ST's Future Discussion

[Mark Blue]

Why couldn't we do both concurrently? When I used to roll out new technology for business units to use we always staged it in ever increasing amounts, so the kinks could be ironed out along the way. I understand everything that's being said about how FB would look and feel, I just don't think members will fully buy in until we have a working prototype to use and try out. We start off slow and if it catches on we ramp it up. Once we've used it for a period of time, I think we'll know whether it will work for us or not and we can take it from there. I do have to admit that rarely do I see much more than forecast tidbits on FB, so I am a little skeptical about how rich the content would be.

CFDG on FB? We need confirmation of that from someone on the inside.

I also feel the pain of fleshing this same topic out every year only for nothing to change. I'll miss this place if it goes south, but it would be a shame to let that happen as there is a good deal of data worth saving.

 

[Dan Robinson]

I think that it is apparent that this forum needs more than just discussion to survive. That's why I think we all need to brainstorm on ideas of what can be added to the site to attract visitors and retain current members. What about voluntary funding drive set up similar to how reddit does it? You know, the thermometer that shows the status and keeps it at the forefront?

One thing is for sure, Facebook is not going to do anything more than give us a simple discussion venue. On FB, there are no options for additional features, any kind of organized discussion threads or searchable content.

There are endless possibilities here. Organized chase report database. A centralized research and education repository. Fundraisers for scholarships, Storm Assist, etc. None of that can be done on FB.

 

[Joey Ketcham]

There are endless possibilities here. Organized chase report database. A centralized research and education repository. Fundraisers for scholarships, Storm Assist, etc. None of that can be done on FB.

I agree that the possibilities are endless here, but for that to happen StormTrack would need a dedicated admin/webmaster to make that happen. No disrespect to Tim, but when was the last time you saw him on here interacting with others? I like Tim, but I simply don't think he has the time or resource to bring StormTrack back to life. Perhaps it's time that he recognizes that and passes the torch on to someone else who is dedicated and has the time so that ST can continue on and become better than it is now. If that doesn't happen, honestly, I already think that StormTrack is pretty much ran its course and at the end of its life, so if something doesn't happen soon... before you know it, ST will be a thing of the past. Then the only thing to keep the storm chaser community connected will be social media.

 

[Jacob Ferden]

I agree that the possibilities are endless here, but for that to happen StormTrack would need a dedicated admin/webmaster to make that happen. No disrespect to Tim, but when was the last time you saw him on here interacting with others? I like Tim, but I simply don't think he has the time or resource to bring StormTrack back to life. Perhaps it's time that he recognizes that and passes the torch on to someone else who is dedicated and has the time so that ST can continue on and become better than it is now. If that doesn't happen, honestly, I already think that StormTrack is pretty much ran its course and at the end of its life, so if something doesn't happen soon... before you know it, ST will be a thing of the past. Then the only thing to keep the storm chaser community connected will be social media.

Who would that person be, though? A couple years ago that other forum (ChasersForum?) cropped up thanks to other people, and looked like it was going to be awesome, but it quickly flamed out and disappeared. Regardless of whether you had an alternative or a revamped Stormtrack, it would have to be someone with stable resources, plus the time and determination necessary to make it work. And let's face it, the majority of chasers, myself included, are not brimming with the time or the resources.

 

[Joey Ketcham]

Who would that person be, though? A couple years ago that other forum (ChasersForum?) cropped up thanks to other people, and looked like it was going to be awesome, but it quickly flamed out and disappeared. Regardless of whether you had an alternative or a revamped Stormtrack, it would have to be someone with stable resources, plus the time and determination necessary to make it work. And let's face it, the majority of chasers, myself included, are not brimming with the time or the resources.

I don't know who that person would be, Jesus maybe? The fact is, forums like this that were designed for a very small group of people are dying off quickly and StormTrack is on that same path. Forums like this are 1990's, in my opinion. If you disagree, then explain to me why StormTrack is struggling to survive and donations are being asked. Get away with forums, move to social media. That's where it's happening these days. Sad, I know, but it's true.

 

[Dan Robinson]

ST has consistently been my #8 source of referral traffic, averaging 170 hits a month. That number has been pretty stable over the past few years, with higher spikes mainly during chase season.

I think it would be good to know exactly what is involved in terms of man-hours in adminning the site. I'll be honest, I myself wouldn't be able to prioritize putting loads of unpaid time into something like this, either. So I can't blame Tim too much for not doing something I'd probably not do myself if the burden was on me.

In actuality we need to plan for whoever takes the helm here to be paid for their time in exchange for good response times when issues arise. I am not able to do it, otherwise I'd be more than willing. Any ideas?

I made my 20 dollar contribution. Let's get a dozen or more of those to get through this crisis in the short term, and try and think up some ideas over the off season. Tim, could you possibly chime in on what you'd be willing to entertain in terms of "passing the torch"?

 

[Clarence Bennett]

Unfortunately, I think it is DOA. Time to accept it. Everyone has there own little cliques they are in and seem to like it that way. I had a few people friended on Facebook and could keep up with the happenings and conversations, but everyone has cinched up even tighter over the last year, trimmed me from their friends list, so I'm a man on an island, which is fine. It is just what society has become as a whole honestly and I think it is sad. I always enjoyed the deep-dive conversations, the humor, the excitement after a big tornado day. But things have changed across the board. Birds of a feather flock together I guess. Doesn't matter in the end. I'll still be out every chance I get and hopefully can run into a few of you in the process.

 

[Shawn Schuman]

I think the problem, as it were, is that social media just serves the needs of most chasers better than a forum ever could. It's much easier to reach a wide audience and to interact with people, which many people find important. It's perceived as being quicker and easier, which is important especially during chase season where time is often at a premium. And most importantly, there's a gigantic preexisting userbase that forums just can't match. A busy forum may have a few hundred active members at a given time; an active social media account may reach many thousands of people or more.

Personally, I'm more interested in in-depth discussion on meteorology, weather history and things of that nature. Forums serve that purpose much better IMO. There aren't a whole lot of people who share those interests, though, and as the number of users dwindles it sort of becomes a feedback loop. Fewer users means less discussion, less discussion means people are less inclined to log in and participate, and that means even fewer users. I certainly don't log in or participate nearly as much as I'd like to, and it's mostly because there are just so few people around.

I don't know how you go about solving that problem, or if there are even enough interested people to make it worth solving, but I personally would be disappointed if ST disappeared.

 

[Jeff Duda]

My apologies for my previous ignorant post. I have since deleted it since I found out why this thread exists.

I have made an effort to stay active on Stormtrack over the past few years as it has continued on life support. Being a Stormtrack member has meant a lot to me. However I have come to realize that my need for it to continue to exist is pretty much gone.

When I joined in 2008 I was an eager meteorology undergraduate student at Iowa State with much to learn about severe weather, storm chasing, and other related topics (photography, computer technology, etc.). However, since then I have continued my education and have progressed from undergraduate to Masters degree carrying meteorologist to doctoral candidate meteorologist; I feel I have probably learned about all I can regarding the science of meteorology from this forum. And while there is still much I could learn about photography or technology, and while I'm willing to help tutor or educate others about topics I once knew nothing about (but now do), there seems to be very little of that secondary discussion going on anymore. Moreover, I, like many other members of this forum, have mostly migrated over to Facebook or Twitter or whatever other social media site is becoming hot in (insert current year). While I definitely don't see posts from most other people on FB (because I'm not FB friends with many of the members of this forum), the FB friends I do have seem to fill out the breadth of discussion I'm looking for, both on the meteorology side of things as well as in ancillary topics.

From my point of view, it just feels like everything has already been done. Aside from rehashing old issues, I don't think there are any new topics to discuss here. Forecast discussions certainly are pathetic now. Honestly the biggest reason I don't contribute is because I see people like Skip (not calling him out in any negative way) typically thoroughly cover nearly all of the critical issues with most severe weather setups, and I don't feel like I have anything meaningful to contribute without duplicating what they said.

Therefore, given the feelings of others and the continued lack of participation on this forum by its owner, I see little reason to keep ST on life support. I would support taking the forum down, at least for posting and interaction purposes. There is still plenty of value in previous posts, however, so I would hope the archives could be stashed on a server somewhere and kept up for people to use as a reference for posterity. Perhaps someone like Tim could take the material and store it on his own site for free downloads.

Unless some major new features are introduced soon, I don't think I will provide any monetary support. I have donated to ST in the past, but I just don't see a reason to donate again.

 

[Joey Ketcham]

I see little reason to keep ST on life support.

I agree in that in its current state, StormTrack is on life support and if something doesn't change, the plug will be pulled and it's done with. I encourage Tim and the ST admin team to explore social media as well as explore what more can be done with the StormTrack site to bring it back to life. But the thing is, if Tim has very little time to even come on here and interact with us, then chances are that won't happen. As I said in my previous post, I think it's time for Tim to consider whether or not he has the time to dedicate himself into bringing ST back to life, or if he needs to hand if off to someone else. I personally would love to see StormTrack stick around, but StormTrack needs to explore the social media world where everyone else is.

 

[Skip Talbot]

Seeing the site go down for several days made me realize that one day it could just vanish entirely. Tens of thousands of posts spanning a decade of storm chasing would be gone forever. At a minimum, the forum should be archived. It should go on though, even if it's in a limited capacity, just as the WX-Chase mailing list carries on today.

The forum as it exists today, threaded discussions, doesn't move to Facebook. Stormtrack would take on a completely new format there. What's the point? I think it's valuable seeing a resource and community that's been a part of storm chasing for three and half decades live on to serve that community in some fashion. Will it work? I don't know, but we could give it a try and I'm willing to get the ball rolling on it.

 

[Joey Ketcham]

The forum as it exists today, threaded discussions, doesn't move to Facebook. Stormtrack would take on a completely new format there.

So StormTrack shouldn't embrace on what is popular today? If StormTrack want's to exist in its current state, on its own... I don't think ST will be around much longer. StormTrack should embrace what is popular instead of holding on to what was popular in the 90's and early 2000's. Update the site in a way to make is unique, and create a FB page that co-exists with it. This site has what, 30 active posters and a few lurkers? I'm sure my numbers are off, but my point being is the number is very low. Yet you have Facebook that is used by millions of people, 99% of them doesn't even know that StormTrack even exists. Embrace that, take advantage of that. I'm not saying to do away with this site, I'm just saying embrace social media. Why is there not a StormTrack FB page? Facebook is where everyone is at, take advantage of it!

 

[Skip Talbot]

So StormTrack shouldn't embrace on what is popular today?

What I meant is that the format of bulletin boards has been left behind by the storm chasing community. Facebook doesn't have the tools to create that same format on their platform, and trying to force that format onto Facebook would most likely fail just as attempts at creating alternate forums also failed. Stormtrack should embrace what's making social media such a popular venue: easy image and video sharing and real time updates. That's doable with a Facebook page and a group of editors who are willing to update it.

 

[Dan Robinson]

My experiences with Facebook have echoed what Clarence shared. Everything is contained inside little high-schoolish cliques and fiefdoms, not unlike a bunch of mini-CFDGs. If you're not in those 'in' crowds, you're an outsider and just plain out of luck. That is what makes a place like ST so valuable. No wonder so many new chasers hit the ground running not under the wings of experienced chasers, but with a 'team' and their own Fan page. Where else can they go? I'm also admittedly a little sour on how every aspect of the universe is assimilating into the Facebook empire.

I deleted my personal FB account and no longer even want to have any presence there. I have a friend-less private account that I use to manage client FB pages as well as my own chase page, but that's it.

I'd also point out that making ST a viable place is going to be a give-and-take. Those of us who benefited from it for so long (as I did) did so on the backs of people that took the time to contribute. It's now our turn. Ultimately, a critical pillar in whether ST survives or not depends on the willingness of the more advanced chasers to maintain a presence here, even if the 'mutual benefit balance' isn't always in our favor.

 

[Joey Ketcham]

My experiences with Facebook have echoed what Clarence shared. Everything is contained inside little high-schoolish cliques and fiefdoms, not unlike a bunch of mini-CFDGs. .

Yeah, I disagree with that. I'm a member of many FB groups and they're very active and everyone is treated with respect. More active than StormTrack has been lately. But that's okay, if ST would rather die and become a thing of the past instead of embracing social media, then so be it. A few years down the road when ST no longer exists, I'll be the guy standing in the back saying "I told you so".