Curious about this website?

Fluther Is cared for by the volunteer moderators.
They protect against spam and trolls.
The site is geared towards excellent grammar.
Also we are about 100 regular posters, many who eventually get to know one another in real life.

@RedDeerGuy1 Oh wow, 100? You were one of the main ones I recognized being a veteran user (or, at least, I believe you are.) How many regular posters were there back then? Or was this always a close knit community tucked in the corner of the internet?

@catar In 2009 when I joined Fluther under a different name, it was overflowing with members. I was an Answer bag refugee with 30 others. I don’t know why the numbers dropped.

@RedDeerGuy1 When did that member count start to drop off? And if you don’t mind me asking, what made you stay on this website? What made you keep coming back?

A lot of the times, I will usually “quit” a game or website by forgetting to come back on due to my interest being low. So I’m curious as to what keeps you interested in this website, enough to bring you back without fail?

There’s this recent thread, for one:

https://www.fluther.com/233863/can-someone-explain-this-site-to-me/

It in turn will lead you to other related threads.

The Meta section is mainly for questions pertaining to Fluther per se, so you might want to browse there.

I use Fluther to socialize, improve my grammar/writing style, and of course to have my questions answered; Even in the middle of the night.

Answering others questions give me meaning, and is more than just a hobby for me. If I get uncomfortable I have the freedom to walk away at any time.

I don’t know when the sites membership dropped off.

@Jeruba I really do appreciate the thread link, and I will try my best to conform to whatever culture as to not disrupt you or anyone else.

But as with everything, more answers equal more questions.

1. You said there is no further development, and that they moved on. Have you heard anything at all from them, recently or a long time ago?
2. You also said there was a sole owner that keeps us from “crashing.” What do you mean by that?
3. And do you have any worries that this site may shut down in the foreseeable future? I.E less than 2 years?

@catar,

1. Yes. From time to time something goes a little haywire, and the mods send out help signals so founder Ben will stop by and fix whatever broke. Also note the December 8 Q in Meta, a reminder that it was time for Dr. J (the mascot and logo at the top of the page) to put on his ho!iday gear. Ben took care of it.

2. See #1. Ben is one of the two original Fluthergods, and he kindly performs survival maintenance.

3. Some of us do worry about that, but we’ve been in this relatively stable pattern for quite some time. When (like tonight) I stop by Fluther as the last thing I do before lights-out, I’m not afraid that it won’t be here in the morning.

I appreciate your respectful approach. I can tell that you won’t come on strong with a list of improvements you want made, or start trolling other jellies, or post incoherent rambles about little or nothing. So come, be welcome, try us out. We bite only when we must.

@Jeruba I really loved reading your guys answers. Fluther is one of those cool, rare sites you find that still has a small active community from like, 2006.
And yes, I did see that question. That was super cool of him.

Small side note, though. How come grammar is a massive deal here?

I had nothing to do with the grammar rules and never questioned them; but I am grateful for them. They’re part of what keeps this place clean and habitable.

Showing respect for the language is part of showing respect for one another. Grammar supports meaning and hence clarity of communication (although we do have our misunderstandings, right enough, as well as our conflicting ideologies and wide-ranging opinions). It’s my opinion that using good grammar is like using your napkin at dinner: a mark of being civilized.

Grammar and spelling are important, but for those of us who only use mobile, or forget their reading glasses, allowances must be made. ;D

@catar The jellies are really what keeps this odd little site alive. We are a good mix. We’re mostly in the US, which makes me a bit sad. I’ve made genuine friends on here. I’ve met some in real life and have regular chats with them by text weekly and sometimes daily. I know these people.

The user base declined dramatically when Google changed something that stopped showing Fluther high in search results. It’s sad, because our users really try to give good answers to a surprisingly broad array of questions.

It’s the community that keeps us alive. The mods keep the spam away and police us when we get rowdy. Like any small community, we can argue amongst ourselves.

Welcome.

Hi @catar! I come for the camaraderie, to answer questions, ask a few, and learn. It also makes me think, which helps my brain, and I do research almost every time I visit. I explore my thoughts and feelings on topics I previously hadn’t thought much about, thus solidifying another aspect of my beliefs.

If you imagine the Internet to be a vast radioactive wasteland then we are the survivors huddled together in a disintegrating building hoping to preserve our sanity and the English language. Welcome stranger! Make yourself at home. I am sure you have many questions to ask of us.

We have members from Vietnam, Mexico, Germany, Netherlands, Greece, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Of course USA.

I may missed a couple . . . .

UK . . .

I am a new comer since I started just last July so I won’t be much help. But this is a fun site with some really awesome people, sorry “jellies” and the PM’s are the best part :)

You can find the answers by interacting here.

I was a member of another social networking site, a crazy place called Wisdm. But then, for whatever reason, it started going belly up.
Someone posted a question along the lines of “What do we do now?”
And someone else posted a link to Fluther and here I am, along with several others, including Carsvanfan.
That was in 2009.

@Caravanfan pulled me into Wis.dm When that faded, someone suggested Fluther. I’ve been here ever since (2009).

We all hit at once too! Like 500 of us! They were not thrilled.
Who were you on wis.dm @Rocketguy?

I think so. I has been a long time.

Yes. Who were you on Wis.dm?

I thought it was the same as here, but I found an old email that says I was RocketScientist. That was because @Caravanfan wanted me to get into a satellite-related debate he was having.

And did you jump onto Gazebo for a while too?

Sure! Gazebo every morning with my bagles!