Anonymous Users

[WoodyP]

Well over 200 anonymous users and 19 registered users on the forum tonight. What's going on? Is everyone shy. Very few new posts to look at, because until you register you remain in the background. I am one of the least prolific of posters and often have nothing to add, but it seems a pretty sterile occupation to keep peeping into a forum without contributing.
Come on in, the waters fine. A few fin biters to be true, but unless you are very sensitive (or insensitive), the rude boys cant hurt you.

 

[BrendanS]

The vast majority of them are probably arriving to read specific threads/posts found by search engines, and have no intent to join the forum, just read what they've come for and move on. A small percentage will have a look around and become lurkers, and a small percentage of those will become contributors. Quite normal for all large forums.

 

[WoodyP]

Thank you for your clarification. It just seems that these forums(a) rely on a few very assiduous individuals to make them interesting. I have noticed over the last few weeks that a large number have deserted to other places which diminishes the interest in this place. None the less the numbers of lurkers remain, as drones, contributing nothing. However if all they are are cyber presences, then theres no need for me to think that anybody else but the few are interested anymore. Bit depressing really. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

 

[BrendanS]

That's how forums work. You can't change behaviour wholesale, without some major incentive. If you'd seen these forums when they started, they had very very few contributors, and those contributors used to argue that they should be allowed some leeway in amusing themselves here, otherwise if they stopped posting, there would be no forums.

The same is largely true today, but there are many more conributors so losing a few makes no real difference, and but many that have been here for many years don't bother answering the frequently asked questions, leaving that to enthusiastic 'newbies'

 

[spiller]

As long as the forum is active, then the number of each category of browser is relatively unimportant IMHO
The value of the forum is the diversity of the subject matter and how one man's nightmare / problem / enquiry can be easily resolved through tapping the wide and greater experience of those who contribute.
The day that someone cannot learn from this forum is the day he should consider a change of hobby, for you can never know it all.
The important thing is never to belittle a poster and thereby discourage those on the brink of making their first post, however trivial, but which will undoubtedly benefit someone, somewhere.

 

[graham]

Lurkers dont bother me,they are the equivalent of the quiet bloke in the pub who laughs at other peoples jokes but has none of his own.A bit sad but harmless.

The ones that P me off are those that come on here ask specific questions which many forumites reply to with advice they may have spent time and effort researching, then the poster doesnt have the courtesy to come back and say thanks it worked or even thanks for the replies but they didnt work /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif