VMC forums on the verge of closing down

Tudor

Tudor

Vital Football Legend
The few of us who are left don’t need me to say this, but I’m going to anyway...over the years these forums have begun to die (I’m not going to turn this into a history lesson) and now it’s time to take action.

Phil (JB) and I are of the same opinion...

We are due a forum template update any day now but if the situation doesn’t improve I will contact Vital Towers and recommend the boards are taken off line. I have enough evidence to take action right away but I want to see if the new style forums improve members’ interaction.

The date I’m looking at is the end of December.

IMO there is nothing worse than looking at a redundant forum (there are plenty out there). Phil, myself and others have put everything we have into keeping these boards alive but now we’ve got to a stage of where we are ‘flogging a dead hose’.

It’s a sign of the times I’m afraid – we adapt or become just a memory.

Thank you for taking a few moments of your time to read this.

Tudor.

PS

The comments section under the respective front page articles will remain active.
 
:013: Just digesting this news. Such a shame for everyone but given the explosion of social media it has been evident from even the short few years (3?) that I have been a member of the vmc network that participation has waned. This is immensely disappointing news but absolutely no reflection on the hard work, commitment and dedication shown by JB & Tudor as editors. Their tireless efforts in keeping our City community so active and vibrant are to be lauded - it has been a pleasure to contribute and I hope that we can retain our contact as we adjust to the new arrangements. It won't be the same but we will have to adapt.
 
" The comments section under the respective front page articles will remain active"

I'm possibly misinterpreting this, but are you saying that you'll continue to publish articles 'upstairs'?
Do the fora down here take a lot of administration? I'd have thought they pretty much take care of themselves, no?
Seems a shame to close them down, if effort will still be put in to maintain 'upstairs'


 
citizhun - 9/10/2016 12:35

" The comments section under the respective front page articles will remain active"

I'm possibly misinterpreting this, but are you saying that you'll continue to publish articles 'upstairs'?
Do the fora down here take a lot of administration? I'd have thought they pretty much take care of themselves, no?
Seems a shame to close them down, if effort will still be put in to maintain 'upstairs'
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The front page articles have a comment section whereby those who want to talk about the respective article (match day previews, stats etc) can do so. This Saturday for example, there will be no forum MDT, but instead i'll post a link to the front page Everton Preview. If folk want to post then feel free.

Forums are a completely different kettle of fish - folk can post any topic they wish and then hope for others to respond. This is my point - no one is doing it any more and its a waste of time having message boards when no one uses them.

Times have changed, especially when folk use social media these days. Like i've said before, if folk use these boards then fine, i'll be for the first to say, "i'm wrong, lets keep them".

Finally, its up to our VMC members - us these boards or they will be closed down.
 
A waste of whose time though? That's why i asked about the admin overheads. if the forums don't take up anyone's time other than those of us who still post, then where's the harm in leaving them running? Even if it was only Mr 'tache and i moaning about paranoia, we're not doing anyone any harm, unless there's an admin overhead on you guys. We all appreciate and realise it's not a hive of activity down here, but I'm sure I'm not the only one that also appreciates that the fora here give a largely different perspective on our club than most of the bigger ones out there. I'd certainly miss its unique charm, if it goes :093:
 
I agree with CZ. I want to continue to moan about him and KCT moaning about paranoia. If there is no cost concern, then I can't see the problem, or am I not understanding how it works?



 
It would be very sad, but understandable.

The admin time required is not for everybody( Me included , due to work and time zone) and if it happens T , you go with my thanks.
 
The whole 'paranoia' thing has seemed to have taken over - unless I'm mistaken City fans have long been known for their dry, mordant wit, usually as we'd ricochet up and down the divisions, sometimes in laser blue, other times fluorescent green. Since we have started to become consistently successful that appears to have recently been replaced by increased negativity - to the point where there appear to be more posts about fouls than anything else, with some posters counting up the number of offences committed by each side - as if that actually proves anything. I believe one was even talking about keeping a record of referee's performances which sort of beggars belief - we're winning games left right and centre and yet instead of revelling in the football we play it's more interesting to keep spreadsheets on the officials!

Citizen - it used to be vaguely enjoyable responding to the paranoia until we started to turn into the rags and their whole 'world is against us' schtick - then it just became tedious and boring. Obviously everyone is entitled to their own opinion, and it is those differences that go towards creating lively debate and keeping things fresh but speaking personally, which is all I can do, I've begun to feel a bit out of place on here. Having said that it was worse a few years ago with one chap in particular whom some of us might remember - I even got an anonymous message questioning whether I was actually a City fan. Credit should be given to the admin people for turning the ship around and getting it going the right way down the canal...

So recently I just thought '**ck it, I'm going to back off for a while' - which has lasted about a week. This site used to be a lot of fun and I've lost count the number of times someone has said something and I've thought 'wow, that never occurred to me' - it has been hugely informative and often with a lot of wit - the place to go to for info on City.

Huge thanks to the editors and journalists that continue to contribute - hopefully things will turn around and VMC will regain members, maintain enthusiasm and build from strength to strength. Living in the Midlands/South West/London all my life finding other Citizens to discuss important issues such as whether Lee Bradbury could ever be the new Denis Leman or whether Paul Powers moustache might actually be fuller than Kenny Clements has been a challenge and for that reason this site really has been a bit of a light in the black...

 
I'll have been here for 8 years (on Thursday) and there's been a few times when I've thought I'd had enough, but i always ended up coming back. I'm not a Luddite by any means, but i quite like the laid back non immediacy of this place. I've frequented other places where someone will ask a question in thread and will go in the huff if they've not had a dozen responses within 10 minutes of posting. Here, similar threads will last days, because the Oz contingent don't turn up until the middle of the (our) night and otheres only sign in once a week or so.. Twitface can **ck off :006: Nobody has any patience these days. Whether that's waiting on a response or on Pep turning the team into something great. And don't get me started on waiting on the Academy white elephant starting to produce new Messi's :064:
 
citizhun - 9/10/2016 19:45

I'll have been here for 8 years (on Thursday) and there's been a few times when I've thought I'd had enough, but i always ended up coming back. I'm not a Luddite by any means, but i quite like the laid back non immediacy of this place. I've frequented other places where someone will ask a question in thread and will go in the huff if they've not had a dozen responses within 10 minutes of posting. Here, similar threads will last days, because the Oz contingent don't turn up until the middle of the (our) night and otheres only sign in once a week or so.. Twitface can **ck off :006: Nobody has any patience these days. Whether that's waiting on a response or on Pep turning the team into something great. And don't get me started on waiting on the Academy white elephant starting to produce new Messi's :064:
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Sunday Times suggesting we might be in the market for as many as four new full backs...



 
The whole idea of this was to engage with those of you who are left and wow, it has stirred up quite a bit of sentiment via this thread, on email and via PM.

Use it or lose it, that's the point. I do not want to be a party pooper, I do not want to close these boards but there has to come a point when I make a decision on where we go from here. There are only one or two decent City related message boards still alive and kicking and this is not one of them. When I venture out its plain to see just how many forums / blogs have closed or been abandoned (it began around 2010(ish). Many of the ones which have closed have disappeared while those which have been left to rot look as though they are going through a slow and painful death.

Others, including myself have, over the years put a hell of a lot of time, and in my case, money through radio sponsorship, FB and Twitter ads etc in an attempt to keep VMC's head above water. It simply hasn't worked. In addition, it would tear me apart if I did nothing and watched these boards slowly but surely drift away into oblivion.

Since I retiring from my mainstream job I decided to work pretty much full time on VMC - I love every minute of it. I still do but I go back to my original point....I am not prepared to see these forums slowly die and just stand and watch but do bugger all.

Peeps vote with their feet, similar to the High Street (BHS, Woolworth etc etc), and the internet is very similar. New and glossy things come along and we at VMC try and keep up. Its just that sometimes we are not always in charge of our own destiny.

 
Buzz Lightyear - 23/11/2016 05:58

Gladly I think the forum is here for a long time yet. :001:
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The situation has changed since my original post . We've seen an upturn in posts (not the number of new members) and the site stats are looking promising for this month.

Onwards and upwards :011:
 
You got us on international break and we re charge then. We appear to have lost Kenny though, I hope he will be back with his dry wit soon. :001: :001: :001: :001:
 
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