How many people actually use forums?

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hardcore_gamer
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How many people actually use forums?

Post by hardcore_gamer »

The whole article 13 debacle made me think about something...how many normal people in western nations actually visit/read forums online? Or in general use the internet to interact with other people besides things like facebook chat? If all forums, file uploading sites and so on fourth vanished today how many people would notice/care?
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Pixel Eater
 
 
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Re: How many people actually use forums?

Post by Pixel Eater »

General: Sir, are you suggesting that we blow up the moon?
President: Would you miss it? (to the other generals) Would you miss it?


Call me unsavvy but I barely use anything online except for a few forums :shrug:
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wildweasel
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Re: How many people actually use forums?

Post by wildweasel »

hardcore_gamer wrote:The whole article 13 debacle made me think about something...how many normal people in western nations actually visit/read forums online? Or in general use the internet to interact with other people besides things like facebook chat? If all forums, file uploading sites and so on fourth vanished today how many people would notice/care?
You, clearly. And I as well.
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NeuralStunner
 
 
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Re: How many people actually use forums?

Post by NeuralStunner »

You ask as if facebook's post/chat systems are really any different. They're just reinventing a very old wheel. :P
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Chris
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Re: How many people actually use forums?

Post by Chris »

Reddit is a very big forum.
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Nash
 
 
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Re: How many people actually use forums?

Post by Nash »

I have more or less visited (then Notgod phorum) ZDoom's forum almost every single day since 2001. This place is my second home and I interact with you all more than I interact with people IRL (and I have a very socially-oriented IRL dayjob in the music business!).
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leodoom85
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Re: How many people actually use forums?

Post by leodoom85 »

hardcore_gamer wrote:The whole article 13 debacle made me think about something...how many normal people in western nations actually visit/read forums online? Or in general use the internet to interact with other people besides things like facebook chat?
OP question: I use 2 forums, this one and Doomworld, as you may know (Discord counts in this too if I might add to interact people). I barely use Twitter and Facebook is a big nope to me.
If all forums, file uploading sites and so on fourth vanished today how many people would notice/care?
But that's a what-if situation which I don't care much to be honest, which bring us to the main point...why introducing those articles to the question posted by you?
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Enjay
 
 
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Re: How many people actually use forums?

Post by Enjay »

Using forums is pretty much what I do on the internet.

I never use Facebook (although I've had an account for many years). One forum that I used to visit transferred most of its day-to-day business to a Facebook group. Although a lot of people seem to prefer it, I find it next to useless compared to the forum. Forums are nice and neatly organised, with posts easy to find and threads persisting in a known location allowing re-visiting days, weeks, months and even years later. A Facebook group is just a mess if you want that kind of organisation in your communication.
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SHayden
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Re: How many people actually use forums?

Post by SHayden »

Enjay wrote:Forums are nice and neatly organised, with posts easy to find and threads persisting in a known location allowing re-visiting days, weeks, months and even years later. A Facebook group is just a mess if you want that kind of organisation in your communication.
I strongly agree to this. Though I do use facebook daily(but nothing more than that in regards to social media, except youtube, i don't count it as social media) I still prefer forums more because of the reasons above and many other (such as introverts prefer non-direct communication with people :mrgreen: ). If you're scared that forums will disappear, you don't have to be because I think it's very unlikely for that to happen lol.
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Scripten
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Re: How many people actually use forums?

Post by Scripten »

I greatly prefer forums to any other social media contrivance. I've found that, in most cases, the implementation makes it near impossible to find old posts or to do historical dives, which can be a real PitA. As for "how many?", I would wager that a significant minority of people in the Western world use forums if you count Reddit and other similar sites. There are still quite a lot of people who don't use the internet for more than a few hours a week, total, if at all.
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kodi
 
 
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Re: How many people actually use forums?

Post by kodi »

Forums and image boards are the only social media I use.
Also if you count lurking forums or finding relevant troubleshooting/advice threads through search results as "using forums" you'll get a very large figure.
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Solmir
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Re: How many people actually use forums?

Post by Solmir »

To answer your question, no it wouldn't go unnoticed, it would spur the largest internet chrisis ever, even if it doesn't look like it there are hundreds of millions of people who interact with all sorts of social media like forums, image boards, reddit or similar social media, even if it is just for the purpouse of lurking, and on top of that add the people who only cares about individual freedom and rights.
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leileilol
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Re: How many people actually use forums?

Post by leileilol »

Discord usage is noticeably draining them.

anyway, how many people actually use mailing lists?
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Apeirogon
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Re: How many people actually use forums?

Post by Apeirogon »

Nash wrote:very socially-oriented IRL dayjob in the music business
What is the work? Singing under accompaniment of a guitar something like "пластмассовый мир победил" at parks?
I really cant imagine any other "socially-oriented IRL dayjob in the music business"...
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Rachael
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Re: How many people actually use forums?

Post by Rachael »

He's a sound engineer. When other people sing and use guitars, he adjusts their audio and makes them sound good.

You notice how professional recordings always have a degree of sterility and cleanliness that sets them apart from home-made? People who do the same job he does are the reason why that happens.
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