Is FOG site activity down?

[PaulMarcel]

I used to be a bit active on Facebook exclusively to keep up with friends and a few specialty groups. Now, I hardly open it. If I do, it's to visit 2-3 of those groups. Those are specialized enough that there isn't a lot of cranky people blocking useful discourse. It isn't useful to keep up with friends either anymore since their posts are buried (if even visible) among a slew of noisy group posts and suggested posts.

IG doesn't have the depth of posts a forum or even FB group has. Very little how-to or this-is-why. And the comments are just nitpicking anything for likes or general shirtposting (if you're from Eastern Massachusetts with that Intrusive R...)

 

[timwors]

Personally, I think the FOG is brilliant for two reasons - (1) the content, and the very rich history of topics, and (2) the people, who seem a very friendly and helpful bunch. I think this makes it very special.

It's also so easy to use, and find stuff. I also like that my data isn't being harvested by some IT giant corp for their own gain.

For me, it can get a bit demoralizing when you take photos and write a post and then nobody really replies. I am sure people read lots of stuff without commenting, but getting feedback is always welcomed. I'm also guilty of this, and will try and comment more often, as this will serve to encourage more posts.

 

[MikeGE]

My experience with forums has shown participation can be affected by the forum software.  Easy to use feature rich forums tend to be more active than less featured forums, such as this SMF-based forum.

One of the smaller UK-based woodworking forums used the free phpBB software.  It was difficult to attach images to posts, which is a significant fail for a woodworking site.  I rarely posted because it was too cumbersome to use.  Earlier this year, the owner migrated to the licensed XenForo software and it was a breath of fresh air.  I am now more active there and membership is increasing. 

Free forum software, such as SMF and phpBB, are fine for those on a budget.  However, these tend to be better suited for text-based forums that do not rely on photos, or other multimedia information, to support the topics.

 

[rmwarren]

I like forums but I don't feel like posting anymore as it feels like I'm posting to a void. Maybe if we had a like feature to know that the posts are appreciated?

Gotta say this is a challenge. I can't tell if anyone gets value from the oddball stuff I post or if I'm just indulging myself. Not looking for adoration or accolades, just engagement that shows interest.

I guess I just have a knee-jerk reaction when I search for something, click on it and within 5 seconds a screen comes up asking me to join and provide my email address. Pinterest is one of the worst...now is that considered a forum?

I'm getting to the point that I'll just absolutely reject any information that's wanted from a web-site because I have absolutely no idea where it will lead.

Ditto, the absolute last thing I want is for FB or some other app to follow me around and recommend stuff it thinks I might be interested in. I know Google and other ad trackers do this but the tradeoff there is tolerable. And I take the time to "Reject all..." when visiting a new site.

Personally, I think the FOG is brilliant for two reasons - (1) the content, and the very rich history of topics, and (2) the people, who seem a very friendly and helpful bunch. I think this makes it very special.

It's also so easy to use, and find stuff. I also like that my data isn't being harvested by some IT giant corp for their own gain.

For me, it can get a bit demoralizing when you take photos and write a post and then nobody really replies. I am sure people read lots of stuff without commenting, but getting feedback is always welcomed. I'm also guilty of this, and will try and comment more often, as this will serve to encourage more posts.

Agreed on all points. I read many posts and get value, but often don't chime in with a thanks or +1 simply to let the author know the effort is appreciated. My bad.

RMW

 

[FestitaMakool]

Summertime here, it means - to me - a LOT to do.
Meanwhile between boats, cars, outhouse, house, regular work - I’m on the third project, see below.
Plan I to post when at least 99% finished. I don’t have time to do an ongoing thread about the projects.

That said, I ditched all SOME except YouTube and LinkedIn. YT is the only “media platform” I’m following apart from the FOG - Which thankfully is a forum.
I’m very glad to have ditched anything META. FB is now planning using your photos training their AI..
So yes, the FOG is a quiet very nice place.. But there isn’t always enough time.

Working on it..:
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[squall_line]

FOG activity comes and goes in waves.  As long as the forum software is behaving (which it does, over 99% of the time), I can use activity to determine the weather patterns in different parts of the country and world.  When it's summer in the northern hemisphere and nice out, activity drops to a minimum, as well as with holiday weekends. If the weather starts to turn ugly, activity tends to trend upwards.

As a forum, I appreciate not only the historic knowledge that is available, but also the breadth.  I think it would have taken me many more years to learn about "outsulation" and other building science topics if I hadn't been following Cheese's garage build.  The food posts, the home improvement posts, and other random but not completely off-topic stuff is very helpful to me as a jumping off point before venturing out into the great wild west of other forums.

And, as an aside, even though I've only met one other member from the forums in real life (to my knowledge, of course... who knows if I ran into a random person who is also a FOGger while I was in a Woodcraft or Acme Tools or something), the camaraderie, manners, and tolerance (for others as well as for other manufacturers) are what keep me coming back to the forum.

I'm on Facebook for some car stuff and keeping up with friends and family, and waste more time than I should on educational and comedic posts on YouTube, but the FOG is the only forum site I fastidiously keep up with.

 

[Packard]

I used to like to look on Pinterest, but I’ve since removed their app from my tablets.

I was under the impression that once you left their site the activity would terminate.

I watched a video.  When it was over ( a 2 - 4 minutes long video) I exited from Pinterest.  I was watching using free WiFi somewhere.  I left the range of the free WiFi, so my tablet searched for another WiFi.  What it found was my mobile hot spot.

So when I went to make a phone call, I saw my battery was down to 3% on my phone.  I checked the usage and it was 90%+ usage for Pinterest.  My tablet was also completely depleted.

Since I can’t depend on Pinterest to stop activity when I leave the app, I deleted the app. Maybe there is some way to prevent that from happening, but that is wrong.  I should not have to take action to prevent it, I should be required to take action to enable a series of videos to play.

At any rate, bye, bye Pinterest.

 

[Mini Me]

Make sure you delete all cookies for Pinterest or any other site you no longer use. Using advert blockers means I see zero advertising and push marketing which suits me just fine. Now and then I delete all cookies but that means I have to log into sites I have passwords for until I allow cookies to be reinstated so it is a two edged sword.

 

[Packard]

Make sure you delete all cookies for Pinterest or any other site you no longer use. Using advert blockers means I see zero advertising and push marketing which suits me just fine. Now and then I delete all cookies but that means I have to log into sites I have passwords for until I allow cookies to be reinstated so it is a two edged sword.

Thanks.  I’ll look into that.  I’ll have to figure out the mechanism to make that happen.

It seemed like a pretty silly oversight on Pinterest’s part to drive me away from their site.

 

[Cheese]

It seemed like a pretty silly oversight on Pinterest’s part to drive me away from their site.

Pinterest will not intentionally drive you from their site, they actually intentionally drive you towards their site. That's where the money is...this is all about dollars, that's the reason Pinterest exists. That's also the reason that Mark Zuckerberg is worth $172 billion...it's not about the "friend me" process...that's a dead end.

And that's exactly the reason I find the FOG interesting & refreshing, simple owners of Festool tools willing to spend their time talking about the good & bad experiences they've had using Festool tools. There are few things in life that are that pure. And the Fog group continues to offer up their practical experiences free...it's really refreshing and that's the reason I choose to continue to contribute.

 

[woodbutcherbower]

Make sure you delete all cookies for Pinterest or any other site you no longer use. Using advert blockers means I see zero advertising and push marketing which suits me just fine. Now and then I delete all cookies but that means I have to log into sites I have passwords for until I allow cookies to be reinstated so it is a two edged sword.

Also go into your iPhone settings and disable microphone access for EVERYTHING. It’s alarming and insidious how you can casually mention something random like ‘cappuccino’ and then have Starbucks, Nespresso and Gaggia adverts popping up on your phone within an hour. Adblockers on everything for me also. My life got a whole lot better when all of this intrusive garbage was brickwalled.

And as for these gadgets like Alexa ….. a microphone in your home, listening 24/7 to everything you say? Hard pass from me - especially since Amazon confessed that they have teams of people listening into conversations ‘tailoring marketing preferences’.

 

[luvmytoolz]

Make sure you delete all cookies for Pinterest or any other site you no longer use. Using advert blockers means I see zero advertising and push marketing which suits me just fine. Now and then I delete all cookies but that means I have to log into sites I have passwords for until I allow cookies to be reinstated so it is a two edged sword.

Also go into your iPhone settings and disable microphone access for EVERYTHING. It’s alarming and insidious how you can casually mention something random like ‘cappuccino’ and then have Starbucks, Nespresso and Gaggia adverts popping up on your phone within an hour. Adblockers on everything for me also. My life got a whole lot better when all of this intrusive garbage was brickwalled.

And as for these gadgets like Alexa ….. a microphone in your home, listening 24/7 to everything you say? Hard pass from me - especially since Amazon confessed that they have teams of people listening into conversations ‘tailoring marketing preferences’.

Definitely want to steer clear of any free WiFi in retail locations then! Shopping centres often provide free WiFi and the stores commonly use telemetry and analytical devices (like the Aero Hive) to pull all the ID they can from the phone when searching for a WiFi signal, and use the data to track foot traffic and shopping habits!

They aren't always doing it just to be nice!

 

[Packard]

And on a similar tack, the ideal number of advertising email contacts per week, seems to be 2 - 4.

More than 4 apparently means that your emails don’t get read.

Certain manufacturers (I won’t name names) bombard you with 4 or more per day.

Many sources for that information and they all more or less agree.
https://www.google.com/search?q=opt...r week&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&client=firefox-b-1-m

 

[squall_line]

Certain manufacturers (I won’t name names) bombard you with 4 or more per day.

If you don't want emails from Woodpecker's and Blue Spruce, you can unsubscribe.

 

[Packard]

Certain manufacturers (I won’t name names) bombard you with 4 or more per day.

If you don't want emails from Woodpecker's and Blue Spruce, you can unsubscribe.

It says something that you know the vendors without me giving much in the way of clues.

Their emails become white noise after a bit and have a negative impact on information transfer.  I think most people prefer fewer emails that they can look forward to. 

 

[squall_line]

Certain manufacturers (I won’t name names) bombard you with 4 or more per day.

If you don't want emails from Woodpecker's and Blue Spruce, you can unsubscribe.

It says something that you know the vendors without me giving much in the way of clues.

Their emails become white noise after a bit and have a negative impact on information transfer.  I think most people prefer fewer emails that they can look forward to.

You've posted about them by name before.

As a company, they have their own folder in my inbox, so I can read or ignore them at my leisure without it creating issues with the rest of my inbox.  Same for Woodcraft, Toolnut, etc.

 

[jeffinsgf]

You can also request a once a week digest that includes all new tools and week-long specials. The only thing you would miss are the Flash Sales.

 

[woodbutcherbower]

Their emails become white noise after a bit and have a negative impact on information transfer.

This ^^^^^^ Exactly this. If I have a need for a particular tool or product, I'll contact my usual vendors and buy it. I don't have either the time or the inclination to spend my evenings wading through countless mails relating to products which are of zero interest to me.

BTW - the original 'FOG site activity down' post seems to have livened up the forum [big grin]

 

[Vondawg]

Woodbutchbower haha I was thinking the same thing !

 

[Crazyraceguy]

And that's exactly the reason I find the FOG interesting & refreshing, simple owners of Festool tools willing to spend their time talking about the good & bad experiences they've had using Festool tools. There are few things in life that are that pure. And the Fog group continues to offer up their practical experiences free...it's really refreshing and that's the reason I choose to continue to contribute.

Agreed, this is enough of a specialty topic that it only draws a certain crowd. Of course you get the "one time" person, who has a question about their new tool, but the truly active people are easy to recognize.
There is a pretty stable group that you always see. They are the knowledgeable ones too, guys who have been doing this for years.