I don’t think it’s you.
Yea, these days there are many competitive outlets for information on beer. Youtube and social media, beer magazines, awesome stuff on netflix like How Beer Saved the World. Plus many may be out brewing right now! 
Seems the same to me except that I’m checking it 20 times a day lol
still pretty busy but it seemed to me like the late winter early spring this place was very very busy with posts
I don’t check it as frequently as I used to - there’s more resources out there, so its spread out and NB’s “vibe” just doesn’t feel the same. It will probably pick up with cooler weather, just like the brewing.
I do think it is a summer thing. Soon traffic will pick up again.
I feel like late July and into August are the prime vacation times for people… especially those with kids and school is about to start. I just got back from fishing in WI and I know a number of others who are out right now doing a late summer vacation. Probably just a temporary thing.
The NB Board used to be one of the busiest and most productive boards in years past. There were so many posts and tons of active members, numerous on and off topic conversations going on. Some big stuff went down (we’re not allowed to talk about it) and the board diminished quite a bit. Many of us took a hiatus too. I’d love to do a “where are they now” thread.
But, IMO, to answer to the OP, I think activity does wane in the summer. You’d think the opposite, because of all the festivals and events, people working at building their equipment in the warm garage, etc. Is what it is I suppose.
As far as I’ve seen, this is still by far the busiest forum, with the possible exception of Home Brew Talk (where I have NOT hung out due to EXCESSIVE traffic, at least in the past). There used to be about 10 other good forums plus or minus, but many of them died out or almost died (anyone been to the MoreBeer forum lately!?), and I guess none of them are anywhere near as busy they were just 3-5 years ago. Forums across the board have diminished a lot in that time. Not exactly sure why. Maybe we finally hit our peak of interest in this “new” hobby that’s been around for like 35+ years now. Maybe a lot of people figured they learned everything that could possibly be learned and got tired of the same old Q&A rehashed over and over, so they cut back or just left permanently. Maybe people are just getting older or busier and simply don’t care or can no longer afford to spend 16 hours a day on the computer like a few of us do (I still do). Maybe it’s even a baby-boomer generational thing, and the younger pups just don’t care about quality as much as the boomers and gen X-ers – Lord knows they’d all rather be texting on their effing iPods for 16+ hours a day. Lots and lots of reasons I suppose for why things have diminished. I guess I’ve noticed the same thing but never really thought about it too much before.
I truly believe there is a seasonal aspect to this hobby. When the weather starts to cool, more and more styles seem to appeal to me. I hope, and expect, people will find their way back to the NB forums in the fall.
Brewing is about the furthest thing from my mind during the summer, though I still check out the forum several times a week. I’ve brewed 2 batches since the end of April and they were back to back extract batches a couple weekends back, I don’t plan on brewing again until October.
This place used to jam when I joined back in '05, it was almost too much though as good threads would get pushed out so you’d have to search for them or subscribe. There were also a handful of asshats that didn’t really contribute much but would chime in on every thread and belittle people. And then there were the guys from the Green Board who would show up when that site would crash, which seemed like every week, that place was anything goes and they brought it here, kept the mods quite busy. Most of the shenanigans took place in the off topic board called Brewhaha. When that got sacked most of those guys left, unfortunately a lot of good contributors did too, the AHA forum was starting to pick up steam and most went there.
At the end of the day, while it’s not as busy as it used to be, it’s still one of the best forums. It will pick back up come fall and it always gets moving the first of the year with all the newbs who get kits for Christmas.
:cheers:
[quote=“Glug Master”]
There were also a handful of asshats that didn’t really contribute much but would chime in on every thread and belittle people.
:cheers: [/quote]
We miss you Beerider! :lol: Although he didn’t belittle people, he was kind of an asshat.
[quote=“Beersk”][quote=“Glug Master”]
asshats[/quote]
asshat[/quote]
Can we say that on the NB forum? Guess we’ll find out. This ain’t the BN, that’s for sure…
Whatever platform NB uses is great. The AHA forum is not my favorite, nor is HBT for the opposite reason.
I wish I could put brewing out of my mind for months at a time. As it happens, it doesn’t typically leave my mind for more than 20 minutes :cheers:
I think this has a great deal to do with it. Notice when NB came out with the 1 gal kits the traffic SKYROCKETED…
I also think summer has something to do with it.
I still pop in here from time to time to try to keep up with things, but a lot of the experienced posters have moved on to another forum (as has already been mentioned). At one time there was a lot of activity and harmless ribbing here, but policies changed and many left.
This place blows HBT and AHA forums out of the water from where I sit. I always tell my friends who are just getting into brewing to at least troll here. These days work has killed my time spent here, but I try to pay forward the incredible amount of help I received here as a newbie by responsibly fielding what questions I can from other beginners.
[quote=“Pietro”]
I wish I could put brewing out of my mind for months at a time. As it happens, it doesn’t typically leave my mind for more than 20 minutes :cheers: [/quote]
+100. I can sometimes go an entire workday, but that’s pretty rare.
This is probably the most civil forum I’ve ever been on regardless of topic. That’s one of top things I really appreciate about it. Too bad a lot of the old timers have moved on, but there’s a lot of new blood here which can be a positive thing too.
[quote=“kcbeersnob”][quote=“Pietro”]
I wish I could put brewing out of my mind for months at a time. As it happens, it doesn’t typically leave my mind for more than 20 minutes :cheers: [/quote]
+100. I can sometimes go an entire workday, but that’s pretty rare.
This is probably the most civil forum I’ve ever been on regardless of topic. That’s one of top things I really appreciate about it. Too bad a lot of the old timers have moved on, but there’s a lot of new blood here which can be a positive thing too.[/quote]
New blood here and since I have started this awesome hobby/lifestyle/passion pretty sure I haven’t gone a day without thinking about it in some aspect. I love this forum full of great knowledge and helps to pass the time on slow workdays.
Heck, I don’t even read the local newspaper any more because of this forum. The stuff on here is way more relevant than the other options out there.
