I was talking to David Kern yesterday. A Man I highly respect for his intuition and voice in the industry. The discussion was about the lack of interest on forums of late. Lots of forums are slower and the causes could be numerous.
One of the major reasons we thought of was the economy. Many people installers probably the most simply cannot afford it but many seem to work it into their budget anyway. Hey who can live without it now, it's much like having a cell phone or transportation.
Another is the information superhighway where one can simply google up any information they need. Who really needs to ask a question on a forum anyhoo (overused expression).
Some forums attract more people because of all the bells and whistles provided or there may be more self proclaimed experts on it who attract the less vigilant in sourcing out their own information.
I like the bells and whistles but then find myself coming back to plain old forums where the text is more attractive than any emoticons or funny names for forum members who have posted more than others.
Censorship is getting more prevalent on forums. This I believe is really not attractive to those who enjoy real conversation and banter where one can let lose and really say what they want. I kinda like the older forums with less distractions.
Besides censorship is this newer coveting of so called super secret information on forums where one has to join a club, be invited and prove his profession and practically a back ground check before allowed to join in.
FYI---there is no super secret information out there fellas. Like I said before, you can find anything about floor covering or anything else if you know how to use search words or phrases on the net.
IMO those that think they are coveting this secret info are simply hurting themselves and the website they subscribe to. Get real, thanks to the information superhighway we don't need them and don't have to put up with censorship or snootyness either.
They will be forgotten and be nothing but roadkill on the infobahn.
