hey grandpa is your prune juice working?
pro-tech’s experience as a new user on shift:
skip to 6:00…i guess you can’t embed a video at whatever time you want, thanks obama.
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Im 32.
I like telling dumb people to fuck off too.
what else is there to talk about? Between all the wonderfull suggestions on improving the site and such going on here.
After the next off topic comment that doesnt move this thread forward in a way that we develop ideas on improving the place im starting a lock vote.
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wow I had a lot of catching up to do! just found out the place was even sold about a month ago. I like the new layouts/updates. however only thing I didn’t like was going into some builds and seeing they weren’t local, or most of all the classifieds. I come on shift518, due to its a local group of guys. Its cool meeting up with people whom are local, and especially selling stuff local. Ride-NY died, don’t let shift518 die… We don’t have anymore local forums really, besides brand specific sites (Roflwagens). I never got into the drama, however reading it was entertaining. my vote would be to keep updating, but just keep it local. maybe one section that’s regional?
most of the sections are regional… the ones with no activity in them… those are the regional (shift518) ones 
the ones with activity in them… those are the network ones
i suspect there is some apprehension because it maybe isnt as clear as it could be which sections are networked and which are not?
some of the Ontario guys continue to have the same apprehension about not being overly enthusiastic about participating on a forum that really isn’t entirely local. the reason we cannot fully commit to that is because regional forums all over the continent are facing severely declining traffic, similar to shift518 and some of the other forums we took on. the only way to keep them viable is to network them… typical economies of scale stuff.
there are hundreds of forums facing these same patterns of declining relevance and most are too small to be of interest to the larger consolidators like autoguide and verticalscope… those guys are focusing on the larger international ones that have at least 1500 active users on them at all times.
the only options (for small regional forums like shift518) are either to reinvest in an unprofitable asset (regional forums), let them die 100% like the syracuse one or the option we bring of a light merge into a semi-regional forum.
it should also be noted that we do not generate $1 of additional income off shift518 or pittspeed etc… you’ll notice there are no PPC ads on the sites. eventually there may be but keeping them off leads to some chuckles when people just assume we’re doing this for obvious profits… pretty sure a few guys here have made comments about that already.
this is a pure hobbyist / enthusiast agenda… we’re doing it because it’s interesting to see if it can be done. mix results thus far but it continues to be interesting and that’s enough for us
So much hate in this thread… Might have to neg everyone that’s in it…
yup.
Just for old times sake, can someone remind me what it was before Shift? Wasn’t it like- APG? And there was something before that, no? Back in the poorboyz days-
Don’t forget Swat and Rspeed
Apg, swat and then shift. If I remember right.
No you didn’t
Right now there is no local content. So the ratio of local content to network stuff is shit and would be shit even if there was no network stuff.
Cptn. I dont sugar coat things reporting for duty.
I know why it was purchased, and for how much. I also understand the goals, and whats in bold in just this post prove it. This is defiantly an investment. There is absolutely no shame in that, thats by far NOT my point here to bash that idea/concept. The last part in bold and underlined isnt effectively pulling the blanket over my head. It was never about shift518 revival, or the purchase would not have happened… if it was thats a massive charity and we should be crazy great full, in fact i have some credit card debit if you want to do it again to help me too! AGAIN, maybe I am reading and understanding all this totally wrong, if so I blame Vlad and all the posts here because they were really pushing for a different agenda it seemed.
I have a small concept of what it would cost to host this site. All by its lonesome in the middle of nowhere. Knowing that, what was invested already time and $ and what i think is going on here I completely understand the extra efforts and focus you guys are taking on increasing traffic, exposure, etc. I would be lying if I said I wouldn’t do the same if i were in your shoes/situation.
Point is this. You can’t cheat death. If Shift was supposed to die it will when it does. If you want to revive it you’re going to need to push it like it was 4+ years ago in the area (I say 4+ meaning shift as the name, it has been around for 3 times that as other names in the past, same people, same same concept, same groups, same ideas), you’re going to need alot of interaction to get new subscribers who will be an asset to the site and the AREA. If not, I would just absorb whats left of this place into your parent network, compute the figures for the % of current posters that will no longer post and call it a marginal gain for this quarter for the corporation.
Its a sticky situation I agree. You think adding ads for businesses in a 300 mile radius might bring a few 518 guys out of their shell, maybe it would. Adding some further away groups of people to the mix might as well. But, i have been around here for 10 years… your fighting an up hill battle after alot of rain, and you left your shoes at home. Since the merger I have not signed on to anything other than shift, because my life isn’t on the same path it was years ago where I would surf around 50 forums for fun. Same with lots of others here. Naturally our activity will be less, regardless of how many doors of new content you open up to us, or where the content comes from. Its a battle you will never win.
either wipe slate and absorbe whats left of this place into the whole shabang or revive what RSPEED/APG/SWAT/SHIFT has been for as long as I have been behind the wheel and leave Shift518 Shift518 and push the fuck out of the site LOCALLY to get more traffic, just like it has been/done for ever.
You are wrong. It’s that simple.
edit: addressing why and our motives only. I am not going to address the rest.
well then like i said. Based on the purchase, and all the water cooler talk on the public side, mod side, and in person with people of stature here I got really false signals i guess.
when you assume, you make an ass out of u an me. my bad
rest of what i said spurred 3 people to text me out of the blue in agreement, and 2 other messages online agreeing with what I said this entire thread… so take it for what it is i guess.
@KrazyKid, take a look at forums acquired by Vertical Scope, Autoguide, Internet Brands, etc.
Then take a look at what we’ve done here with Shift.
Since talking about it won’t convince you & the rumor mill, maybe some internet research will.
glad to see ya both my efforts in my reply today the wrong way.
Internet marketing analysis isn’t on my horizon, so how the fuck would i have known Vertical Scope, Autoguide, Internet Brands existed prior to you saying it, for me to do preventative analysis for this discussion we are having lol. All I went off of with my assumptions were based off the guy you bought it from telling me and me reading english text on this forum. I know this place wasnt gifted to you, it was bought for a decent chunk (atleast to me if it were my money). Assuming (fuck there i go again) you are like me, putting down that cash and your time/efforts, i would be retarded to assume you didnt want a ROI.
I dont need to be convienced of shit, infact I am about the most OPEN MINDED person commenting on this entire shit show. I could give a fuck if it is deleted tomorrow, is merged with 100 sites stretched across the country, or is hosted on Mars by aliens. You guys are here asking for advice and opinion, thats what im providing. Atleast its getting disscussion down here in the pits, unlike my “moving forward” thread in the mod section that nobody 3 replies with maybe 50 words total.
Bingo. If our motives were money, why would we bother.
conversely, then why even change a thing from day 1?
Why buy a old car and restore it?