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What happened here?

 
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Aslaug
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Joined: 04 Jan 2005
Posts: 1861
Location: Slagelse, Denmark

PostPosted: Sat Sep 14, 2019 4:14 am    Post subject: What happened here? Reply with quote

Hi all ...

I came back about five months ago ... 'ish. I'm mostly just checking in once in a while.

When I left, PF had lost a lot of impetus. It was back in 2014, but in reality, I'd been mostly inactive for a while leading up to that.

In my own case, life had happened. I'd moved to another country and then moved back again, and frankly, everything was collapsing around me. That, and I had gotten started on non-furry fiction for publiction, and I needed to focus on that.

However, when I took off, the place still had some life in it. Nowadays, it's like a ghost-town.

I am not planning on going anywhere again, that's not it at all, in fact. I just wonder what did happen. It seems there's practically no life in the community here or elsewhere anymore.
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Kit Fox
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Joined: 19 Sep 2002
Posts: 679
Location: Orange, VT

PostPosted: Sat Sep 14, 2019 5:49 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I think the ghost town-esque nature of this site is mostly due to folks moving on to other mediums.
I've popped in and out several times over the years and it's always been on a slow decline. Life happens, things change.
I love this place since it was really my first entrypoint nto the furry community (back when dinosaurs roamed the Earth).

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Frazikar
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Joined: 25 Jan 2008
Posts: 1181
Location: North Coast, USA

PostPosted: Sat Sep 14, 2019 6:28 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Howdy there filly, welcome to life, where a small break out of necessity can turn into a large one without thinking.

I mean my brother came over for a (surprising) visit and told me that I haven't gotten in touch with family in almost two years (time has a way of sneaking past) … he was right though, it started small, missed phone calls and missed timing (gonna call after midnight?) and just kept being extended, soon one isn't thinking about it as life rolls on.

(sigh)
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Tigermark
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Joined: 18 Apr 2003
Posts: 855
Location: Hopkinsville, KY

PostPosted: Sat Sep 14, 2019 10:15 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I took what was supposed to be a short hiatus that turned into 3 years. Now that I'm retired, I don't want to let it run that long. Plenty of ideas left, just getting adjusted to the retirement idea before I put pen to paper (I'm old, don't judge me!) and return to writing furry flying fiction.

As far as why for the decline, again, it seemed to just trickle down as others moved on to other venues for their writing and/or commentary.


TM

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Kit Fox
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Joined: 19 Sep 2002
Posts: 679
Location: Orange, VT

PostPosted: Sun Sep 15, 2019 2:56 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

A lot of us here are getting old heh (or at least are feeling old hah). I was a wee lad of 16 years when I joined. Now, 17ish years later...
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Cookie
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Joined: 12 Nov 2005
Posts: 1690
Location: Yankee Appalachia

PostPosted: Wed Sep 18, 2019 4:38 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I've been trying to kick life back into it for a while.

But... after the PrincessB versus Mike drama, the general awfulness that was 2014 for most people (myself included), and the decline of an actual furry community in the years since, it's been a futile fight up a steep hill.

On the note of that decline in a real furry community, at the risk of sounding like a bitter old goat, I blame most of that on the younger set. What has torn it apart?

1. Politics. People are angrier and more misguided than ever before in our lifetimes. Young people seem to have mostly formed cliques based on political views and they are incendiary to anything that differs from their tiny group. Furry used to be people of all walks coming together; that has largely faded.

2. The internet has changed. It's a different creature now. People prefer their soulless bite-sized content like Twitter, Instagram or whatever. They don't talk in the comments on Furaffinity, or post on forums like this anymore. The art of conversation is lost on many people now. Even older folks have gone off-kilter since.

3. Less respect for the fandom's content creators. Artists, authors, and musicians all used to be far, far more respected in the furry world than they are today. There's a lot less interest in the creators as people, and far more in bite-sized content consumption. Authors in particular have taken a massive hit, since reading involves effort and time. Things too precious for the standard young adult to sacrifice.

As for artists, name one new furry creator who is as much the life blood of the fandom these days, as people like Doug Winger, James Hardiman, Eric Schwartz, Max Blackrabbit, and so on were back in the day. Not only is there far more competition now, myself included, but the fans generally don't give as much of a crap about us, and more about the quick anonymous wank and move on. OR they want to fight us about politics. See number 1.

4. Furry versus Brony. Ho-lee-crap did this cause a major divide in the fandom. It hurt the social aspect of furry for real, and it was the fault of idiots on both sides.

5. Lots of people have died or left the fandom. :/

6. Too many people in the fandom have been arrested for possession of real child porn since 2012. Too many in that there are too many people involved with such a thing in the first place. Doesn't look good for the rest of us.

7. No real driving media force right now. Aside from MLP, what major furry thing is going on in mainstream media right now? Not a lot. We've had some flicks like Zootopia and stand alone indie games like Night in the Woods or Undertale, but it's been flash in the pan. Nothing huge has really been propelling the furry fandom forward recently in terms of content, and the one thing that did just started a big freakin' argument instead.

Basically, I think furry itself has become too hostile, political, and short-attention-spanned for its own good. It will change again, but I dare say this is the second dark age.

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Aslaug
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Joined: 04 Jan 2005
Posts: 1861
Location: Slagelse, Denmark

PostPosted: Fri Sep 20, 2019 12:37 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for the replies, guys.

It's just strange, since I do remember how incredibly active the place used to be.

But you're right ... things change.

Sic transit gloria mundi and all that.

The thing is ... I remember how nice people were to one another. Sure, there were bad situations, too. I recall entirely vividly the whole mess when I started here, and I got into trouble with some of the moderators. Not particularly nice. Things smoothed out though. I remember all the conversations on my part of the boards as being incredibly active, as well.

Hell, nowadays, all the stuff I wrote isn't even readily available anymore, since the page is defunct.

I mean, it's alright. Life moves on. I'd like to think I'm a much better writer now, anyways ... more practice, more experience under my belt than I had back then.

I'll still pop in here from time to time. Nostalgia is not necessarily a bad thing.
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Kit Fox
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Joined: 19 Sep 2002
Posts: 679
Location: Orange, VT

PostPosted: Fri Sep 20, 2019 7:07 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Nastalgia helps ground me sometimes when things in life are crazy. I tend to seek out things from a simpler time in my little world.
Hence why I'm back here again haha... Good times.
I'm gonna start a new thread with "What's everyone been up to?". I'm curious.

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