This site has always been quiet while the forum has dropped off significantly since I had the downtime a couple of years ago. People thought the site had closed and went never to come back. It didn’t help that I was slow to fix the problem for which I hold my hand up. This left the sites with a few core supporters who have kept the threads going. Lately though the posts have petered out as the few contributors have gone on holiday or lost interest talking to themselves and a few pals.
Sites in the UK like mine have few followers anyway as we just don’t have the people with an interest in the wilds and having few places to hunt and get out and about that is not rigidly controlled or very expensive. Most of us are stuck behind the TV and are watching the latest soaps. It’s the same in the US but the percentages are different as they do have large areas where you can hunt and camp and a lot more freedom. There are still those that watch TV but there are plenty interested in prepping and survival sites to make the US based ones viable businesses.
Interestingly enough I still have a lot of browsers looking at the posts on both this site and the forum while I have a regular few downloading from the files site. Some look like they are downloading the entire site which isn’t easy.
I’m after suggestions on how to get some of those browsers into commentators or contributors. How to get some fire back into the site and not just have me putting a post up about something else I am doing that isn’t that exciting. People are doing things, how can we get them to say what they are doing so we can all learn. There must be something we can do that will attract people to the site and get them involved. I’ve always said that it is the users that keep the site going, we need to get new users here, those that will contribute or we will just stagnate as we appear to be doing now.
If however we think that the site is fine, nobody has anything to add as they are happy with what is already on here or it is crap and nobody is interested then let me know.
Hi Skean
From my perspective such that it is. There is nothing wrong with the site. In fact its been invaluable to a newbie prepper such as myself. I haven’t contributed much as of yet as still rifling through the vast volume archived here, but catching upto speed pretty quick. This has been compounded by the fact that I’m putting what I’m learning into practice. When I catch up I will be able to help out a bit more.
One thing of note, I noticed there seems to be an element of tit-for-tat in the forums, mostly historical by the looks of it, so that may now have run its course. Whilst I can cope with such, it may put some people off. Please note I’m not sure what the answer is to that one however. Also maybe it will get busier in the winter months as the rainy days start to return? I don’t know as not been on here that long.
As to answering you question, how to breathe life? My thoughts are perhaps we all descend onto the site one evening a week to start with. If we can get it active one night, then that should build piece by piece organically.
It would be great to hear from old members like HighLander,Uks,Scythe 13,BigPaul to name just a few, If they are on other sites WHY ? WHAT did they see to encourage them away from this site and forum ? ….they are missed by loads of members including me.
Yes SD there are some i am in contact with and yes they are always ready to help with a problem and indeed become great friends, thing is ….i have only ever used this site and forum…i have no desire to seek out others…it was and still is OUR SITE and FORUM.
To those members who look in from time to time and think….same old same old try and bring yourself to post something even if only to say (Bollocks SS )or even worse if you like !…there are lots of things to learn around here …but best of all talking to friends and people that are like minded even when we do not or cannot agree we still gain something, unless we participate Nothing happens of any worth, even those who do talk outside the forum (including me ) we rob others of conversations they could well be of help to them.
A good few of us now use simple E mail groups to work together and share stuff, No trolls, no moderators ( not needed) even fewer arguments, debates are polite and constructive, those who put in the effort reap the rewards because you have to participate to stay in the assorted groups. Then when that subject is maxed out we start another group covering other aspects of prepping. Lately we have been sharing stuff about radio traffic and networks, building and maintaining multi fuel stoves, off grid fuel supplies, how to build simple but very reliable CB antennas etc. its not as easy or as broad ranging as a forum but its far less unpleasant as trolls dont exist and when we disagree we do it via reason and logic not insults. WE get to reap the benefits of OUR efforts mutually and the trolls and those who simply consume and never contribute get left out.
All,
Thanks for the responses. I’ve also had some by email and I’ll be looking at them all and working out a way forward. Seems to me there is actions that can be taken and I’ll do a post on options at some point in the next week.
Any further input supporting or with alternative views are going to be useful.
Regards,
SD
Late to the party, I’d agree with Mistwatch here. Fine site as it is, comprehensive. They will come.
I left the forum because it got too political with lots of welfare bashing and too much non prepping chit chat.
also i’m geared towards more long term survival and I think most people couldn’t see where I was coming from, so I am now a moderator on a survival forum( even if it IS American-with lots of non American members) where they know exactly where i’m coming from as they are the same.
Hi, i’m a user of this site too, mainly because there are very few uk sites. All the USA stuff is about guns and stocking up for decades! Its not really a subject I had thought about until a few years ago, and I’m not a major prepper. However the valuble insight within this web site has opened my eyes to many aspects that would not of crossed my mind. But I do now have a good bug out backpack just in case I had to leave, or as a last resort. Being retired bugging in is by far my best option, so have been stocking up on water and food, vacuum seal stuff such as rice etc for longer storage. So I wanted to say thank you, and let you know the site does still have merit. I prep on a small budget so a bit each week, and what i stock up on is often from items within this site. I doubt I will ever use my stuff in a real situation, but for the sake of a £150 of stuff or so I do feel I stand a much better chance than most others blind to this subject will. But its the knowledge that is priceless, knowing what could happen with even the loss of electric over a few weeks could end up in many deaths. So my subject would be “prepping an a small budget”, and how that could save your life. Many thanks Ali
I still regularly read the forum but stopped actively posting due to the totally biased moderation by one of the mods. It was ok for them to openly encourage murdering someone based on their religion, but not to call someone of a different religion a nasty word because they didn’t like it. This moderator only backed down after protests from other members letting them know that they were out of order (even someone I didn’t like much at the time), but no apology came with the removal of the suspension. While this person is still a moderator, I can’t participate in the forum incase they get too happy with the suspension button again (not that I expect this person to be removed for the sole purpose of encouraging my participation in the forum again). Some might dismiss it as sour grapes, but this one action from the moderator in question ruined the forum for me.
I echo bp’s thoughts on too political, bashing people on benefits & “foreigners”. Sometimes it was more like a national front forum than a prepping forum, thankfully though these days look past us.
Now I don’t see any issues with the forum, with the exception of a certain know-it-all. But the ignore button solves that. I’d love to see the days of BP, NR, s13, Dev, ss, highlander, myself & so on return & log on to see numerous posts every day like it used to. Sadly I think it’s too late to change course for some of those who’ve left though.
Interesting comments thread on this. Food for thought as to when to embrace a prepper site and when not. I would have thought you’d include a range of them on your list.
Having been a member of several American survival forums I enjoy the more restrained attitudes that are shown by the comtributers to this site.
Frankly I’ve found that the more extreme or outspoken sites soon collapse into arguments and trolling. I like this forum, sensible people taking responsibility for their own lives. I’m sorry that I haven’t contributed for a while but I’ve been busy on a building project….I’ll try to contribute more often in future.