Do you think it takes confidence to post on a forum?

[Percy_Vere]

I’m a member of 3 forums (fora?), 2 of which are rubber technology specific so don’t really count as a social forum.

[Dachs]

You can say both, Percy.

[butterscotch]

@Azz

I was banned after making my first post there - all I did was reply to someone’s thread saying I could see why what they were saying made a lot of sense. They had posted a thread wishing that breeders would breed closer to the original breed standards because those animals were generally slimmer and fitter and bred with things like temperament, agility and health in mind first and foremost. But after that first post I got banned as a ‘Bull breed troll’

Well I thought to myself, you know what, I can do better - and went on to start Dogweb (which we later renamed Dogsey) and it surpassed that other site within a year and became the largest English-language dog forum in the world! I then got addicted to building sites like it and the rest is history

@Azz , would you consider doing an AMA (ask me anything) about your experience setting up the forum after getting originally banned from the other forum?

I have so many questions. Where did the members for that forum come from? Were there complications from the forum you got banned from? How did you decide to create the other forums? What made you choose those topics? What rules worked and what rules didn’t?

And so many more. . .

If you agree to participate in the thread, I’ll gladly set the thread up.

It could give newer members a sense of the history of the place. You might also talk about the philosophy of what made these forums successful and the philosophy you’d like to carry into the future.

[Morticia]

@pauline3

@Azz

Great thread Pauline

In general I would say it takes less confidence than many real life interactions… and that it can actually be a great tool in helping some people gain confidence in those offline/real life interactions too and that’s probably been an unexpected bonus for many people. I think that’s awesome, and I love how sites like this can be helpful in such ways

@Meg

I well remember my first forum ,it was a dog forum and I got banned for speaking my mind to some members I thought needed to lean how to treat dogs correctly ie with kindness, infinite patience and consideration .

I think Azz had been a member there too and didn’t think much of it so went away and started his own site Dogweb and I joined there.

We were banned from the same forum Meg!

I was banned after making my first post there - all I did was reply to someone’s thread saying I could see why what they were saying made a lot of sense. They had posted a thread wishing that breeders would breed closer to the original breed standards because those animals were generally slimmer and fitter and bred with things like temperament, agility and health in mind first and foremost. But after that first post I got banned as ‘Bull breed troll’

Well I thought to myself, you know what, I can do better - and went on to start Dogsey which within a year surpassed this other site and because the largest dog English-langauge dog forum in the world! I then got addicted to starting sites like this and the rest is history

The funny thing is when Meg joined Dogsey (or Dogweb as it was called then) a few of our members messaged me to say I should ban Meg because apparently, she was argumentative and would only spell trouble for the site - or something along those lines. But I said that we have to judge everyone on their actions here on our forum rather than what has happened elsewhere, knowing only too well and some sites can bring out the worst in people and that there are always two sides to a story. I didn’t mention this to Meg but she quickly became one of our most liked and respected members and ended up being one of our first Moderators. Nearly two decades later she is still here and still modding and still one of our most liked and respected members

@Mags

I had my first computer as a Christmas present. I had absolutely no idea I was having one or what you did with it! I was shown the basics and was so scared to press anything when I was on my own.

Then not long after I was persuaded/pushed into joining a forum by a friend. I was terrified of posting!

It happened to be a cat forum so being a cat lover, it turned out better than I thought it would. It wasn’t long before I was hooked on it. What I learnt in that time and gained confidence in, was amazing.

Things progressed from there and I’m truly thankful to that friend who introduced me to the Internet almost 19 years ago.

I remember how nervous you were when you first joined Catsey Mags, and how ‘new’ it all was for you having never owned or really used a computer before - but you quickly picked it up and then became a mod, and I often thought to myself how amazingly well you did - going from a true technophobe to a technoqueen not only on your own personal level, but all those people you helped get to grips with things over the years

I hope that you and Meg have both enjoyed the forums just as much as everyone has enjoyed having you on them and even though sometimes it might appear like a thankless task, I hope you’ll always know that so many of us appreciate the time, care and kindness you have shown us all

The same applies for many of our non-moderator members too - some of whom have been with us pretty much since 2009 when our doors first opened. Even though at times it may not feel it, but I can assure you that there are lots of people who have grown fond of you over the years and that you are very much a part of the furniture here. If you add something of value to the forum, or make an effort to help make someones day that little bit better, then you too are part of the community and the community is the beating heart of the forum

What a lovely heartfelt post…

I’ve got to ask … am I the only one who struggles with ‘nested’ quotes when there’s a few of them?

It does my head in trying to figure who exactly said which bit.
It’s seems easier to give up and move on.

Admittedly I just added another one by replying but crikey … you need good brain power.

[Morticia]

@butterscotch

would you consider doing an AMA (ask me anything) about your experience setting up the forum after getting originally banned from the other forum?

I have so many questions. Where did the members for that forum come from? Were there complications from the forum you got banned from? How did you decide to create the other forums? What made you choose those topics? What rules worked and what rules didn’t?

And so many more. . .

If you agree to participate in the thread, I’ll gladly set the thread up.

It could give newer members a sense of the history of the place. You might also talk about the philosophy of what made these forums successful and the philosophy you’d like to carry into the future.

I think there’s an old saying …

Poacher turned gamekeeper.

[Harbal]

@Morticia

I think there’s an old saying …

Poacher turned gamekeeper.

And possibly an assistant gamekeeper.

[Tiffany]

@Psmith

My first thread was on the BBC.My customary well thought out pearls of wisdom in which I used capitals to emphasize one word.
I did get a reply,someone telling me off for shouting.Being new to it,I found that a bit odd but was pleased I got a reply anyway.

Same here, Psmith. I did like those boards the BBC had. I started on the Springwatch boards, then found more BBC boards to post on. I was sad when the Beeb decided to ditch them. Made a few friends through them as well, people I actually met in real life too.
I was terrified at first using them, but they were a friendly & helpful lot, most of them anyway. I hadn’t actually used the PC much then, was scared of it at first in case I broke it. After the Beeb closed a poster on the Springwatch board opened her own forum for wildlife & chat, so I joined that. The rest is history as they say.

[Azz]

@butterscotch

@Azz , would you consider doing an AMA (ask me anything) about your experience setting up the forum after getting originally banned from the other forum?

I have so many questions. Where did the members for that forum come from? Were there complications from the forum you got banned from? How did you decide to create the other forums? What made you choose those topics? What rules worked and what rules didn’t?

And so many more. . .

If you agree to participate in the thread, I’ll gladly set the thread up.

It could give newer members a sense of the history of the place. You might also talk about the philosophy of what made these forums successful and the philosophy you’d like to carry into the future.

Haha so many questions but here’s some answers for you:

Where did the members for that forum come from?

I was on a bull-breed message board at the same time (it wasn’t a forum, just one of those old message boards) as I was researching my first breed (which happened to be a bull breed) and had made some friends on it… so when the new forum started I posted about it there and people from there naturally shared it with their friends. I also know that one of our first members was in contact with a lot of dog lovers via email (she was a dog breeder) and she emailed a lot of a her friends (who in turn may have done the same) and that really helped get us started. So I guess at the time, a lot of people heard about it and word quickly spread. The forum was quite unique as it was ‘cute’ with a great design and feel/atmosphere - the rest is history as they say

Were there complications from the forum you got banned from?

Not at all, I never went back to that forum as I had zero interest in being part of such a site

How did you decide to create the other forums?

I always create these types of sites based on stuff I am passionate about or where I think I can add some tangible value. Over the years lots of ‘older’ people have showed me a lot of kindness (some of whom were some of our very first members here) and part of the reason for starting this one was to give them a special place to hang out. I was also going to volunteer to teach local pensioners how to use computers and get them on here too - as I knew loneliness was a huge problem, and being someone who grew up with the internet (and having run online communities myself) knew just how much of a difference they could make (unfortunately I never got around to it tho).

What rules worked and what rules didn’t?

So many that I’ve lost count but I’ve found that making things as natural and as effortless as possible usually results in the least amount of headaches… for everyone involved

You might also talk about the philosophy of what made these forums successful and the philosophy you’d like to carry into the future.

To begin with it was always about being a friendly, welcoming online space for like-minded people, and that hasn’t changed, if anything it’s just expanded a bit - by aiming to add something of value to humanity too just simple things like encouraging kindness and decency, you know, things to try and bring people and the world closer together, rather than try to split it apart… which, unfortunately is what most social networks are doing.

Hopefully we are fulfilling these objectives

[butterscotch]

Thanks for answering! I appreciate the information.

[Azz]

You’re welcome and you should definitely do some AMAs (tho of our members rather than of me ) we had some a while back and used to call them the ‘hot seat’

@carol started them: https://forum.over50schat.com/t/hotseat-getting-to-know-you/29067 - perhaps you can message her with a view to restarting them?

[Psmith]

@Tiffany

Same here, Psmith. I did like those boards the BBC had. I started on the Springwatch boards, then found more BBC boards to post on. I was sad when the Beeb decided to ditch them. Made a few friends through them as well, people I actually met in real life too.
I was terrified at first using them, but they were a friendly & helpful lot, most of them anyway. I hadn’t actually used the PC much then, was scared of it at first in case I broke it. After the Beeb closed a poster on the Springwatch board opened her own forum for wildlife & chat, so I joined that. The rest is history as they say.

They were great fun.I met some too.One of them asked me to come on holiday to Oz and I’ve sort of stayed.

[d00d]

@Percy_Vere

My first post on a forum was in 1998 on the old TOG website. (Anyone remember that one?) That was in the days when I was on dial up with a 56k modem.

'98 for me too. My first PC windows 98. I don’t know the TOG. But Guardian Note & Queries was fun.

[Woodsman59]

Yes I do, thinking about it really.
I just received an email regarding this newly refurbished site and it does look a lot better b.t.w.

[PixieKnuckles]

Glad you made it over here Woodsman! If you need any help just yell and someone will point you in the right place.

[Morticia]

Hello from me too Woodsman

[Vlad]

@Meg

@Harbal

I think posting on forums has helped with my confidence, but it’s a long road, and I have far to travel.

@Harbal you poor thing Harbal
I wonder how a tender flower like yourself has managed to get through life, it must have been a real ordeal…

Bloody hell that made me have my first genuine laugh of the evening Thanks Meg

[Baz46]

I don’t see that it would take confidence to post on a forum, after all I don’t know anyone on here personally and nobody knows me either. All we have is what we see on the screen in the form of words and smilies, plus perhaps a photo if members have used one for their avatar. There’s also a Profile if details have been posted on there. Judging a personality from this is very difficult, it’s sometimes not easy in real life either but on screen initially there’s very little to go on.

Posting on a forum can I believe be very helpful in a lot of ways, although none of this is reality it is actually a form of ‘community’, something that’s becoming rare these days in many ways.

During the lockdowns we have had, because of the isolation it seemed very lonely without any interaction with family and friends. However, at that time OFF and those members on that forum were always there and posting. That helped at what was a really bad time for a lot of people, myself included. At the touch of a key there was a community, still posting and reminding each other there were still people around and ‘out there’. Also of course that just showed that many were having similar problems with not seeing family and friends, as bad as that was it probably helped many of us just knowing we were not alone in how we felt and for similar reasons.

Now we have another, almost brand new forum – OFC and most of the members from OFF have managed to make the transition and are once again a community, posting as before. It’s been another steep learning curve for many but it’s now ‘onwards and upwards’ as the saying goes!

[spitfire]

I remember a conversation with Azz at the start of my OFF journey, not sure which has changed, OFF or moi, both probably.

[Baz46]

@spitfire

I remember a conversation with Azz at the start of my OFF journey, not sure which has changed, OFF or moi, both probably.

I recall reading when studying about ‘how we tick’ that everything changes, especially us. Nothing remains the same. All the time whatever we are thinking, doing, hearing or recalling affects us and what is in our minds. Opinions and how they are formed I found very interesting. If only more people would find out for themselves how and why we are the persons we are, there would be less friction between us humans and in so many ways.

[Percy_Vere]

@d00d

I don’t know the TOG.

It was a spin-off from Terry Wogan’s breakfast show on Radio 2. I think it might have died when he did.