Is it just my imagination?

Gidon Yuval · 19 Jan 2008, 00:23

Is it just my imagination or have things really slowed down here?

Shaun Tennant · 19 Jan 2008, 00:23

Just your imagination I would assume.. I checked in the view active topics under the last day and found that there were 2 pages.. so, that is positive, it is definitely not as slow as the SU forums though.. sometimes I've gone over there lately and there are 7 or 8 new posts in the last day... usually at least a page before - and sometimes up to 4 pages...

I guess it's time to chirp up a bit more eh? (Nudges Gidon in the ribs)

Shaun Tennant · 19 Jan 2008, 00:24

actually I just realised something else too, there are so many knowledgable users here that there are a lot fewer questions.. seriously - I haven't seen too many "how do you do this?" or "where did this go?" or even "what rendering program is the best" type posts.

I can tell you that I am slow right now, not actually working on anything, so I haven't contributed anything really of value for quite some time.. but I still find a way to keep that post count up!

tomsdesk · 19 Jan 2008, 00:25

Gidon,
I noticed it too in the last couple of days...but I'm with Shaun as to why. Plus, for me anyway, once I found I had a home again, I've knuckled back down to work and will post a chunk when I finish something.

Hope this is the case with everyone else quiet(er).
Best, Tom.

alan wood · 19 Jan 2008, 00:25

Hi guys
I have a little box I'm working on at present. Should fit nicely on Jims desk. Might pose a few questions from the practicing woodworkes out there. I learnt loads making it.

Busy tomorrow, might manage to post it on Saturday after I have watched the Tri nations rugby.

Cheers
Alan

Al Hart · 19 Jan 2008, 00:26

I have gotten browser error messages 5 or 6 times over the past week trying to load the forum, or any pahes from SketchUcation. Perhaps the server cannot handle all the traffic...

Gaieus · 19 Jan 2008, 00:28

There are more "talks" (like this for instance) than "contribution like" posts for sure - though I wouldn't say traffic is seriously less. But I can tell that in the free (GG) SU Forum, there is way less traffic than used to be say even a month or two ago. I don't know why.

Gidon Yuval · 19 Jan 2008, 00:30

@shaun tennant said:

actually I just realised something else too, there are so many knowledgable users here that there are a lot fewer questions.. seriously - I haven't seen too many "how do you do this?" or "where did this go?" or even "what rendering program is the best" type posts.

Shaun, I'm sure that must be it. As soon as I read that I realised that you hit the nail squarely on the head. Many of the posts, though they may start off with a spcific question or request, develop into more of a conversation which could quite easily have been posted at the corner bar ( or Falafel stand, if it were here in Israel) .

I don't know about you all, but this is the first place I go to every day after checking my mail and the news.

Krisidious · 19 Jan 2008, 00:30

this is a prime reason that I have asked everyone to ask questions that they know the answers to, so a small discussion will form around it and thus build searchable pages for the SES of the site... so onward soldiers... posting...

Alan Fraser · 19 Jan 2008, 00:31

I think Shaun has it about right...plus many people might simply be busy at the moment...I know I am. It happened from time to time on the old forum, even at its peak.
Activity on the old forum is almost non-existent. There have been only 24 posts in the last 24 hours...including some spam...almost none by people who's names I recognise. Also, I doubt whether it is a case of slinking off to the New Google forum. I haven't managed to see what it's like yet, or even see whether it exists. Every time I do a search for SketchUp Pro groups I just get a message saying my membership is still pending.

I'd imagine that the future of this venue gets more secure as each day passes. It's the basic rule of supply and demand...if you can't deliver a reliable service (which Google isn't doing...if only by virtue of all the uncertainty and the way things were originally handled), people will drift off in search of other sources of supply, so that even when you are back on your feet you've lost a good part of your market share. Any new Pro forum will now need to be REALLY good from the outset to affect this one in any way.

Alan

Ross Macintosh · 19 Jan 2008, 00:31

@gidon said:

I don't know about you all, but this is the first place I go to every day after checking my mail and the news.

Gidon, you need to get your priorities right!

There has definitely been a significant slowdown at the official SketchUp forums. Lately some of their forums can go a day without any new postings. I have noticed that over there the numbers of non-posting "guests" remains fairly high so there are still almost as many people checking the place out as before but less actual participation. I have noticed those forums have been offline a few times this week - it seems about 1/2 hour or so at a time. Maybe that relates to Google working on transfering over to Groups. Maybe we'll see the new Groups soon.

SketchUcation seems to me to be holding steady. There are currently 602 members. It might be interesting to see how much that changes. The problem for its growth is its hard to get the word out. Initially it was mentioned everyday over at the official forums, now it is mentioned less frequently. Google's new official SU Blog does provide a link to SketchUcation. That was nice of Aidan (the Google guy behind the blog).

Regards, Ross

Gidon Yuval · 19 Jan 2008, 00:32

@unknownuser said:

Gidon, you need to get your priorities right!

You're right Ross! First the news then the mail.

sorgesu · 19 Jan 2008, 00:33

Over the last year or two, I have posted far less at the SketchUp forums than I used to. I would say that during the time that I was a newbie, I had reason to check things several times a day. I learned so very much. Later it was just to check in with friends and to help out with other newbies.
I have been very scarce because I have been very busy but in the past, I knew that whenever I felt like it, I could drop in at the old Corner Bar and there would be a good few amazing discussions taking place, or some good laughs happening. Best of all, some clever person was always willing to share some new and wonderful trick that he/she had uncovered.

Somedays, today being one of them, I get so very wistful about how things used to be. I came over here to get a "fix". Thank God this place exists and most of the old timers are here, but I confess I miss the old days, it's palpable.
Could we all maybe decide to discuss SketchUp and it's effect on World peace? Or how SketchUp could solve global warming? Or maybe how SketchUp could have a considerable effect on decreasing the divorce rate? Something pithy, discussed with the greatest sense of polite respect, like we used to. Gidon, you start. I'd like to hear more about that amazing university professor that you had. The one that talk about desecrating a sacred rock by sitting on it. Go...!

Gidon Yuval · 19 Jan 2008, 00:33

@sorgesu said:

Something pithy, discussed with the greatest sense of polite respect, like we used to. Gidon, you start. I'd like to hear more about that amazing university professor that you had. The one that talk about desecrating a sacred rock by sitting on it. Go...!

Susan Hi! It's so nice to hear from you again!
How's this for an idea: I'll start a thread at the corner bar called "Sitting on a sacred rock." and we'll see how many people jump in.
I must say I was almost tempted to start one where I'd ask to hear peoples views on what's happenning in Gaza with the Hamas coup but remembering the intensity of the last political discussion I started, I refrained .

Shaun Tennant · 19 Jan 2008, 00:34

Gidon,
I don't know if I ever mentioned, but I really enjoyed hearing from you, as you are there, and know more than most of us. I really value the spirit of what you say, and would be really jazzed to meet you someday.. Of course I would also like to tour around Iran and Turkey where humanity really got it's beginnings, but that will not likely happen either

Jackson · 19 Jan 2008, 00:34

I moved this as it relates to these Forums rather than SketchUp itself.

On the topic, it really saddens me that we don't see anywhere near the number of newbies and lurkers here as we did on the old SU Forums. The lack of newbie questions posted on this forum means there must be a huge number of folks out there getting to grips with SU, but who are stumped on very simple questions. I would love to see this forum become the one-stop-shop that the old ones were. I'm even beginning to miss the daily "why does my model get cut off in front of the camera?", "how do you do reflections and lights in SU?" and "which free, one-click, photorealistic renderer works best with SU?" threads.

Jackson

Gaieus · 19 Jan 2008, 00:35

Jackson,

Most of these newbie questions used to be (and still are) in the Groups Forums - though as I mentioned above, the amount (and unfortunately the quality) of posts have decreased there as well during the past months.
I'd also assume that since SU was made free (about a year ago?) all the crowds who were already after a nice 3D application, have already mastered themselves to a certain level and questions are more rare.

I don't think that so many people will come here automatically (even instead of the Groups Forums) for obviously Google won't link these forums on the SU website (like it did with the Old Forums) saying "Hey folks; here are the Pros to answer you questions".

Yet I also think that after the settling (merging) of the two Google forums, traffic will grow again here.