Honestly, without the BBS I would no longer bother with BoingBoing. Ever since the front page redesign where it stopped being a linear, chronological blog I’ve found it easier and more entertaining to just skip that and go to the BBS.
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After being on the BBS basically since it was created, I was made a Regular last week. So I can’t really speak to the life-changing effect my Regular status has had, but at least I’m glad I was a member of the secret club era, albeit briefly, so that I can complain in the future how much better things were when being Regular meant something.
Seriously through, as much as I oppose the secret club idea, I think there are some compelling reasons to keep it. And I’m especially disappointed at the unilateral way in which the decision was made to close it. Sure, this is “your board” and you (bb staff) can decide how to run it, but it’s the commenters that make the board and I think the decision should be made in consultation. That it’s not is a failure.
But I’m not here to just cast stones, I propose a solution; if BBS is willing, let’s make the Regular status more democratized, making membership up to the Regulars rather than some obscure process. And let’s try to fix whatever problems here are, rather than throwing the baby out with the bath water.
If BBS is not willing to engage in discussion with Regulars, let’s just create a board somewhere else where we have control, and move the conversation there. We have the capability to do that - it’s easy enough to create a board and even tie it in to the BBS TL system I would think. Heck, this might even by the beginning of the other idea I proposed in my “collective blog of commenters” thread.
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This. I never go to the front page. I bbs, and if I find the headline interesting then read the full post.
What I always find more interesting are the discussions that then result. The comments enrich the posts, either with additional information or amusing anecdotes or a take that I hadn’t considered.
The commenters are of high quality, even the ones I disagree with, and I hold them in equal regard to the authors.
It’s a pity you don’t do the same. As Huck Finn says, this place may be getting too sivilized for the likes of me.
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I don’t have much of an opinion on these changes, but now I am a little hurt that I haven’t yet achieved “Regular” status… 
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I’ve very much enjoyed my Lounge and other “upper tier” conversations, and I’m going to be disappointed to see that venue go away, while understanding – in theory – the reasons for it. I can only assume that many non-Regulars were Disappointed to not be included. I am sorry their feelings were hurt.
I’m definitely thinking about cancelling this expensive BoingBoing Regular subscription I paid for in the BB Store. I dunno how all of you folks can afford this but it’s severely cutting into my banana budget.
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On the other hand, as someone relatively new here, I was completely unaware of a “regulars-only” area. I did notice the “Regular” titles, but I had no idea there were extra privileges associated with it.
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I just want it 1000% clear that I do not want my posts to be in this archive you’re creating. My posts themselves and any time someone quoted me outright in there. I think I appreciate what you’re trying to do (I guess) but I don’t want to be included at all.
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I seem to have created a little confusion. My apologies. Although I did quote you (from this thread), my question was about the topic(s) of the current thread, the one we are in now. How long have these changes been in the works?
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This! I wasn’t online last night so this morning I saw the notification of 80+ unread lounge posts… But the lounge had already been disappeared for me.
Not being allowed time to say goodbye feels like a “fuck you” and definitely sours my feelings towards the entirety of bb.
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Now, now. You don’t say “fuck you” to unruly children, do you? /s
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But you’re new, and as someone else mentioned upthread, it took 50 days, at least, of visiting and commenting on the site until that “regular” status was achieved. No purity tests, no meritocracy, just show up and engage, and if you can do that without being a total asshat, then you are WERE welcomed into the Lounge.
To me, the process felt like moving to a new city: find the good local grocery store, the good local restaurant, and then the good local bar where the barkeep knows your name, or at least knows your face well enough to sling a freebie your way once in a while, and where you’ll help the wait staff with that computer problem they’re having and maybe give them a ride home after work because it’s on your way. And now that’s going away and I’m sorry to hear it.
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I work with teenagers… So while I certainly don’t say it I do sometimes think it.
(Though I am also careful not to make any decisions while angry because decisions made while angry are almost never the right decisions)
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Ok so it’s the morning. A couple thoughts
- This really does feel like a punishment. Maybe it’s not, maybe it is. But to me at a minimum it feels like a punishment,
- I reread the reasons stated for this – I guess I get it. “If y’all need a safe space, then we failed. So we’re getting rid of the safe space immediately.” That’s about it, no?
- It really seems to show a lack of respect of the community that was built even though it wasn’t quite intentional. A ton of people shared very person aspects of themselves _mostly to help others – disabilities, gender identity struggles, health issues, job woes, financial difficulties relationship issues, parenting problems, emotional and sexual abuse. There was so much being discussed behind closed doors. And it’s all gone now. Overnight.
- The publicly indexed and accessible BBS will never be that. Ever. It just won’t. Nobody is going to post stuff like this. Not like it was. Failure? No. Just the internet. That’s how it works.
- I appreciate the folks who have reached out to me. I really had no idea the extent to which people were paying attention to what I’ve written.
- I know nobody owed us anything. So … there’s that.
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Late to the party. This is what I get for playing video games all night!
I guess I’m in the minority… but this doesn’t bother me so much? I remember the long ago time before the BBS. And there were no regulars or hidden lounges. But we still made friends and still commented and still had community. The more things change the more they stay the same. Only now we have DMs. 
See you mutants on the flipside.
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Did it at least outlive your Lifetime* VPN?
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Have a beer on me brother 
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Duuuude. I don’t remember. You know how many vapes they sell in the BB store?
A lot of vapes.
What were we talking about?
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I wish we’d had a little more notice before the shut-down and I’ll miss the lounges and my regular status, but “your joint, your rules.” You folks do an excellent job moderating and maintaining a vibrant and civil community.
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Considering that the qualifications for achieving Regular were so arbitrary, how in the world could something accessible by anyone who met those qualifications (including me for a while) be a “safe space”?
As for if some people helped others, thats a great thing! More light in the world, less darkness. It happened. Thats a thing to be happy about.
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