General Forums are not as popular as they once were.

[Al]

Split from https://administrata.net/threads/how-many-forums-have-you-had-and-what-where-they.150

I've only had one and have always used MyBB. I did retire it for about a decade and recently brought it back last year. I don't find forums as popular as they once were.

This is absolutely true. Social media hammered nails into the coffin of forums - but we're not ready to give up yet!


Forums are not as popular as they once were. This is mainly down to the rise of social media. Discuss!

 

[Bryn]

This is absolutely true. Social media hammered nails into the coffin of forums - but we're not ready to give up yet!

Add Discord to the mix also... there was once a belief that it would kill off forums for good, and some people even saw it as a replacement for them. Even I once believed in it...

 

[Cpvr]

Add Discord to the mix also... there was once a belief that it would kill off forums for good, and some people even saw it as a replacement for them. Even I once believed in it...

I wouldn't actually consider Discord as a forum though. It's more of instant messenger service like Skype, Facebook messenger, telegram,
Etc.

Discord’s content isn’t in the open web either, so I don’t see it ever surpassing forums.

 

[Bryn]

I wouldn't actually consider Discord as a forum though.

I didn't say that it was a forum though... I'm just meaning that people were using that more instead of forums. Of course that can be said for Reddit and such.

 

[Ravenfreak]

Yeah the traditional forum may be dying out, but there's still going to be plenty of us who prefer forums to any other form of communication! I think lots of people will start to realize that forums are the way to go when it comes to research communities, especially since social media censors content.

 

[Cory]

Reddit is the only social media I actively use and that is only sparingly. I think forums can have benefits over social media, such as more tight-knit communities that aren't full of countless people who post their opinions or discuss something and never see them again, or mainly posting things about your life for your friends and family to see. They're called online communities for a reason, they build communities through the growth of many different means and techniques, not just people clicking an "add friend" button.

 

[Cedric]

The days of meeting over a hundred random people at once may be gone, but our hearts will never betray forum communities.

 

[Cpvr]

Reddit is the only social media I actively use and that is only sparingly. I think forums can have benefits over social media, such as more tight-knit communities that aren't full of countless people who post their opinions or discuss something and never see them again, or mainly posting things about your life for your friends and family to see. They're called online communities for a reason, they build communities through the growth of many different means and techniques, not just people clicking an "add friend" button.

Online communities gave rise to social media, and without them, I don’t think we’d have sites like Reddit. Is it safe to say that Reddit is just one massive forum?


The community aspect of forums is what has allowed them to flourish over the years. Many people have grown to love forums and remain loyal to them over social media.

While the rapid growth forums experienced in the past has slowed, their endurance and longevity remain strong. They may break or falter, but they always find a way to come back!

 

[Num7]

There are many interesting takes on the place of forums in our day and age. Nowadays, there are so many services and platforms available, that it's hard to find a proper one, let alone, one that won't prevent your community from thriving and growing.

Here's how I see some of the services mentioned above.

Discord: It's a cool chat platform that's been trying to become a forum as of the last year (or last 2 years perhaps?). Sure, it has threads now, but it's not its core feature. Its core feature is chat. And in the chat, you can't have a long-form discussion. And you often get ignored. So if your forum is well-suited for long-form discussion, you shouldn't have to worry about Discord taking over your niche. Perhaps you may even want to add it to your offer, as a way to offer a good chatroom to your members.

Reddit: This is an interesting one that's been slowly replacing forums here and there. I remember noticing about 10 years ago that more and more videogame companies were closing down their official forums in favor of a subreddit. I think it's a good use case. But moving a forum like Administrata, or mine, to Reddit? Don't think so.

What's special about Reddit is that once you're registered, you can take part in any community, which is nice.

Social media sites like Facebook and Twitter: Sure, they harm forums. X threads, Facebook threads, Facebook groups, etc. I know I'm annoying, but I'll mention long-form discussion again. Twitter and Facebook aren't made for long-form discussion. Posts and comments aren't the same thing as a discussion with actual replies. It's therefore important to focus on the primary advantage your forum has over those social media sites. Your members' ability to engage in...? You guessed it! Long-form discussions!

 

[Time Wizard Cosmo]

Social media platforms have absolutely changed the landscape of the internet, but I don't think that's anything new. I think what we as "golden age of the internet" veterans are seeing is another version of Eternal September, but perhaps in reverse.

Back in the days of BBS systems when it was mostly colleges campuses that had access, students would flood those communities every September disrupting the established culture with their lack of experience. Today, the influx is from social media with the low-effort replies, but it has also shifted the focus away from more structured, long-form discussions that forums excel at.

I've seen firsthand why forums remain irreplaceable. They offer something social media can’t which is permanence and continuity. On social media, content is buried by algorithms that prioritize quick interactions over deep conversations. Forums, on the other hand, are a slower, more deliberate exchange of ideas which is crucial for places like TTI where discussions are theoretical, speculative, or archival in nature.

Platforms like Discord are great for real-time, but they can't replicate the ecosystem. Forums provide a space where ideas aren't discussed briefly and forgotten but built upon over time. That's something I will always value.