Decline in OT activity

I can say definitively that I'd spend more time in OT if there were more hilarious threads like the dick pic one, but I don't think that changes in moderation would actually have that much of an impact overall (barring dramatic changes like another forum split)
 
There's just too much competition, and forums/discussions boards have sort of lost their luster. They used to be the IN things back like 15 years ago, and even as recently as 6-10 years ago were pretty big, but they've sort of lost their grip on discussion. Facebook communities, Reddit, Twitter, Steam communities, all of these sap from a forum system that takes longer (usually) to both ingratiate oneself to and to use, and the former systems have the advantage of being first party/more direct. I don't think there's much CivFanatics can do. I mean, sure, I question the necessity of, say, a swear word filter, considering most forums don't have one, but I highly doubt such a thing is actively hindering traffic.
 
I prefer smaller subreddits - those with solid communities. The issue though is that there aren't really "regulars".. Well, there are, but not in the same sense as here. We have a tighter sense of community here, I think.
 
Derrick CB said:
I can say definitively that I'd spend more time in OT if there were more hilarious threads like the dick pic one, but I don't think that changes in moderation would actually have that much of an impact overall (barring dramatic changes like another forum split)
Click to expand...

r.i.p. in peace dick pic thread

4/27/15 - 4/27/15
 
In terms of community, I joined reddit recently, and while it's pleasant enough (mainly in the smaller, focused subreddits, though), it doesn't have the chummy feel like here - CFCers are like my drinking buddies on the Internet. I do like that I can sort of recognize people's personalities and that I kinda know who they are and where they're coming from and have an opinion on them - less anonymity, if you will. Owen's the ivory tower historian, madviking is the resident frat bro, Tolni is the self-deprecating Bulgarian, MobBoss is the celebrity right-winger who was the Pat Buchannan to Formalydryde's Rachel Maddow, traitorfish is the friendly neighborhood anarchist, and so on. You don't get as much of that sort of thing in the vastly jumbled, Wild West chaos of reddit.
 
cybrxkhan said:
In terms of community, I joined reddit recently, and while it's pleasant enough (mainly in the smaller, focused subreddits, though), it doesn't have the chummy feel like here - CFCers are like my drinking buddies on the Internet. I do like that I can sort of recognize people's personalities and that I kinda know who they are and where they're coming from and have an opinion on them - less anonymity, if you will. Owen's the ivory tower historian, madviking is the resident frat bro, Tolni is the self-deprecating Bulgarian, MobBoss is the celebrity right-winger who was the Pat Buchannan to Formalydryde's Rachel Maddow, traitorfish is the friendly neighborhood anarchist, and so on. You don't get as much of that sort of thing in the vastly jumbled, Wild West chaos of reddit.
Click to expand...

I was going to come here and post this. I use reddit to keep up with my games, for patches and balance discussions and what not. However, it just doesn't have the same sense of community as CFC does, and I think its down to two things.

Size: Maybe I just join large subreddits, but I really do feel lost in the masses. Sure, there are some personalities, but they get swamped out by just the shear(sic?) amount of people. Jokes become community wide things, everyone understands, but it isn't really attached to a single person. It feels more like an amorphous blob of responses that have some divisions but ultimately think very similarly (something akin to anonymity in the chans actually, though more moderated).

Avatars/personal things: This is where I think it lies for me! Each poster has an avatar here, for the most part, signature, details, and other things which give them humanity. It helps them stand out from the crowd. On reddit all you have are names, and a flair, and it just kind of blends in. After a while, you recognize names, and attach some personality to each person, but it just isn't the same. Avatars, details, and signatures all give more humanity to posters and it feels like you're actually conversing with another person. I think that leads to the "drinking buddy" atmosphere, unlike reddit. I'm not conversing with a giant blob, but rather, a group of individuals. Each an actual person. I think that's why I develop friendships here (which is why I stay!) as compared to reddit.

Maybe it's just because CFC got me first back in eighth grade, but it's how I prefer to experience discussions. Even with a smaller community, at least it feels like I'm talking with actual people with actual experiences. Reddit just isn't the same.

Also maybe its a bit more egalitarian without the upvotes downvotes. I don't feel like the community self-censors unpopular opinions, everyone gets the same space for posting. Only thing determining order is who posted first.
 
Almost entirely due to posting group shots of sorority girls in the babe thread.
 
Since I can't drink, I'm always sober. If CFC is a bar, I'm the designated driver.

madviking said:
why does everyone think i'm a bro. i'm the biggest gdi ever.
Click to expand...


I associate you with wine, women, and song; or, in modern parlance, beer, babes, and... song.
 
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