Where Has Everyone Gone???

[johnrr6]

Originally Posted by Ozzie

Your submission approved John...see what it looks like without the image.
I have to add one, or you get the ABX logo...not a biggy, but it's prettier...

Holy Smokes----I made the front page!

And it was TOTALLY EASY.

How about this for a photo

[Ozzie]

There you go!

[johnrr6]

Now I've only got one problem.....

I'm such a dunce!

24 march is a Tuesday!!!

Can you fix???

[Ozzie]

Oh sure...had to throw me a curve...LOL

[johnrr6]

All in all----pretty easy Ozzie.....

The membership could post at least two brand new news articles daily....

It might help make folks start looking at the front page again.

If Sanjay is willing to work with us a little on the New Posts thing.....

I'll get a list of daily contrbutors together----and we will start giving you 1-2 new news articles daily.....

[Ozzie]

That would sure make that front page more appealing and hopefully postings will follow.

It might not hurt to entertain adding a couple news members also. We are sorely lacking in that dept. as of late. Interested members should pm me.

Thank you for your help John - it is refreshing and appreciated!

[Ozzie]

This thread sure took a few turns I wasn't expecting. Kind of nice to hear from a few members.

[Gr8Golf]

I like what I'm seeing here. My .02 - back to the days when this site was asusboards.com. It was an invaluable site for building and supporting PC's and staying up to speed on the latest hardware etc. I liked what I thought was a focus on enthusiast PC's and video gaming. I'd like to see that angle take center stage and a supporting effort to push the digital lifestyle.

[DeusExMachina]

Originally Posted by polonyc2

only way to 'fix' ABX is to get more members interested in posting...the folks at ABX may not like it but it's true---ABX median membership age is too old...young(er) people are what drives forums...not retired people...get younger, get active, get good word of mouth...that's what will get ABX back

The reason I'm here is because there's more mature people. The other forum I just left is v-e-r-y busy and has all the trinkets, but it's overrun by literal 15 year-olds interested in ePeens (why I call the place MySpace 2), with manners worse than dogs.

It drove the old timers out. You see a wall full of 2008 registered kids, with 2k+ 2 sentence "lol" replies, who think a forum is an IM or Twitter service.

Would never want ABX to turn out like that, where popularity is all that matters to attract the lowest common denominator. Where Q+As turn into blood baths and personal feuds ("This is MY thread. You didn't work to get the thread views I got. So delete your posts!"). Where groupthink and online thuggery is "kewl".

Experience counts. Maybe ABX can carve a niche due to it. Where the common computer faults and fixes can be had at 1001 other forums, but ABX can be THE place to go for specialist information. Some of these overclocking motherboard threads are a goldmine, especially overclocking an Intel board (almost unheard of on other forums [and here I will have to switch to an Intel board, and there is a thread on even overclocking it -- oh, bliss!!]).

ABX can be so much more, and different.

[DeusExMachina]

Originally Posted by Ozzie

It seems most of our news team is MIA and the front page hardly ever changes.

You would have to muzzle me over suggestions, Ozzie. Over at vBulletin.com I was a pariah due to it! lololol

But the front page of ABX does need to be redone. When I clicked the IE 8 release thread, I saw but broken image links. That's never acceptable on a site's front page.

Furthermore, how about displaying system specs? Corsair forums has it in a way it's not an 8" worth of screed to scroll over. This helps tremendously in Q+A troubleshooting (no guessing and wasting time asking about the specs).

Then how about putting up the prized forums on top (based on actual site traffic, not spider traffic), it's what drives folks to this site, reward them for why they came in the first place. If they stay around, there is your nucleus to build around.

[zsaz1029]

I just want to point out that (I think) the posts in the News forum DO NOT translate into articles on the front page anymore. It used to work that way, but no longer.

Quotes from the New HomePage! thread:

Originally Posted by sanjay

As far as the article submissions are concerned, now that we can frontpage any thread created by any member on any subforum...we should see a nice pick-up in new content!

Originally Posted by sanjay

Please PM me any links to member created threads that should be on the frontpage. They can be in any subforum as long as they are decently written. They don't have to be very long- just grammatical. Pictures help too!

[JimTram]

I got into this site originally as I wanted to build my own computer. My first build was with the Intel 875PBZ. Sandog's thread was invaluble in my pursuits.

Since then I cannot even count how many new builds I have done for both myself and others. I have no interest in OC. For me ABX served it's purpose, and now I am interested in more of a social network with some focus on computing.

Being somewhat stoic, terse and candid - I offered what little I could. I have seen too many instances of people slammed for their input. References to a person's age were not helpful at all. Other instances of thoughtlessness as well by a handful of less-than-socially-mature folks also soured me. This diminished my desire to participate even further.

ABX is a great site - I sincerely hope it can get better.

[johnrr6]

Originally Posted by DeusExMachina

The reason I'm here is because there's more mature people. The other forum I just left is v-e-r-y busy and has all the trinkets, but it's overrun by literal 15 year-olds interested in ePeens (why I call the place MySpace 2), with manners worse than dogs.

It drove the old timers out. You see a wall full of 2008 registered kids, with 2k+ 2 sentence "lol" replies, who think a forum is an IM or Twitter service.

Would never want ABX to turn out like that, where popularity is all that matters to attract the lowest common denominator. Where Q+As turn into blood baths and personal feuds ("This is MY thread. You didn't work to get the thread views I got. So delete your posts!"). Where groupthink and online thuggery is "kewl".

Experience counts. Maybe ABX can carve a niche due to it. Where the common computer faults and fixes can be had at 1001 other forums, but ABX can be THE place to go for specialist information. Some of these overclocking motherboard threads are a goldmine, especially overclocking an Intel board (almost unheard of on other forums [and here I will have to switch to an Intel board, and there is a thread on even overclocking it -- oh, bliss!!]).

ABX can be so much more, and different.

Superb post-----I couldn't have said it better if I'd have tried 100 times...

I love your angle.....

Experience COUNTS!!!

And----Maybe that is our niche-----or the signature that Poly is talking about.....

Something that makes us different and special....

I too detest some forums with the short little blubs using language that isn't even close to English....and the total lack of manners. I can't imagine folks talking to one another face to face the way they do sometimes on those forums. But I guess it is different if you are alone----sitting behind the walls of your home----totally anonymous----totally safe. Whereas----in the real world----words like that can cause actual physical violence. In the end----it's called MANNERS-----and it is glue that holds a society together. And forums where they don't exist----to me at least-----are filled with either spineless cowards who bully and boast simply because they are "safe".......or filled with kids that haven't seen enough of the world to mature a bit----and understand....

Either way----I'm not interested in participating in that kind of environment.

Perhaps we should stop fretting about our membership getting "older"----and instead----glory in it----advertise it----and use it to our advantage....


Now-----I'm going to date myself-----what the heck is an epeen? A quick Google didn't help me much.

[DeusExMachina]

ePeen is kiddie talk about having a larger than life penis online. For the 15 year-olds, in the "I'm a mmmmmman. I AM!!" stage, it's what matters among their peers.

This MySpace 2 generation is v-e-r-y group orientated. Individuality is shunned, but group compliance is rewarded (I call it a gang mentality).

It's great if you want site numbers. You can fill a site full of these types, have 1000 online, even. But the trade off with popularity is also the lowest common denominator behaviors, and the requirements to keep them happy (like trinkets upon more trinkets, that make posting even from broadband a chore, as you load over 300kb of junk PER POST -- and whoa the bandwidth bill for the forum owner, too).

Let the other compete for the kids, but how about ABX having the goldmine of info, instead? Like FAQs and howtos and exotic topics that won't be found on other computing forums? You know you're not going to find overclocking an Intel board on these snazzy "I MUST OWN THE LATEST LN2 RIG THAT IS OVERCLOCKED UNDER/OVERVOLTED TO 8GHZ!!!!" sites.

Flaunt what ABX has.

For it's true, if you build it, folks will come.

[polonyc2]

Originally Posted by DeusExMachina

Experience counts. Maybe ABX can carve a niche due to it. Where the common computer faults and fixes can be had at 1001 other forums, but ABX can be THE place to go for specialist information. Some of these overclocking motherboard threads are a goldmine, especially overclocking an Intel board (almost unheard of on other forums [and here I will have to switch to an Intel board, and there is a thread on even overclocking it -- oh, bliss!!]).

ABX can be so much more, and different.

therein lies the other major problem with ABX...maturity is one thing but hard core tech knowledge is another...I don't feel the vast majority of ABX members are hard core techs or technically proficient enough to be this kind of site...ABX was honestly never like this and was the cause of a lot of the upheaval in the techies vs OT wars of a few years back

a group of ABX members wanted the site to take on a more technical nature while the other bigger majority wanted the site to remain an Off Topic Zone where 'what did you eat for lunch' and 'what brand of peanut butter is your favorite' became the predominant topics of conversation...at that time we had a LOT more techies here with major tech knowledge and we could have made this transformation easier

now sadly the site is SEVERELY lacking in this area...I don't come here for tech info (although I still try to post some Tech news here and there) and I doubt the majority of members come here for that either...for my tech knowledge, debate and discussion I use other forums...the place is now where old timers gather for the sake of nostalgia waiting for things to happen (reminds me of the old saying about people making the same mistakes over and over again hoping for a different result)

Sanjay or someone else just needs to make wholesale changes with NO input from members...this is the other way (maybe the only way) to get ABX back...too many whiny old timers here who cry about the change of a font...99% of all other forums make changes with ZERO input from members...they just alert you that the forums will be shut down for a few hours for an upgrade and BANG! a new forum design or other changes just appear...some people may cry and complain but if they start getting too riled up they are told to sit down and shut up...and those forums are THRIVING!...and the majority of posts are well thought out and informative with plenty of discussion generated...yes there is always some level of immaturity but they are far outnumbered by the good posts...and honestly the immature posts are funny and engaging as well at times...once again something older members have less of a time appreciating

ABX needs that sort of firm hand...too much input and pandering to the needs of a few members who claim ownership of this site just because they have been members since 2001...look around old timers you are the reason ABX is in the state it is today

and yes age DOES play a role in this...older people are much less resistant to change, it's a fact...look it up...looks like the only way ABX will ever see real change is when a lot of the current old timers who seem to believe they have a birth rite with ABX leave the site or are removed