The future of the site

[dyl]

Just a little concern about the future of this forum. Longevity. If I understand it, the forum is supported by SWAT magazine. My impression is that printed magazines, newspapers, anything not digital has taken a hit over the last decade with the rise of smart phones, tablets, and apps.

The user base of The Firing Line from a poll I saw earlier tended to be from 50-70 years old, I forgot which decade was most represented. We're not getting any younger.

I've peeped inside some social media apps like reddit, on their gun subforums. And maybe it's because texting on a phone isn't conducive to good writing, but there tends to be nowhere near the level of organized thought, knowledge, and expertise shared in this forum.

I have asked some questions over the years and gotten some very good technical responses, usually about physics, metallurgy, metal working, or gunsmithing. But I didn't save them because I figured they would always be stored here on the forum, ready to be searched. Should i start saving my favorite threads? If so, what's a good way to do it?

 

[pwc]

Open on your PC, copy and paste in word .doc or power point and save.

From phone; share tp your email. Open on your computer, do the above.

That's what I do.

 

[JohnKSa]

Near the top of each thread, there is a pulldown menu labeled "Thread Tools".

In the menu is an option to Show Printable Version.

That will bring up a version of the thread that can be copied and pasted easily. You can just do a CTRL-A to select everything, and then paste it into your favorite word processing program.

That said, there has been no official talk of shutting down TFL.

 

[buddyd157]

there was a poll?

 

[cslinger]

I am chuckling a bit at this because I was around when TFL did indeed shutdown back in the day. That was basically the whole reason THEHIGHROAD came about.

. And I am not 50-70

 

[dyl]

there was a poll?

Yep there was a poll, within the last year I think. I'm not so great with the search function so I can't find it. There wasn't a ton of people represented, I'd say about 50 responded. But it was the most I'd seen of people daring to reveal their age.

In the menu is an option to Show Printable Version.

Great! I was worried about having to take screen shots of page after page or what strange spacing would arise from the blue bars going across the screen. I've done a lot of clicking, deleting, and pressing "enter" to fix up documents in my day.

And I am not 50-70

So you're >70 and being all tech savvy? Look at you! (jk)

 

[cslinger]

I have a bird in my hand.....wanna see it? . Christ I will never make it to 70.

 

[Tom Servo]

I've peeped inside some social media apps like reddit, on their gun subforums. And maybe it's because texting on a phone isn't conducive to good writing, but there tends to be nowhere near the level of organized thought, knowledge, and expertise shared in this forum.

I am, unfortunately, well acquainted with Reddit. A few years back, I was specifically invited by the moderators of their politics forum to debate Shannon Watts. I'd link to the thread, but it no longer exists because the moderators deleted ALL my posts in a fit of pique. It appears a couple of us were expected to present points on behalf of the "gun people," but when it became apparent Watts was losing, the whole thing was shut down.

Despite maintaining the same level of civility and professionalism I strive to present here, I was told by the moderators that I was being divisive and possibly hateful. There was no avenue of appeal.

It's an interesting contrast. It appears the median age on that site is quite low. People love reciting slogans, but there's absolutely no depth to their views. Much of it is difficult to parse because of the t3xt sp34k and such, and the community-moderation model means snarky jabs take precedence over actual knowledge.

One piece of advice the staff here were given from this site's inception was that our job is to separate signal from noise and to ensure actual insight and debate are fostered. I'm proud of the job we've done, but if that's inconsistent with the modern age of share and like if you think the Lizard People are running the gov't LOL, so be it.

As for the future of the forum, I don't see us going anywhere. I checked the fridge in the break room, and nobody's getting a pink slip any time soon.

 

[luger fan]

ANYONE taking advice from STRANGERS is on a fools erand.

 

[zukiphile]

I have asked some questions over the years and gotten some very good technical responses, usually about physics, metallurgy, metal working, or gunsmithing. But I didn't save them because I figured they would always be stored here on the forum, ready to be searched.

Always is a long time. Almost 20 years ago, I'd written some posts at Rimfirecentral about trigger option. Those are gone, just like everything that old. I think that's normal as boards update or switch aspects of technical support. At some point these things are lost.

The user base of The Firing Line from a poll I saw earlier tended to be from 50-70 years old, I forgot which decade was most represented. We're not getting any younger.

I am told by people involved in running these things that the online forum format has been on the decline for several years. I regret that. This format strikes me as a transparent analog for written correspondence and conversation. I can easily quote the text to which I am responding, so we get direct, uncluttered communication.

I'm not on Facebook; I don't "get" posting pictures about what I am having for lunch. I've looked at Reddit. It looks like a mess to me, and that doesn't even get to the issues of speaker exclusion that are inherent in the community moderation format.

If my tastes in this are merely generational, that's not good for this format.

 

[pwc]

Culiver's forum has degenerated into a divided political forum bucause they allowed a "discussion" of 2nd amend. Now, there is very little gun discussion/interchange. I've been a member there since 1982-83. A great deal of knowledhe has left that forum for ?? It started mainly about mil surp (a other similar gun board) firearms. Seems the AR/AK/6.5 anythings started their own boards.

So, I think boards that began discussing the wooden warriors have slowed down,also, I think because of older folks leave and WW1-WW2 wood and steel firearms are now too expensive and can't compete with AR type rifles or polly pistols, unless they embrace the polymer bullet launchers too, BUT stay away from politics, there is enough unsocial networks for that.

I'm glad there is no room ror that here. I began copying and downloading info as I came across it. There are gun/shooting subjects then that I wasn't interested in then, that I remember were discussed, that I wish I had copied now. Bandwidth and memory are not unlimited a d are expensive.

 

[dyl]

I have a bird in my hand.....wanna see it? . Christ I will never make it to 70.

Haha! You'll be 70 before you know it, because you blinked a few too many times. I'm not 50-70 either, and I already feel like the years are going too fast.
Maybe my watch is broken, need to slow it down.

It's an interesting contrast. It appears the median age on that site is quite low. People love reciting slogans, but there's absolutely no depth to their views. Much of it is difficult to parse because of the t3xt sp34k and such, and the community-moderation model means snarky jabs take precedence over actual knowledge.

I think there is something about the format of the website / app that shows the priorities of Reddit. And either that attracts people who are looking for those things or it shapes them to adopt it. The places where the text goes looks visually cleaner if responses are kept very short. The default view when opening a thread is for things to be organized by what's "hot" as in gets the most "likes" (I believe) rather than chronological order. Any comment can be "liked" or "unliked" and your cumulative score shows as "karma", so if lots of people like the things you say, you are rewarded. So, if you don't say what will be popular, you are punished. I think that's how it works anyways.

I am told by people involved in running these things that the online forum format has been on the decline for several years. I regret that. This format strikes me as a transparent analog for written correspondence and conversation. I can easily quote the text to which I am responding, so we get direct, uncluttered communication.

Yes, I think the limitations of hardware (mobile phone) and the habits that go with them are making themselves obvious. Compared to face to face interaction, an online forum is a step down in terms of effectiveness. But texting on a mobile phone, the way which it's used on social media, is way down the totem pole. I've tried giving complete answers to folks that have asked the same questions we see here: Is _ a good gun, am I shooting well enough, what should I look for in a home defense firearm, and my answers seemed really out of place compared to the one liners that didn't provide any context or future guidance.

ANYONE taking advice from STRANGERS is on a fools erand.

After I'd been on the forums a couple years, I started to notice that there are some regulars and some who come and go, and I began to appreciate the mature well balanced responses. More balanced than my natural tendencies are, anyways. The post count generally helps ID experience levels, but not always. So I guess that poses the question: Are we all still strangers here? Probably not all. I also like how forum members call out false info if it's going to be dangerous or the answer is pretty clear. Moderators that participate make a huge difference.

If my tastes in this are merely generational, that's not good for this format.

I'm sure some of it is habit, but I really think the hardware has shaped things in this case. Video communication is a step towards more complete communication but until they find a way to protect privacy and make video files take just a fraction of the space, typing words looks like it's staying. How much further can writing be abbreviated? I hope not much more. Can't "emoji" your way through explaining trigger control.

I checked the fridge in the break room, and nobody's getting a pink slip any time soon.

I haven't been here as long as some others, but I look back and see that this place has consistently been my go-to for solid well thought opinions and expertise. Or just light hearted banter. I hope it's here until I'm too shaky to type. Then watch out for jumbled voice dictations! And botched autocorrect.