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timmy
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Has no life at all |
Location: UK, in Devon
Registered: February 2003
Messages: 13796
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If teens need teens (as Jim B says) to be able to feel comfortable, and bearing in mind that we have been entirely successful at driving any teens away, what must change in order for teens to congregate here? And why must it change.
It is no good saying "This must change" without a reason.
[Updated on: Tue, 03 August 2010 18:44]
Author of Queer Me! Halfway Between Flying and Crying - the true story of life for a gay boy in the Swinging Sixties in a British all male Public School
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JimB
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Likes it here |
Registered: December 2006
Messages: 349
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timmy wrote:
> what must change in order for teens to congregate here? And why must it change.
The answer is everything, literally: The look, the feel, the ads, the baubles, the topics, the participants.
In the other associated thread Chris talked about a site where teens did congregate and participate and to get the details of what is needed you must go to such sites and see what is there that attracts them. If you are serious I would suggest that you find a gay teen to guide you because I don't think that a man such as yourself has the insight to make it work.
I mean no offense by that, but let's face it, you are not a gay teen of the 21st century. Do you listen to their kind of music? Would you consider wearing makeup? Black eye makeup? Do you spend hour upon hour playing video games?
Even the young people who were most recently here (how long has it been since Whitewater Kid and Eldon left) actually weren't your average teen. I again point out something Chris alluded to in the other thread, many of today's gay teens are undereducated and their speech reflects that.
I'm going to repeat myself. I suggest that you find a gay teen to help you put together a new site that will appeal to teens. Do research to find what attracts them. You will have to start from scratch because I doubt that there is anything here to build upon.
JimB
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I'm wondering if this topic isn't a result of a comment made by cabinboy about a week ago:
>I would be happy to talk to you about biking if you want to write to rickthecabinboy@gmail.com I do not visit the forum very much and do not post things here anymore. This place is way too political, and obviously "my" politics and social views are not "theirs"
I think some of us play a little to hard at the 'grown up' role of dispensing advice or showing we know more because we are older and wiser. I never met a kid yet that cared much for being talked down to.
This forum has never had flashing neon lights or snappy graphics but has attracted it's share of younger participants in the past. At that time there was a set of posters here that were able to make these teens feel comfortable, wanted and appreciated. I think that's no longer the case. Too many of us simply seem to want to be appreciated for our wise comments and snappy advice. And I'm not leaving myself out of this equation either. I think we ignore something that is listed at the very heading of the forum:
>I expect simple behaviours here. Friendship, and love. Any advice should be from the perspective of the person asking, not the person giving!
Youth crisis hot-line 866-488-7386, 24 hr (U.S.A.)
There are people who want to help you cope with being you.
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... And why must it change?
To answer the second question first:
[b]"A Place Of Safety"[/[b], as has been mentioned elsewhere in one, or more, of the now FOUR threads on this topic, hasn't grown with either the pace, or the extent, of technological change since its' inception. On one hand this is not a bad thing, which could possibly foster a belief by "newcomers" of its' constancy or permanence; whereas on another it may, too, appear to be outdated, or even outmoded, in terms of today's technological methodologies.
So, change likely will be needed; but, the extent of that change must be carefully moderated, and applied with a dab hand; sweeping alterations to either the visuals, or the underlying format, could very well affect, and influence, potential clientele in their perceptions about just what [b]"A Place Of Safety"[/[b] is, and who the people are behind it.
To answer the first question, and the underlying its' question of what actually may draw them here in the first place:
Teens, and Lord knows just about about everyone here, find and have found, [b]"A Place Of Safety"[/[b] through the Story Shelf, and through their adding their name to your Guest Book, and mailing-list. The Story Shelf I would suspect, as you have indicated, likely they find, and have found, through links provided by one of the Search-engines.
At that point, the teenager, as likely as not everyone else, is a captive audience; you've got them; now all you have to do is keep them coming back; and to a greater extent I think you have achieved that with the Story Shelf, but it does not, and isn't, translating into repeat visits to [b]"A Place Of Safety"[/[b]. Trust me, first-timers to "iomfats.org" do look around, and in their doing so, do find [b]"A Place Of Safety"[/[b], and some may even stay long enough to introduce themselves, or more likely the case, linger in the shadows, and become one of the many lurkers.
Will flash and dash keep them coming back? I don't really know. Will artifice trump substance? Unfortunately likely. What is certain is that a face-lift is in order. Printed (read "text") content today, everywhere has become blog-like in appearance, with the blogshere having become the be all and the end all of a typical youth's web-experience. Most Newspaper web-sites look more like blogs than they do traditional web-sites; with T.V. Network (and similar media) web-sites are gradually morphing into YouTube knock-offs, and others somewhere in between. Plain and simple Forums have, or are rapidly, becoming a thing of the past, although in a few instances Forums are making a comeback (a file-sharing gay-themed movie web-site that I'm involved with, and similar others come to mind) but they tend to be very resource specific and technologically driven - more a question and answer sort of thingie, with shared content and resolution resources available for either up- or down-load. Businesses like Forums for their tech-support issues, and currently, and will likely continue to, provide a much needed facility for client contact and outreach; but, self-help venues such as [b]"A Place Of Safety"[/[b], I really don't know, as I don't frequent any.
So to summarize:
Teens will, and do, find [b]"A Place Of Safety"[/[b] readily, and easily, enough; but, it's not flashy or gimmicky enough to likely hold them in the long haul of today's technological marketplace. If the teen has an urgent enough need, or a question for which no satisfactory answers have been provided elsewhere, he (or she) will ask the question, and will remain with us long enough to get the answer; sometimes even longer; but, eventually moves on. Until the next time.
Warren C. E. Austin
The Gay Deceiver
Toronto, Canada
"... comme recherché qu'un délice callipygian"
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