Saturday, May 17, 2008

The Wikback, RIP?

A Quieter TimeThings are quieter at
Wikback these days
Image from Flickr
One of my earliest postings was about UninvitedCompany's Wikback which is a forum designed to be a place where folk with an interest in Wikipedia and WMF projects could discuss things. (and one that would be run somewhat differently than Wikipedia Review)

At the time, I opined that there might be some inhibitory effects from some of the actions taken and rules in place, and that sparked 11 comments from various folk. I think that may have been my all time high, or pretty close! (Hi to all 3 of you readers still with me!) Some predicted it would fail, while others defended the idea.

Well, two months have went by since then, and it would appear that the activity levels at the Wikback have died down to very low levels. Apparently, in the past 7 days, there have been just 4 active topics, if this list is to be believed.

Not every forum that is started ends up a success. Sometimes it's just random chance as to whether something clicks. But sometimes it's the rules, the people or whatever. Is that the case here?

Could Wikback still spring to lively life? Or is the current activity level likely to be where things stay indefinitely? Or is it over? What do you think?

2 comments:

private musings said...

well your post sent me back to take a look too... there still a (very) few people engaging over there, and I admire Marc for continuing to have thoughts on each and every day! (I think I only manage one or two a month!)

It's a shame.

MessedRocker said...

Hell, I've lost interest in most Wikimedia-related matters in general. I lost interest when I became a father. To a website.