Popular Post Get Marwood & I Posted February 12, 2018 Popular Post Share Posted February 12, 2018 OK, here's what I think as a mere member of 16 months. I would normally type this offline, fine tune it and then post it. This is off the top of my head, as I can't really be bothered if I'm honest (which is part of the problem). Broadly speaking, there are old comics and new comics. We have all run out of things to say about 'old' comics. Every aspect, every nuance of old comic collecting has been mined to the point of tedium. Consequently, all we really see are variations on a theme. Everything has been done. All 'new' threads are actually old threads in disguise. There is no new lifeblood, or interest in 'new' comics on the boards that I can find. That is probably due to the fact that the 'old guard' dislike new comics in the main. I know I do. They are not what they used to be. Younger members have no home here, and probably find the place and format off putting. Is anyone aware of a thread that discusses the latest ongoings in ASM? Spidey is most peoples first choice character and yet these boards do not have one thread or discussion point dedicated to the review of his latest exploits. If that exists, it is probably on Facebook or a blog somewhere, where the 'kids' hang out. If you want something to be successful, you have to nurture it. CGC and the Admin staff of these boards do not nurture it. It is a 'new' board, but is actually very stagnant. When the boards changed to the new software the management of the change and communication was appalling. The blinding white themes put people off, and a lot of members saw it as a jumping off point. The staff did nothing to promote the good stuff, just ignored protest and belittled genuine concerns. Then we had long periods of not being able to log on. Another jumping off point for many. It was painful, and when I banged the drum 'come on guys' I got stick for it. If you are into comics, and you find this site, where do you start? It is rambling and shambolic, full of repetition and ill placed features. I could list out now 20 'cosmetic' changes that I know would have broad appeal and have an instant impact. The fact that these things are not done as a matter of course shows that no one on the staff cares, either by design or otherwise. What are the boards for? Often, the non-comic traffic outweighs the comic traffic. Incident in Chennai? The boards come alive! What!? What would a newcomer make of this place? Why do they leave questions unanswered in the questions section for days / weeks on end? Is it really so hard to look there once a day and respond, even with a holding reply? Why are system abuses ignored? Because it's too much effort to police them? Why create divisions with special titles? Are we not all equal? The last 'change' proposed on the boards was Arch and his 'super cool thread stickies' idea. He unpinned the top threads in CG, threw his toys out of the pram when he was rightly criticised, ignored every one who posted and then abandoned the idea, leaving the old threads unpinned. A total muck up. Meanwhile, when I enquire as to when the old and new journals will merge, he says he 'doesn't know'. I think the journals have died a death because those with existing ones fear they will lose content when they merge, and those wanting to start new ones are reluctant to do so because the format is poor and merge uncertainty stops them doing it. It's been a year - when will they merge and what is the plan given that they are in incompatible formats? When will PMs be sorted? They are a key requirement for those selling and yet are clunky and un-user friendly. We can split the atom, but we cant make the latest PM show first? All these things make the experience unappealing. Moderation? I can't even be bothered to go into this, so silly it is. I have this idea in my head where CGC invest in the forum with a view to making it the absolute go to place for all things comics. No barred subjects, user friendly software that encourages people to share their stuff. People would say " You're into comics man - you've gotta join the CGC site, it's amazing". A bit of thought and investment, to tailor the boards to the requirements of it's users. The absolute one thing that is missing is a staff role that sees a person or persons actively engage on a daily basis. Not log in once a week, post once a month. Someone who listens, responds to questions, acts on suggestions. Imagine if they held a meeting where comic enthusiasts worked with them face to face to help design the be all and end all of comic forums. Imagine the selling opportunities for CGC, if anyone with an interest in comics was here because the place was so damn cool! Pipe dream I guess though. If you look across to the Ditch Fahrenheit site, it has no traffic now. It's dead. I can see the same thing happening here. There is no dynamism. No optimism. The software just sits here, warts and all, with nothing changing. There is no God given right for things to continue, just because they've always been there. Things die out, if left unattended. This is a brain dump, and I could've made a much better fist of it, if I sat down and planned it. I haven't even touched on the members and the cliques and the fact that the like button kills posting. I could go on and on. And that's the problem. That, and the fact that no one cares. So I have stopped caring too. All I do, like most people, is enjoy the bits I enjoy and ignore the rest. I try to help when I can, especially new members, and try to keep my own threads going by making sure everyone who posts gets a response. It's amazing how many people don't do that. You wouldn't ignore the guy talking to you in the pub, so why do it online? Anyway - @lizards2 - have a go at that wall of text mate As I've said in the past, release the hounds! bounty_coder, mr_highgrade, Foley and 9 others 10 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Get Marwood & I Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 36 minutes ago, comicquant said: My question is... Can something be "deader"? Yes. Arch's boards 'to do' list. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tv horror Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 5 minutes ago, Marwood & I said: All 'new' threads are actually old threads in disguise. Is it not Robots? As in Transformers. 1950's war comics 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Get Marwood & I Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 Cue eerie silence....as the vultures gather. Do we agree with him? Maybe, but we don't like him. How can we turn this against him. Etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Get Marwood & I Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 1 minute ago, tv horror said: Is it not Robots? As in Transformers. When I do it, yes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lizards2 Posted February 12, 2018 Author Share Posted February 12, 2018 3 minutes ago, Marwood & I said: Cue eerie silence....as the vultures gather. Do we agree with him? Maybe, but we don't like him. How can we turn this against him. Etc. Nods have been mortified....., Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken Aldred Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 4 hours ago, PunisherPunisherPunisher said: It's the Mandela effect Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Get Marwood & I Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 1 minute ago, lizards2 said: Nods have been mortified....., For the last 16 months they have, yes! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adampasz Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 (edited) I wasn't part of the good old days, so I can't comment on whether it's more or less dead than it used to be, but here's my 2 cents on the current state of things here... 1. There seem to be at least 2 or 3 good sales threads going on every week. Sometimes more -- they seem to come in waves. 2. Sales threads have had a nice variety of GA to modern books, including many books that are tough to find elsewhere. 3. Most people here already know what they are looking for, and know what they're willing to pay. If you're looking to sell dreck here, you're probably wasting your time. 4. Pricing has ranged from Awesome_Deal to Slightly_Overpriced. I haven't really seen much in the way of price-gouging. 5. There is a subjective element to buying/selling. Every seller has their own style that takes time, and perhaps a few transactions, to figure out. 6. I know this will get me, but I don't have a problem with the UI of the new boards. And I've been able to effectively use the site on mobile devices (including running a vcc booth), which was much tougher with the old boards. Just being able to upload images directly was a huge win. Edited February 12, 2018 by adampasz mustang33guy and Martin Sinescu 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lizards2 Posted February 12, 2018 Author Share Posted February 12, 2018 24 minutes ago, lizards2 said: 29 minutes ago, The Resurrection said: 40 minutes ago, lizards2 said: I keep running into some of our current and previous frequent flyers over on eBay. Just came across another one this morning, and I was thinking, "wow - a lot of great, tightly-graded books - wonder why they aren't for sale on the boards?" Someone recently told me I should display my wares over there too, as I would sell more product and get more for it. I'm wondering too if the deadness might be caused by the exit of the SA crowd, and it being replaced by deep-pocketed GA collectors. The reason sales do not do well anymore goes back to my response. If you cant flip it, they don't want it. I miss the old Friday/Saturday night threads of guys like FT selling off pages upon pages of nice HG non key issues for good prices. But once the new regime made it's way in it became harder and harder to move those books as the boards have been molded to a place to recycle keys, and forget ever getting a deal, if something reasonable does come along it is bought and put up on Ebay the same day it arrives in the mail. There simply just aren't many collectors left here. And don't get me wrong, I sell comics non stop, but I have never abused the community the way some of these guys do. I guess I'm still mostly a collector, and still getting deals here. Got some great stuff lately out of October's thread. However, I guess I am spending more on eBay as of late. You got me thinking of about eight to ten years ago, when I first started selling my duplicate/undercopies here, and Arex, Doc Watson and Borock buying my 9.0s and squeezing them into 9.4/9.6 slabs. Nothing like seeing my $10 9.0 Nick Fury with a ghastly flaw in its new, shiney 9.6 CGC slab, going for just shy of $300 on eBay. Maybe we're just not drawing enough new "suckers" here any more to take advantage of....., 1Cool, Mr. Zipper and bounty_coder 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GermanFan Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 I still miss the old boards. RockMyAmadeus and Old Fashion PB and J 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken Aldred Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 1 hour ago, ComicConnoisseur said: I think it is the aging of the board member audience that had something to do with it. Most people when this board started where in their late 30s most likely when this board started. Same group are probably all hitting their 50s now. At a certain age people just don't have the same passion they had when they were younger about certain subjects. Most probably moved on to other interests. Nothing wrong with that. Hopefully some new younger board members can carry the torch going forward. I'm in my mid-fifties. Don't count me out yet. lizards2 and ComicConnoisseur 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Get Marwood & I Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 5 minutes ago, adampasz said: I wasn't part of the good old days, so I can't comment on whether it's more or less dead than it used to be, but here's my 2 cents on the current state of things here... 1. There seem to be at least 2 or 3 good sales threads going on every week. Sometimes more -- they seem to come in waves. 2. Sales threads have had a nice variety of GA to modern books, including many books that are tough to find elsewhere. 3. Most people here already know what they are looking for. If you're looking to sell dreck here, you're probably wasting your time. 4. Pricing has ranged from Awesome_Deal to Slightly_Overpriced. I haven't really seen much in the way of price-gouging. 5. There is a subjective element to buying/selling. Every seller has their own style that takes time, and perhaps a few transactions, to figure out. 6. I know this will get me, but I don't have a problem with the UI of the new boards. And I've been able to effectively use the site on mobile devices (including running a vcc booth), which was much tougher with the old boards. Just being able to upload images directly was a huge win. I don't buy or sell so that's the one area I'm not up to speed on. A lot of the software is miles better than it was, without a doubt. Direct photo-uploading is worth it's weight in gold, as you say, and likely kept many of us here. I was very positive about a lot of the new stuff, and still am. But the new car is on the drive, has been for a year, and no one is servicing it. Good car analogy, no? JJ-4 and adampasz 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tv horror Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 Marwood you are quite right with your posting I have belonged to some great sites and over time especially recently they have dried up, I even wondered if I was the only member. Also as for posting a question I am pleased that there are still a few decent people who take the time to answer, I once heard "A question is only easy if you know the answer". As for the recent Spidey comics I picked up issue 795 as it was part two of "The Favor " story line away back when, later that night I found out it had increased in value by four times the amount I paid. The reason was Osborn became the Red Goblin. This was lucky for me as I had stopped buying after issue 700 but there is hope on the horizon (pun) a new writer is taking over from Slott. mysterio 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lizards2 Posted February 12, 2018 Author Share Posted February 12, 2018 3 minutes ago, Ken Aldred said: 1 hour ago, ComicConnoisseur said: I think it is the aging of the board member audience that had something to do with it. Most people when this board started where in their late 30s most likely when this board started. Same group are probably all hitting their 50s now. At a certain age people just don't have the same passion they had when they were younger about certain subjects. Most probably moved on to other interests. Nothing wrong with that. Hopefully some new younger board members can carry the torch going forward. I'm in my mid-fifties. Don't count me out yet. I was going to say....., I'm almost 57 - will be there in mid-March, if I can last that long. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1Cool Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 2 minutes ago, lizards2 said: You got me thinking of about eight to ten years ago, when I first started selling my duplicate/undercopies here, and Arex, Doc Watson and Borock buying my 9.0s and squeezing them into 9.4/9.6 slabs. Nothing like seeing my $10 9.0 Nick Fury with a ghastly flaw in its new, shiney 9.6 CGC slab, going for just shy of $300 on eBay. Maybe we're just not drawing enough new "suckers" here any more to take advantage of....., Good point. When I first got here the big dogs feasted on the new, less experienced guys who may have the goods but were not as versed in selling or slabbing. Those newbies learned and became old dogs after many years. Now it seems like people are quick to become dealers and don't want to leave anything on the table even if the big dogs didn't become national sellers over night. I remember I use to be able to almost exclusively buy books on the boards since there was just a plethora of books being put up at "they are not in my collection focus and need them out of the house" prices but those type of sales threads have dried up over the last few years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeadOne Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 Let's not forget the huge punch in the face that was dealt by Photobucket this past year. The old boards, with their 3rd party hosting dependence, would have still taken a major hit. lizards2, goldust40 and Old Fashion PB and J 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lizards2 Posted February 12, 2018 Author Share Posted February 12, 2018 1 minute ago, DeadOne said: Let's not forget the huge punch in the face that was dealt by Photobucket this past year. The old boards, with their 3rd party hosting dependence, would have still taken a major hit. Very good point Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RockMyAmadeus Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Get Marwood & I Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 3 minutes ago, tv horror said: Marwood you are quite right with your posting I have belonged to some great sites and over time especially recently they have dried up, I even wondered if I was the only member. Also as for posting a question I am pleased that there are still a few decent people who take the time to answer, I once heard "A question is only easy if you know the answer". As for the recent Spidey comics I picked up issue 795 as it was part two of "The Favor " story line away back when, later that night I found out it had increased in value by four times the amount I paid. The reason was Osborn became the Red Goblin. This was lucky for me as I had stopped buying after issue 700 but there is hope on the horizon (pun) a new writer is taking over from Slott. Exactly. Where is the thread that discusses this? It's quite staggering really isn't it. He's only Spider-Man, after all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...