to be or not to be, on Stephanes forum

[marlin]

I'm still a regular visitor of this forum, just don't post often(but not that I did when Stephane was a competitive skater). This is a very important place for me. It's a library keeping everything and keeping them organized. A little quiet comparing with social networks yes, but that's exactly the best trait. People can linger here just going through post after post. Social networks have quick pieces of stephane but there you can't find his specific 'place', which you CAN here.

So reut, it is not dead. Perhaps one day this forum will be achived, but not now. Much later.


Let me share my little story with you. I've been managing a local Stephane's fan forum for five years. It was very quiet in the beginning. I posted videos/news/pictures without expecting replies. During competitive season there were more skating fans dropping by, and low season not. Together we have three regular, active members and that was it. With a sudden huge media coverage, the flourishing time of the forum came right after Vancouver. For about a year I didn't need to post frequently, just making sure to delete inappropriate posts. Then now that everything is back to normal, the forum turns quiet again. As you all I become lazy and write less than 1/5 as I did before, but it's still there. I know people still visit it and that's enough for me. People come and go - that's only natural, especially given stephane's retired status.

IMO A forum is also a far better source than twitter/facebook for the new fans. There aren't much of them but you share their happiness when they find what they want about THE skater. You know how it feels. Know it pretty well.

So thank you very much for keeping this board active, ladies. Your efforts and contributions are truly appreciated.

[kayin]

Thanks for the updates on AOI.

It's an interesting discussion about whether the board is needed. I do like having information here (as the 'one place' suggested by someone).

I fully admit I am more of a 'lurker' than a 'poster', however, to be completely honest I have had bad experiences on message boards previously (where my opinion wasn't respected or some people dominated the board) so I am often very reluctant to post on messageboards at all (i don't like confrontation or abuse - i suppose no one does).

I do appreciate all the hard work people put into finding Stephane news and images to share here. Please keep it up

[mejokuste]

First, thank you pia, for the link to blog-daum. Beautiful pictures and I would like to safe them, but don't know how (and if it is permitted). Does anybody know if and how they can be downloaded?

Me too I love this board ... and have followed it for a long time, already when there was the old version til 2006 or 2007, even though I have never posted myself as I have nothing much to add really. But it seems to be the only place where people shared the experiences they made at shows or competitions in english, meeting Stephane or not, telling their wonderful stories which were always a delight to read. It seems to me only natural that this happens on Stephanes site.
And I hope it continues .... reut's "provocation" seems to have been a wake up call and that's not bad at all. Nice even .


Back to Stephane: I wish him to be in good health soon again!!!

[estephania]

So many post before mine which reflected already a lot of my feelings too. Thanks for every single one!

Yes, I love this board too and appreciated and still appreciate it!

Kudos and many to all those Stéphane supporters who kept this board alive lately, specially reut who provides more then often infos from lambiel.ru to us but also ia who is a fequent poster here. (Please let lambiel.ru know my appreciation too).
Further thanks to all the others Stéphane friend 's around the world, who share information they get in their languages and make things accessible here on this board. It's very helpful to have as much as possible on the same place to look up! Hope this will be so in future furtherin.
This said also a great „MERCI“ all the videoposters specially those who are so kind to share their own homevids, take time to record broadcasts and upload later everything so that it gets accessible here. - You are all so important for me! Without you, I would miss most about Stéphane and his further developement as person and skater.
So thanks to everybody who did also a lot for this board to keep it alive, specially those I forgot to mention before e.g. the mods and many more persons!

Why didn't I post no longer so frequent as in former times here?
First of all as simple as it sounds: the main reason is my personal situation because since more then two years things in my life happened and still happens, to which I have to give priority - wheter I like it or not.
I admit, I was more then once tempted to answer here, to get into discusssions here or to start one. (Making actually an exception, because it would be indeed sad, if this board might get closed.)
I principal I hate to make a priority list for my freetime.But unfortunately I'm still not at this point where I have catched up with the most urgent things which have to be done before I might get again more dedicated in posting here.

An additional problem for me seems to be lately: Even if I had for once tried to do searches (as I felt I should also try to post sometimes something here and not let do the work only by a few nice people ) I couldn't find new informations about him on presse or internet anymore. Honnestly mostly none though I live in the same country as Stéphane.
I was more then once estonished that pia and reut found news, pics or articles about him which didn't appear on my searching channels but also .
Don't know what secret sources you have , my dear other posters, but was happy that you have had it and I could take advantage off .
I would really be sad and missing this board if it would die as well as also all the interesting reports around skating and skaters in gerneral and all the inspiring interviews.

What I will try in future: to post at least a bit more often a very simple "Thank you"-post or something similar so that posters can see, that their research, reports etc. have had an impact and did not only mutuel appreciated. So please keep up with posting! - All the infos here made already more then once my day!!!
And if my live was stressy and still is: having a nice short break here and reading about Steéphane and figure skating in general was, and still is a very nice distraction for me. It helped often to get good vibes and cheered me up and news made my day brighter in the past!

So this post was again a long one – probably not happening so quick again… -

[reut]

Thanks to Mireille for separating this discussion to its own thread.

I'm glad we've got here reactions from people who recently were more silent.

Just to relate to something which was mentioned here: no, I don't think that Twitter and any other social network should influence this forum, if people really need the forum and not something else.

Twitter (if we talk about lambielnews) is supposed to be for news' alerts, fans can't write there, can't influence it and more important they can't discuss there things. So each site/place has its own purpose. The purpose of forum is more than just "lurk" and get updated with news, it's first of all for sharing - news, opinions, fan works, photos, videos. If you want to share, then this forum should live, if you only want to read news, then Twitter is enough and this forum will slowly die. As you see all depends on you, if you take an active position and share or not.

I can't talk about everyone, so just about myself. I don't have any secret source. All come from google search, google alerts on e-mail, search on YouTube, skating forums, skating and skating shows sites and official sources (Facebook and site), nothing secret here.

Hope Stephane will stay in skating for a long-long time and we'll have lots of exciting news and wonderful photos and videos here for a long-long time too.

[annelfie]

Me too, I like this forum very much, because facebook is for the spur of the moment, not to have an overview of things that happened a while ago.
So I would very much like this forum to stay alive, although I totally agree with you Reut, that that requieres activity from people.
Unfortunately my working situation has changed somewhat and I also follow stuff on twitter and facebook, so I have less time to be here, which mostly meand that I write less, but still read it.

Salut,
Annelfie

[pia]

Jun 3, 2012 10:46:04 GMT 1 reut said:

Thanks to Mireille for separating this discussion to its own thread.

I'm glad we've got here reactions from people who recently were more silent.

Just to relate to something which was mentioned here: no, I don't think that Twitter and any other social network should influence this forum, if people really need the forum and not something else.

Twitter (if we talk about lambielnews) is supposed to be for news' alerts, fans can't write there, can't influence it and more important they can't discuss there things. So each site/place has its own purpose. The purpose of forum is more than just "lurk" and get updated with news, it's first of all for sharing - news, opinions, fan works, photos, videos. If you want to share, then this forum should live, if you only want to read news, then Twitter is enough and this forum will slowly die. As you see all depends on you, if you take an active position and share or not.

I can't talk about everyone, so just about myself. I don't have any secret source. All come from google search, google alerts on e-mail, search on YouTube, skating forums, skating and skating shows sites and official sources (Facebook and site), nothing secret here.

Hope Stephane will stay in skating for a long-long time and we'll have lots of exciting news and wonderful photos and videos here for a long-long time too.

I agree very much with everything Reut says and I'm thankful for her "provocation"
I miss our discussions and opinions and I'm glad that we had some interesting discussions lately.

[digitus quintus]

I must admit - I got used to thought that the flame of this forum got smaller and smaller. And then there's was just a little pilot light. Sometimes it takes provocation to wake people - to wake me up.

Reut - Thanks!

[aleachim]

Hello I would like to bring also my reaction to this topic.

This AS-message board is the only forum to discuss news about figure skating, especially Stéphane art, between fans who are not experts on figure skating in english. I thought it for a long time, now I know about some other boards, but I would not leave this board, because good virtual relationships between members here. I do not have any place, where I woud read about admiration for this sport-art and for Stéphane in english

It is not easy to find "figure skating and Stéphane-friendly" people to speak with.. Almost everybody says - you are crazy! (except some my friends from CZ:) I am very happy to know you from this board, happy to read your stories about meeting with Stéphane and be partly there with you

I can read in english here, practise understanding and sometimes writting in this language too. Sorry for my mistakes - you have a very good english here!!

Last but nost least - this forum is still the only official Stéphane's forum that is linked on his website. I hope website of favourite figure skater is still the first place for new fans who are looking for more information about their idol

I think there are many reasons to preserve this board live and actual and I will try to be active here as much as it is possible for me

[schnaddel]

It is so nice to have so many old fans back in this discussion!


At the moment I'm working 20 hours a day. I really do not have the time to search for news (and discuss them). And ladies: We started many years ago - there are some who have hard jobs or a big family or both now. ((twitter??? who has the time???))
And what Estephania said is right for me, too. I never found really news in go ogle alerts etc. . When I think I have something it is already here, thanks to you, dear friends! I don't know how you do that, I said it so often. Thank you again for everything.

For me this place is very important for collecting everything, for me it IS 'the one place' like Kayin said.

[kadri]

i know i'm a little late on the discussion, but i would also like to personally add that while i do not post that much anymore, i still regularly browse the forum and keep myself up to date with all things related to Stephane thanks to all those wonderful people over here who share their picture, videos, articles, etc. if this forum would disappear, i don't know where i'd get information on Stephane from! so it's an irreplaceable place for me and i'm very thankful too all the people who keep it alive <3

[lauravvv]

I am more than little late for this, but I still want to say something. I think this place is quite important for those Stephane fans who are not members of 'lambiel_ru'. And thanks to this thread the forum obviously has become more active again . I admit that I personally have moved to 'lambiel_ru' almost completely, as I understand Russian quite well, although I am not Russian myself. But there are many other fans who don't know Russian, and they too need a place where they can find all important news about Stephane, and also discuss them when they feel like it. And it's practically impossible in places like 'Facebook'.

I really came here quite rarely for some time, but I think that might change now. Besides, even though I haven't been coming here that often lately, this place still means a lot to me. Before I joined 'lambiel_ru', I got all information about Stephane from here. And it was also the first place where I found other fans of Stephane with whom I could discuss his programs and other things about him (or just read other's opinions).

As for posting news and information, and so on - I too have Stephane on 'Google' alert, but for some reason I never receive the more important news, and I don't have enough time to go looking for the news all over the net. Probably if I knew the right places - but, unfortunately, I don't know them.

Anyway, thanks a lot, reut and everyone else who posts news, links, videos, photos, opinions, and so on.