Compared to other forums, user activity on this forum has declined significantly in recent times. There are now only a few visitors, often fewer than 100, and many of them appear to be newcomers asking basic questions. Where have the advanced users gone? The community feels much less active and engaging than before.
Coming from more vibrant communities like Privacy Guides and the Graphene OS Forum, I noticed this forum feels quite dull in comparison. I just created my account yesterday, but the lack of discussion and expert participation is immediately apparent.
I can only speak for myself, but I have been balancing my online public activity across multiple Discourse forums (except for the Tor Project Forum):
Kicksecure Forum
Privacy Guides Community
Qubes OS Forum
VanLUG Forum
Whonix Forum
I have to be efficient and carefully choose topics that do not require committing extensive resources to resolve them, so that means online discussion is basically off the table at the moment. In addition, I have a physical presence in my local community, such as VanLUG:
I was preoccupied last night dealing with various Linux/VanLUG technical discussions and issues. Tomorrow is an OWASP Vancouver event and this Saturday is a VanLUG board meeting plus a technical presentation about Ansible. I have multiple incomplete and ongoing projects within and outside of VanLUG, so I spend most of my available resources dealing with them instead of others’ issues.
Yes, I’ve noticed the same thing and, as i have moved from beginner to more experienced, I visit less.
However I find this behaviour common on privacy, security and freedom forums as well as meatspace ones. I believe it relates to the political alignment of those who gravitate to such forums as well as to the moderation philosophy. And to the difference between early adopters vs the masses
There are still some excellent posters. If you have a question i suggest replying to one of them or @ them. There are a few posters on here who have contributed substantially to my knowledge and the quality of my qube setup
Also searching for older threads can yield much better information as long as it is not outdated