Overland Bound Forum - Why it is important to use the forum rather than decentralised chats.

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XC70_OVERLANDER

Local Expert Northern Germany
Member

Navigator II

12,559
Hamburg, Germany
First Name
Thore
Last Name
Fahrenbach
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40915

Service Branch
Higher Education
Nowadays most of us use messenger services like WhatsApp, Telegram or Signal. The reason is apparent. In a world that is getting faster and faster, we need a means of communication that allows us to keep up with this speed. Messages can be read and replied to in between the myriad of appointments we have, and things that seem unimportant can be replied to later or simply not at all. But what if something comes up that we think is important? Maybe it's an exciting project we'd like to get started on (but have other things to do), ideas for upgrading our own cars? Or just information we'd like to read again in peace and quiet? This data disappears in the masses of chats filled with random stuff, and finding it again becomes a challenge.
But what is the point of all this text?

I want to encourage you to use the forum more! A small text about a new piece of equipment, a vehicle, or an idea for solving a problem can be filed in the forum and found at any time using the search function. We can use it as a library of knowledge and experience from over 88 thousand members. How often has an old forum post been my salvation from total despair?

Why use the forum?
  • It is timeless
  • It does not know any national borders
  • It connects more people
  • It "also" does not need long texts
  • It treats your post as a little treasure to be discovered.
  • etc.

This is my plea:

LET US USE THE FORUM MORE FOR OUR EXCHANGE.
 

El-Dracho

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Off-Road Ranger III

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Thank you for this important advice, Thore. Great write-up.

The forum offers a gigantic information base and the information is stored in a structured way so that it can be found again later and can be useful. I would like to add that here that in addition to the useful exchange of information, great reports, recommendations, etc., we have other super-useful functions that cannot be replaced by any messenger stuff. These include but is not limited to, for example, the Rally Points for organizing meetips and alike, the Map with a wealth of good and useful entries, and the community managed distress call when help is needed. And we have all these great functions whether in the web version or the OB1 app. There is a great technical platform here, which is being further and further developped (with the participation of the members ideas).

Therefore, I can only join Thore in encouraging people to use this great platform.
 

Mike W

US MidWest Region Local Expert
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Expedition Master III

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More and more I appreciate the value and style of forum based communities. You would think a slightly less anonymous forum like facebook could improve things, but it really doesn't. Some of the best little communities I know are just forums that have been around for decades.
 

trail_runn4r

US Rocky Mtn. Local Expert. Colorado: Denver Area
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Nowadays most of us use messenger services like WhatsApp, Telegram or Signal. The reason is apparent. In a world that is getting faster and faster, we need a means of communication that allows us to keep up with this speed. Messages can be read and replied to in between the myriad of appointments we have, and things that seem unimportant can be replied to later or simply not at all. But what if something comes up that we think is important? Maybe it's an exciting project we'd like to get started on (but have other things to do), ideas for upgrading our own cars? Or just information we'd like to read again in peace and quiet? This data disappears in the masses of chats filled with random stuff, and finding it again becomes a challenge.
But what is the point of all this text?

I want to encourage you to use the forum more! A small text about a new piece of equipment, a vehicle, or an idea for solving a problem can be filed in the forum and found at any time using the search function. We can use it as a library of knowledge and experience from over 88 thousand members. How often has an old forum post been my salvation from total despair?

Why use the forum?
  • It is timeless
  • It does not know any national borders
  • It connects more people
  • It "also" does not need long texts
  • It treats your post as a little treasure to be discovered.
  • etc.

This is my plea:

LET US USE THE FORUM MORE FOR OUR EXCHANGE.
I full agree with you on the above. I'm personally a heavy user of both forum and chats. Two tools for two different purposes and each has its own strength and weaknesses!
 

XC70_OVERLANDER

Local Expert Northern Germany
Member

Navigator II

12,559
Hamburg, Germany
First Name
Thore
Last Name
Fahrenbach
Member #

40915

Service Branch
Higher Education
Nowadays most of us use messenger services like WhatsApp, Telegram or Signal. The reason is apparent. In a world that is getting faster and faster, we need a means of communication that allows us to keep up with this speed. Messages can be read and replied to in between the myriad of appointments we have, and things that seem unimportant can be replied to later or simply not at all. But what if something comes up that we think is important? Maybe it's an exciting project we'd like to get started on (but have other things to do), ideas for upgrading our own cars? Or just information we'd like to read again in peace and quiet? This data disappears in the masses of chats filled with random stuff, and finding it again becomes a challenge.
But what is the point of all this text?

I want to encourage you to use the forum more! A small text about a new piece of equipment, a vehicle, or an idea for solving a problem can be filed in the forum and found at any time using the search function. We can use it as a library of knowledge and experience from over 88 thousand members. How often has an old forum post been my salvation from total despair?

Why use the forum?
  • It is timeless
  • It does not know any national borders
  • It connects more people
  • It "also" does not need long texts
  • It treats your post as a little treasure to be discovered.
  • etc.

This is my plea:

LET US USE THE FORUM MORE FOR OUR EXCHANGE.
I full agree with you on the above. I'm personally a heavy user of both forum and chats. Two tools for two different purposes and each has its own strength and weaknesses!
You are saying it. For the quick meet-up or some general exchange the chats are great. But for the thing others can learn from I prefer the forum.
 

tjZ06

Rank V
Launch Member

Advocate I

2,268
Las Vegas/Palo Alto
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mynameisntallowed
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Nowadays most of us use messenger services like WhatsApp, Telegram or Signal. The reason is apparent. In a world that is getting faster and faster, we need a means of communication that allows us to keep up with this speed. Messages can be read and replied to in between the myriad of appointments we have, and things that seem unimportant can be replied to later or simply not at all. But what if something comes up that we think is important? Maybe it's an exciting project we'd like to get started on (but have other things to do), ideas for upgrading our own cars? Or just information we'd like to read again in peace and quiet? This data disappears in the masses of chats filled with random stuff, and finding it again becomes a challenge.
But what is the point of all this text?

I want to encourage you to use the forum more! A small text about a new piece of equipment, a vehicle, or an idea for solving a problem can be filed in the forum and found at any time using the search function. We can use it as a library of knowledge and experience from over 88 thousand members. How often has an old forum post been my salvation from total despair?

Why use the forum?
  • It is timeless
  • It does not know any national borders
  • It connects more people
  • It "also" does not need long texts
  • It treats your post as a little treasure to be discovered.
  • etc.

This is my plea:

LET US USE THE FORUM MORE FOR OUR EXCHANGE.
I agree 1000% and see a lot of the issues of using Social Media or bespoke messaging apps in other "communities" I'm a part of. Way too much knowledge is lost, or at least not easily searchable when it's posted in a message app, IG, FB, etc. Forums "are forever" and the wealth of knowledge just builds over time.

-TJ
 

XC70_OVERLANDER

Local Expert Northern Germany
Member

Navigator II

12,559
Hamburg, Germany
First Name
Thore
Last Name
Fahrenbach
Member #

40915

Service Branch
Higher Education
Thanks for sharing your thoughts

When we create awareness of the benefits we could possibly save some of that knowledge.
 
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World Traveler III

1,518
Nokomis, FL, USA
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John
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I agree 100% but we are a dying breed. Eventually, people will just ask A.I. and they will do exactly what it tells them to. I remember the days when online repositories were downloadable to be utilized offline, Wiki's too. My favorite development forums were downloadable and so was Wikipedia when it was about being a crowd sourced encyclopedia.
 
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OTH Overland

Local Expert Washington, USA
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Could not agree more, Facebook and other social media sites are great for instant gratification and posting a quick pic while on a trip, but these are all fleeting moments and then lost in the timeline...lol The forums are a library of sortable information and a record of our organizations development and growth.

We ask those in our local OB Facebook group to please post items of relevance in the forums or Rally Point sections of the site, and then post a link to them in FB if they desire, this provides access to members on both platforms . As the OB-1 app develops it makes it much easier to post to the forums/site from portable devices on the go.