Does anyone have a theory of forums?

[MORON]

Since some of you folks have been here for wayyyyy too long and have an background in stuff like...economics....

I wonder does any of you have developed a model of sorts on the growth, movement and decay of forum populations. What "stages of development" does forums undergo, does forums have a life cycle of some sort and all that stuff.

Or is forums the mysterious result of DL bots?

[Bugs ****ing Bunny]

1- Forum starts. Immediately it's decided that it's going downhill.

2- Slow decline.

3- Disappointing end.

Not so much a cycle as a resigned slump.

[Theben]

I detect some projection in the last post.

[BeBMan]

1- Forum starts. There are some idealists who know eachother relatively well, who want to do something about *forum topic* and who are generally able to talk to eachother without getting into flamewars all the time. Moderation is lax or non-existent.

2- Forum grows or dies quickly. If it grows it'll attract all kinds of people interested in *forum topic*. Plus over time all kinds of nutjobs. Tone gets more harsh over time esp. in debates over politics, beliefs etc. Moderation either doesn't care or gets more restrictive.

3- Apolyton

[Elok]

I was expecting some sort of weird riff on Plato from that title...

[Japher]

1 - Forum Starts
2 - After informal introductions threads of substantial gibberish are generated
3 - Troll
4 - Spam
5 - Asher is banned
6 - Something Happens
7 - Profit!

[rah]

Profit

[Zkribbler]

Originally posted by rah
Profit

Sorry to get your hopes up, rah. He meant "prophet" -- you know, one of those guys in a dirty robe who walks around holding a sign that says The End is Near. That kind of prophet.

[SlowwHand]

All rah needs is a sign. Here's your sign.

[Japher]

I just end every list with prophit

or any spelling of it

[Elok]

So the space between the end of the list and your sig would be the "prophet margin," I take it?

[Lorizael]

Originally posted by Elok
So the space between the end of the list and your sig would be the "prophet margin," I take it?

[Elok]

Thank you, but do bear in mind that sophisticated writers like Oscar Wilde roll over in their graves every time you laugh at a horrifically lame pun like that.

[Lorizael]

Hence the