Are Forums a dying thing?

[phil]

some may remember newsgroups near the start of the internet. Then many ISP's stopped hosting them. You can access some through google groups.

It's not a website you subscribe the the group and then you can read and reply to it.
maybe some have internet service providers that include newsgroups. It used to be a bonus to internet access you also got newsgroup access but many never knew how to access it.

I miss them because they were unmonitored and free to use. the downside was spam took over many because it was basically the wild west of the internet.

if you really search between the lines there may still be some applicable ones.

Here is an example of one about antique radios that is perhaps a bit slow but it is still being used by some old-school members.

https://groups.google.com/g/rec.antiques.radio+phono

[SarahFair]

Unfortunately I think Facebook has slowed forums way down. I quit posting to many forums after joining groups on Facebook.

Unfortunately, for them, Facebook got too big for their own good and with all the snooping and data collecting I got creeped out (and ticked off) after I figured out their bots were reading and keeping track of what I was writing in private messages, to family, and delegating punishments for it; again, in private messages, to my family.

I've turned back to forums for information on my hobbies, but some are dying, some are not.

I have yet to find a good genealogy forum, Facebook was good for that, you could easily get information and pictures from almost any family and locals you could think of.. but now, it feels like I'm shooting in the dark on some forums

I'm glad this place is still active

[1918ColonialRevival]

Unfortunately I think Facebook has slowed forums way down. I quit posting to many forums after joining groups on Facebook.

Unfortunately, for them, Facebook got too big for their own good and with all the snooping and data collecting I got creeped out (and ticked off) after I figured out their bots were reading and keeping track of what I was writing in private messages, to family, and delegating punishments for it; again, in private messages, to my family.

I've turned back to forums for information on my hobbies, but some are dying, some are not.

I have yet to find a good genealogy forum, Facebook was good for that, you could easily get information and pictures from almost any family and locals you could think of.. but now, it feels like I'm shooting in the dark on some forums

I'm glad this place is still active

Glad to see I'm not the only one who feels that way about FB. I've never been a fan of social media and in the last few years many of the platforms have become downright Orwellian. I tell people they should read the fine print in all of the social media contracts - it's enough to keep you awake at night! Not to mention their behavior toward you if you post something that is not lock-step with the platform's owners' beliefs, however questionable they may be. I never had a FB account, but I lost any respect I ever had for them when they scrubbed a family member's post about a nasty reaction they had to the Covid vaccine, yet they allow pro-terrorist propaganda. But, I digress.

I've always preferred message boards because they remind me of the old pre-internet days of the BBS (anyone else remember those?). It seems like people were much more respectful toward each other back then most of the time.

[aislinn]

As someone who joined this forum in the last couple of years and who has also quit Facebook I am SO appreciative of this community! I don’t post a ton, and I am usually the one seeking advice vs giving it right now, but I search the forums often and find the posts here an incredible resource.

[Wackyshack]

I have been working insane hours since the pandemic. 20 months without a weekend off. I just came out of a 52 hour work week today.
I thought of the Historic District often, but since I haven't done much but managed to paint a room, clean out the storage room, and fix it up for use as a bedroom, I have not had the chance to do a thing with the house in all that time.

When reading about Facebook, yes there are pages about houses, but they are fluff and nonsense. Here you get a nice intelligent discussion and sharing of old house joys and sorrows in a mature setting. I do my best to direct people over here or to at least the Facebook group, but it seems most people just want tons of "likes" and not much substance.

[Gothichome]

Wackyshack, very few folks these days don’t want to spend the time to really think about a topic any deeper than a quick mindless drivel scan. Forums don’t offer that.

[phil]

i tried facebook when it began but when I realized they were collecting and compiling my data I opted out. giving up the rights to photos and allowing bots to scan every word and link it to my phone number is too intrusive for my liking. There are still lots of good forums on almost every subject imaginable.

[pqtex]

I'm kind of late to this party, but I'm back now! As a regular poster on Old House Web and Wavy Glass, I was in the "Honeymoon" phase of my old house. I was happy to see all the old posts from Wavy Glass preserved here. I participated some once we moved here, but my posts were less frequent. My fault. I got tired. I got older. I lost interest...not in the forum, but progress was so slow on the house, and life got in the way, and I lost interest in the things that had brought me here in the first place. I'm trying to recapture my original enthusiasm...and get back to it. I've now lived in my family's 1913 farmhouse for 16 years...it is time to make more progress. I'll try to post more here...the forums and members have always motivated me.

My excuses are myriad...I was busy with work (as are many of us), I cared for elderly parents (many of us care for parents or children), money was tight (oh yeah, I'm not the only one!), or time was short (yeah, yeah...I see everyone rolling their eyes). I wasn't working on the house, so my forum activity dwindled as well.

I am grateful to all of you who are still here, still posting, and I'm especially grateful to those who are managing and moderating the forum to keep it alive!

Jill aka pqtex

Here is the latest progress. Columns are up. They were purchased from architectural salvage and are close to the originals. Originally there were 4 columns, but we went with 6 for better support of the big porch roof. Husband is working on the window restoration, but it is a slow process.

[mjt]

My excuses are myriad...I was busy with work (as are many of us), I cared for elderly parents (many of us care for parents or children), money was tight (oh yeah, I'm not the only one!), or time was short (yeah, yeah...I see everyone rolling their eyes). I wasn't working on the house, so my forum activity dwindled as well.

No eye rolling here. Just nodding in agreement and empathy.

[Gothichome]

Jill, good to see your back, there is no reason to apologize, I to have been slacking on my posting and my bathroom project. Seem to be having trouble motivating my self.
Can you post a before picture of that porch?
Ron