Comic Genesis Forums

So, I've pretty much just been hanging around in the GD most of my time here. I used to lurk in the Help forums a lot back when I started, obviously. Recently I've tried my hand at the KEENime forums but it's been pretty dead anyways. I haven't had much interest in anything else around here. Seems like most of the action happens here, no?

There's some goings on in TTT as well. But yeah, GD is where the party is.

The OT forum used be where the cool kids would smoke while ditching class but for some strange reason nobody posts there anymore.

I just check New Posts when I come here. I don't look at the individual forums because there's so little activity I might as well just see what's the newest posts.

It's safer in GD. TT&T is okay during the day, but I try to stay outta that neighborhood after dark.

Obviously, I check new activity in all forums for spam, but I only ever find anything useful to say in GD and TT&T (or as it's popularly called from now on, "titties").
When OT was alive, most of action was there, and GD was empty. Other forums were pretty much as active as now. There are some that really should go down the drain:
*Message board requests - if CG isn't giving away new forums, is there a reason for this section? Since it's a spam magnet, it could at least be temporarily locked until/if they start giving forums again.
*Cartoonist's choice awards - I don't think they are giving this award anymore, or am I mistaken? If they aren't, what's the point again?
*Community get-togethers - It used to have a point but nowadays whoever is planning something, is gonna repost it to GD anyway, otherwise noone'll see their post.
*Dropdowns and crossovers - this forum was never really any useful to begin with.
*Keenime, Forum Games - It's not like these forums couldn't be active, it's just that they haven't been for a very, very long time. They were made back when activity here was so huge that it made sense to separate some content into different section. Nowadays, even if you want to dedicate a thread to "Say something about the next poster", noone will complain about it being in GD
So that leaves GD and titties, Help is of course kinda the whole point of the forum, and Pitching gets some activity from time to time. You can as well browse through Archives too, if you want to read some funny stuff.

I wonder, though, if there's any significant activity in any of the individual comic forums.

McDuffies wrote:You can as well browse through Archives too, if you want to read some funny stuff.

We should have a Hall of "Fame" topic for all those classics.

Spaceprincess wrote:The OT forum used be where the cool kids would smoke while ditching class but for some strange reason nobody posts there anymore.

Off Topic got locked up and all the windows boarded up. I heard it's haunted now.

Toxic wrote:

Spaceprincess wrote:The OT forum used be where the cool kids would smoke while ditching class but for some strange reason nobody posts there anymore.

Off Topic got locked up and all the windows boarded up. I heard it's haunted now.

I spent a night in Off Topic on a bet once.

The wailing of the unfinished Jams kept me up all night.

I miss off-topic. It was so... not on topic.

McDuffies wrote: *Message board requests - if CG isn't giving away new forums, is there a reason for this section? Since it's a spam magnet, it could at least be temporarily locked until/if they start giving forums again.

I remember Kisai saying a while back that we'd reached the maximum number of forums allowed by phpBB. So yeah, lock it and throw away the key.

Terotrous wrote:I miss off-topic. It was so... not on topic.

That was its charm. In depth discussions of random nonsense.

And I was so looking forward to the day when I had enough posts to request my own forum. Anyone know of any good free forum providers?

Well Cornstalkers could always use…

Oh wait… Never mind.

chainmailbikini wrote:And I was so looking forward to the day when I had enough posts to request my own forum. Anyone know of any good free forum providers?

I know this is not an answer to your question, but individual comic forums have always been notoriously hard to get a decent following, specially now that they're the least popular kind of socializing. A facebook group would be of much more use.

McDuffies wrote:

chainmailbikini wrote:And I was so looking forward to the day when I had enough posts to request my own forum. Anyone know of any good free forum providers?

I know this is not an answer to your question, but individual comic forums have always been notoriously hard to get a decent following, specially now that they're the least popular kind of socializing. A facebook group would be of much more use.

Forums are less popular than semaphore? Hmm, that's a good point. But I hear FB is starting to crack down on multiple accounts and I hear their business sites are kinda garbage unless you give them some monies, which I can't really blame them for, but I'm not rolling in mad stacks of famous web comic dough either atm... am I derailing this thread? I'm terrible at staying on topic.

chainmailbikini wrote: Forums are less popular than semaphore? Hmm, that's a good point. But I hear FB is starting to crack down on multiple accounts and I hear their business sites are kinda garbage unless you give them some monies, which I can't really blame them for, but I'm not rolling in mad stacks of famous web comic dough either atm... am I derailing this thread? I'm terrible at staying on topic.

I'm hearing that too, but there's good several years before it actually becomes useless, and then something new will come to replace it.
Thing is, forums are in most cases very disappointing experience. It appears that even a huge following isn't a guarantee that your forum will liven up. One has to be savvy in marketing his forum in the same way he has to know how to market his comic, you gotta put at least as much effort in advertising your forum and keeping it an interesting place to visit. In other words, lots of work.
Comments under the comics seem to be a big deal nowadays. These days people are used to being able to leave a comment on anything they see, and communities get formed there too.

this is a decent cross reference for social network marketing.

Bah, Off Topic lost its charm when y'all got rid of the Junk.

But... we were deeply offended by it's insidious insinuations!