This place used to be so lively...what happened? 9 9

[Paul © ® ⚽️💙™]

Maybe its the fact that we just lost a decent nice guy Boardie, that people don't feel like chattering like chaffinches?

 

[Readcomix]

I think most reasons offered already are valid explanations, especially the widened social media landscape. I think of a lot of buying and selling action has moved to platforms that are less discussion-oriented. That said, I’d rather buy and sell here because as a buyer I see better stuff pass through here. One has to be patient, but if you’re looking for the stuff that rarely escapes black hole collections, this is the place to wait it out. As a seller, I like the high rate of seamless interactions (Which I like as a buyer too). 

But more specifically to Roy’s original point about the Friday night hangouts masquerading as sales threads (I’ve hosted a few over the years) a few elements have to come together. The right seller has to have the right stuff on a night when a critical mass of both the right buyers and right thread krappers are present. There is a delicate balance when one of those threads takes life, between the “I just wanna see the good stuff” crowd and the crowd who is here to shop, talk about the material, and have laughs at once. if eyeballs have moved elsewhere, it’s harder for all those elements to coalesce.

[aardvark88]

On 11/24/2023 at 4:12 PM, The humble Watcher lurking said:

It's crazy, but this is still the best place for long-term discussions. 

Beerbohm vs. Ponseti on why Obadiah Oldbuck (now available print on demand) is more important than Action Comics #1 in comics history:

[Buzzetta]

On 11/24/2023 at 9:14 PM, VintageComics said:

You couldn't pay me enough to be among the animals that are out there during this time of year. 

Consumer zombies that feel they're enriching their lives by acting like...well, zombies. 

Some things are one of a kind or are in limited supply. Earlier this year, my mom had remarked that there was something she wished she could get but it was more money than she was comfortable spending at that point.  I called my Aunt to ask if it would be a good idea to get and my Aunt had remarked that by coincidence she had mentioned it to her as well.  Took a few hours but I tracked down the specific item she would like in colors we believe she will like.

I had to drive back to the place a couple of hours later as I left something there and I noticed that they sold out of most of the others and that will be it until next spring.  It was on Amazon but it was something that could easily be damaged in shipping. 

Sometimes, we wade amongst the mess to give someone smile who definitely deserves it. 

 

[Buzzetta]

On 11/24/2023 at 10:11 PM, Readcomix said:

I think most reasons offered already are valid explanations, especially the widened social media landscape. I think of a lot of buying and selling action has moved to platforms that are less discussion-oriented. That said, I’d rather buy and sell here because as a buyer I see better stuff pass through here. One has to be patient, but if you’re looking for the stuff that rarely escapes black hole collections, this is the place to wait it out. As a seller, I like the high rate of seamless interactions (Which I like as a buyer too). 

But more specifically to Roy’s original point about the Friday night hangouts masquerading as sales threads (I’ve hosted a few over the years) a few elements have to come together. The right seller has to have the right stuff on a night when a critical mass of both the right buyers and right thread krappers are present. There is a delicate balance when one of those threads takes life, between the “I just wanna see the good stuff” crowd and the crowd who is here to shop, talk about the material, and have laughs at once. if eyeballs have moved elsewhere, it’s harder for all those elements to coalesce.

There seems to be such a glut of avenues to purchase comics between dealers individual sites, eBay, Heritage, Comiclink, Comiclink Auctions, Comic Art Fans Classified, Hakes, Facebook, Instagram, WhatNot... and more...

I fear that it has diluted this place for sales. 

I started a Plastic Crack thread, but right now I feel that Facebook dedicated groups gets the most attention for those things.   With comics, I have had success when I have listed things but most of the other things that do not sell here wind up selling someplace else.   I offer things first here as the layout is very user friendly to list items quickly especially with the ability to manage or edit each listing. 

Edited November 25, 2023 by Buzzetta

[NP_Gresham]

On 11/24/2023 at 3:23 PM, VintageComics said:

 

Where have all the good times gone?

[stormflora]

As someone engaged in multiple hobby/enthusiast forums, based on my experience, there are several factors involved, but it all really boils down to, "out with the old, in with the new."

Like many have said, social media has significantly changed the landscape of the Internet, especially for the younger generations, as people seek instant gratification, social acceptance, and go karma hunting. Besides the typical household names, platforms like Reddit and Discord are huge due to their massive population and ease of access for users, while forums are dated and feel like exclusive meet-and-greet groups.

Gen Z and newer also have different interests than millennials and older, and feel that the hobbies that they are interested in are old-fashioned and banal. They also require a specific interest and often times monetary investment, when things on a computer screen/mobile phone/game console are far more convenient and straight-forward.

There isn't much of a "cure" for the declining popularity and use of these kinds of forums. But enthusiasts will always stick around.

On 11/24/2023 at 11:27 PM, Buzzetta said:

There seems to be such a glut of avenues to purchase comics between dealers individual sites, eBay, Heritage, Comiclink, Comiclink Auctions, Comic Art Fans Classified, Hakes, Facebook, Instagram, WhatNot... and more...

I fear that it has diluted this place for sales. 

I started a Plastic Crack thread, but right now I feel that Facebook dedicated groups gets the most attention for those things.   With comics, I have had success when I have listed things but most of the other things that do not sell here wind up selling someplace else.   I offer things first here as the layout is very user friendly to list items quickly especially with the ability to manage or edit each listing. 

Besides eBay and Facebook, which of those are viable sources for buying comics inexpensively?

[Gaard]

On 11/24/2023 at 9:14 PM, VintageComics said:

You couldn't pay me enough to be among the animals that are out there during this time of year. 

Consumer zombies that feel they're enriching their lives by acting like...well, zombies. 

I remember a long time ago (probably 25 years+), I was 3rd in line at Circuit City on Black Friday. This was 3:00am. Chit-chatting with the other peeps in line ... the first guy in line was saving big bucks on some top-of-the-line TV, the second guy was getting some high-end computer. I saved $20 on a 120MB hard drive. I was so proud.

 

Then, in later years, people started camping out starting on TG day. In actual tents! Dang cheaters!

[SeniorSurfer]

I think the points mentioned have merit:  It is a holiday weekend and many have family obligations, the right thread does have to come along to have legs (so far no crazy "acetate gate"-like SNAFUs), board sellers may be holding on to their product a bit longer as the market has cooled and no one wants to sell at a loss and of course, there is the social media/multiple outlet factor.  Addressing that last one for a moment, I'd say that though there are many more ways for comic fans to buy and express themselves, boardies here strike me as a more reasoned, older group than maybe the new multiple-cover-variant-one-minute-IG-read crowd.  Not that we're so set in our ways or isolated that our interactions don't overlap into other forms of social media, but maybe for a lessening number of us this is our preferred platform.  And it's not because we're all just old (well I am anyway) but I do liken it to a compressed version of our comic history.  Fans have had a Golden Age (mail), a Silver Age (fanzines), a Copper Age (boards) and a Modern Age (IG and even FB).  A multitude of ways to express one's self, with each age seemingly active for a decreasing amount of time before the next new thing appears to "catch-on" it seems. ("Catch-on"... what a hep cat I am!  23-skiddo!).

Edited November 25, 2023 by SeniorSurfer
Punctuation error

[CGC Mike]

Since the beginning of Invision in 2017

[CAHokie]

On 11/25/2023 at 7:59 AM, CGC Mike said:

Since the beginning of Invision in 2017

How much of that peak is just when Roy posts though? 

Serious question though. Do you know if we really did lose a lot of members when the board switched over? There was a concern at the time that some were just not going to come back.  

[Namtak]

On 11/25/2023 at 7:59 AM, CGC Mike said:

Since the beginning of Invision in 2017

So...theres more activity than before?than why does it seem for many as less?im lost

[Namtak]

Sure is quiter without @kav

[CGC Mike]

On 11/25/2023 at 8:07 AM, CAHokie said:

Do you know if we really did lose a lot of members when the board switched over? There was a concern at the time that some were just not going to come back.  

I do not know.  I have been around for 19 years.  During that time, there were several board software changes.  "The big switch" in 2008? was the end of the world, just like the Invision switch February 2017.  Anyone remember that right column?  There was a switch to turn it off.  I expect everyone who did not read that post on how to shut it off, had to live with it for many years. 

People have been coming and going since the forum existed.  Read some of the really old threads.  There is a ton of people who left many years ago.  Most all didn't give a reason why.  They just stopped posting. 

Prior to 2017, there was no reaction feature.  When one was added with Invision, the number of posts declined.  That's because people didn't have to quote someone to let them know how they felt about their post.  

[DougC]

On 11/25/2023 at 7:13 AM, Namtak said:

So...theres more activity than before?than why does it seem for many as less?im lost

This chart conflates what "activity" is to potentially inflate the number. Following and reacting to topics is what I would consider unseen "activity" and really should be categorized as inter-user engagement which is not visual. A better metric would be "X=time" of posts by unique users, with a secondary category for total posts for "X=time" which could be used to massage public numbers.

obviously all of this is speculation but the metrics on the back end should be looked at by a parent company that operates official forums.

[CGC Mike]

On 11/25/2023 at 8:13 AM, Namtak said:

So...theres more activity than before?than why does it seem for many as less?im lost

This post makes it sound like you have been here a long time.  

[DougC]

On 11/25/2023 at 7:31 AM, CGC Mike said:

This post makes it sound like you have been here a long time.  

@Namtak if you hear a knock on the door they just want to talk....

[Gaard]

On 11/25/2023 at 8:29 AM, DougC said:

This chart conflates what "activity" is to potentially inflate the number. Following and reacting to topics is what I would consider unseen "activity" and really should be categorized as inter-user engagement which is not visual. A better metric would be "X=time" of posts by unique users, with a secondary category for total posts for "X=time" which could be used to massage public numbers.

obviously all of this is speculation but the metrics on the back end should be looked at by a parent company that operates official forums.

+1

It would seem 'activity' does not equal posts.

[CAHokie]

On 11/25/2023 at 8:28 AM, CGC Mike said:

Prior to 2017, there was no reaction feature.  When one was added with Invision, the number of posts declined.  That's because people didn't have to quote someone to let them know how they felt about their post.  

That’s true, a post then may be followed with several emoji or + 1 posts. 
 

On 11/25/2023 at 8:37 AM, Gaard said:

+1

[DougC]

On 11/25/2023 at 7:37 AM, Gaard said:

+1

It would seem 'activity' does not equal posts.

It can be a tricky metric.

Do you track all posts, unique posts, threads created? tracking each of these will give different results that might even contradict each other. It can be difficult to define what "activity" is on forums. Like mike posted above the change to invasion reduced the amount of replies due to the like system. visually this could look like a reduction of user posting, but internally could have resulted in better or more focused inter-user engagement.