So how many "hey what if I made a forum" forums have you been on? (or, random forum-related chatter)

[Skirmisher]

Not to diss on folks making their own forums to try out, even if they don't stick with it. That's a normal way for things to shake out! There's lots of good reasons that setting up your own cozy little forum has become an attractive idea in the past few years, and it's always a worthwhile experience.

...I actually dunno if I have a clear answer to my own question though lol. Maybe 2 or 3, plus a couple from folks I knew but which I didn't join. Some of my friends have probably gone through trialing 2 or 3 personal forums themselves at this point! One friend ran a Synchronet BBS for a little while (which I guess Roxy attempted to set up before this); it was cute, and I really liked how you could interact with it through a bunch of different interfaces, like the web, SSH, NNTP (aka the Usenet protocol)...

I also ran my own phpBB forum for a handful of years, back in the in-between era of the early 2010s where social media was still kinda ramping up. It didn't have a whole lot going on, but I stuck to it impressively long, considering my ADHD and the track record I have these days :P

Of the other forums I was active on during that time, I think only a couple are still in use. One of them (a particular RTS fan community) was already a decade-ish old when I joined, and still looks basically the same today as it did 10 years ago. The other one is the Scratch forums, and I expect a few cohorts of kids have rotated through its active membership by now lol (I just glanced at it again, and I'm surprised that it doesn't look all that different from how it used to, aside from some moderate style changes)

With less spare time to dedicate to a single thing nowadays, though, it's hit me how slow I am to compose messages, which kinda puts a damper on participating in communities in general. Even writing a small paragraph or so on Mastodon might take me 10-15 minutes :( Alas...

[Jess]

Yea, I tried synchronet but it was over my head on how to get it to work, so I gave up. I have no idea how long this forum will last or how many people will use it, but I think it'll be fun while it's fun, you know? I miss forums and I've missed them for a while. Chats are cool too, but sometimes it's nice to just be slow paced and thoughtful in messages and responses. Plus, I get to hear the pleasant double click of my mechanical jades even more now

[Skirmisher]

I have no idea how long this forum will last or how many people will use it, but I think it'll be fun while it's fun, you know? I miss forums and I've missed them for a while. Chats are cool too, but sometimes it's nice to just be slow paced and thoughtful in messages and responses.

Yeah, totally! I do miss the vibe even if it's harder for me to have time/get into the right headspace for it ^^;

Plus, I get to hear the pleasant double click of my mechanical jades even more now

*click-clacks on her vintage Alps-clone keyboard* [/offtopic]

[NovaSquirrel]

I was under the impression that there's been a lot of "hey what if I made a forum" forums that never really kicked off, but after actually looking into them I think the reality is that they did kick off and get used, and have quite a few posts from 2023, but I forgot to keep checking on them when they were slow in the beginning (and are probably still slow now). Hurray for ADHD.

I still check the nesdev forums (which I think is over 20 years old?) occasionally, though it seems like it's definitely gotten slower and I think people just talk on a Discord server instead. I like real-time chat a lot, but for a lot of things it's nice to have stuff in a spot where the stuff you're sharing won't get buried and people in different timezones can all talk together. And a community that does a lot of research and stuff (like nesdev) definitely benefits from having that in a public, searchable place, though they have a wiki for that.

[FaultBat]

I've been on dozens of "hey what if I made a forum"s over the years, though many of them failed for being like... a branch off of another community (IRC, MUCK, Discord, whatever) that was somehow different-and-better, but basically ended up being someone with a chip on their shoulder and cheap web hosting. It's hard to keep a community around when the driving force is just being bitter.

I've also been on a bunch that stuck around for a while, and some that actually were good ideas that never really gained traction. I think they're worth setting up and just seeing where things go. No real harm if it doesn't work out, you know?

[Jess]

Yea, this is why I'm gonna try to build up the forum slowly and establish a vibe and, hopefully, regular visitors before I go putting the @ everyone on all sites to get people on it. I don't want it to just be like, oh well we're all in the Fox Den discord anyways so why go on the forum? Eventually I'll start posting about it online and seeing if I can attract other people in. I know there are people who would be interested who are not in my Discord

[Skirmisher]

I was under the impression that there's been a lot of "hey what if I made a forum" forums that never really kicked off, but after actually looking into them I think the reality is that they did kick off and get used, and have quite a few posts from 2023, but I forgot to keep checking on them when they were slow in the beginning (and are probably still slow now). Hurray for ADHD.

That is definitely a mood

I've also been on a bunch that stuck around for a while, and some that actually were good ideas that never really gained traction. I think they're worth setting up and just seeing where things go. No real harm if it doesn't work out, you know?

Exactly!

Also, no discussion of small, long-running community forums would be complete without mentioning Jul, run by Xkeeper et al for I guess more than 15 years now. I haven't signed up myself (I think?), but it definitely seems like a cozy hangout. I'm sure there's inspirations to be had there for other forum-hosters, too.

[Jess]

Also, no discussion of small, long-running community forums would be complete without mentioning Jul, run by Xkeeper et al for I guess more than 15 years now. I haven't signed up myself (I think?), but it definitely seems like a cozy hangout. I'm sure there's inspirations to be had there for other forum-hosters, too.

Huh, I didn't know Xkeeper had a forum, but also, I'm not surprised at all lmao

[Skirmisher]

Also, no discussion of small, long-running community forums would be complete without mentioning Jul, run by Xkeeper et al for I guess more than 15 years now. I haven't signed up myself (I think?), but it definitely seems like a cozy hangout. I'm sure there's inspirations to be had there for other forum-hosters, too.

Huh, I didn't know Xkeeper had a forum, but also, I'm not surprised at all lmao

Yeah! They plug it on social media every so often, with like a direct invitation but with a no-pressure kinda vibe, it's nice :)

[Foxxhoria]

I've never joined another forum made on a whim, but I use VOGONS and an Amiga forum from time to time heh.