I can't speak for this group but I was in another group that was incredibly   
   active between 1997 and 2009 before petering down to just a dribble, similar   
   to this group.   
      
   The theory of the collapse there was, the real hardcore fans of the topic had   
   managed to burn through all the obsessive conversation they could stomach in   
   the ten-plus years of activity on the board. After more than a decade of   
   discussing one subject ...    
   there was little new left to say - even with new releases.   
      
   While new folks were still joining the group, they were either far   
   less-knowledgeable, trolls, or simply not as obsessed.   
      
   Further, the wave of "newbies" faced unkind comments and treatment from the   
   older crowd for their questions - not at all unlike what is seen here (hell,   
   *I* did it with my "google" comment at the top of this thread). Consequently,   
   new folks feel    
   unwelcome and any fresh participation is squashed.   
      
   Finally, those of the older group who did still feel like talking about the   
   subject simply moved to fresher, more active sites. Note that the forum on   
   zappa.com is far more active than this one (though, I must admit I've not been   
   on it in a  long while    
   and that may no longer be the case).   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)