Learning about this website - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

Soriman the Whide · 04-08-2021, 08:37 PM

Thanks for the background, completely understandable situation you find yourselves in here. It's a shame most forums began to fade with the rise of social media, so much knowledge and great connections can be found on forums such as this one.

I find it entirely regrettable that I did not find this site 10 years ago.

Galadriel55 · 04-08-2021, 09:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Soriman the Whide

I find it entirely regrettable that I did not find this site 10 years ago.

Let me tell you that I joined some 10-odd years ago, and still feel a very young Entling and the newbie of the place.

Pervinca Took · 04-09-2021, 04:02 AM

According to the words under my username, I've been here just over 11.5 years. I joined after I met and liked some of the members in person at various Oxonmoots (the main annual event of The Tolkien Society). I was once very active on a Tolkien messageboard under a website called Imladris, but it crashed about 20 years ago and was never the same after it was rebuilt, and then disappeared completely a few years ago. It always had a very heavy film bias, too, which was probably partly why I didn't feel at home there once I had seen and not particularly liked the films.

Nearly all my posts are in the Password thread. Unless anyone starts a conversation about Frodo, when you will see that I am not really sleeping, whether I snore or not.

A hearty welcome, Sir!

Huinesoron · 04-09-2021, 04:16 AM

It is pretty slow here. The only thread with regular activity is the Password game, but others pop on and off at times - a couple of the other Games threads have had bursts of engagement, and every so often there's a game of Werewolf/Mafia (as Tol-in-Gaurhoth, because we are geeks).

But - as this very thread demonstrates! - if a new thread goes up, it will usually accumulate at least a few replies over the next few days. There's been activity in all three Discussion subforums this year (ten different threads posted in over in Books!), and in both Quizzes and Mirth, so yeah, it rattles along. It just takes someone throwing out an interesting idea or question to get the discussion going.

You can probably see for yourself that Roleplaying is long since departed; the last attempt to start an RP was in 2018 and didn't get any traction. Fanfiction is under construction (and currently serves as an archive for older material), and the New Silmarillion is an interesting project that has about two people occasionally working on it.

hS

Boromir88 · 04-09-2021, 07:22 AM

I'm just glad this forum is still around, even though it's gone treeish over the last couple years.

Like a lot of forums a few years ago (what was it 4-5 years ago?) it suffered a vicious virus attack that nearly destroyed the whole thing. But perhaps the best thing about social media is the members banded together to rescue it. Even though if most of them don't post anymore (for a variety of reasons) there was that dedication and love from the membership to not let the site suffer the same fate as Melkor and disappear into the interwebs void.

Lately I've been a little more active here than I have the last couple years, and I always intend to do a little more (I swear I'll return to that movie marathon thread at some point). My problem is I get easily distracted, like in real-life with the baseball season starting, and nostalgic feelings for the phantom's Arda Cup

***Mithadan*** · 04-10-2021, 10:47 AM

Soriman, I am perhaps the only "active" administrator left on this site. It was founded by Barrow-Wight, as others have commented, and, when it began to gain traction, he invited myself and two others, Mr. Underhill and Sharku, to join him as administrators. A few years later, Thenamir was added to the team. I am still, more or less, in touch with BW, Underhill and Thenamir.

At the height of the interest generated by the movies, we added several moderators, one or more for each forum, to keep things more or less under control. We prided ourselves as being the "thoughtful" Tolkien board, though we certainly provided opportunities for fun and creativity.

As time passed, interest dwindled. The "fair weather" fans spawned by the movies faded away and the Hobbit movies did not resurrect them. As you have commented, other forms of social media have also distracted folks who might otherwise be interested. Even as members drop away or stop by less frequently, we still have a core of members that remain truly interested. Even here, after a while, some stop posting (we have always called it "getting treeish") but they are usually replaced with others.

I too miss the way things were ten or more years ago, though there certainly were challenges posed by the sheer volume of traffic that we had. I am glad that we still have a core of posters, but wish there were more. All I can say is the same thing that I have been saying for many years. Start a thread and people will discuss what you have to say. If you don't there is nothing to discuss.

Once again, welcome Soriman.

Inziladun · 04-10-2021, 05:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mithadan

As time passed, interest dwindled. The "fair weather" fans spawned by the movies faded away and the Hobbit movies did not resurrect them. As you have commented, other forms of social media have also distracted folks who might otherwise be interested. Even as members drop away or stop by less frequently, we still have a core of members that remain truly interested. Even here, after a while, some stop posting (we have always called it "getting treeish") but they are usually replaced with others.

Very true, this.
Though not an "original" member, I found this forum within 7 months or so of its founding. I've been around for a great deal of the goings-on here.

There were indeed some very spirited

discussions here back in the day. The fur was really flying for a while just before PJ released the LOTR films, and those threads were great.
What I love more than anything are the book-threads: getting deep into Tolkien with like-minded people on the Downs is a unique experience.

I've personally been busier than Gollum at a salmon farm the past couple of years: retirement, back to school, new career.....but I still check this place every day, and if I at all have time to comment on something, I will.

Am I going to have to watch that wretched Amazon series so I can come here and tear it shreds?

04-08-2021, 08:37 PM	#1
Soriman the Whide Haunting Spirit Join Date: Mar 2021 Posts: 88	Thanks for the background, completely understandable situation you find yourselves in here. It's a shame most forums began to fade with the rise of social media, so much knowledge and great connections can be found on forums such as this one. I find it entirely regrettable that I did not find this site 10 years ago. __________________ "And thou, Melkor, shalt see that no theme may be played that hath not its uttermost source in me, nor can any alter the music in my despite... ". The Silmarillion - Ainulindalë

04-09-2021, 04:02 AM	#3
Pervinca Took Ghost Prince of Cardolan Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: The Treetops, C/O Great Smials Posts: 5,035	According to the words under my username, I've been here just over 11.5 years. I joined after I met and liked some of the members in person at various Oxonmoots (the main annual event of The Tolkien Society). I was once very active on a Tolkien messageboard under a website called Imladris, but it crashed about 20 years ago and was never the same after it was rebuilt, and then disappeared completely a few years ago. It always had a very heavy film bias, too, which was probably partly why I didn't feel at home there once I had seen and not particularly liked the films. Nearly all my posts are in the Password thread. Unless anyone starts a conversation about Frodo, when you will see that I am not really sleeping, whether I snore or not. A hearty welcome, Sir! __________________ "Sit by the firelight's glow; tell us an old tale we know. Tell of adventures strange and rare; never to change, ever to share! Stories we tell will cast their spell, now and for always."

04-09-2021, 07:22 AM	#5
Boromir88 Laconic Loreman Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: USA Posts: 7,521	I'm just glad this forum is still around, even though it's gone treeish over the last couple years. Like a lot of forums a few years ago (what was it 4-5 years ago?) it suffered a vicious virus attack that nearly destroyed the whole thing. But perhaps the best thing about social media is the members banded together to rescue it. Even though if most of them don't post anymore (for a variety of reasons) there was that dedication and love from the membership to not let the site suffer the same fate as Melkor and disappear into the interwebs void. Lately I've been a little more active here than I have the last couple years, and I always intend to do a little more (I swear I'll return to that movie marathon thread at some point). My problem is I get easily distracted, like in real-life with the baseball season starting, and nostalgic feelings for the phantom's Arda Cup __________________ Fenris Penguin

04-10-2021, 10:47 AM	#6
*Mithadan* Spirit of Mist Join Date: Jul 2000 Location: Tol Eressea Posts: 3,397	Soriman, I am perhaps the only "active" administrator left on this site. It was founded by Barrow-Wight, as others have commented, and, when it began to gain traction, he invited myself and two others, Mr. Underhill and Sharku, to join him as administrators. A few years later, Thenamir was added to the team. I am still, more or less, in touch with BW, Underhill and Thenamir. At the height of the interest generated by the movies, we added several moderators, one or more for each forum, to keep things more or less under control. We prided ourselves as being the "thoughtful" Tolkien board, though we certainly provided opportunities for fun and creativity. As time passed, interest dwindled. The "fair weather" fans spawned by the movies faded away and the Hobbit movies did not resurrect them. As you have commented, other forms of social media have also distracted folks who might otherwise be interested. Even as members drop away or stop by less frequently, we still have a core of members that remain truly interested. Even here, after a while, some stop posting (we have always called it "getting treeish") but they are usually replaced with others. I too miss the way things were ten or more years ago, though there certainly were challenges posed by the sheer volume of traffic that we had. I am glad that we still have a core of posters, but wish there were more. All I can say is the same thing that I have been saying for many years. Start a thread and people will discuss what you have to say. If you don't there is nothing to discuss. Once again, welcome Soriman. __________________ Beleriand, Beleriand, the borders of the Elven-land.

04-09-2021, 04:16 AM	#4
Huinesoron Overshadowed Eagle Join Date: Nov 2017 Location: The north-west of the Old World, east of the Sea Posts: 3,971	It is pretty slow here. The only thread with regular activity is the Password game, but others pop on and off at times - a couple of the other Games threads have had bursts of engagement, and every so often there's a game of Werewolf/Mafia (as Tol-in-Gaurhoth, because we are geeks). But - as this very thread demonstrates! - if a new thread goes up, it will usually accumulate at least a few replies over the next few days. There's been activity in all three Discussion subforums this year (ten different threads posted in over in Books!), and in both Quizzes and Mirth, so yeah, it rattles along. It just takes someone throwing out an interesting idea or question to get the discussion going. You can probably see for yourself that Roleplaying is long since departed; the last attempt to start an RP was in 2018 and didn't get any traction. Fanfiction is under construction (and currently serves as an archive for older material), and the New Silmarillion is an interesting project that has about two people occasionally working on it. hS