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Board Cycles

Amorphous - Some guy has a board. There are no regulations on anything, but that's mostly because no one posts. Some of his friends and people who stumble upon his site might drop a message here and there, and the board owner might reply with a few comments, but its function is little more than that of a guestbook. Example: Otto's board

Embryonic - Some guy has a board, and maybe four or five others regularly post there. New people come and go, but the board's population is, overall, an extremely tight-knit clique. Most posts tend to involve obscure in-jokes and a general sense of hostility towards strangers. Note that a few boards at the Friendliness stage might actually have a single-digit population; however, other differences will be apparent below. Example: Kharn's board

Trolling - Eventually someone gets fed up with the lack of activity on the board and begins hitting other boards left and right to get people to come to this board. Sometimes it works; sometimes the board reverts back to its original form. This is by definition a very brief stage and examples are not easily available.

Flame War - Someone at another board got pissed off at your board. Let the games begin.

Friendliness - Eventually the initial culture shock is over, differences are settled, etc., and the board moves with perfect fluidity. Although the Debates, Flame War and a large Civil War might show greater total activity, the average frequency and quality of posts at this stage is at a local maximum. Unlike the Embryonic stage, newcomers are welcomed with open arms, as the board regulars by and large do not feel the original insecurity of their previous position. Relations with other boards at a similar stage are almost perfectly fluid. Examples are difficult to find, as no one notices when the board is at its best until it is too late.

Debates - When the peace and prosperity get boring, someone brings up one of those "hot-button" issues that everyone on the board has an opinion about. This usually becomes extremely long-winded and intellectual, and often people will bring in others to support their points. However, quite a few of the old board loyalists from the earlier stages become increasingly alienated, and the general mood tends to be a bit more sour than before.

Civil War - This may arise from a debate gone wrong, someone converting to the other side during a flame war, or just some stupid petty grievances between bloated egos. Although in principle it is little other than an internalised flame war, a civil war tends to be characterised by a general "victim" mentality of passive-aggressive attacks, extremely out-of-character bitching from various regulars and an excruciatingly depressing inability for everyone involved to take a joke. There are inevitably a few resilient folk who doggedly stay neutral and attempt to forcibly steer the board back to one of the earlier stages, usually to no avail.

Frivolity - Whether jaded or afraid of offending fragile sensitivities and sparking another civil war, the people have an unspoken agreement to only discuss trivial, insipid matters. People post about their day, post pictures of their pets, post joke e-mails, just as long as it's not particularly serious or emotionally important. If it's a political or moral issue, even the smartest regulars find themselves yammering on with trite, plebian material that they would've considered far beneath them in any of the other stages. Often this depression gets so bad that people leave. The good thing about this is that it might spur a civil war. The bad thing is that the civil war is no less of an annoyance to endure.

Stagnation - The inevitable result of a frivolous board, this is the stage of decline where people finally begin to give up en masse. If there is any hostility among the regulars, it is spoken of only behind their targets' backs, not out of cowardice so much as that it has ceased to be worth it to dredge up old, uh, "civil war memorabilia." Eventually the board collapses into a core group of people not unlike the situation in the Embryonic board, save that people are quite glad to welcome newcomers, hoping for any new material to kick-start the board again. However, unlike a Friendly board the newbies quickly realise that there's nothing left of worth here and leave. If the board owner is lucky, this core group might finally disperse, rendering it amorphous once more and allowing room for growth in a completely different direction. Usually, however, the board itself either dies or remains at this stage for a long, long time.

Spamming: This can happen anytime, anywhere. The community either recovers and goes on as before, or the forum itself is corrupted and destroyed. It is inconsequential save as a nuisance.

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