Yes I guess it would. Tbh the site is as good as that use it want it to be. As long as those who join in are welcomed does it really matter if 500 people watch? It's not an ego based forum where we need 4000 replies so we feel good is it? Hope not. However variety is the spice of life or so they say.
Why do these lurkers need to know who we are in order to join in? It's a free for all on here, not a clique. I rarely camp with anyone on here, hardly know anyone, but doesn't stop me posting.
true zed/mungo, i've been a member on a rail forum for 6 years and made 1000's of posts yet i've never (knowingly) met anone off there, i've a good idea who some of them are by a process of elimination and deducing their posts after we have been to the same rail event but we don't walk around saying hello i'm ricky and i like trains
I like the TLB and I do believe as Rick says, that there is a little clique of posters who know each other well (and no I am not including myself in this). However, I'm not sure this is because they have all met (Noddy for example ?) or if it is because they just spend time on here. Providing they are not being rude to others I do not see the harm, though i can see newbies might be turned off. I hope to meet some TLBers in the future and I hope I am welcomed in. Just for the sake of tidy admin though, I would agree that after 12 months an account could be taken off if it is taking up server space. If there is no impact on the forum itself though, just leave them. Oh and by the way, if you are a guest or a 'lurker', jump in for a while and have some fun, you never know, you might get to join the clique and discover who is who !
A lot of forums seem a bit cliquey from the outside because the people posting know each other (online at least), but the good ones also allow new posters in without giving them a hard time. If you're not used to forums, it can be hard to get the first few posts out there but any lurker can see that tlb is an easy going place, so there's no good reason not to get posting. Forums are about exchange of information, not just taking out what you can find, so everyone should contribute what they can.
We could set it so you have to post 10 times before you can read, that way people will have to contribute rather than take. No wait, on reflection that would make every post read like one of ricks!
I don't get all this 'clique' stuff or it's hard for a new member blah blah blah. We were all new members once and look at us now. I joined during the height of name changes and swear word filters and many of you lot knew each other but over time I started to learn who was who and what the general crack was and now feel part of the community. As Piggle says you get out what you put in
Body COCK ha-ha-ha. ;D I have to agree, This is one silly laid back forum. Maybe that's the prob (if there is one) in that to outsiders, it might look like everyone knows each other where in reality of course they don't. Or maybe you do? ***** I thought you didn't. Damn you cliquey people, I hate you and I'm going to cry and never post again.
