AUGD: Health of AUG BBSs
AUGD: Health of AUG BBSs
- Subject: AUGD: Health of AUG BBSs
- From: "Den Piota" <email@hidden>
- Date: Sat, 2 Feb 2008 07:10:24 -0500
Hi,I'm a member of the registered Apple User Group, Boston BBS, (http/:www.bostonbbs.org) and a new member of this distribution list.
I signed up to ask for your thoughts on this question:
Recently I've been alarmed at the number AUGs that are failing. In New England. Nearly 1/3 of the Apple User Groups (10 out of 34) currently listed on the "Find a User Group" webpage are defunct or inactive. Almost 1/2 of those in Massachusetts (7 out of 16) are defunct or inactive. You can check this tally yourself at www.apple.com/usergroups/find/ and visiting each website listed.
I'm wondering what's up?
I'm most interested in the future of independent AUG BBSs . Being totally independent, without corporate sponsors, they must charge a yearly membership fee to pay the bills. This puts them in a bad light when one can get tech info from many sources (including Apple itself) for free.
As you probably know independent BBSs have some real value:
- they tend to have longterm members
- use their real names with each other and develop friendships beyond the technical questions addressed
- have highly concentrated expertise
- they're in between brick and mortar AUGs and the rough and tumble web-based forums
- maintain very safe and civil discussions compared with the free anonymous boards (for contrast see my post of this question on Craig's List Apple/Mac forum at http://sfbay.craigslist.org/forums/?ID=82538146)
If my numbers are right, even with all this value this kind of independent online group is dying out, at least in New England.
So I've come to this list for any thoughts. The Craigs Listers think all types of AUGs are things of the past. Are they? If so how does one stop it?
Thanks,
dpioda
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