Forum getting too popular?

[EEVblog]

While I don't think the forum can be too popular, it is going to outgrow the current platform at this rate, so we really do need to look for a replacement that will scale to more users.  The online numbers are skewed by people like me who keep a tab open 24x7.

We are nowhere near the limits of the servers hosting the forum, nothing to worry about there.

[techman-001]

I know it's a good thing...
But is it just me, or has the volume of posts increased a lot recently?
I now commonly see 3-4 pages of posts when I hit the Unread Posts link, and that's only after like an 8 hour sleep or something.
I couldn't keep up before reading all the posts, and now it's shifted from simply too hard, to impossible! 

Dave.

It's not just you, I see the same thing over the same time span. You've become the new Usenet e.e.vblog !

[BravoV]

Quite boring actually as most are well regulated with minimal ripples as power aficionados speak. 

An exception at the new members, major big spike on Aug 2019, similar height at Dec 2018.

Spammer accounts strike again, Dave ?

[wilfred]

The new members is probably not reliable. Dave recently made a change to the new member stats to better reflect actual new members.

[BravoV]

You're probably right, but again, the charts came straight directly from the raw data that the forum (SMF) provides.

[wilfred]

Yes, if you look at the very latest new member stats on the graph you can see how it returns to the level a few years ago. I don't know how often or how many members (zeroposters mostly) Dave has cleaned out over the years but he recently did 12000.

[EEVblog]

Spammer accounts strike again, Dave ?

Yep, I implemented a new sign-up spam option and it seems to have killed most of it.

[GlennSprigg]

Weeding through the multitude of replies here......
SO.....  many new posts & responses, means a pain in the ass to keep up with
Maybe, it's not all about 'you', but what the myriad of posters/responders enjoy, with
their intercontinental dialogs, which, (unfortunately) may grow   As it should!!   

[SiliconWizard]

Wow, you were worried about the forum getting too popular, 7 years ago... and look where we're at now.

One thing that attracts both legitimate users and spam is that it's very well referenced in Google. Many searches about electronics will yield links to this forum. Of course it's a good thing, but can be a curse at the same time.

[Psi]

Spammer accounts strike again, Dave ?

Yep, I implemented a new sign-up spam option and it seems to have killed most of it.

Show them a resistor and ask what value it is from the colors.
That would be an awesome signup CAPTCHA for this forum.

[BravoV]

Spammer accounts strike again, Dave ?

Yep, I implemented a new sign-up spam option and it seems to have killed most of it.

Show them a resistor and ask what value it is from the colors.
That would be an awesome signup CAPTCHA for this forum.

That is a really good idea. 

And mix with simple component's type identification like resistor, inductor, capacitor, transistor thru hole or smd. 

[Zucca]

https://www.aptitude-test.com/free-aptitude-test/electronics-knowledge/

[EEVblog]

https://www.aptitude-test.com/free-aptitude-test/electronics-knowledge/

 
On the time, I'm sick and currently processing things in the sub Hz region.

[EEVblog]

Many searches about electronics will yield links to this forum.

Yes, it's interesting that I always seem to get this forum and never other electronics forum results?
There is at least one other forum as big as this one.

[BravoV]

New record page views happened yesterday at 16th Jan 2020, curious if its real or DDOS ?

Others are basically flat, few tiny spike at Jan 2020 for new member registrations.

Time to have new giveaway contest maybe, Dave ?

[wilfred]

Others are basically flat, few tiny spike at Jan 2020 for new member registrations.

But why?
Dave's away is coincident.

[BravoV]

Others are basically flat, few tiny spike at Jan 2020 for new member registrations.

But why?
Dave's away is coincident.

I guess only Dave or gnif probably could tell, as they need to read the log in order to get the clue. 

[wilfred]

Others are basically flat, few tiny spike at Jan 2020 for new member registrations.

But why?
Dave's away is coincident.

I guess only Dave or gnif probably could tell, as they need to read the log in order to get the clue. 

Doesn't Dave clean up spam accounts? But he's not here to do it.

[Jeroen3]

Many searches about electronics will yield links to this forum.

Yes, it's interesting that I always seem to get this forum and never other electronics forum results?
There is at least one other forum as big as this one.

Other forums are not very indexable due to popups (cookies, newsletter, signup) or they are outdated. Many are also not english.
There is also https://electronics.stackexchange.com/ but stackexchange is having a crisis. Some members already left. (olin for example)

[BravoV]

Doesn't Dave clean up spam accounts? But he's not here to do it.

Patience young grass hopper, lets wait Dave to answer that instead of me.

[magic]

I do get links to SE from searches, both for electronics and computers, but they are getting decreasingly helpful. Seems like they don't want simple questions because it's not a useful contribution to their grand mission of complementing wikipedia (lol), they don't want complex questions because too much thinking is not what SE is for, what do they even want?

Maybe SE-the-company is envious of EEVBlog's beginners section, where most basic questions are asked again and again, generating fresh "traffic", "page views" and "ad impressions", so they triggered the hell out of those pompous pedants with a pronoun controversy

[EEVblog]

For the spam accounts spike and then fall I can only assume that someone cracked the spam filter plugin and then they patched it or something 
I only see  1723 spam members attempts since I last cleaned it, doesn't seem like many.
The stats would only be on account that actually got through registration I assume.

[EEVblog]

FYI< the biggest spam accounts from from thefmail.com (Never heard of it), mail.ru, and gmail

[BravoV]

How about the page views record Dave ? DDoS ?

[EEVblog]

How about the page views record Dave ? DDoS ?

Yes, there was a DDOS attack that took down the server on xmas day
I'm sure that was a courtesy of a forum well known resident here...