Fifteen years and counting.

Inkaneer Mar 29, 2015

  1. Doug Gosha

    Doug Gosha TrainBoard Member

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    Wow! I forgot all about the AOL N scale forum! I was there too. Then it just kind of gradually disappeared.

    Doug
     
  2. Calzephyr

    Calzephyr TrainBoard Supporter

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    I have no idea where to look on Trainboard to find my member number... but... based on what I've seen from other posters... I must be in the low 1000 range.
     
  3. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    Your number is 1772.
     
  4. ppuinn

    ppuinn Staff Member

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    A decade this month for me.

    I used Ken's method to check my profile (ID=4195) and BartstowRick's profile (ID=3987), who joined 2 months before me. If the ID numbers were assigned sequentially, wouldn't that mean there were 200 new members in just 2 months? Depending on which day of the month we joined, that's between 2 and 4 people signing up every day!
     
  5. DaveD

    DaveD TrainBoard Member

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    Yeah... Pretty much like the rest of AOL. lol I have to say though... Those days on the internet were pretty cool. Better than today. I go on FaceBook now and stuff like that... People are nothing like the way they were back in the old days. People barely know how to actually communicate anymore. Nowadays, everybody just sort of broadcasts, and assumes people are watching. If you try to actually talk to them though... they don't want any part of it. Ironically, 'Social Media' is really not social at all.
     
  6. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    You are so correct. It's now all about people getting past their fifteen seconds of fame, and boring/annoying the rest of the world forever.
     
  7. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    We are now up to 33563...
     
  8. traingeekboy

    traingeekboy TrainBoard Member

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    Oh oh I don't feel so special anymore. I joined in 2004. Although sometimes I would join a forum and then lose my password and get all messed up trying to get it back and just redo a whole new account, but I am pretty sure that here I am on my same account.

    Things have changed here a lot. It's slowed down. With everyone doing blogs it's just a different beast. I prefer the more open sharing on a forum, than a blog format, so I do not even look at people's blogs. But when people do post on here, I really enjoy it.

    I should note that I have always been a mutli scale modeler as well as multi prototype. My return to my old love of HO scale european vintage 60's to 80's models has also put me in somewhat of a minority on here. ;) But I still have my n scale carefully boxed for when I make the switch again. he he he
     
  9. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    The day will likely come when you are very happy about this decision!
     
  10. traingeekboy

    traingeekboy TrainBoard Member

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    Well, I sold most of it back in the big slow down of 2008. At a loss for most of it too. Last count it was something like 300+ freight cars and around 30 locos. my passenger sets were a complete Kato zephyr and E9. A complete kato BN green set with E9. And some concor burlington coaches. But I do not regret it. I still have about 2 dozen freight cars,my two favorite atlas diesels, and a steam engine my mom gave me as a kid. oh and built up structures and lotsa kits. Someday my layout will rise out of it's ashes!

    What worries me is when I see low post activity in the forum. As of now it's been since march 19th since anyone has posted in the layout design section. It used to be the most active part of TB and I always enjoyed the discussions there. These days people seem to post and then not return to respond to other peoples posts as much. In the HO section some people posted about their newly acquired locos, one of which was a brass loco the owner had no info on. I spent about an hour finding info for the owner of the brass loco. Turned out he had a rather rare model and 1 of 50 ever made, how cool is that? He never came back to comment. It makes recreation time on the forum seem a lot more like wasted time and don't get me wrong I really love this forum.
     
  11. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    Part of this is due to folks who insist upon posting in the scale specific forums instead. Those posts need to be moved, but I have not had the time lately, coupled to health issues and an injury. And also due to making more time for myself, my own model railroading.
     
  12. rray

    rray Staff Member

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    Interesting thread. 15 years flew by real fast. Looking at the numbers, it looks like 1 in 4 members are still here, although how many were deleted for being dirtyrottenspammers is not clear.
    One thing that I notice is Charlie was not member #1, but he is the longest lasting member. Attrition has moved us all up the list in order of membership.

    I myself have been mostly inactive the past couple years since my grandfather and best train buddy passed away.

    I do plan on building one last home layout someday, when I retire... 10 years off. It will be an almost completely scratch-built Z Scale layout with hand-laid code 40 track, and scratch-built rolling stock, fictionally based in the pacific northwest with a lot of waterfront scenes.

    I figure that if Trainboard lasts another 15 years I can celebrate my 25th year here with a new layout build thread and my 30th with a golden spike photo essay on March 10 2030.
     
  13. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    Actually we have at the moment 32903 active registrations! Just this past month, we've seen several folks pop back in and visit. There was at least one who'd not been here in about ten years!

    I believe the reason Charlie isn't #1, is they did some "Beta" testing of the site before it launched. He and Scott are 6 and 7.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: May 3, 2015
  14. DaveD

    DaveD TrainBoard Member

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    I don't think it's just train stuff. Like I mentioned before, I just think this is the way the internet is now. People have become very jaded and they don't put as much effort in as they used to. When I started my first sites in the early 90's... I'd get compliments and emails from people every week. Now, never. I used to talk to people all the time back then. Now, if I email somebody I've known for years... I'll be lucky to even get a reply. I've run some email lists for over 15 years, with hundreds of people. I've found that nowadays... If you, the owner of some sort of forum, don't actively participate... nobody will. You have to constantly get in their and pump up the activity and nag people to respond. We used to do a fun chat group every Sunday night years ago, where numerous people would get in chat, and we would listen to a radio stream for a RR, and just talk about what was going on. I've tried to start that back up numerous times in the last few years, and not a single person shows up. People are so lazy now... You'll have old timers tell big long stories about stuff, and out of hundreds of people, not a single person will reply. Everybody just always assumes somebody else will do it. I've had to scold people and get on them about participating, because... if people go to the trouble of putting up all kinds of good info, and get zero back... They're just going to leave. So then you just slowly spin down into nothing.

    As far as selling stuff... That has changed dramatically as well. I remember the days when you were virtually guaranteed to sell anything on eBay. Not anymore. Back in the 90's, I used to find people on the AOL forum who would just buy big lots of stuff I had that I didn't want, and then I guess they'd take it to shows and sell individually. You can't do anything like that anymore. Nobody will buy groups of items. They're just not interested... even if you're practically giving it away.
     
  15. WPZephyrFan

    WPZephyrFan TrainBoard Member

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    Wow, I've been here 12 years? I know I was a no show for a few years while I was going through some personal issues, including not participating in the hobby. Now, if I could just find time to actually do some modeling! :frustrated:
     
  16. mrhedley

    mrhedley TrainBoard Member

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    Joined January 2004. Read the forums almost daily but I don't post a lot. It's like that with my layout. So many other interests that I just never seem to make progress, and then when I do find a stretch of time to spend on it I start 'improving' what I've already done instead of sticking to the plan. Well it's a hobby, right? But I pledge to finish a section before I take the summer off and post some progress pics. I'd appreciate the feedback.
     
  17. John Moore

    John Moore TrainBoard Supporter

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    Out of 32,000 and some change I believe I am number 2828. So there has really been an upsurge in membership since I joined.
     
  18. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    We'll look forward to seeing these photos!
     
  19. SYROUS

    SYROUS TrainBoard Member

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    I have only been a member for 2 years and I as well have seen a large drop off in comments and posts. I get more comments, questions and suggestions on my youtube channel and Facebook train groups I am a part of. Seems to me that's where the hobby is going. Not a lot of people visiting or participating in Forums anymore. Sad really.
     
  20. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    Interesting to note that recently several Yahoo Groups which I am a long time member, have suddenly seen activity levels rise again.

    Meanwhile, this site isn't about to leave. Our site owner is committed to the long term.
     

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