I fully accept that MisterB is doing this for free and thank him for it. However, there are certain things that he may not know that are important to some of us who have been on here for some time.
For perspective, I am now 77 and have, I think, been a member here since the late 90s. I have had my flirtations with Final Furlong and Neigh and absented myself from here for a while because a few (who have now disappeared) made it an unpleasant place. I have taken part in the ownership of 2 horses organised through here and was also present for the Alan Morgan memorial at Lingfield. If any of that means nothing to you, I'd be happy to expand on it privately but my main point is that none of those events or similar are likely to be repeated in this day and age. Incidentally, over that period of time some of us have contributed time in organising quizzes and competitions or actual money by offering prizes for said competitions or donating the winnings to Col for the benefit of the forum. Maybe we feel that we have some skin in the game. Most people of my age are conservative with a small 'c' but the changes to the home page of the forum have seemed to me a complete dog's breakfast and the response to statements of the same have seemed perfunctory to the point of rudeness.
Moving on from SEO to USP, I first met Slim (and for the only time in person) when he made the trip over to Cheltenham for Istabraq's last race. Fresh faced and polite, he was not remotely like his online persona. Having not met him since I have no way of knowing how he has changed and how much of the online side is a career move. I don't think that I've had a serious run in with him but I tend to go with the theory that politeness costs nothing whereas 'banter' about someone's career is rarely well received. I sometimes follow his selections but not blindly which means that I can happily thank him when they come in and blame myself when they don't. I hardly ever bet these days but I'll happily leech selections for the weekly tipping competition in my Cheltenham group. In exchange, I can make occasional contributions mainly based on ownership and breeding activities.
The point is that people stay and contribute on here because they like it as it is. If you change it too much to attract others, some of them will stay and some won't but you will very likely leak members who no longer feel comfortable with the setup. As MisterB is a fine technical administrator but isn't blessed with the background in the forum ethos, could I suggest that he organises a disciplinary committee which could knock up a code of conduct and handle minor misdemeanours.
The nature of these places is that people come and go for a variety of reasons but it would be wrong to drive people away for the sake of attracting transient incomers.
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Oh, and safe in the knowledge that Slim won't have read this far,
Better Times Ahead
Search For Glory
Shanbally Kid
for the Thyestes.