For me, Swajames was correct in his assessment - an influx of seemingly negative/trollish posters as the exclusivity of the E60 waned definately had an impact on my enthusiasm level. Coupled with the traveling I do, it just didn't seem as enjoyable an environment. In addition, as others have stated, much has been discovered and discussed with these cars. Yet lately, I find myself back on a bit more. Frankly, I missed the camaraderie and fellowship shared within the enthusiast circle.

Dave and Mark created an amazingly wonderful resource here. Rudy, Iceman, and now, Gene have been wonderful moderators - no easy task with a site membership numbering in the tens of thousands. As the site has grown and moved into new directions, so have members here. As the F10 gains in favor and ownership numbers, we may very well discover another spike in memberships. Our beloved E60 takes its place amongst BMWs of past. It is still a wonderful car, yet the reality is it is a past model. It is no longer the exclusive, current, upmarket (and yes, even elite) car it once was. That torch has been passed to the F10. To the newer members, it really is up to you to direct this site. The enthusiasm, enjoyment, and surprise that occurs with discovering new features and exciting things with your car should be shared. Don't rely on the 'old-timers' here. Kindle your excitement and channel it in positive ways. And, temper your angst if you don't receive a reply in a time frame YOU think is necessary. As others have stated, the answers may be there. Learn to use this resource properly and it will reward you with immense knowledge. Be rewarded.

 

As I stated earlier I was gone for a while due to me driving other BMW models. My 90 posts were back between 2004-2007. I had a first model year e60 just like now I have a first model year F10. My point is that when you compare then and now there is a huge difference. When I go to bimmerpost in their F10 forum I see so much more activity.

 

Crisis.

 

I joined this forum for the quality of threads not the quantity. It suits be picking up a few good posts rather than reading through loads of rubbish. I've only had my F10 1 month and I already feel part of a community.



I'm here to stay, if you'll have me!

Cheers

 

Well said. I'm new to this too but found the types of questions and tone of responses to reflect the type of forum I am looking for. Yes there are plenty of other forums (which I do occasionally look at) but I have only posted on E60.net. Again, I'll stay if you'll have me!

 

I'm on this forum every single day but don't post as much anymore just cause there's not much left to say. Then again, most of the time when I do post, it's to answer questions that probably have been discussed many times over but instead of letting or telling those members to search, I actually like providing the answer right away. This is probably because I'm the type that wants a quick answer and figured I could help others from spending too much time searching. Also, if all topics have been discussed and you just expect people to search then forums are no longer interactive. They start to become lifeless libraries of sort for people to dig for their own info; quiet and boring.

 

[quote name='swajames' timestamp='1294508471' post='1291239']
The forum is is decline, there is no question. It is simply nowhere near the place it once was. The level of posting appears to me to be significantly down, in terms of both volume and quality.

The are a number of possible explanations and drivers for this. I'll offer two.

Firstly, as the price of the prior E60 fell and it became a more widely accessible used car purchase, we saw a significant influx of a very different caliber of member, offering little more than childish trash talk and "text speak" in expletive-laden but otherwise unremarkable posts. There's a place for levity in the forum, but not to the degree we sometime see. In the past we used to see some great threads, with interesting discussion, different opinions with generally respectful disagreement and some pretty cool topics. We simply don't see this to the same degree we once did. I accept this is a subjective assessment - what I find mediocre others find interesting, but I am sure that the longer standing members, and many great members from the past who for reasons such as those I've just articulated rarely or no longer post here, would agree with me.

^^^^
Nicely said!

 

I guess the old guys have said most there is to say and some have moved on to other rides and/or interests.

Some of them will hang around to help rookies like me along and some will return with an F10.

New people will come in with their F10's and everything will start over again...

Great place with loads of knowledge and many great people.

 

On topic; I don't know.....


But maybe the problem can be solved by starting all over again about the software versions of our cars.

How do you find the SW version in the F10?

 

Recession (greedy US bankers) and a new 5 series model and some site competition, is the cause!
When I joined the E60.net in 2005 the car had been on the market a few years, the new F10 not even a year.