BoB's online presence

[Brunello]

the #2 cause of board death is the slow-drift-away-gradual-flatline which happens when a group is small enough it doesn't need to communicate to know what the others already think about something, so they stop talking.

It's a tightrope for sure.

Since I'm fairly new I'm still discovering different aspects of the members who participate. New members may have questions or observations that bring the old guard out of their hidey holes.

Before I joined in January, I lurked for a couple of months and now my biggest 'regret' is that I didn't join soon enough to respond to some of Fishnbanjo's posts. His posts always put a smile on my face, enjoying his pipes and baccy so much. I miss that vibe. Now I have to rely on Blackhorse's unique brand of humor to put a smile on my face.

Maybe I have more time on my hands than some, but I check BoB at least once a day to see if anything new pops up. Besides the occasional new blood to keep things fresh (as Stick said) I have to agree with what swhipple said about the value of this forum and how participation is vital to keeping it alive.

 

[IHT]

I recall knox cigar and used to post on that board...  then i found a couple others.  Became the moderator of the pipe section of a large cigar forum.  We were routinely in the top 3 on google searches for pipe discussions.  It was active, we had a ton of members on the board...  we had contests, raffles, blind taste tests...  even had Tinsky make us a forum pipe.  Then the owner sold and it became "puff.com".  I spearheaded creating a private forum w 3 others for cigars pipes and coffee.  Private because we discussed sources for cuban cigars, box-splits, etc.  Had 2 forum pipes made (Larrysson, and Kurt Huhn), some tobacco by C&D one yr, and tried to get McClellands to make us some (even put the tin art in Mikes hands at the factory - i live in the kc area)....  that went downhill...  anyway....

I saw this post late last night.  Shared a link here to a handful of buddies on a fb group.

Oh, social media was the downfall of the forum i ran...

While more activity gets you more search results, be prepared for the consequences.  

I like the pace here.  Since i'm nowhere near as active, and my job has changed to where i don't have the time to start up raffles and contests, this fits me pretty well.

I would like to add that how i "re-found" BoB was a google search while researching a pipe maker.  Actually, it was a shape of Stanwell pipe that i own...  led me back here.

 

[IHT]

Btw - what is the "briar report"? Been off forums for close to a decade... we had a sticky post w links to all the various pioemakers, tobacco shops, etc. When someone added a new one, we updated the list.

 

[LL]

Btw - what is the "briar report"?  Been off forums for close to a decade...  we had a sticky post w links to all the various pioemakers, tobacco shops, etc.  When someone added a new one, we updated the list.

It's an aggregator of pipe, cigar, and tobacco legislation news & articles from different sources..

 

[IHT]

Where is this report postedm

You're from kc mo? I'm up in Leavenworth county.
Are you a member of the gkcpc? I had been off and on, but 3rd thursday night wasn't good, and its like a 45 min to hr drive down to cigar & tabac.

 

[LL]

https://www.briarreport.com/

Yes on the GKCPC. For ten years or so. Cigar & Tabac is still hosting meetings.

Been on this board off and on since day 1. Was part of the startup crew, in fact. Not many originals like us left, though.

 

[IHT]

Cool.  Then we've probably met.
Been a few yrs since i was down there.

Thx for the link.

 

[Corncobcon]

I used to go there every week, but that was almost 20 years ago when I was more into cigars. I had to go to KC area each week for work, C&T and Outlaw were a must stop!

 

[Vito]

...Been on this board off and on since day 1.  Was part of the startup crew, in fact.  Not many originals like us left, though.  

You know as well as anyone, LL, that attrition has always been with us. But in general those of us who haven't stepped off this mortal coil still check in from time to time.

When Jason started BoB I sent PMs and emails to all the KCC BB brethren I could find who had bailed out when that forum went downhill, and I invited them to come hither.

And so, the spirit of the Knoxville board carried over into BoB. But the novelty of a new board attracted a lot of others, not all of whom shared the same fraternal spirit. For a while, it got pretty wild, pretty fast; there were no moderators, no rules of engagement, and it drove some of us away. But eventually it settled down.

Alas, ain't none of us "spring chickens", and so many have taken The Big Sleep — unique individuals who can never be replaced. Life is change, and I guess death is too.

So, while we can reminisce and fondly remember what once was, it will never be the same again. Best we can do is make a different kind of good thing with what we've got.

<img src="https://i.servimg.com/u/f84/11/87/59/00/newjok10.png" alt="BoB's online presence Newjok10"/>

 

[PoseidonsKiss]

I started out on Reddit when it was still new in 2007. The site hit its prime as a forum sitein my opinion around 2010-2015. And since then has gotten tok big. Too well known. And is now a slightly better facebook.

Wanting more members is a good ambition. But at a certain point you need more servers. More admins and mods. Which will eventually require monetary compensation.

BoB being a niche audience may never reach that capacity but it is ever important to determine and agree on the goals and limits of the forum.

 

[Blackhorse]

I started out on Reddit when it was still new in 2007. The site hit its prime as a forum sitein my opinion around 2010-2015. And since then has gotten tok big. Too well known. And is now a  slightly better facebook.

Wanting more members is a good ambition. But at a certain point you need more servers. More admins and mods. Which will eventually require monetary compensation.

BoB being a niche audience may never reach that capacity but it is ever important to determine and agree on the goals and limits of the forum.

I think we’re doing OK here...but yeah, Mods need to get paid! WoooHoooo!

 

[Carlos]

Did I hear someone mention "Pay"!

 

[Blackhorse]

Yeah! Poseidonskiss recommended it! How much are we talkin’ about here? Hundreds? Thousands?

 

[Ozark Wizard]

I thought you did it for the same, not the fortune!

 

[Blackhorse]

I do it for the chocolate chip cookies.

 

[Ozark Wizard]

I do it for the chocolate chip cookies.

Those are best! :cheers:

 

[Corncobcon]

Did someone say COOOOOKIES? :cheers:

 

[user 2027]

.

 

[jhuggett]

What a blast from the past! Hey LL and Vito! It's strange to think this forum has been around over 13 years.

As to the presence of BoB on searches. In the beginning it was meant to be and remain small. I figured it was just a temporary solution until we all found another forum to use. That's why I used a free hosting site.

The other issue was forummotion's search engine optimization sucked. I would bet with the new host we will see better search results than before. So that may mean a slight increase in new members. Hopefully like minded gentlemen and ladies.

Great to see some old names. Hope you all have a happy holidays and you and your family are safe and sound.

 

[ftrplt]

Can't believe I haven't noticed this thread before now!! IIRC, I got started with this thing with the old JR Cigar board! Then we migrated to Knox Cigar (or maybe it was the other way around!!). I do remember that one problem we had with both of those sites was discussing certain brands, other buying sites, etc. outside of our host site. Knox (Peter Zaring, the owner) shut down his online sales and went strictly local B&M with a coffee/bar setup. That sank like the Titanic! Been here since about the start. It's a nice cozy home. Glad to hear from past voices; always good to hear from new ones!!!!! FTRPLT