I've been on here, on and off, for a very long time (first started payed sub in 2003, but visited often earlier) so I consider a lot of people on here my cyber friends. I feel like I know how they think about a lot of things, and commiserate on many things. I already know (mostly) which are full of shit, and which are an unlimited fount of experience. So frankly for me (I assume it the same for a lot of people on here) when I have a question, or a topic I'd like to discuss in the near vicinity of backpacking in general, however "peripheral" to UL, what I especially enjoy and appreciate HERE is the ability to come to to THIS group of people – or rather, a good size subgroup. THAT is what makes this site successful, IMHO.
Besides, those people on the OTHER backing forums are just weird. :-)
So yeah, I'm in very much in favor extra side forums if enough people would like them. For example, I had a guy on here ID a bird for me last year from the DESCRIPTION of its song – I could never actually see the bird. He nailed it in one – though I'd like to think it was my excellent description of its 3-note song. I tried the "real" birding site and people had no idea what it was – some were saying it was an insect and no help at all.
If you have problems with all the riff-raff that invade the narrower things you want to discuss then I suggest you do what a lot of folks in that situation do, and start your own narrower site. But IMO it is terribly boorish for a few people to repeatedly complain about how it sucks that such a wonderful (on the whole) community of people will not stick to a narrower field. But as is made pretty clear on this thread – they are SO outvoted.
Successful sites are open communities. The "secret society echo chamber" ones where no one is allowed to occasionally stray from the main topic, or talk some some shit, or make light of your "serious" pursuits all suck terribly IMO. But I guess it come down to whether you view it as a community or merely as a method of exchanging information.
I don't see the SNR here as a problem yet – probably ever. The "problem" with this site is not that you can't easily find information on any topic you want – its that there is so much good information. Its enough to make a dogmatist writhe in furry. More sub-forums only make stuff easier to find.
So in my humble opinion this site is WAI, or at least working as it should. Bravo.
(The "administration" excepted. Do we need to burn incense? Make a sacrifice? Consult an oracle?)
However I do NOT want to see any photos of your rashes, and that is final!
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