"Avatar Forums" Partnered With "Tree of Souls"

[Angel Aihwa]

Everybody should be able to coexist in peace.

[caveman]

They do coexist in peace. Not sure why you'd think they don't.

Another thing, AF is not big. When people say, "Oh, yeah AF is a little bigger and more mainstream", I laugh. AF is probably half the size of ToS.

And I also disagree with blaming the split on "the family getting to big". Back in AF's prime, January, the number of active members was probably peaking. By March, the family from "the glory days" was smaller and decreasing.

If anything, I blame the split on the Oscars. That just turned the place into an overnight Troll-fest madhouse. But as expected, it was just a phase. AF quickly returned to what it was originally, but by that time it was too late. A few people wanted out, a new forum, and everyone kinda jumped on the bandwagon.

[Eltu]

caveman - it's true that today AF is not nearly as big as it used to be - and it's also true that the peak probably was around January-March.

However, the difference is not made out by the size itself, but the mentality the larger userbase and previous size has caused. Not a better nor worse mentality, but a different one. And that's something you surely notice, since AF is different than ToS in many ways.

[Isard]

Originally Posted by caveman

If anything, I blame the split on the Oscars. That just turned the place into an overnight Troll-fest madhouse. But as expected, it was just a phase. AF quickly returned to what it was originally, but by that time it was too late. A few people wanted out, a new forum, and everyone kinda jumped on the bandwagon.

nooo no no no no no... The ToS founders had a falling out with most of the moderation staff. So...

[Human No More]

Exactly.

AF is different. There is a different feel, a different attitude, different discussions (at least when I used to still read there, which admittedly I haven't bothered doing for quite a while)

ToS is smaller, closer, the connections we make go beyond Avatar, but we always remember our roots.
On AF, things are perhaps less close - back in the day, it was much like ToS is, but that did change as it grew, and I do still think the admin change sped that process up.

I've never really checked out naviblue much, buit I get the feeling it is similar to AF.
Again, that's fine, it serves a different purpose but we are all part of the same community, we even have many members in common.

I AM also on learnnavi and semi-active there, I find it very different to any of the other sites as the main emphasis is on the Na'vi language rather than Avatar itself. Again, that's fine, it's a different type of pace, but there are many people who that is what they want from it.

We are all Na'vi - just different clans. We may do things different, but in the end, we have a lot in common.

I hope this makes sense... I'm tired (haven't slept for 36+ hours) and very busy at the moment, but I felt I had to reply to this.

Edit: Aihwa is right about the oscars - that died down again fairly rapidly... AF did attract more random trolls, but that is to be expected with it's prominence (thank you CNN...). If anything, the seeds had been planted before then though.
There was no single cause - for some people some may be clearer than others... Personally, I felt that AF had changed to the point that it was not the forum I had joined originally, which truly Saw me and let me feel at home... I have been on MANY forums from a normal user to to a mod - some I left, some I'm still on, some I just faded away from... but I have never experienced anything like ToS or AF - it is truly something unique. To me, and to Eltu, that was worth preserving.

[Alan]

Originally Posted by caveman

Also, I had an idea I pitched today on AF. I was talking to a couple original members who were visiting and I thought we should all make a pact, that when Avatar 2 comes out, we all return under one forum to catch up on each other and share out thoughts about the new movie. Like an Avatarforums, 5-year family reunion. A lot of members have come and gone, and it would be cool if we all agreed to come together after the sequel comes out. Honestly, I doubt I'll be here in 5 years. Not to say I don't like this place, I love it. But even the most dedicated of the dedicated have left, and regardless of who's left after 5 years (or whenever it comes out), we all come back. Thoughts?

Hey, Kaltxi Caveman! Long time no speak from me! Must be about 3 months! Believe it or not I have been on the forums constantly, but living in 'PM' land doing the Avatar Communities Film Project thingy. Only now as I tie up the loose ends am I finding time to come back on to the front side of the forums.

I wasn't close to the kerfuffle that caused the split, but I really don't have a problem with there being two 'close' forums. I just consider them like two Na'vi clans. You'll easily find people on both of them - me included. I feel I have friends on both forums. Besides we have had people from both forums have take part in the film project and it's all worked out fine.

The thing that goes through my head is how these forums will evolve through the coming months and how long will they exist? I suspect they will be around for a bit until a little while after the 3D Bluray has been released next year. But then what? Will they fade away? Will they continue at a low level? Will they become more of a friends forum?

I really don't want to loose touch with the new friends I've made both here and on AF. And these places are great meeting places. We have our own 'in-house' talk with a spattering of Na'vi thrown in for good measure. It is a unique comminuty that has been brought together by the creativity and imagination of Jame Cameron, which has clicked in us somewhere for some reason and brought us all together. I hope it continues. I don't want to 'wake up' quite yet...

Oel ngati kameie,

Alan

[stdout]

Originally Posted by caveman

AF is probably half the size of ToS.

Whoa, hold on!

I just checked and ToS had 490 members in total. AF, on the other hand:
'Most users ever online was 3,207, Yesterday at 05:34 PM.'

[Drewan]

I too was at AF early on (about Mid-Jan) & was appalled at the troll-explosion during the Oscars---the big fuss about PAD brought out a un-needed amount of trolls also....So I decided to look elsewhere & happily ended up here--I am not the most prolific poster, but it is good to be able to come here & post without feeling "strange"--If I were to say some of the things I say here to my workmates or others I would most surely have quite a bit of grief....

I did pop in on AF from time to time, but have not gone there in about 3 months or so--was not close to anyone there so I feel that I have not lost much---I feel closer to people here & like the general mood, so I guess that my home is here.

Thank you everyone for listening to me ramble--I do care deeply for you all!!!!

Oel ngati kameie,
Drewan

[TxonTirea]

I too was at AF early on (about Mid-Jan) & was appalled at the troll-explosion during the Oscars---the big fuss about PAD brought out a un-needed amount of trolls also....So I decided to look elsewhere & happily ended up here--I am not the most prolific poster, but it is good to be able to come here & post without feeling "strange"--If I were to say some of the things I say here to my workmates or others I would most surely have quite a bit of grief....

I did pop in on AF from time to time, but have not gone there in about 3 months or so--was not close to anyone there so I feel that I have not lost much---I feel closer to people here & like the general mood, so I guess that my home is here.

Thank you everyone for listening to me ramble--I do care deeply for you all!!!!

Oel ngati kameie,
Drewan

Yay, more people to say Hai to.

[Alan]

Originally Posted by Drewan

...If I were to say some of the things I say here to my workmates or others I would most surely have quite a bit of grief....

...

Thank you everyone for listening to me ramble--I do care deeply for you all!!!!

Kaltxi Drewan. I couldn't agree with you more about the openess at places like this. If folks around me and at work were to read some of the heart felt stuff I've posted in the past, I'm sure the looks of their faces would resemble a dog chewing a wasp.

I guess we can feel more open here because to a certain extent we can hide behind the forum. If we were to meet face to face would we be as open I wonder? The other reason is possibly because we have been affected in a similar way by the subject matter and story that is Avatar. Like the Na'vi have a deep connection with their surroundings, we seem to have developed our own deep understand with each other over the past 6 months or so. For me I have found this equally present in both forums where I have joined in.

As for rambling. Don't you worry, that's what these place are for. Just look at my waffle above!

Eywa ngahu,

Alan

[X.,.Pandora.,.X]

Originally Posted by Eltu

ToS came into existence as the result of a natural dispute among AF's members when the community had grown too large.

A larger, broader community such as today's AF is the perfect community for some people, and a horrible community for others. ToS was a result of this dislike of what AF was on its way to become.

AF is not "bad", it's simply different, and therefore some members like it and some don't. Likewise, the reasons ToS came into existense are not "sad", they were a part of a natural process.

I'm saying it's sad because it forced people to choose between 2 groups of people that loved the same thing-Avatar. AF was great back in december January (not that ToS isn't) and everything was fine for awhile, then after some other things happened, people got pissed about a little miniscule change and went off and ranted and created ToS (wich I do like). But this created a hole in the early Avatar community that shouldn't have happened. I know people disagree, but can't we settle our differences for all our sakes...

[Human No More]

Originally Posted by stdout

Whoa, hold on!

I just checked and ToS had 490 members in total. AF, on the other hand:
'Most users ever online was 3,207, Yesterday at 05:34 PM.'

Registered or unregistered?
Also looks like a stats reset for me, during the oscars threads were moving so fast nobody could keep up, the main thread would gain a page or 2 in the time it took to write a reply

Originally Posted by Alan

Kaltxi Drewan. I couldn't agree with you more about the openess at places like this. If folks around me and at work were to read some of the heart felt stuff I've posted in the past, I'm sure the looks of their faces would resemble a dog chewing a wasp.

So true... people here know me better than anyone, I've mentioned things I never have before, you are my true family, certainly know me a lot better than my IRL one.

I guess we can feel more open here because to a certain extent we can hide behind the forum. If we were to meet face to face would we be as open I wonder? The other reason is possibly because we have been affected in a similar way by the subject matter and story that is Avatar. Like the Na'vi have a deep connection with their surroundings, we seem to have developed our own deep understand with each other over the past 6 months or so. For me I have found this equally present in both forums where I have joined in.

I think we would. Personally, this is the only time in my life I HAVEN'T hidden things. It comes about because of a shared experience and understanding. We all learned to See.

Originally Posted by X.,.Pandora.,.X

I'm saying it's sad because it forced people to choose between 2 groups of people that loved the same thing-Avatar. AF was great back in december January (not that ToS isn't) and everything was fine for awhile, then after some other things happened, people got pissed about a little miniscule change and went off and ranted and created ToS (wich I do like). But this created a hole in the early Avatar community that shouldn't have happened. I know people disagree, but can't we settle our differences for all our sakes...

I've said here many times... There was no single reason for creating ToS. Perhaps for some people there was one which made them come here, but nothing ever actually made that decision for us. Sure, there were a few things that in a way pushed it over the edge, but it was probably inevitable since about February.

[Eltu]

Originally Posted by X.,.Pandora.,.X

I'm saying it's sad because it forced people to choose between 2 groups of people that loved the same thing-Avatar. AF was great back in december January (not that ToS isn't) and everything was fine for awhile, then after some other things happened, people got pissed about a little miniscule change and went off and ranted and created ToS (wich I do like). But this created a hole in the early Avatar community that shouldn't have happened. I know people disagree, but can't we settle our differences for all our sakes...

You know, communism is great, because then people won't have to choose between 2 or more things, they have to use one single product. Isn't that awesome?

[Human No More]

Well said...
A choice isn't a bad thing.

[Sìltsan'awpo]

Originally Posted by Eltu

You know, communism is great, because then people won't have to choose between 2 or more things, they have to use one single product. Isn't that awesome?

Hmm kinda agree...

Things are a lot simpler when there are fewer choices to pick but not everything is a one size-fits-all kind of deal and that's bound to create conflict when not everyone agrees in the same thing.

But yeah. When I read the post talking about the creation of ToS back on AF, it did make me feel a little anxious cause it meant that some people were never gonna be there anymore, as if they died and wouldn't be seen again :/

I do miss that feeling from AF's glory days though. Now I don't even bother going over there