Topic: Is CRO as a forum finished.

[littlechilie]

Hi all, I like to keep looking in from time to time on this forum, it was once a great access point and good web interface. IMO.
I noticed it no longer has any monitoring or mods.
Two spam adverts posted below in Thai are still open, what a shame it came to this, I do hope the few narcissistic members who chased away all the contributing members are content with their outcome.

[Peripatetic Phil]

Hi all, I like to keep looking in from time to time on this forum, it was once a great access point and good web interface. IMO.
I noticed it no longer has any monitoring or mods.

It is most certainly monitored -- I report every instance of spam, or spammers-in-waiting, that I detect.  Whether it is moderated qua moderated is moot -- it never has been, and probably never will.

** Phil.

[George]

Whether it is moderated qua moderated is moot -- it never has been, and probably never will.

Really? i'm quite offended! I tried my best to keep on top of spam and, despite his other failings, so did CA. The problem started when I tried to moderate-out bad language and what I saw as dross. The replacement Mod had such big ideas. Then what happened? I agree this forum is sadly almost 'finished' as a result. The forum owner should have taken my advice and kicked out just a handful of people who, in my opinion, have led to the forum's decline. Of course, it may all be a conspiracy set up by the (now) main competing forum, We will probably never know. As it is, I've made more progress left to my own devices in my kitchen, than by spending largely fruitless hours reading posts here. I'll be happy to meet again in Central London,, Phil, if you'd like to discuss it further.

[Peripatetic Phil]

Sadly now permanently resident in Cornwall, George, but we have an extremely good one-woman Indian (authentic) restaurant in Bodmin, the Golden Temple, so if ever you fancy some real Indian food and a trip to Cornwall, I am sure we can find you accommodation in the hotel ...

** Phil.

[littlechilie]

George you make very good points, the destruction is clearly  evident looking in from the outside.
I also always felt your mod input was fair and firm, and I appreciate you sticking to your guns on the swearing.. it

[Les]

Re: Is CRO as a forum finished.
YES, and has been for a couple of years now.   just my 2 pennies worth. ;D

[George]

Sadly now permanently resident in Cornwall, George, but we have an extremely good one-woman Indian (authentic) restaurant in Bodmin, the Golden Temple, so if ever you fancy some real Indian food and a trip to Cornwall, I am sure we can find you accommodation in the hotel ...

Don't you mean gladly rather than sadly? I'm sure it's a very nice place to live and seeing as I'm ramping up the amount I travel, I might just take you up on that, I've only ever been to Cornwall once before and it always surprises me how far it seems when one drives down there.

[Peripatetic Phil]

"Sadly" in the sense that a London meeting is no longer possible for me, George, although I have to confess that the incessant rain does somewhat diminish my pleasure in finally living in Betjeman country ...  And yes, it does take an eternity to get here by motor car, but the Pulman car, on the other hand, makes it a very enjoyable trip indeed.

** Phil.

[Stephen Lindsay]

I think this is a very simple question and like most simple questions the answers are less simple and often have several layers. I do agree that the halcyon days of the forum appear to be over.

I wonder if the forum has reached a critical mass in terms of the development of knowledge? For example, there are no longer extensive threads covering a base recipe. Perhaps one reason for this is that many members (like George mentions, and like me) have reached a point where they are happy with the quality of their curries and are simply cooking them at home, enjoying the results and not feeling the need to go much further?  I know I feel that I have been near the top of my learning curve for some years now. I have a base and a set of recipes that I have developed and I am happy with. I couldn't have done this without the forum.

I think perhaps another aspect that has disappeared is the passion with which the membership contributed to the forum. There were some fairly strong personalities, making regular contributions to the group. They were also hugely motivated to develop their cooking and the forum. This at times spilled over (pun intended) into bickering and falling out and it seemed like being a moderator as a bit of a thankless task.

I'm not sure if the forum is finished. If a forum is allowed to be a record of how to cook BIR and cook it well, then this forum is still an excellent archive for those who want to explore their own cooking. It's just not cooking on gas any more though is it?

Pun also intended.

[joshallen2k]

My take is similar to Stephen Lindsay's.

I've been on the forum for what must be 10 years now, but haven't actively posted for some time. I do however check in regularly to see what's going on.

Personally I believe that my BIR cooking is 95% there. I am very happy with it, and still produce base and use BIR technique in the home regularly. I'm not even sure there is really another 5% still to achieve. I do however wonder how my Madras stacks up to some of the board's more prolific contributors. I also believe that my success in achieving what I wanted with BIR cooking is 100% down to this forum and those who posted over the years.

I don't think someone is likely to post a base recipe with the impact of the Bruce Edwards post many years back (and others, not picking that one specifically) that is going to get the experienced members trying new recipes with the same level of excitement, but who knows, and that's a big reason I still check in regularly...

Josh