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Acorn Arcade forums: General: A longer than normal silence
 
  A longer than normal silence
  This is a long thread. Click here to view the threaded list.
 
Edward Rogers Message #107480, posted by Monty at 14:00, 25/5/2008
Member
Posts: 154
Has something gone amis over Drobe way, or does it periodically hibernate for several weeks?
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Phil Mellor Message #107482, posted by monkeyson2 at 14:18, 25/5/2008, in reply to message #107480
monkeyson2Please don't let them make me be a monkey butler

Posts: 12380
Has something gone amis over Drobe way, or does it periodically hibernate for several weeks?
They're just copying TIB again naughty
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Jeffrey Lee Message #107483, posted by Phlamethrower at 14:22, 25/5/2008, in reply to message #107482
PhlamethrowerHot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot stuff

Posts: 15100
Has something gone amis over Drobe way, or does it periodically hibernate for several weeks?
They're just copying TIB again naughty
unhappy
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Phil Mellor Message #107485, posted by monkeyson2 at 14:33, 25/5/2008, in reply to message #107483
monkeyson2Please don't let them make me be a monkey butler

Posts: 12380
Has something gone amis over Drobe way, or does it periodically hibernate for several weeks?
They're just copying TIB again naughty
unhappy
tongue
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Jason Togneri Message #107489, posted by filecore at 19:26, 25/5/2008, in reply to message #107480

Posts: 3867
Has something gone amis over Drobe way, or does it periodically hibernate for several weeks?
Yes.
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Edward Rogers Message #107490, posted by Monty at 23:29, 25/5/2008, in reply to message #107489
Member
Posts: 154
Err, yes to which?

And what's TIB? Presumably if Drobe ends then that's practically the end of the RISC OS community.

[Edited by Monty at 00:30, 26/5/2008]
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Jason Togneri Message #107492, posted by filecore at 05:38, 26/5/2008, in reply to message #107490

Posts: 3867
And what's TIB? Presumably if Drobe ends then that's practically the end of the RISC OS community.
You're on it - TIB is The Icon Bar. Presumably if Drobe ends then TIB is all that remains of the RISC OS community, if one can apply such a term anymore.
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Edward Rogers Message #107494, posted by Monty at 09:26, 26/5/2008, in reply to message #107492
Member
Posts: 154
Time for a swansong from Castle perhaps. Oh go on, it would amuse us.
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Chris Williams Message #107496, posted by diodesign at 13:10, 26/5/2008, in reply to message #107480
diodesign
The Opposition

Posts: 269
Don't worry, I'm still alive.

Regarding Drobe, the site has been gradually winding down over the past couple of years for a few reasons. One is that the RISC OS scene is slowing down and there's not enough inertia to sustain a news outlet that can be updated daily. I used to be able to post at least an article a day (on average over a month) during uni. This is no longer the case and it's becoming easier to lose interest in what's actually happening. Things like NetSurf getting Google cash, the Bluray breakthrough and ArtWorks 2 stuff are things that have managed to keep me interested, off the top of my head.

Another reason is that, after leaving uni, I got a job as a 'real' journalist and coming home from long shifts to, err, continue writing/gathering news lost its appeal.

Having said that, the one time I don't have a shift on a Bank Holiday Monday, it's completely washed out (at least in the south east) so I don't have much of an excuse now to not update the site wink

I hope this post isn't seen as distasteful on TIB. It's great TIB is still going and its forums have always been more popular than Drobe's. It'd be a great shame to lose both websites.

[Edited by diodesign at 14:19, 26/5/2008]
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Mike Message #107497, posted by MikeCarter at 13:11, 26/5/2008, in reply to message #107490
MikeCarter

Posts: 401
Err, yes to which?

And what's TIB? Presumably if Drobe ends then that's practically the end of the RISC OS community.

[Edited by Monty at 00:30, 26/5/2008]
Well, I wouldn't say that is true seen as most of the RISC OS community exsists in the form of User Groups, and magazine mailing lists, genral mailing lists, Newsgroups. Then for online news there is an oppertunity for http://www.myriscos.co.uk.

[Edited by MikeCarter at 14:12, 26/5/2008]
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Chris Williams Message #107498, posted by diodesign at 13:27, 26/5/2008, in reply to message #107497
diodesign
The Opposition

Posts: 269
Err, yes to which?

And what's TIB? Presumably if Drobe ends then that's practically the end of the RISC OS community.
Well, I wouldn't say that is true seen as most of the RISC OS community exsists in the form of User Groups, and magazine mailing lists, genral mailing lists, Newsgroups. Then for online news there is an oppertunity for http://www.myriscos.co.uk.
True, however this is rather fragmented and very few people have the time to keep an eye on everything. This is why you have sites like Drobe and TIB, which collate everything, apply some polish and present it to readers. I can't keep up with all the various mags, lists, forums, groups, private lists, IRC channels, etc. As an editor, I rely on others to fwd me stuff or, preferably, write articles themselves for me to edit.

Without central hubs to disseminate information, a 'community' is short-changed and cannot run as effectively as it can. It's why I love news media.
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Jeffrey Lee Message #107499, posted by Phlamethrower at 13:33, 26/5/2008, in reply to message #107496
PhlamethrowerHot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot stuff

Posts: 15100
I hope this post isn't seen as distasteful on TIB.
Not at all. Although we (the TIB staff) have the same time/interest/inertia problems as you, we know that we can only really blame ourselves for the lack of front page updates over the past year or so.
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Andrew Message #107501, posted by andrew at 19:13, 26/5/2008, in reply to message #107498
HandbagHandbag Boi
Posts: 3439
Err, yes to which?

And what's TIB? Presumably if Drobe ends then that's practically the end of the RISC OS community.
Well, I wouldn't say that is true seen as most of the RISC OS community exsists in the form of User Groups, and magazine mailing lists, genral mailing lists, Newsgroups. Then for online news there is an oppertunity for http://www.myriscos.co.uk.
True, however this is rather fragmented and very few people have the time to keep an eye on everything. This is why you have sites like Drobe and TIB, which collate everything, apply some polish and present it to readers. I can't keep up with all the various mags, lists, forums, groups, private lists, IRC channels, etc. As an editor, I rely on others to fwd me stuff or, preferably, write articles themselves for me to edit.

Without central hubs to disseminate information, a 'community' is short-changed and cannot run as effectively as it can. It's why I love news media.
Chris - there shold be something on its way later tonight hopefully smile


[Edited by andrew at 21:40, 26/5/2008]
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Simon Willcocks Message #107502, posted by Stoppers at 06:51, 27/5/2008, in reply to message #107496
Member
Posts: 302
Don't worry, I'm still alive.
Good!

I hope this post isn't seen as distasteful on TIB. It's great TIB is still going and its forums have always been more popular than Drobe's. It'd be a great shame to lose both websites.
It would be a great shame to lose either website. I still check both, pretty much whenever I come to a browser.
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Jason Togneri Message #107503, posted by filecore at 08:13, 27/5/2008, in reply to message #107502

Posts: 3867
I still check both, pretty much whenever I come to a browser.
On the topic of infrequently-updated sites and having to regularly check them, I recently came across this - it's a pay-for version, but a nice concept all the same.
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Phil Mellor Message #107504, posted by monkeyson2 at 08:17, 27/5/2008, in reply to message #107503
monkeyson2Please don't let them make me be a monkey butler

Posts: 12380
I still check both, pretty much whenever I come to a browser.
On the topic of infrequently-updated sites and having to regularly check them, I recently came across this - it's a pay-for version, but a nice concept all the same.
Or you could use the RSS feeds - we have separate ones for articles and forum postings.
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Jason Togneri Message #107505, posted by filecore at 09:17, 27/5/2008, in reply to message #107504

Posts: 3867
Or you could use the RSS feeds - we have separate ones for articles and forum postings.
The difference being, you can only use RSS feeds on sites that support them; for other sites, you have to check manually on each page you want. Besides, I constantly get a "Could not retrieve RSS listing" type error for TIB's feed tongue
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Phil Mellor Message #107506, posted by monkeyson2 at 09:56, 27/5/2008, in reply to message #107505
monkeyson2Please don't let them make me be a monkey butler

Posts: 12380
Besides, I constantly get a "Could not retrieve RSS listing" type error for TIB's feed tongue
What url and browser/reader are you using?
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Jason Togneri Message #107507, posted by filecore at 10:42, 27/5/2008, in reply to message #107506

Posts: 3867
The built-in moose in Firefox 2.0.0.14. I occasionally get it for other RSS feeds too, but most often I see it with TIB's feed.
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Chris Message #107508, posted by Chris at 13:29, 27/5/2008, in reply to message #107496
Member
Posts: 283
I hope this post isn't seen as distasteful on TIB. It's great TIB is still going and its forums have always been more popular than Drobe's. It'd be a great shame to lose both websites.
Drobe is brilliant, and I like the TIB forums a lot too. But it's hard to argue with the claim that there hasn't been much to report lately unhappy. I had hoped that ROOL would rekindle some enthusiasm and energy, but unless there's more going on silently than it looks like, that initiative seems to be going by the wayside too.

It would indeed be a shame to lose the websites. Frankly, most of the newsgroups are a complete waste of time these days, taken over by trolls and pedants. If Drobe and TIB hit the dust, that will probably mark the end of the RISC OS community, to all intents and purposes.
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John Hoare Message #107509, posted by moss at 14:01, 27/5/2008, in reply to message #107508

Posts: 9348
One thing I've discovered, through co-running Ganymede & Titan - you are NEVER short of something to write about. There's always something. A bit of news here, a review there, an opinion piece here, a historical piece there, an interview here... If I had five hours a day, and endless enthusiasm, I could write G&T articles daily for five years, and I'd *still* have things I could write about.

What *is* an issue - as Chris says - is enthusiasm, and time. When you're busy with other things - work, relationships, erm, my new DS Lite - the last thing you want to do sometimes is sit there and write another article. Just sitting in front of the telly and watching my Absolutely DVD is a far more appealing prospect. This is the reason I haven't written for TIB for ages - and we've got the added bonus that we don't even have to write about RISC OS stuff, and so I can't even blame a lack of enthusiasm for the subject matter.
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Jason Togneri Message #107511, posted by filecore at 18:18, 27/5/2008, in reply to message #107509

Posts: 3867
Well, I rarely (if ever) read Drobe, not to mention the seemingly Apple-dominated TIB news, and stick mainly to the forums these days. However, I hope there's been coverage of VirtualAcorn's open competitor, Arculator, which looks promising...

I should probably have had a look on Drobe and the TIB front page before I posted that, but I'm too lazy even to do that much.
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Jeffrey Lee Message #107513, posted by Phlamethrower at 19:18, 27/5/2008, in reply to message #107511
PhlamethrowerHot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot Hot stuff

Posts: 15100
So we could lie and say that we've posted a 10-page feature on Arculator and you'd believe us? smile
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Jason Togneri Message #107514, posted by filecore at 19:21, 27/5/2008, in reply to message #107513

Posts: 3867
Probably. I know Arculator has been around for a while but I've heard rumours that there's something big coming up. I'm not entirely sure how accurate those rumours are, however; that's IRC for you.
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Mike Message #107515, posted by MikeCarter at 20:41, 27/5/2008, in reply to message #107514
MikeCarter

Posts: 401
Probably. I know Arculator has been around for a while but I've heard rumours that there's something big coming up. I'm not entirely sure how accurate those rumours are, however; that's IRC for you.
Well, networking is in the works, which is a nice big feature.
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Chris Williams Message #107532, posted by diodesign at 19:15, 29/5/2008, in reply to message #107501
diodesign
The Opposition

Posts: 269
Chris - there should be something on its way later tonight hopefully smile
That's great, ta v much. I'll try to get onto it as soon as possible. My enthusiasm was hit again this week as, annoyingly, a request for a review copy of some software for Drobe was turned down because apparently we're not updated enough (so, what, I'm not allowed to take a break after eight years of producing material?) and any review is unlikely to generate any sales. It's breathtaking how many companies share this view of Drobe ('that annoying thing on the web') and as Moss points out, life's a lot more interesting than banging on about a minority OS platform that took itself far too seriously and lost its sense of fun.

Anyway, rant over. I can haz, at the very least, a fresh CD from David Lowe and the latest copy of Private Eye on my desk to enjoy.
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keith dunlop Message #107533, posted by epistaxsis at 20:46, 29/5/2008, in reply to message #107532
epistaxsis

Posts: 159
My enthusiasm was hit again this week as, annoyingly, a request for a review copy of some software for Drobe was turned down because apparently we're not updated enough (so, what, I'm not allowed to take a break after eight years of producing material?)
wtf? shock shock

and any review is unlikely to generate any sales.
yeah right - someone's forgotten that any publicity is good publicity! unhappy

It's breathtaking how many companies share this view of Drobe ('that annoying thing on the web') and as Moss points out, life's a lot more interesting than banging on about a minority OS platform that took itself far too seriously and lost its sense of fun.
Agreed - it is not as if RISC OS is some holy object is it?

For me I *like* RISC OS - it makes me happy when using a computer (that's called fun isn't it? tongue ) <-- odd I know but it is important to me!

Anyway, rant over.
oops - me guilty too smile

[Edited by epistaxsis at 21:57, 29/5/2008]
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Andrew Message #107534, posted by andrew at 22:33, 29/5/2008, in reply to message #107532
HandbagHandbag Boi
Posts: 3439
Chris - there should be something on its way later tonight hopefully smile
That's great, ta v much. I'll try to get onto it as soon as possible. My enthusiasm was hit again this week as, annoyingly, a request for a review copy of some software for Drobe was turned down because apparently we're not updated enough (so, what, I'm not allowed to take a break after eight years of producing material?) and any review is unlikely to generate any sales. It's breathtaking how many companies share this view of Drobe ('that annoying thing on the web') and as Moss points out, life's a lot more interesting than banging on about a minority OS platform that took itself far too seriously and lost its sense of fun.

Anyway, rant over. I can haz, at the very least, a fresh CD from David Lowe and the latest copy of Private Eye on my desk to enjoy.
I hope you don't get too demoralised over that rejection Chris. If anything Drobe adds a witty, relaxed and welcome slant to RISC OS. It's arguably more valuable than any single piece of software
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Chris Message #107536, posted by Chris at 10:44, 30/5/2008, in reply to message #107532
Member
Posts: 283
That's great, ta v much. I'll try to get onto it as soon as possible. My enthusiasm was hit again this week as, annoyingly, a request for a review copy of some software for Drobe was turned down because apparently we're not updated enough (so, what, I'm not allowed to take a break after eight years of producing material?) and any review is unlikely to generate any sales. It's breathtaking how many companies share this view of Drobe ('that annoying thing on the web') and as Moss points out, life's a lot more interesting than banging on about a minority OS platform that took itself far too seriously and lost its sense of fun.
That's a depressing post. Honestly, some RISC OS companies are terrible - contemptuous of their customers and unwilling to try anything new.

One of the major factors in retaining a sense of fun in RISC OS is/was Drobe, so I hope things pick up in due course. In any event, we all owe you a debt of thanks for keeping things going for so long.
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Jason Togneri Message #107537, posted by filecore at 14:31, 30/5/2008, in reply to message #107533

Posts: 3867
any publicity is good publicity!
I have nothing of value to contribute to this thread, so I'll point out instead that it's "No publicity is bad publicity", the reason being that this way round it has an unclear duality of meaning; having no publicity is a bad thing, or that any publicity, whether good or bad, is not a bad thing (because publicity is publicity). While your form still holds one of these points true, the charm of the phrase also lies in its subtle differences of meaning.

</pedantic troll>
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Acorn Arcade forums: General: A longer than normal silence