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How many of you ARCers DON'T have a facebook account.  My thoughts are the traffic on this site unfortunately seems to be getting less and updates, and new topics are few.  The only people left here are the luddites who don't have a facebook account.  I know I don't have one and I don't want to get one.  Thoughts?

 

Geoff M

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I've use websites and FB for modeling purposes (research and showing / looking at builds).   Much prefer forums, just for ease of posting and tracking of particular posts / topics.   That being said, traffic is down on ARC.   I'm not seeing the same on other websites I frequent (LSP, Britmodeler, etc).    I used to post my builds here but stopped after pretty much getting zero comments back on the last couple. 

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I had a FB account. I saw all the hacking going on so I dumped it. My wife kept hers to keep in touch with friends and the kids. She was just hacked. All the current modelling sites are slow, I have seen some posts still the same for months. Not sure why as I only frequent a few sites and they are very slow. I am almost thinking modelers are going the way of the dinosaurs anyways. Good to see I am not the only FB holdout. jon

Edited by jonwinn
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I don't do Facebook, Instagram, or any of the so-called 'social media' sites...

....my wife has a few accounts for keeping in touch with family and friends...

....but I'm perfectly happy being a Luddite, dinosaur, old fart, or whatever...

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26 minutes ago, andyf117 said:

I don't do Facebook, Instagram, or any of the so-called 'social media' sites...

....my wife has a few accounts for keeping in touch with family and friends...

....but I'm perfectly happy being a Luddite, dinosaur, old fart, or whatever...

That is pretty much where I was with facebook. Just used it to keep up with family but these days we use whatsapp to keep in touch so facebook is falling out of use for anything useful.

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21 minutes ago, jonwinn said:

Just curious, is a Luddite also a term for a troglodyte? Like the old group in the 60's The Troggs? jon

Lud·dite
/ˈlədˌīt/
 
noun
 
  1. 1.
    DEROGATORY
    a person opposed to new technology or ways of working.
    "a small-minded Luddite resisting progress"
     
  2. 2.
    HISTORICAL
    a member of any of the bands of English workers who destroyed machinery, especially in cotton and woolen mills, that they believed was threatening their jobs (1811–16).
     
    Geoff M
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The closest I’ve come to social media was being on LinkedIn when I was job hunting. Now that I’m retiring I’ll probably delete that account so all the “add a contact” spam will stop (hopefully)

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7 hours ago, Geoff M said:

How many of you ARCers DON'T have a facebook account.  My thoughts are the traffic on this site unfortunately seems to be getting less and updates, and new topics are few.  The only people left here are the luddites who don't have a facebook account.  I know I don't have one and I don't want to get one.  Thoughts?

 

Geoff M

 

For most of my product announcements and general information regarding Flying Leathernecks Decals, I use Facebook 95% of the time. I've posted updates and information here and on LSP that garnered little to no feedback. However, the same updates and information put on Facebook is seen by hundreds more, gets shared to other modeling outlets/groups and I get feedback. Posting here at times feels like a complete waste of time. 

 

7 hours ago, habu2 said:

Facebook is now META - Mike's Evil Tracking Algorithm....…

 

 

I thought META stood for Make Everything Trump Again?

 

6 hours ago, andyf117 said:

I don't do Facebook, Instagram, or any of the so-called 'social media' sites...

....my wife has a few accounts for keeping in touch with family and friends...

....but I'm perfectly happy being a Luddite, dinosaur, old fart, or whatever...

 

1 hour ago, habu2 said:

The closest I’ve come to social media was being on LinkedIn when I was job hunting. Now that I’m retiring I’ll probably delete that account so all the “add a contact” spam will stop (hopefully)

 

You two are literally on a social media site right now. You all crack me up....."I don't use social media".....while using social media to say you don't use it. Using Facebook is no different than using ARC, HS, LSP or any other forum. If you don't want others to know anything (or very little) about you, then simply don't post anything of that nature there. 

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I prefer forums for their advantges in hosting more 'serious' and detailed discussions and keeping all that in one logical thread. I prefer FB more more general chat and immediacy. I have a very small circle of friends and family I keep in touch with via FB. My modelling activities are posted exclusively in FB groups rather than on my own profile (which is as invisible as it's possible to get on the platform).

 

The drift towards the newer social media platforms for modelling subjects is in my opinion partly due to the ease with which you can snap an image on your phone and upload it immediately to a group with the click of a button. You get instant gratification from 'likes'. Maybe I'm cynical but it's that uncritical atta-boy feedback that appeals to so many people (in all walks of life) and that's what social media feeds you if you let it. There is also the fact that social media is fundamentally aimed at phone users. You are assumed to be carrying your phone with you all the time; you check what's going on any time you like and you respond instantly to keep the conversation going (not me, thank you very much). That does tend to be a generational thing but not exclusively.

 

Having contributed to and moderated both traditional discussion forums and FB Groups over many years, there are 'good' FB groups just as there are 'bad' discussion forums. The best FB groups (just like the best discussion forums) are generally the private groups that require you to register before you can view posts and take part, set out clear standards of behaviour and are actively moderated to enforce those standards.

 

If you're going to use social media, understand how to control your personal profile on that platform and don't share anything you don't need to. A lot of the 'issues' around social media are because users don't take the time to learn about the platform they join and how it operates before diving in.

 

The reality is that many(most) manufacturers have long since realised that the likes of FB are better places to announce their new products (or anything else they want to talk about) because it hits a much wider general modelling audience and gets instant reaction which is better for their business - whilst I've been typing this response, Dave Roof has just posted and outlined that very point.

There are an increasing number of aftermarket guys who also trade exclusively on FB via trading profiles - not fly-by-night operators but reputable, high quality producers. They reach a wider audience and can sell more products through those platforms than they could ever hope for through traditional websites.

 

 

 

 

Edited by John Tapsell
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I use both but tend to trust more of the forum conversations.  FB tends to have more people that don't seem interested in much of their own basic research.  I'd like to echo John's statement about being able to more easily post images but the quality of discussion is limited by the viewers who don't bother reading most of the comments.

Edited by zerosystem
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I love ARC still after all these years and a few years away but also am on model related pages on fakebook. However im getting more turned off FB every time i go on there. I've lost all interest in Britmodeller since Brexit, mostly due to being suspended for trying to call out Brexit related untruths (or alternative facts if you prefer). I've noticed the fall in traffic on other favourite sites/forums too (modelwarships, F1M, Carrierbuilders, Modelingmadness etc) but i do find I'm spending more time on Scalemates. I'm also interacting more there as i can post photos directly from phone and PC, something i cant do elsewhere. 

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1 hour ago, Dave Roof said:

You two are literally on a social media site right now. You all crack me up....."I don't use social media".....while using social media to say you don't use it. Using Facebook is no different than using ARC, HS, LSP or any other forum. If you don't want others to know anything (or very little) about you, then simply don't post anything of that nature there. 

 

I respectfully disagree - unless ARC is collecting demographics and other personal information on all ARC users and selling them for profit.  If they were I'd be out of here in a heartbeat.

 

I don't use social media.

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I have FB and actively use it. My observations:

 

ARC forums: It has really slowed down over the years. If you haven't been on FB or other platforms, easy to think the hobby is dying. I still post my progress pics here, as these forums are a nice way to catalogue one's progress builds and final pics in a single, quickly accessible link. But I have to admit, while ARC used to be a great source of info, techniques and news, I have been learning and improving less and less through ARC over the years. Some of the modelers I used to look up to are also no longer posting here. But they are on FB and I can follow them there.

 

FB: The main draw for me is that I learn a ton about techniques, new products, and kits. Depending on the groups you're in, the discussions can be very lively and engaging. Also, all sorts of other groups are just a click away. I am a part of F-14, F-18, A-6 groups where (typically) former pilots and crew share pics they had taken and stories that go along with it. It's quite fascinating to be a click away from those folks. I know there are a few here, but much fewer compared to what one has access to over FB.  The main downside is it is tedious to form a build thread unless you dedicate an account for only your builds and hobby, and post updates there. 

 

The fact that FB profiles and makes money off of me is not an issue given what I take in return. I turn off adds that are completely irrelevant, then click on some other irrelevant stuff to confuse Mark even more. 

 

However, the one thing I tend to do is clear my browsing history and cookies before I fire up Facebook (can select how far back) just to keep things in check. 

 

Edit: This is obvious, but if too concerned about privacy, one can easily create a FB account with a fake name or avatar, only friend hobby related folks in that account, and use an email different than the main FB account. 

Edited by Janissary
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1 hour ago, habu2 said:

 

I respectfully disagree - unless ARC is collecting demographics and other personal information on all ARC users and selling them for profit.  If they were I'd be out of here in a heartbeat.

 

I don't use social media.

 

 

 On the contrary-all these scale modeling forums have been an early form of "social media". A place on the web where like minded people can get together and discuss common and mutual interests, and where advertisers can read the cookies on your computer and tailor make ads for you much to the embarrassment of some participants (or have we forgotten all the people complaining about ads for singles sites?).

 

Quote

Social media refers to the means of interactions among people in which they create, share, and/or exchange information and ideas in virtual communities and networks.

 

 

 Like it or not, by definition this is social media.

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I don't have a Facebook account, but I often check modeling-related FB pages.

 

The downside of not having an account is that I cannot interact, and in recent days neither can I see some pages (like ARC).

 

I like the forums more because the format is better suited to the way I enjoy seeing the work of others and also interacting with them; I do enjoy seeing social media but don't participate in it.

 

Recently I started using Instagram because I could create an account isolated from my emails, using a phone number only; whit it, I follow modeling brands and a few of the modelers whose work I admire, but mainly I'm a spectator.

 

I'm glad that the hobby has found a place in almost every platform and social media; some will shrink over time while others will grow, but there are options for every taste.
 

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3 hours ago, Janissary said:

Edit: This is obvious, but if too concerned about privacy, one can easily create a FB account with a fake name or avatar, only friend hobby related folks in that account, and use an email different than the main FB account. 

 

LOL.  Knowing your name or email address is literally the least info that FB has on you.  If you're concerned about digital privacy, The Algorithm is far more powerful than your registration info, particularly if you're using FB on your phone.

 

Also, WhatsApp *IS* Facebook.

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I have Facebook and I'm also checking here almost every day. I regularly post and comment both here and there. Both have their pluses and minuses. I just prefer here when on my desktop at home.

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I do have FB, but don´t see it as a "serious" platform for modelling purposes apart from product placement. You can´t search things, topics "disappear" in the timeline, you have strange people interacting...

 

As far as "traditional sites" are concerned: Modellversium (which is not a forum, just a simple platform for reviews, gallery, etc.) had a "cry for help" last week because they were running low on entries. They usually post roughly 3-4 articles every weekday plus saturday, but were suddenly "dry". After their cry they got a ton of new entries from the community, so maybe it was just a wake-up call.

 

I would certainly feel it as a reduction of quality of we - the modelling community - would abandon our forums and review sites and go to FB. It´s simply not suited for our needs and habits, I´d say, and we should not go that FB way and try to adapt to that new culture. Just because something is new doesn´t necessarily mean it´s better!

 

For ARC, I have the feeling that the new picture posting system caused at least some irritations. I usually use hosted pictures, and when I add the classic BB-code [img]-lines, the whole thing explodes (more or less 😉 ). Also, for me as a non-native speaker, I have to translate my articles every time - but I will promise to add some stuff I recently published in my german forum.

 

 

HAJO

 

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I'm a rather active FB user and I'm also a member of a couple of model related FB groups. One is run by a good friend of mine, but I rarely if ever participate in discussion. I have decided to draw a line there because I very strongly believe that a forum like this would be a much better way to discuss than FB is.

 

I really enjoyed visiting the ARC forums and I still do, but it is a fact that finding a good and active discussion seems harder and harder these days. The smaller sub-forums are dying and it seems the traffic is low everywhere else as well. Ironically subjects like this are always very popular. I wish model and aviation related would be too. Luckily we do have some active posters with interesting and informative posts and some long-lasting threads with nice photos etc. but I'm afraid people don't really have the same motivation to post their WIPs or reviews or other news here anymore because the feedback can be so nonexistent. I've been contemplating whether I should be more active in FB although ARC is still my top choice. I think premises for a true quality discussion are clearly better with a traditional forum format. It's just up to us. 

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