I'm thinking discovery rather than creation.

And not so much mandatory, as useful.

I agree.

Okay, the basis for my opinion just occurred to me - I'm active in a mailing list organized around a pop culture icon of sorts but evolved into a little community, but when that icon went away, the list lost a lot of its vibrancy. It exists, but it doesn't, for one thing, grow, and it's just less than it was. I have a dread of that happening here, I guess. Though there are a lot of differences between that list and b.org, size springing instantly to mind, and maybe that is not a reasonable fear.

If those that want a mission discover one, how will it changes things a) for them b) for those who don't care c) for those who fear the very word?

But by and large, most people who were part of one sub-c also had ties to one or more other ones.

and they don't know? when do we think it changed?

I think there's a few people who never did. My understanding is that there's quite a lot of people in Minearverse and Firefly who don't. (I'm not in either of those right now due to time constraints, mostly.) And I'll repeat that I'm not saying that I think we're falling apart at the seams. But I'm hearing a lot of people saying it makes no difference if they do or they don't, and it's nothing we can or should try to affect anyway. And I don't get that.

when that icon went away, the list lost a lot of its vibrancy. It exists, but it doesn't, for one thing, grow, and it's just less than it was.

This is my fear. If there aren't topic-specific threads, the topicy people will move off the board, and no one will be drawn in to replace them.

Has anyone stopped by Table Talk lately? Granted, circumstances are different -- very different -- but that's what I'm afraid of when I think about the worst possibility for this board.

This whole conversation? Is why I was taking the chunk approach, rather than initiating a whole what's-in-the-lint-in-our-belly-buttons conversation.

Most of us are happy—overall—with b.org. Some of us won't miss having a current show topic thread. Some might, but won't think there's anything worth opening a thread for. Others will. Let's find out. This conversation as is, is way too heavy for me, and a big part of that is just because people have different ways of saying things, not because anyone seems to want a vastly different b.org from anyone else.

Our big picture is good. Can't we leave that be? Our little picture underwent a huge change, as of last Wednesday.

eta context:

Our big picture is good. Can't we leave that be? Our little picture underwent a huge change, as of last Wednesday.

Seconded. I think this can wait until we've had a little time to see how things really do go.

Here's a question: Are there topics that people wish existed, but don't? Because while there are plenty of topics I'd be willing to vote for, I'm not personally feeling any particular lack.

how will it change things b) for those who don't care?

probably won't change my use of the board at all since

A community dedicated to discussions of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel and Firefly with humor, intelligence and obsessiveness.

But I'm hearing a lot of people saying it makes no difference if they do or they don't, and it's nothing we can or should try to affect anyway. And I don't get that.

yep, that's my stance. I guess I feel that if you want people mixing around you should suggest threads to them or go visit other threads yourself. I guess I'm saying I don't there is wrong with the board right now. I have no problem not knowing every poster or with some posters staying in one thread.

What was your chunk approach, Cindy? It seemed to already have assumptions in it, but I could be remembering it all wrong. And obviously we are not sharing axioms at the moment.