who supported Trump will I'm sure be watching for things to criticize her for. Those of us who are "anti-Trump", will no doubt be reporting on his post-election activities because he's not going to stop being in the headlines.

With respect to gun control, I think we see that topic rear up in response to horrific events, but otherwise it's been beaten to death. It's a divisive issue and folks do get tired of each sides' arguments. Same with abortion.

Some folks who come here initially may be put off by the high number of more contentious debates around politics and quickly lose interest. We also seem to find folks who make their way here after doing a Google search, seeking an answer to a question, but then once answered feel no further need to participate.

It would be interesting if the moderators had a survey of forum members to see what they like/dislike about the forum, where they're from, ages, etc. I'd be curious to know how diverse we are as a group.
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A survey would be an interesting idea. How about a poll? Interests from 1 to 10, where we are from, age, etc.
 
Bobw235 said:
It would be interesting if the moderators had a survey of forum members to see what they like/dislike about the forum, where they're from, ages, etc. I'd be curious to know how diverse we are as a group.
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You have the option to post a poll when starting a new thread, you don't need mods to do this.
 
Why don't we begin here by offering a list of topics of what interests us and areas we are likely to respond to if a thread is posted.. Or what topics would be ones that WE would be inclined to post a new thread about.

Mine are politics, health, financial, family/relationships, current events, retirement, fitness, and food. I would be likely to respond to these as well as possibly starting a new thread if I saw something interesting.

I also respond to many threads in General Discussions.
 
It is pretty obvious from posts and profiles what this place is all about. I might even post a profile if the demand is there...
 
QuickSilver said:
Why don't we begin here by offering a list of topics of what interests us and areas we are likely to respond to if a thread is posted.. Or what topics would be ones that WE would be inclined to post a new thread about.

Mine are politics, health, financial, family/relationships, current events, retirement, fitness, and food. I would be likely to respond to these as well as possibly starting a new thread if I saw something interesting.

I also respond to many threads in General Discussions.
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My interests are similar..(no politics). I came to the Senior Forum for topics about seniors. I can get other topics by the same way as I got here, searching the web.
 
This is my first crack at a senior forum. I used to be on MySpace, long before it became Facebook's shadow. It was just a message board then. It was fun. I imagine social sites are born and die by the hundreds every year. Seems like they thrive in the UK, though. Mainly in England. I had a hard time finding one where Americans weren't a tiny minority. Maybe people in the UK are better at walking away from an argument.
 
Ralphy1 said:
It seems that people tire of the usual topics like gun control, abortion, and politics in general after awhile and just disappear. I have noticed this on other forums and this could be happening here...
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What a crock!

If people aren't tolerant enough to allow topics discussed that they are not interested in.....let them go!

Its called variety....fluffy kittens, games, senior advice, politics....take your pick
and participate, its what makes a good forum.
 
I came looking for tips, strategies and topics relating to how seniors cope with day to day things like rising prices, internet service, phone service, housing, insurance, shopping and cooking for 1 or 2 people, etc...

I have found some great information in the older archived threads and every once in a while a new thread appears that is helpful.
 
Jackie22 said:
What a crock!

If people aren't tolerant enough to allow topics discussed that they are not interested in.....let them go!

Its called variety....fluffy kittens, games, senior advice, politics....take your pick
and participate, its what makes a good forum.
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absolutely.. how many times have people come here for the sole purpose to shutting down our political section simply because they didn't agree with some of the posts or had an ax to grind with some of the posters? Many times.. and they almost succeeded.. that would have been a shame.,. I can attest that the discussions here are very tame and polite compared to other forums out there.. Again.. Don't like a section or simply are not interested in the topic..... don't read or post in it. It's really very simple. I don't do games.. or photography, yet I don't insist that others cannot.

Another thing.. a topic may seem worn out or over discussed to many of us, but don't forget, there are new members who may wish to weigh in. That's fine.. again, tired of a subject.. stop reading.
 
I think it's possible that some new-comers drift away many times from lack of response to their postings. Many of the longtime regulars ( in any group), in the midst of a serious discussion, will by-pass a new-comers comment or opinion, and respond to other regulars. It can leave a person feeling as though they've stepped into a private conversation without being asked. I doubt that it's done purposely, rather seen as an annoying interruption of their regular back and forth flow.
Conversely, folks are generally helpful if a recent member puts forth a specific question. Maybe it's like the new kid at school. If he/she should ask, anyone will tell him/her where the bathrooms are, but other than that, ignore him/her until they become a familiar face??
 
DaveA said:
I think it's possible that some new-comers drift away many times from lack of response to their postings. Many of the longtime regulars ( in any group), in the midst of a serious discussion, will by-pass a new-comers comment or opinion, and respond to other regulars. It can leave a person feeling as though they've stepped into a private conversation without being asked. I doubt that it's done purposely, rather seen as an annoying interruption of their regular back and forth flow.
Conversely, folks are generally helpful if a recent member puts forth a specific question. Maybe it's like the new kid at school. If he/she should ask, anyone will tell him/her where the bathrooms are, but other than that, ignore him/her until they become a familiar face??
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You might be onto something there. :p
 
Although I read other forums, I gravitate to this one more often because of the friendliness and feeling of community. I don't care much for politics or other hot issues, but instead prefer entertainment, the games, travel, all aspects of retirement, and photography. People moving on from an online forum reflects real life. I was a volunteer forum moderator for many years in the past, and it's just the ebb and flow nature of it that people will come and go.
 
I think many newbies come here, introduce themselves, then if they click on new posts they are flooded with games and politics topics. Newbies aren't aware they can put a certain area on ignore. All the politics topics right now could scare someone away if they are not interested.

I rarely go to a specific section when I come here. I go to Quick Links Today's posts. New Posts doesn't always show everything I've missed.

The sections I'm most interested in are politics, current events, general discussions, humor, health, fitness, photography, entertainment - books, tv, films, and of course, travel, etc.

I'm on Facebook, used to be on American Expat forums, was on Eons before it went belly up. I've been a moderator as well.

So who is volunteering to set up the poll? :D
 
I've wondered if having a permanent sticky type of post in the Introductions thread about how to get involved here and some how-to steps for using the forum might be helpful.
 
DaveA said:
I think it's possible that some new-comers drift away many times from lack of response to their postings. Many of the longtime regulars ( in any group), in the midst of a serious discussion, will by-pass a new-comers comment or opinion, and respond to other regulars. It can leave a person feeling as though they've stepped into a private conversation without being asked. I doubt that it's done purposely, rather seen as an annoying interruption of their regular back and forth flow.
Conversely, folks are generally helpful if a recent member puts forth a specific question. Maybe it's like the new kid at school. If he/she should ask, anyone will tell him/her where the bathrooms are, but other than that, ignore him/her until they become a familiar face??
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Dave, I suspect there's some truth in your statement. At the same time, I think that it helps when new members actively participate to threads or create new ones. I would not be surprised if some newer folks may feel put off when not getting a reply to a post they make, and thus feel ignored. I think it also helps when a new member not only introduces themselves, but also gives some basic profile info. I find it helpful when interacting with someone new, but understand that some folks are hesitant to reveal too much about themselves. I on the other hand have been pretty much an open book in terms of what I share. I want people to feel comfortable interacting with me.
 
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