satinsoven
New member
is it the freedom of threads, customization, or members? i have been wondering it for a awhile.
what makes a good forum?
- Thread starter satinsoven
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K1LLKANO
New member
The topic is very important. If you make the forums too broad then you're going to have too much to go through and talk about. You would have to live at the forum to keep up.
Members are a big part, but members of a forum are pretty much the same everywhere you go. It more depends on the staff and how much follow through is accomplished in upholding the rules. Some forums thrive off of flame wars and other general crap but that also chases off more members than it keeps. The staff also has to possess decent skills in communicating with real people, not just a user name. Too strict and people will feel like whatever they do is wrong. Too lenient and the members run amok.
A good forum doesn't need customization to thrive. The topics and friendships developed between members are always going to be the driving force.
Activity is always a necessity for a good forum as well. If you only have 6 members talking to each other, that forum is only good for those 6 members.
The influx of newer posters is a definite must. Other wise the forums become stale and eventually die. It's up to the older members to make these newer users feel welcome while also guiding them so they don't post like n00bs and feel the wrath of DCR and myself :twisted:
Layout isn't the most important thing, but it is something that has to be considered. If your forums aren't aesthetically pleasing, people won't have the desire to give themselves headaches trying to read the posts.
All in all it is a menagerie of many aspects that are going to make a forum good or bad.
Members are a big part, but members of a forum are pretty much the same everywhere you go. It more depends on the staff and how much follow through is accomplished in upholding the rules. Some forums thrive off of flame wars and other general crap but that also chases off more members than it keeps. The staff also has to possess decent skills in communicating with real people, not just a user name. Too strict and people will feel like whatever they do is wrong. Too lenient and the members run amok.
A good forum doesn't need customization to thrive. The topics and friendships developed between members are always going to be the driving force.
Activity is always a necessity for a good forum as well. If you only have 6 members talking to each other, that forum is only good for those 6 members.
The influx of newer posters is a definite must. Other wise the forums become stale and eventually die. It's up to the older members to make these newer users feel welcome while also guiding them so they don't post like n00bs and feel the wrath of DCR and myself :twisted:
Layout isn't the most important thing, but it is something that has to be considered. If your forums aren't aesthetically pleasing, people won't have the desire to give themselves headaches trying to read the posts.
All in all it is a menagerie of many aspects that are going to make a forum good or bad.
ChiefThunder
New member
A good question and as usual, KK answers with enough relevant material to fill up a few Novels. To me there are a few key elements to a "Good Forum"
1. The forum itself must be well setup, well maintained, updated and of course be totally relevant to the individuals tastes and needs and most of all, run by experienced, competent and fair team of staff members.
2. I've said it before and I''l say it again. The best forum in the world is nothing without good members. By "good" I mean people who at least try to post productively and who can get along with their fellow peers at least most of the time. And also they try to truly contribute to the forums best interests. Even if in only a small way.
3. No Flaming, I don't mean petty squabbling. I mean hard flaming that's both hurtful and demeaning to a member. I should know, my forum had "Inter site/forum" wars for a longtime. I never liked it, not one little bit. But I tried to cater to all the members who had a point to prove. Faming destroys communities! Never allow it. Debating, now that's healthy.
4. Lastly. Don't join a forum if you're not going to participate. One has only to look at any large forums to see all of the "0" posters. About 4 years ago at TRMK. Out of roughly 2500 members there were 300-400 people who never posted. These included Socks, spammers who never spammed, lol, bored people, bots and the list goes on and on, dude.
But ultimately, in the end, it's what you really like in a forum that matters. It's a personal thing. You may post alot at a forum that has only 100 active members. I've been on forums that have as many as 50,000 members and yet they are practically dead. By the same token I've been at this movie forum for a year now andhave only 240 posts, yet I am there each and everyday, I just don't post much but I love the whole atmosphere there.
1. The forum itself must be well setup, well maintained, updated and of course be totally relevant to the individuals tastes and needs and most of all, run by experienced, competent and fair team of staff members.
2. I've said it before and I''l say it again. The best forum in the world is nothing without good members. By "good" I mean people who at least try to post productively and who can get along with their fellow peers at least most of the time. And also they try to truly contribute to the forums best interests. Even if in only a small way.
3. No Flaming, I don't mean petty squabbling. I mean hard flaming that's both hurtful and demeaning to a member. I should know, my forum had "Inter site/forum" wars for a longtime. I never liked it, not one little bit. But I tried to cater to all the members who had a point to prove. Faming destroys communities! Never allow it. Debating, now that's healthy.
4. Lastly. Don't join a forum if you're not going to participate. One has only to look at any large forums to see all of the "0" posters. About 4 years ago at TRMK. Out of roughly 2500 members there were 300-400 people who never posted. These included Socks, spammers who never spammed, lol, bored people, bots and the list goes on and on, dude.
But ultimately, in the end, it's what you really like in a forum that matters. It's a personal thing. You may post alot at a forum that has only 100 active members. I've been on forums that have as many as 50,000 members and yet they are practically dead. By the same token I've been at this movie forum for a year now andhave only 240 posts, yet I am there each and everyday, I just don't post much but I love the whole atmosphere there.
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