Alphabet Challenge #18 - Readerville and Ravelry

Eight years ago, or so, Karen Templer started Readerville, a social networking site for readers, writers, editors, librarians...anyone who loved books and reading. A lot of the early posters came over from Salon's Table Talk forums.

Well, it's been a delightful eight years, but it looks as though it might be coming to an end. Karen's been carrying the charges herself...though in the last couple of years she's instituted dues, paid on an honor system. And she just can't do it anymore. So Readerville, my home away from home, my place to pop into when work gets too boring for words, will become merely comments on whatever article is up at the Readerville Journal for the day.

Frankly, I don't think it's going to work. (But then I'm a pessimist, I'll admit.) But comments on a blog? I just don't seem the same sense of community continuing. And, to be honest, I rarely feel that I have anything to say about the article on the Journal's front page. In a way, I wish it was just a clean "Readerville isn't going to exist anymore. Sorry."

Karen is very-closed mouth about actual facts and figures...and that's her right. I just wish she would let the community in on some of them. It's hard to offer up suggestions when one doesn't know things like: How many posters are there? How many lurkers? What percentage of the posters pay their dues? What are the monthly server costs? It makes it seem less like "Oh, no, something I'm involved in is threatened" and more like "Oh, this nice little business I like is closing." I feel much less invested in helping out in the second case.

Of course, there's lots I don't know...I think several of the problems (not being able to enforce dues-paying, not being able to take ads) come from the people on whose server Readerville is lodged. While changing to a different company might have been difficult...might have meant starting from scratch...maybe this should have been pursued years ago. But again, I don't know for sure. I could be talking through my hat.

Which brings me to Ravelry. Maybe Karen needs to talk to Jess and Casey. I worry about (well, that's a little strong...I'm not that invested in it) the ability of Ravelry to keep going. There are a lot more members and thus a lot more posting. A lot of it inconsequential chatter (how often do threads turn into heated discussions about breastfeeding?). A lot of threads asking specific questions about specific lines in specific patterns. A host of duplicative threads. Unless Jess and Casey have some Crays in their living room, I can't imagine that the server costs aren't going to become overwhelming. Of course, they do accept ads.

So, I dunno. I will be very sorry to see Readerville come to an end. I've made some good friends there. But I have to say, I'm feeling rather numb about it.