GameBanshee Forums

Whatever happened to the quality, am i the only one who still remembers a time when we had an equal amount of spam, debate and flame. Things were interesting, it wasn't all boring nonsense.

I wonder what is to blame, anyone got any ideas?

Am i the only person of this opinion, does anyone share my derision?

This isn't as a moderator, just as a punter

You are not the only one. I would much like the nonsense spam to be confined to only a bar thread or so, and the rest of SYM devoted to other topics. Not neccesarily very serious ones, but still topics and not general chat.

Right now i have unfortunatly no suggestions for a skapegoat though.

Hmmm, good point Mr Sleep.

My opinion: debates are forced and highly sensitive (if at all); flames are non-exisitant (a good thing) 'cos the "new" generation of Banshee-goers don't know how to; spam is boring and non-descript. It is spam for spam's sake and not for amusement purposes. There isn''t much that makes me ROFLMAO any more.

Perhaps its "who" is to blame. I'd blame weasel but only as a scapegoat, or sacrificial lamb if you will.

I miss the flames and the laughs.

Originally posted by Gruntboy
There isn''t much that makes me ROFLMAO any more.

Perhaps its "who" is to blame. I'd blame weasel but only as a scapegoat, or sacrificial lamb if you will.

I miss the flames and the laughs.

That is the thing, i just haven't seen anything really funny for ages, good debates have been pretty sketchy to, i realise it is up to us as members to turn back the tide of mediocrity, but there is only so much a select few can do...most of us have done it before and after a while one wonders why they bother.

You did your photo's thread which was excellent, but that was spammed to death as well (addmitadly by myself a little).

I would take a guess at it might be you have people of a lower age group.
Mid-teens or late teens.
Just a guess

I think the main issue is that a lot of the serious discussions are filled up with people like Fable and CE, whose intelligence and knowledge ecompasses such a large area, that it is hard to cover something they haven't. Also, with the speed, and length of growth those threads have, it makes it intimidating for people (and even I have trouble getting into one of those these days)

Originally posted by Mr Sleep
Whatever happened to the quality, am i the only one who still remembers a time when we had an equal amount of spam, debate and flame. Things were interesting, it wasn't all boring nonsense.

I wonder what is to blame, anyone got any ideas?

Personally I don't notice a major difference in quality since "the good old days", but it also depends of when you mean this good time occured. When I came to SYM, it was a small group who spent a lot of time online that used to have very funny conversations and juoke flame wars going on, but much of this was IMO based on the familiarity that develops when people spend a lot of time on line simultaneously. Since I think part of this was person-based and part of it occation-based, it will IMO be difficult to "force" something similar to happen again - the necessary parameters aren't currently here. I haven't noticed any single user who currently posts as much and is on line as much as some of the former SYM:ers used to do in the beginning.

Regarding serious discussion, I think it's a problem that too few people participate in these discussions. Dynamic development of a discussion requires several members with different views, and it also requires time. I often try to start discussion threads, but it's difficult to find topics that many people are interested in discussion and at the same time aren't totally begging for flame wars. An issue where everybody has an opinion and many people care about, is often also an issue where flaming becomes a problem. A good example was the marriage thread, which was excellent inasmuch as many people posted different opinions, perspectives and arguments, but it also unfortunately contained ad hominems (personal attacks) and general flaming.

Like Dottie, I'm personally most interested in discussion about different topics, serious or less serious. However, I think that we who are interested in this should start and participate in such threads and also, like Aegis points out, realise that we can't spend hours everyday posting here - we should perhaps recognise that more demanding topics should be allowed more time between before being viewed as "dead" threads.

On reflection, opinion edited out.

I do all I can to start up interesting and serious threads all the time, however, the discussion is either a)about god or b)not about god.
If it is about god, then many people can get angry, and noone feels that their opinion is worse than anyone elses and everybody has a strong view which they are interested in defending, so it's a good discussion...
If it is not about god, then it's just me, fable, CE and a couple of blokes who happen to be interested in this particular subject...There is nothing really to joke about in such threads, and people who aren't in the discussion hardly ever want to get in the discussion, so the low interest kills it. Quite often the serious threads get buried just in the gap between one of the discusers and another being on the forum...

I was not here for the 'golden age' of SYM, when all flames were hilarious, all spam was hilarious and all debates were gentlemanly and fiercely contested, but I imagine it is just because of a coincedental chemistry between the SYMers at the time...and it could well be to do with the age thing as well...before Craig was a real boy wonder cos everyone else on here was a grown man, but now there's thousands of 15-16 year olds...

I think the useless spam level is getting to quite a bad level, but I also think that the constant talking about spam related issues; the good-old-days of spam, weasels spamming abilities, the king and queen of spam etc is a big force for giving newbies the impression that all spam is good spam, a spammer is a loveable rogue and everyone should in general strive towards out-spamming and out-meta-spamming each other...

I never do listen to my wise reflections


Now I'm feeling like *I'm* one of the contributors of this worthless and obviously not wanted spam. I never take part in the serious discussions because frankly I am intimidated by the 'No Spam' title. I feel that discussions on 'God ' and 'not on God' can encompass such a wide range of topics that I will probably go over the edge and spam unknowingly or just by being friendly (Which is ME, so there is not use trying not to, it's better just not to join in.)




But really, this is a 'Speak your Mind' board off of a gaming site. This is not a political board. This is not a religion board. And, I will not feel bad for posting what comes to mind on a board that was NOT set up for ONLY serious discussions.

One of the main contributors to this 'degradation' is the number of members of game banshee. When I joined there was 2000 members, now it is almost 7000. I remember when I joined I was intimidated by SYM somewhat. Actually, it was more of a reluctance to post not because I thought I had nothing to contribute, but more because it seemed like SYM was a pretty tight knit band of members. When I did post early on, I found my posts ignored or not responded to.

So Sleep, my point is that with fewer members back in the 'golden age' allowed you to get to know those members a little bit better. Posts and threads were much more tight and consistent.

Age might play some of a role but minor at that. I think most young folks tend to stay to the gaming forums. Again, I say most.

Well although I am one of the old timers (preSym) I've never been a "high-profile" poster in SYM, but my posting has decressed lately as more people I know in here stops/slows posting.
I was really active about a year ago but many of the people I wrote with has since then dissapered or slowed their postings.

Originally posted by Ned Flanders
I remember when I joined I was intimidated by SYM somewhat. Actually, it was more of a reluctance to post not because I thought I had nothing to contribute, but more because it seemed like SYM was a pretty tight knit band of members.

Me too, but this I not a bad thing. There is still that "elite" group
that are here longer then others, but this is normal. It creates a form of respect.

One of the main contributors to this 'degradation' is the number of members of game banshee. When I joined there was 2000 members, now it is almost 7000.

I recall posting this a long time ago. Like I said back then, if something grows too big, it will fall by it's own succes. Ofcource this is an overstatment, but I do think it can affect quality.


About the quality. I think viv made a good point about this being a games forum.

Sometimes things change, and there is nothing there can be done about it. People tend to remember things used to be better then they are now.
I agree "newcomers" have made things change in here. Even if I'm only here since early december. They aren't just young people but also older people.

If the veterans here think this place is taking a change for the worst, they should contact the mods or even Buck to make this place or controlled. This can however have a bad effect on the atmosfear since "newbies" could be offended by this. But beeing controlled can have a positive effect on people.
However if less people contribute in discussions then there is nothing you can do about it. Perhaps this will pick up later again, who knows.

Just my € 0,02

Well, I think one of the major causes is the fact that so many pre-SYMers are gone. In a sense, the group has been severed, and we are currently working in a new group of people (Gen X of SYM, if you will).

Moving to the serious deiscussion threads, I would love to get into those things more often, as I feel I have very strong opinions about many things, but like Viv, I feel intimidated by the no spam title. To me it seems like you can't poke small jokes, even if it is on topic. Also, the rate at which people post in them, coupled with the size, it is almost impossible to get into it if it's already 10+ posts in.

Well after "rotting" here in SYM and read whole reply, I do admit that serious topics sometimes are "too" serious for some members.

As frogus said in his reply :

I do all I can to start up interesting and serious threads all the time, however, the discussion is either a)about god or b)not about god.
If it is about god, then many people can get angry, and noone feels that their opinion is worse than anyone elses and everybody has a strong view which they are interested in defending, so it's a good discussion...
If it is not about god, then it's just me, fable, CE and a couple of blokes who happen to be interested in this particular subject...There is nothing really to joke about in such threads, and people who aren't in the discussion hardly ever want to get in the discussion, so the low interest kills it. Quite often the serious threads get buried just in the gap between one of the discusers and another being on the forum...

IMHO I do admit sometimes the "seriuosness" of a topic killed it - hey, I've tried posting serious topics than what I've done these days - but eventually it's all went down the drain

As for Rob-hin statement :

Me too, but this is not a bad thing. There is still that "elite" group that are here longer then others, but this is normal. It creates a form of respect.

I do believe the first gens don't consider themselves as "elite" group. After all we're all members (but sometimes it feels funny feeling old because you registered on the early days)

If the veterans here think this place is taking a change for the worst, they should contact the mods or even Buck to make this place or controlled. This can however have a bad effect on the atmosfear since "newbies" could be offended by this. But beeing controlled can have a positive effect on people.
However if less people contribute in discussions then there is nothing you can do about it. Perhaps this will pick up later again, who knows.

IIRC when after approx 6 months SYM was created, the topic also degraded as well. I presume it's just a time when everyone in forum become congested. From the SYM history I think everything will be normal again soon

Some thougths for serious topics (perhaps) :
I'm not quite into politics, and from my observation most members are the same. Same thing goes for the "Theology" discussion. But IIRC sports, movies, & some sci-fi topics were highly appreciated.

<EDIT>My compliments to Waverly, not because of his flaming but he also comes up with several good topics i.e. SYM Diplomacy – The Quest for World Domination...

I luked for awhile before I registered, and like has been stated, I think the difference was the fact that most of the people in SYM when it first started already had delveloped a sort of relationship with the others that they brought into the new board. Nowadays, I watch the other boards, the BG, SoA, ToB, and you see different posters there for the most part. It is almost like a kind of segregation. For some reason, it seems like people who post in SYM generally tend to stay in SYM, not all the time, but for the most part. I do it myself, although I have started to make an attempt to show up on the other boards here recently.

I think this is part of the reason why it seems harder to fit in here at first. When I first came to SYM, it was like a family thing, and it takes awhile to get to know everyone. Thea may have something to do with the lack of serious discussion. I think in the old days, you knew each other enough to know where the boundries were drawn between heated debate and getting carried away. This comes from knowinbg the people you are talking with well enough to understand when they are just stating opiniuons. I think until you get to know people, you can take something the wrong way, interpret it as an attack, and retaliate. So I think it will take care of itself as newer members get to know each others personalities.

As far as myself, I haven't really joined many serious discussions, and whne I do, it is just an interjection here and there. There are reasons for this, including the fact that some discussions are just things I don't discuss in general, religion being one.

I do agree with Viv on one point though, this isn't a political, social board. If people wish to discuss serious topics, they should feel free to do so. But the fact remains that there are people who just choose not to engage in this.

I agree that spam for spams sake, ie pastind countdown etc, is not a good thing, but general conversation or chatting is fine in my opinion. I like this board, I like the freedom to say what I want, and for others to do the same. I just don't want to see over regulation to the point of some other boards. I like it the way it is. maybe some things could be improved, but that is true for everything in life.

Just a thought...have any of you who have been here a while stopped to wonder that perhaps you might have read it all before? That the 'good old days' were just the 'newer days' which always carry a little bit more excitement, and despite your RL age, you are all turning into old men/women of SYM For me there seems to have come a point that all topics have been just about discussed, all polls done...so we repeat ourselves... and for those mourning the loss of humour, perhaps we are hinging the responsibility to make us laugh on a select few? I say we should all take some responsibility for our boredom if we are bored.

I agree with Ned and CE, there are many more members since we joined, and perhaps because of this we have to tread a little more carefully in debates...on many occasions I personally have grown to feel it is not worth taking part in some *shrugs* So, yes, if I don't put in the effort, why should I be able to complain?

@Viv *hug* you are right, this is a gaming forum...and it has also been a place to chill out. I am not sure we need 3 taverns on page one sometimes, but then for some a virtual pub crawl is fun ...personally, I come here to see what takes the mood, and if nothing does...and I have nothing better to contribute...then I duck out again

I joined nearly a year ago...was it so different between SYM starting and Ysh joining? And if so - I refuse to take full responsibility for it's demise!

I wrote out quite a long reply and my comp just crashed so this is second try

Re: Debates, they are pretty specialised to a select few and weren't exactly the main thrust of my point. If anyone wants to hear me wax about those then just ask My small point on this is, if you want to add some amusing comments to a debate then why not write a referential reply and add some comedy to that as well?

@Viv, there was a thread called Ideal Vocation made by myself, for a few pages it was on topic and then it turned to spam.... i wouldn't have a problem with this if it was referential to the topic at hand, but it wasn't. I could have gone in and complained but i am starting to wonder whether there is any point, we keep saying it and it keeps getting ignored. Also social posting is different to spam, i think we have made this distinction before.

@CE, You must have a bad memory I don't think it should be forced either, but saying that the current standing isn't particularly good shouldn't be a problem either, one person says that spam is fun then there is no reason why there can't be a person saying the opposite just like our departed friend Curdis did so well

@Ned, i wasn't really around then as much as i am now, so i didn't really get to know anyone much back then, so that point although a good one doesn't apply to myself

@Rob, yes this is a gaming forum, but wouldn't it be nice if we didn't slip to the mediocrity found at many others BTW hWav nicked the Axis of Evil idea from me

@BS, i am don't think anyone should get involved in debates if they don't want to, i believe in free will as much as the next person and i agree social posting is fine, you could go back through some of the older threads to see how much i avoided social conversations (ergo hardly at all ) I must admit that the sticky rules are regulation of a sort, but they are mostly agreed with (i think) you are free to discuss the conduct of other members regardless of their age or senioriey, i will always endeavour to listen to someone's criticism as well as their praise

@Ysh, i am pretty sure i posted a thread about reading it all before a few weeks back I can't recall the title but i could find it if you want One would think that more members would mean that there is more content; why is this not the case? oh and it is all your fault!

Originally posted by Mr Sleep

@Ysh, i am pretty sure i posted a thread about reading it all before a few weeks back I can't recall the title but i could find it if you want One would think that more would mean that there is more content; why is this not the case? oh and it is all your fault!

Please excuse my commenting on the relevant part to me, it goes without saying that it has all been done. I think we are pretty close to all books having been written and all songs having been sung...it is the personal application that makes the difference..and if we are lethargic, we will never find something new More is not more content, more is more of the same from a different view point, with an occasional piece of brilliance thrown in. Occasionally we meet inspirational characters, people that will forever stand out, but these people are fewer than those who just go looking for others to entertain...whether humourously or seriously...

And you asked why I posted the thread 'will SYM remember you? ' We are a community, and probably a good mix with one thing in common - gaming. It brought us all here, this fantasy, this search for pleasure...and we are a spin off. Soon someone else will stand out, but they need to find the space here and the acceptance.

I always feel if I am bored, it is because I am being boring. *shrugs* not the case for all, but I can't expect others to always make me smile, you make your own party in life

And it is not my fault!!!

The place is not the same, and for me it is not quite as much fun, but that is a completely subjective and largely unfair assessment. What does that say to Buck’s newest guests? “Hey you… you aren’t nearly as funny as Ubik, you miserable goat-muncher. I demand that you delete this bookmark, un-install your browser, and bury your keyboard in the back yard.” How would you feel if you were Dottie?

Basically, Buck doesn’t limit the number of threads, and says very little about the way in which we participate in them. That being the case, the forum is what you make of it. If you are need of a laugh, bemoaning the good ol’ days is a lot less useful than posting a fun topic and encouraging people to have a good time with it.