1. No new blood and little younger blood on Mudcat.

Mudcat may be a bigger music resource than ever, but it is no longer quite the community it once was. BS got quite rancorous and I think it likely it discouraged many people visiting Mudcat, or perhaps even joining Mudcat for music reasons from participating below the line, which, really, is where the community aspect was built. Even above the line is increasingly rancorous, especially among the Brits.

Below the line, many of us are getting older, life is getting harder for a lot of people due to health or financial issues, job insecurity, etc. Many of us don't have time to play much, and have trouble finding our playful selves when we do have time. Mudcat below the line used to be a bit of a refuge for me. A place to come to be playful and to enjoy the play of others. Those kinds of threads got fewer and fewer. I, for one, am one of those who seem to have lost my sense of humor and wit - not that I was ever one of the delightful wits on Mudcat.

Mudcat used to be fun for me, and stimulating. I also used to be more fun and hopefully, more stimulating. I will say the D-day thread is one of the better threads below the line recently. People actually talking and listening respectfully, even if they disagree. Hope it lasts.

Max appears to be wearing out and losing his interest in herding cats who refuse to herd themselves, at least in terms of a social community on Mudcat.

I can't keep up with facebook, too complicated and overwhelming, but in truth, many of the cozy discussions and the wide ranging interests that folks used to engage in talk about on Mudcat now take place on facebook among people who met on Mudcat but have moved those conversations to facebook.

Change happens.

We ain't changing much except through the change brought about by entropy. I know my knee jerk reaction to some changes and experiments Max has tried on Mudcat has been resistance, and probably will continue to be, simply because as I get older these technological and sociological changes are leaving me behind. I can't keep up, and they seem threatening because I know if I can't keep up I will be left behind.

There is still a strong sense of social community among those of us who have been on Mudcat awhile. But we are a shrinking and not a particularly welcoming community anymore. I'm guessing Mudcat seems too limiting, closed and antiquated to attract younger users, which was already hard given our rather narrow focus on traditional forms of music.

We are becoming a dusty archive socially as well as musically. We are worth preserving for future generations, but perhaps only for researchers and social historians who will one day tell the history of social networking.

Ain't I cheerful?