Well, I agree with you King Jay to some degree, and with Shilsen to some degree.
I used to come here on occasion and post mostly gaming theory and design articles and pieces I had written (on general gaming theory approaches, or milieu design and development, etc) - that kind of thing. And I've noticed that not a lot of that type of activity goes on here now, comparatively speaking, and that's okay as far as I'm concerned. But I really don't much care about writing and posting articles like that anymore only to have them degenerate into arguments rather than debates. I'm probably a whole lot older than most of you guys, I was playing Chainmail before original D&D, and so I've been around awhile in that respect. So I'm very used to the idea of a vigorous debate (back when that kinda thing went on man to man rather than just by slinging electrons over a data stream) and to sharing Shilsen's views on the matter of strangers on the internet (I was around a long while before there was any such beastie). Nor do I give undue weight to the views of strangers by any other method of expression. They may be right, at which point I'll try to carefully analyze and benefit from their viewpoint, or they may be wrong, but I don't automatically assume their opinion is worth getting worked up about. But it did get to the point where everything written seemed to lead to a circular and practically never-ending argument (I got nothing against argument either, it's sometimes extremely useful and beneficial, I just don't have any interest in everything being an argument on most every occasion) and it just got to be incredibly tedious to argue everything ad infinitum when you could pretty much guess what the other guy was gonna say before he ever did. (And I'm not just talking about my threads, but a lot of threads I used to read in.) It is extremely tedious to respond to never ending arguments. There's not much gain or profit to it, it isn't really a form of problem solving or progressive action, and it leads to an awful lot of hard mileage without ever really getting anywhere worth going. Of course I can't blame everything on site activity, a lot of it also has to do with my work schedule and other projects to which I am currently devoted.
However, that being said, I still come here and lurk when I can, but mostly now I visit to data and information mine. Because this place does generate some very interesting ideas on occasion, and some of the posters do have fascinating theories every now and again.
And I think that a lot of the more interesting active has simply been suppressed by all of the ruckus surrounding the D&D 4th Edition (which personally I like). That was bound to happen, at least temporarily because of the fact that a lot of the energy and concentration that might have been devoted to other issues is now, sometimes rightfully, and sometimes rather spuriously, consumed with all of the factors and vectors concerning the new edition. So anytime there is both a theoretical and pragmatic transition of a paradigm to that degree I reckon most folks will be consumed by it, distracted by it, or at least diverted by it for a time, til the novelty wears off and people begin to return to different issues and interests. Also I think to some degree the problem here is structural change. The site is laid out differently and the discussions more fragmented and specialized, leading to some degree of segmentation, meaning that it is far more difficult to have "global and theoretical discussions" because there is less natural subject synchronicity and far more division of subject matter into non-overlapping, tightly controlled categories of inquiry and discussion. That will change over time I suspect, but it take some getting used to in the way people approach their particular areas of interest. There's 3rd Edition, and 4th Edition, and other games, and so on and so forth. I understand the technical reasoning and the operational and functional approach in regards to the board, but such a schema automatically reduces certain natural lines of pursuit to, "that's not really appropriate for this forum" no matter how interesting or proper the subject being discussed is in the general sense of things. Now I'm sure I'm not the first person to make these observations but it did occur to me as soon as I saw how the forums were being arranged and noted how the threads were being reconstructed accordingly.
So I very much sympathize with your general position and philosophical outlook on the matter, for a number of different reasons. But then again my take on these discussions is that, number one, it is just a game, and there is no sense in getting all riled up over a game. It isn't curing cancer or walking on Mars or saving a life, though any activity can be very interesting and useful if properly approached. And if others don't like your chosen game, or the way you handle things, well, that's their affair and it says nothing about you in particular. But number two is that things change over time and nothing ever remains static, it is either engaged a process of progress, or degeneration, or to be honest, as with most things, usually a little bit of both.
And my feeling about this site is that it is both advancing and progressing in some respects and degenerating and regressing in some respects, and as they say, "C'est la vie."
My general impression though is that over time the site will improve more so than not. So I still come here to read what folk will posit and to see what I can make of that. But if you feel you need a break then in my opinion go with your best instincts. People need breaks from practically everything on occasion (including their own interests), and taking a break usually leads to a more balanced and objective view than continuing along with what you've grown tired of just out of mere habit. Then later you can return if you wish, invigorated and all the wiser for having gained some objective perspective.
That's my opinion on the matter, and take it for what it is worth considering it comes from a stranger on the internet.
smilie, I wouldn't have needed to type any of that at all.
