Communities: Which one do you prefer? Forums? Discord? Social Media?

[Tiger21820]

Forums all the way! Discord is nice and all, but there are so many things that Discord locks behind a non-perpetual paid subscription (Nitro) that forums just straight up provide right out the box, and that the chatroom style of Discord makes certain simple tasks very tedious, or downright impractical!

Examples of how forums have advantages over Discord with features that they share:

Discord has a limit to how many smilies a server can have (adjustable with server boosts), and only those with Nitro can use animated smilies, whereas forums have no limit to the smilies one can add, and any member who can use smilies can use animated ones!

Discord's formatting uses specific formatting codes (Like text for strike-through, and text (this one is annoying, you cannot surround text with one *) for italics), and that cannot be turned off!

Another problem Discord has that forums don't: Images! When you upload multiple images on Discord, they are posted one after another as multiple messages (which can be seen as spamming!), whereas on forums, multiple images can be embedded on the same post! That one's a BIG problem!

Discord: Shift+Return for a new line! Too many accidental unfinished messages get posted by hitting Return when trying to add a new line, and having to edit or delete it before anyone notices it!

Discord: 2000 CHARACTER LIMIT!!! Forums: However many characters an operator chooses! I prefer NO limits!

Discord requires users to have Nitro in order to use animated avatars, where forums (where permitted) allow any member (if they have permission) to upload animated avatars!

Also, discord servers are property of discord, and all users are subject to discord's terms of service, as well as being unable to modify any of the interface texts (which makes me unable to change those HORRENDOUS full stops into exclamation marks), but when a forum is self-hosted, the owner pretty much gets to make the rules, and make any changes to the forum infrastructure (Which I got rid of those AWFUL generic error messages which used the unforgivable full stop, and made them more witty!), including text!

So, forums ⋙ Discord, though it's still good, but forums will ALWAYS be ⋙ Discord!

I won't stop using it for reasons (Yet I may eventually try to drift away if it gets to be too much for me, but that's a LONG, LONG way off!), but my overall impression on Discord has CONSIDERABLY decreased!

Also, POST 1144 BABY!

[Tedhaun]

Late reply, but I voted for forums. I'm not as active on Discord and social media as much as I used to due to drama and other bad stuff that goes on there, but I still chime in there daily for certain gaming-focused groups, old friends from other sites/forums I was on in the past et al.

I'm not sure if this poll can be updated with Guilded since you have a server there and IRC for those who go for a more old school approach for online chat servers and such. If it's too late, I apologize.

[Tiger21820]

Added Guilded as an option! You will need to vote again, I'm afraid, @DDadDoc!

[Artisan]

I say forums are pretty neat. Every topic is nice and neat. I wish there were more topics of discussion and when there is a discussion that is there I feel like the period of time for them can get long and with very few amounts of people at a time within say a day. Forums are just not popular unless they are well known and have the community for them. Discord is neat too but embedding is easy, emotes are higher resolutions, very active, and have a similar organization as forums. Forums just add that level of progression Discord barely does this with posts and currency, related to appropriate posts. Forums do have shoutboxes, but those are also with a smaller group and less neat if you have two different conversations in tandem.

[froggyboy604]

I prefer forums because forum owners can install their own forum software like phpBB or Invisionboards. It is also possible to customize a forum's theme, and add and remove features to a forum.

I also feel members on forums are generally more friendly than social networks, and people post fewer posts like homemade videos related to doing dangerous and dumb challenges which can get them hurt, or influence people to do the same dangerous behaviors.

[Artisan]

Forums are nostalgic. Discord is more for my instant messaging needs and the same with Messenger on Facebook. If forums were used more then I would appreciate getting to know more about people on forums, but I am more comfortable in the gaming/coding ones so forums for gaming and everything else Discord or Twitter.