Reversing the slow decline of SD.NET

[Ralin]

I was trying to be reasonable, but you couldn't resist getting a fucking dunk in.

Eat shit.

Shove it up your ass.

Well simpletons are easily amused. Hey, let me know when you're up for something more advanced like peekaboo. Maybe we can eventually graduate to pickup sticks.

Not a single one of you possess the self awareness to realize you are why this place sucks.

I was trying to be reasonable,

A play in one act.

[EnterpriseSovereign]

Well simpletons are easily amused. Hey, let me know when you're up for something more advanced like peekaboo. Maybe we can eventually graduate to pickup sticks.

I'm imagining the Count from Sesame Street going "One, two, three, four! Four posts since you said you weren't coming back!"

Not a single one of you possess the self awareness to realize you are why this place sucks. Why should anyone come back if you're not going to listen to people who tell you why it's awful to be here?

Says the man who is bound and determined to show off how much cooler he is than all us fatty nerds because he totally doesn't give a shit.

I was trying to be reasonable, but you couldn't resist getting a fucking dunk in. Never thought I'd say this but Broomstick is right.

Fuck off, obviously you came back just to troll. You needn't have bothered. Bye, Felicia.

[LadyTevar]

Zod, you're being an ass, cut it out now.

[Ralin]

Elfdart's a fucking moderator.

Wait, what?

[Gandalf]

Sure i'd love nothing less then to catch lightning in a bottle again. This place was fun. So were my 20s but i'm still a grumpy 47 year old fat guy now.

I ruminated on the whole lightning in a bottle thing. The internet being what it was in 2002 combined with people being younger gave the forum a joyous and absurd silliness.

A lot of forums had it back in the day, all with their own individual flavours. What worked for some didn't work for others. Then social media took the socialising content away, leaving more "serious forum" content for better or worse.

[EnterpriseSovereign]

Elfdart's a fucking moderator.

Wait, what?

Reminds me of 0:15 of this ad from 2019

[LadyTevar]

Elfdart's a fucking moderator.

Wait, what?

Right now, the Most Active Mod on the board is ME. I'm doing most of the work.

[EnterpriseSovereign]

Elfdart's a fucking moderator.

Wait, what?

Right now, the Most Active Mod on the board is ME. I'm doing most of the work.

Also, Elfdart doesn't show up in the mod list.

[bilateralrope]

8 hours between a "I won't be back" post and you coming back for another post.

It's always amusing when the gap is that short.

To paraphrase Mike from many years back, yes it's a pointless and kinda silly argument that doesn't relate to much of anything that matters in real life. And you took the time to read and comment on it so stop pretending you're any better than the rest of us.

I won't pretend I'm any better. I know I've done similar in the past.

This tangent was amusing. I'm not sure if any of us even disagree with Zod about why SD.Net declined.

[Ralin]

8 hours between a "I won't be back" post and you coming back for another post.

It's always amusing when the gap is that short.

To paraphrase Mike from many years back, yes it's a pointless and kinda silly argument that doesn't relate to much of anything that matters in real life. And you took the time to read and comment on it so stop pretending you're any better than the rest of us.

I won't pretend I'm any better. I know I've done similar in the past.

This tangent was amusing. I'm not sure if any of us even disagree with Zod about why SD.Net declined.

That was aimed at Zod. I was agreeing with you.

[bilateralrope]

That was aimed at Zod. I was agreeing with you.

Fair enough.

[Solauren]

Elfdart's a fucking moderator.

Wait, what?

Right now, the Most Active Mod on the board is ME. I'm doing most of the work.

Which is why Mike should put you in charge.

[Col. Crackpot]

I won't pretend I'm any better. I know I've done similar in the past.

We all have. Maybe the very thing that made this place great 20 years ago is what made it toxic.

[Dalton]

Wait, what?

Right now, the Most Active Mod on the board is ME. I'm doing most of the work.

Which is why Mike should put you in charge.

Mike and myself both have careers and families. It's not easy for us to dedicate much time to this board anymore. I understand the frustrations inherent with that, and I deeply appreciate that Tev has been holding down the fort. We are doing what we can when we have time to do so.

[Solauren]

Right now, the Most Active Mod on the board is ME. I'm doing most of the work.

Which is why Mike should put you in charge.

Mike and myself both have careers and families. It's not easy for us to dedicate much time to this board anymore. I understand the frustrations inherent with that, and I deeply appreciate that Tev has been holding down the fort. We are doing what we can when we have time to do so.

So, why not get another person (i.e Tev, if she's interested) to near the same level of operational authority?
(Note: I don't want it) That will take some of the load off, and let people know there is a 'new sheriff in town'.

Just a suggestion.

[Mr Bean]

For now LadyTevar has stepped up as Dalton stepped up when Mike stepped away. So yes, why not give LadyTevar unlimited power? As I post this there are exactly 5 people online



The board simply does not get much activity these days. Heck my posting average is.... let see oh about one post every two weeks. I'm guessing bot traffic is what... 70% of all posts here? If no one is minding the store this will be one of those ghost towns of the internet with nothing but the electric noise of robots shouting at each other. For many years this was a time and a place I considered my first stop on the internet but Discord has mostly taken that place now. It's just how it's happened.

[EnterpriseSovereign]

For now LadyTevar has stepped up as Dalton stepped up when Mike stepped away. So yes, why not give LadyTevar unlimited power? As I post this there are exactly 5 people online



The board simply does not get much activity these days. Heck my posting average is.... let see oh about one post every two weeks. I'm guessing bot traffic is what... 70% of all posts here? If no one is minding the store this will be one of those ghost towns of the internet with nothing but the electric noise of robots shouting at each other. For many years this was a time and a place I considered my first stop on the internet but Discord has mostly taken that place now. It's just how it's happened.

I've been very slow to get on the Discord train. I run it infrequently enough that there's always at least one update to install when I do decide to fire it up.

I was surprised that the most users online was as recent as just last year, I'm sure before that it was at least 10 years before.

[Broomstick]

anyway i like a lot of you so come check out the discord server if you don't already.

Sure.

How do I get there?

You're a grumpy fat guy in your 40's. I'm now a grumpy frumpy gal in my 60's. I need some hand-holding (no, not like that!). Where is this "discord server", how do I get onto it, and what do I do once I'm there? Yes, I really am that oblivious.

[Broomstick]

Elfdart's a fucking moderator.

Wait, what?

Right now, the Most Active Mod on the board is ME. I'm doing most of the work.

And I love you for it. {{{hugs}}}

[LadyTevar]

anyway i like a lot of you so come check out the discord server if you don't already.

Sure.

How do I get there?

You're a grumpy fat guy in your 40's. I'm now a grumpy frumpy gal in my 60's. I need some hand-holding (no, not like that!). Where is this "discord server", how do I get onto it, and what do I do once I'm there? Yes, I really am that oblivious.

First. Go to DISCORD (dot) COM and download the program. It will lead you through creating an account with a UserName and Password. This name can be tailored to each Server/Community, which is why on SDN I'm LadyTevar, and on the SCA servers I follow I'm BaronessKathryn.

Then, you will be given the option to find a Server to follow, or find friends. As I said, my main Username is LadyTevar and you can find me by typing in my UserName and sending a Friend Request. At that point we can send you a Link to the SDN Server, because the link is only good for 7days it's easier to find a friend and then get the link.

Did this help?

[Ubiquitous]

Thanks to the OP for starting the discussion and trying to make things better.

A good old prune of old announcements would be a quick fix that would smarten the appearance of the forum up no end. When I visit it's hard to tell at first glance what the active posts are, because most forums are filled with massively redundant sticky posts from over a decade ago.

I bet we could lose every single one of the pinned/sticky posts, with no negative affect on the very small active community.

[Darth Nostril]

How to fix this place?
First we invert the polarity of the singularity to create a crack in the event horizon.
Then we reverse entropy.
With quantum.

It ain't happening, kid.
The main thrust of this place died a death when idiots with MBAs decided they knew how to make movies & killed two major sci-fi movie franchises with fan pandering slop.

[Sea Skimmer]

So, feels like it's been a lifetime away, my last post was maybe 2020 but it was very sparse for several years prior. In that time I transformed a lot about my self, I finally fell in love, and.... my beloved died just before we could marry earlier this year, which has broken me. Maybe forever, even if I promised him I'd love again.

And that is what brings me back for a look here. Memories of good times I know are lost forever.

SDN was functionally doomed by the original senate and it's BS, which is closer to the origin of the forum then the present day. That drove away a lot of bright people in one great calamity, and the decline that started in the quality of chatter was never reversed. This was made worse by new memberships being locked for literally years at a time due to the boards lack of credible administration and the history forum being moderated into nothing, but long term I doubt those factors matter mattered. The forum was and is too niche, and Star Wars and Trek lost their distinctive appeal. If Wong hadn't tried his senate experiment and then vanished this place might have had a chance.

I'd also say, I've met about a half a dozen people off this forum in person, even had one live with me a while back around 2013 to solve a work-life problem they had, none of whom are still active as far as I'm aware. Most haven't been active for a decade or more. But that's made a real difference in my life to expand my world in a way that otherwise never could have happened. Those of you left who kept doing this the whole time, don't be afraid, get contact information from each other at least as a backup, think about ways you might meet and other things you might do, games you could play with a headset Discord ect... enrich what you get from this while you can. Buying a 30 dollar headset was the best choice I ever made for technology.

We all only get one life to live, and focusing on the past is useless. Fact is, unless something dramatic has changed while I was away this forum is still being hosted in Wong's house, and you cannot in fact be sure it will be here tomorrow. A lot of the reason I almost completely stopped posting here around 2017 was simply because I began talking to people more for games, that kind of interaction was easier and simply more full filling. But it certainly doesn't mean I didn't enjoy the old days.

And yeah, I know some of you never liked me, but I think I still have the most posts so I'm not talking from a lack of experience, though Mr Bean deserves credit for the absurd number made in the early years. I'd honestly say the number one thing that changed for me was just down to wanting more out of life for myself, and we all deserve it.

[Raw Shark]

Not a single one of you possess the self awareness to realize you are why this place sucks. Why should anyone come back if you're not going to listen to people who tell you why it's awful to be here?

I, for one, miss you, wacky neighbor. How did we both live in the same weird neighborhood in the same weird city and never at least have a beer?

[Oberleutnant]

For no reason in particular, I happened to browse here, see what's going on, and upon seeing Sea Skimmer's post, I signed in.

Guys and gals, don't try to bring back what used to be, because it's not happening. Instead, try to find some way to connect with the people you want to talk to. The format is irrelevant. Crowd size doesn't matter either. Just find a way to talk to the people you think matter.

I had a chance to meet a wonderful friend thanks to this place, chat via private messages like it was old school pen pals stuff, and also meet him face-to-face across the pond back in 2016.

So, feels like it's been a lifetime away, my last post was maybe 2020 but it was very sparse for several years prior. In that time I transformed a lot about my self, I finally fell in love, and.... my beloved died just before we could marry earlier this year, which has broken me. Maybe forever, even if I promised him I'd love again.

And that is what brings me back for a look here. Memories of good times I know are lost forever.

... Those of you left who kept doing this the whole time, don't be afraid, get contact information from each other at least as a backup, think about ways you might meet and other things you might do