dfreely wrote:

Sasorikiller wrote:Problems can also be a positive thing though, and keep members on the website. A too-perfect website may die off as well, described in the following. You see, a perfect website is something people can come to time and time again. The perfection becomes intoxicatingly awesome, and member activity soars past previous limitations. The perfection of the website becomes normal though, and eventually sickening. Problems create diversity and engage members in dealing with the website's problems. With minor problems here and there, the forums seem more human, more imperfect.

I'm not sure how problems can be a positive thing, or how a "perfect" website may die off. I'm a member on forums that have been around for years, and are run perfectly, yet no one thinks it's sickening or any less human. If anything, it's more comforting and human knowing that the management team are actively doing a good job and solving what problems that may arise. As for problems creating diversity and engaging members, if it does so, then it does so in a negative way, especially when these problems may never be fixed.

capmonte wrote:Well, what problems do people see? I admit I've only been active for a couple of months, so maybe things aren't as apparent to me.

The whole trainee moderator system, the fact that 95% of the moderators either don't do any actual work or haven't been active members for months or even years, virtually no spam protection, disorganized categories and stickied topics, an administrator that ignores any problems and suggestions to improve/fix this forum, topics being deleted without explanation, the lack of a proper marketplace feedback system, old topics aren't auto-locked, etc.

Sasorikiller wrote:Problems can also be a positive thing though, and keep members on the website. A too-perfect website may die off as well, described in the following. You see, a perfect website is something people can come to time and time again. The perfection becomes intoxicatingly awesome, and member activity soars past previous limitations. The perfection of the website becomes normal though, and eventually sickening. Problems create diversity and engage members in dealing with the website's problems. With minor problems here and there, the forums seem more human, more imperfect.

capmonte wrote:Well, what problems do people see? I admit I've only been active for a couple of months, so maybe things aren't as apparent to me.

dfreely wrote:You know, thinking this over, it could be a valid concern, but perhaps not for the same reason the OP thinks.

This is, again, the biggest free autograph collecting site, and by a mile, but that is virtually the only thing keeping it afloat. There have been exoduses because people were unsatisfied with the way this forum is run, and even though many of us still remained, it can't be denied that this forum has a lot of problems. Even though the other sites that have popped up haven't unseated this one as top dog, that's really due to their own inabilities and not because Fanmail.biz is invincible. I wouldn't be too surprised if somewhere down the line, someone capable steps up, creates a better forum, and this forum starts losing membership/activity.

Icena wrote:As long as there are celebrities in the world, we'll be here.
I'm pretty sure this forum has far worse things to worry about. For example, right below this thread is another spam thread,currently.