Backwards Logic
Emperor Palpatine
Hot interview tip: introduce yourself as 'the Wise Wizard'.
It goes in cycles I think (like most things). NotW V and VII both ran over two threads, and I think the original Snakes & Foxes had three (can't quite remember). And we are talking six or seven years ago for those.
Personally I prefer NotW how it is now to how it was a while back in... I'm tempted to say the teens (X through XIX) where games would be entirely dictated by MSN chats and the public thread was ancillary. Those aren't days I'm eager to return to.
I'm trying to think back that far... My first game was XVI, and while there was a ton of PM'ing (I didn't IM at all back then, didn't until XIX), the thread was active as well and not a ton of spam. Ditto XVIII, and that game definitely wasn't dictated by MSN or PM as I solo'd that one pretty much (didn't deal with much PM'ing either outside of the occasional Methos chat). The thread probably wasn't as active as other had been though, I don't recall a ton of conversation after the midgame. I got killed first in XVII and XIX (go figure), but from what I remember XIX was done through IM chat's a whole bunch along with PM's. However, what was in the thread was at least almost entirely IC.
I do miss the teens (ah, life was much simpler back then, no?), but probably miss the early twenties the most. I think those games had the right blend of RP, in-thread stuff, and IM'ing. Stuff's changed along the way, the games, the hosting, the players, but objectively I can't say if things were better or worse back then compared to now. I just personally preferred it.