Is WhiteBlaze dying?

[imscotty]

I'll pop my head in here and post for the first time in two years. Some of us got tired of the over moderation. I hang out in another forum now with my friends on the 'Group 'W' Bench.' We get to talk about 'inseams' and everything.

And Hello Teacher! Good to see you in here.

Scotty

[Lone Wolf]

i'm OG ....

[BradMT]

If you notice, a LOT of the respondents on this thread are over 60 years old, myself included. I think a lot of us in this age group prefer the format of a BB, whereas many of those who are younger prefer Reddit, Facebook, etc. I think that's a shame because a lot of collective wisdom is lost with those more transitory type forums. It's so much simpler to access old information on a BB than on social media like Reddit. A BB like White Blaze is a real depository of information and experience...

[rhjanes]

I'm adding a personal observation about moderation. I used to be very active in some Drum Building forums. These are my personal observations but others did feel the same way. There was a Drum forum that was very moderated by the owner. It was his forum, he paid the bill and so what he did was what he did. He would heavily moderate some "people" and others (his friends, or as some said, the ones who Kissed his a....) hardly ever got moderated. A lot of people did leave and the forum got very quiet and eventually died. At the same time, there was a competing Drum building forum with almost zero moderation (I was one of the moderators and we tried to do moderation behind the scene). That forum quickly formed a group, a clicke really, that could be very nasty to people. that forum also slowly died. People who asked a question or tried to make an observation were sometimes almost attacked by the "in" group. Pretty soon, it was just the "in" group left. That forum also died. They have a FB presence but it seems fairly quiet.
So, over or under moderation on forums, can both lead to a decline in a forum. My observation. It seems the vibe of the members can overcome either moderation.

[LittleRock]

I've been moderated a few times on this forum but in retrospect I probably deserved it those times.

[HankIV]

I've been moderated a few times on this forum but in retrospect I probably deserved it those times.

Me too. Not an easy job, moderating. Thanks Attroll and crew

[Captain Blue]

A lot of people left WB during the pandemic when talking about hiking the AT was banned here. And they never came back. Same with the ATC but they got pipeline money to keep them afloat.

[HankIV]

But ultimately:

https://external-content.duckduckgo....2a4&ipo=images

[Seatbelt]

I've been moderated a few times on this forum but in retrospect I probably deserved it those times.

Same here, I do not necessarily come across the same in writing as I do in person. I am very much a "tic" commenter. but many have not seen it that way. Guess I need to learn how to better express myself. I truly hope that WB does not die, it has been a great helpful source of info for my hikes, and I am not yet finished.

[capehiker]

A lot of people left WB during the pandemic when talking about hiking the AT was banned here. And they never came back. Same with the ATC but they got pipeline money to keep them afloat.

Wait…what? I was actually hiking the AT during the pandemic so I wasn’t online much. This was actually a thing? I think a lot of us will agree that hiking during the pandemic was actually a great time.

[Traveler]

The AT itself was not closed but many Local, State, National Parks and National Forest Service amenities like shelters did close early in the pandemic. With those closures came trail access inaccessibility subject to law enforcement actions. The ATC recommended hikers stay off the trail at the time and conversation regarding breeching local, State, and Federal trespass laws was discouraged on this site, which was appropriate. However general conversation about hiking the AT and other long distance trails were not "banned".

Keep in mind in the early days of the pandemic we did not have a good understanding of the virus as we do today. We did not know the vectors of infection travel, how long it would remain active in the air, on surfaces and in water along with exposure prevention techniques that would help people protect themselves until treatment methods and ultimately vaccines could be developed. Hospitals and clinics filled up surprisingly fast to the point they had to turn people away for lack of space and supplies. Food availability was compromised due to supply chain interruptions and employee absenteeism forcing local business closings. Some small towns and counties actually closed roads going into their jurisdictions that actively turned back all but a few necessary deliveries and services. A very scary time indeed for everyone.

In my view, moderators did a rather good job of incrementally limiting conversation that wandered into potentially illegal activity of members and providing confirmed information as available regarding virus related issues that most would agree were within responsible guidelines.

[CalebJ]

The AT itself was not closed but many Local, State, National Parks and National Forest Service amenities like shelters did close early in the pandemic. With those closures came trail access inaccessibility subject to law enforcement actions. The ATC recommended hikers stay off the trail at the time and conversation regarding breeching local, State, and Federal trespass laws was discouraged on this site, which was appropriate. However general conversation about hiking the AT and other long distance trails were not "banned".
Keep in mind in the early days of the pandemic we did not have a good understanding of the virus as we do today. We did not know the vectors of infection travel, how long it would remain active in the air, on surfaces and in water along with exposure prevention techniques that would help people protect themselves until treatment methods and ultimately vaccines could be developed. Hospitals and clinics filled up surprisingly fast to the point they had to turn people away for lack of space and supplies. Food availability was compromised due to supply chain interruptions and employee absenteeism forcing local business closings. Some small towns and counties actually closed roads going into their jurisdictions that actively turned back all but a few necessary deliveries and services. A very scary time indeed for everyone.

In my view, moderators did a rather good job of incrementally limiting conversation that wandered into potentially illegal activity of members and providing confirmed information as available regarding virus related issues that most would agree were within responsible guidelines.

Agreed. Conversation about hiking certainly wasn't banned, and the moderators handled things reasonably.

[BillyGr]

Keep in mind in the early days of the pandemic we did not have a good understanding of the virus as we do today. We did not know the vectors of infection travel, how long it would remain active in the air, on surfaces and in water along with exposure prevention techniques that would help people protect themselves until treatment methods and ultimately vaccines could be developed. Hospitals and clinics filled up surprisingly fast to the point they had to turn people away for lack of space and supplies. Food availability was compromised due to supply chain interruptions and employee absenteeism forcing local business closings. Some small towns and counties actually closed roads going into their jurisdictions that actively turned back all but a few necessary deliveries and services. A very scary time indeed for everyone.

And with things being done differently in so many places (like you mention about closings in towns and similarly small areas), it was often hard for someone to know what was, and wasn't allowed in one place that might be completely different a few miles up or down the trail.