On 22 Mar 2007 12:14:10 -0700, "salmobytes"
wrote:

I noticed something interesting, I think.
Google has a lot of freely available statistics about
usenet traffic and usage patterns, on a group by group basis,
going back a long ways.

Some groups, like rec.woodworking, are statistically stable.
The average number of posts per day for rec.woodworking now
is roughly what it was seven years ago.

But traffic to rec.outdoors.fishing.fly is roughly 80% less
than it used to be.

Do we have fewer fly fishermen?
Or are they.....well. What is it?
How what why.

Troll.

I'd offer that there are lots of reasons. As to ROFF specifically,
boredom with ROFF, tired of what they see as the bull****, spending time
on what they see as more "civil" forums, etc. But simply comparing one
NG to another isn't really a complete view. In my eight or so years
around here (this is now the only NG or other "forum," fishing or
otherwise, in which I'd say I even semi-regularly participate), there
have been lots of comings and goings, and some seem to always be leaving
and never coming back, time after time after time.

IAC, are _all_ rec. hierarchy NGs stable except ROFF? If not, there is
likely all sorts of explanations for those changes, including ROFF's
changes. Heck, USENET isn't as big a portion of online, um,
communication as it once was - think of the changes over the last seven
years with regard to the 'net.

TC,
R
....and heck, there's not nearly as many AOLers and WebTVers
"discovering" that new, wonderful thing called newsgroup websites...