Everything but Hunttalk

[Hem]

Call it what you will.
I like seeing/ hearing about success hunts in Montana. Probably will never meet most of the contributors from Montana, but they are kin to some degree.
I appreciate the diversity of the Montana members.

Flip side, whole lot of fun seeing what people are doing around the country in their spare time and hunting season. Again, not enough time in one life to experience.

Hunttalk is a community of good people with a few wildcats. It's the internet.

 

[Slm864]

I enjoy the post hunt write ups that get posted later in the year or hearing about anyone’s dream tag that they finally got and hopefully getting to follow along.
From now until September/October it feels a bit slow but at least we have some draw results coming soon to entertain with all the honey hole questions.

 

[mtmuley]

As I've looked over some things on a couple different sites this weekend I can positively say HT is the the best place I've found. Just don't call me bro, or hunt my elk spot. mtmuley

 

[ccc23454]

HT is still best but has become way more commercialized with product focus marketing towards certain brands/companies. I liked it best when we could talk issues and not become so political i also miss when units were discussed and opinions/spots respected. Hell every week now we get a guest new member who just stirs the pot about absolutely garbage topics. Unfortunately in my eyes now HT is even more reflective of society and its influencer diven adgendas. Hopefully soon we turn back to talking hunting!

 

[shannerdrake]

Now that most legislative sessions are over do you see any value in Hunttalk in its current state? During the legislative sessions it brings a lot of value and provides tools for people to know about current bulls/issues and how to contact people. Now that they are pretty much over it’s basically Facebook. Sure, there are a couple random questions about bullets or calibers that have good info, but other than that it feels like there is no “Hunttalk” taking place. Everything that could have decent conversation turns into and R vs D issue and gets derailed. The one nice thing about HT is that there are some quality people on here that have a lot of knowledge. Maybe things will change as hunting season gets closer, or maybe im getting cranky in my 30s!

I read about every thread except the political ones….

A few weeks back I got to congratulate a dad who shared that his son had just shot his first bird. Tons of value in that. As much as we like to think that rants regarding our perceived superior political positions do any good….they don’t. Probably the opposite to be honest.

It’s still a mostly free country and we still mostly have freedom of speech. Participating in this or any other forum is pretty darn American. Cancel, woke, and anti-woke cultures all seek to get rid of things that don’t serve them or their agenda.

It’s nice to be in a forum without having to spend every minute I’m here pushing, resisting, or defending an agenda.

Hunttalk on.

 

[woods89]

It’s mostly taught me grammar and punctuation. And cheese,,,

You forgot backcountry disposal of human waste, via incineration.....

 

[DFS]

It’s always the same people that turn threads into R vs D issues. Entertaining really. I think most members would agree on a lot of issues.

 

[mtmuley]

It’s always the same people that turn threads into R vs D issues. Entertaining really. I think most members would agree on a lot of issues.

Ain't that the truth. mtmuley

 

[mtmuley]

HT is still best but has become way more commercialized with product focus marketing towards certain brands/companies. I liked it best when we could talk issues and not become so political i also miss when units were discussed and opinions/spots respected. Hell every week now we get a guest new member who just stirs the pot about absolutely garbage topics. Unfortunately in my eyes now HT is even more reflective of society and its influencer diven adgendas. Hopefully soon we turn back to talking hunting!

I'm not really a believer that members should always self police, but some things from new members need to be called out I think. mtmuley

 

[cgasner1]

It’s always the same people that turn threads into R vs D issues. Entertaining really. I think most members would agree on a lot of issues.

A lot of it really blows me away at how ignorant it makes people sounds I get that whoever may be in office at that time but so much of a lot of these issues has been long before that person was in office

 

[rmyoung1]

Fact: The most underrated thing about HuntTalk is its place as the premier online consignment store. It’s only May and I’ve already bought a gently-used MR Metcalf (thank you, @Knight.54 ) and a NIB Weatherby shotgun (thank you, @IDHUNTNFISH ) in 2023.

In other related news: My wife hates me and HuntTalk.

 

[Big Fin]

I'll be interested to read some of the perspectives on Hunt Talk, for many reasons.

This is a social media platform, albeit one that we control rather than one that is controlled by AI, algorithms, and off-shore moderators. Being social media, it will attractive some who want nothing other than to stir the pot. The ability to have anonymity causes people to interact in ways they likely would not interact in person.

If folks find that this platform has low value, that is important to know, as this site is expensive to maintain, both in terms of money and time. I often say that the last of our platforms I would ever give up on would be Hunt Talk, due to the value it serves in engaging people to take action on important issues.

Finding the proper balance of moderation is difficult. I tend to lean toward less moderation, rather than more. I know that allows some threads to get in the weeds before I close them. It also allows some people to prove their ignorance and remove any further doubt.

Hunt Talk has 20-30 lurkers for each registered user. Very often my posts and my moderation are focused beyond the individuals commenting. I am often focused on those I know who are lurking. I am confident that this site gives policy makers a lot to think about.

In our divided world of politics, it is nearly impossible to keep folks from spewing political opinions, partisan comparisons, and making every issue a defense of, or a support for, their own political views and voting habits. Maybe I need to toast those members who only interact on threads that go into the political weeds, often as the result of posts by these hyper-political members.

I feel there is a place for hunters interested in conservation, access, policy, and public lands that is not driven by the stupidity of algorithms found on IG, FB, or other ad-based platforms. That is why we invest as much time and money as we do in this platform. There have been opportunities to sell this platform and recoup our 14 years of investment, plus some. But, I suspect it would get rolled into a bigger enterprise and become purely a monetization play. At this point in my life, that has little interest to me.

I will admit that there are days when I am very tempted to fold this site. When I come home from a week of travel and there are piles of moderation reports, threads sent to me by Mrs. Fin, and other stuff that is a function of people being assholes, I do wonder why we keep the site open.

When I get that feeling, I look at Hunt Talk engagement and I realize there is no other social media platform that could fill its place. Our FB page has 500K followers. Our IG page has 145K followers. I hate both of those social media platforms and we don't post much there. As a result, Hunt Talk provides many "X" more engagement than those other platforms ever will. And, I get to own/moderate this social media platform. It doesn't take long for the "WTH am I doing" feeling to pass and I dive into the pile of moderation requests and accept that as a cost of hosting something worthwhile.

I'm always open to more and better ways to operate this platform. The reality of a social media platform, including Hunt Talk, is this - the quality of the platform is a function of the quality of content shared and the maturity of the people who are engaging. Yeah, HT might not have an algorithm, so you decide what you get to see, but the quality of what is here to see is a function of all of us.

 

[Gellar]

I'll be interested to read some of the perspectives on Hunt Talk, for many reasons.

This is a social media platform, albeit one that we control rather than one that is controlled by AI, algorithms, and off-shore moderators. Being social media, it will attractive some who want nothing other than to stir the pot. The ability to have anonymity causes people to interact in ways they likely would not interact in person.

If folks find that this platform has low value, that is important to know, as this site is expensive to maintain, both in terms of money and time. I often say that the last of our platforms I would ever give up on would be Hunt Talk, due to the value it serves in engaging people to take action on important issues.

Finding the proper balance of moderation is difficult. I tend to lean toward less moderation, rather than more. I know that allows some threads to get in the weeds before I close them. It also allows some people to prove their ignorance and remove any further doubt.

Hunt Talk has 20-30 lurkers for each registered user. Very often my posts and my moderation are focused beyond the individuals commenting. I am often focused on those I know who are lurking. I am confident that this site gives policy makers a lot to think about.

In our divided world of politics, it is nearly impossible to keep folks from spewing political opinions, partisan comparisons, and making every issue a defense of, or a support for, their own political views and voting habits. Maybe I need to toast those members who only interact on threads that go into the political weeds, often as the result of posts by these hyper-political members.

I feel there is a place for hunters interested in conservation, access, policy, and public lands that is not driven by the stupidity of algorithms found on IG, FB, or other ad-based platforms. That is why we invest as much time and money as we do in this platform. There have been opportunities to sell this platform and recoup our 14 years of investment, plus some. But, I suspect it would get rolled into a bigger enterprise and become purely a monetization play. At this point in my life, that has little interest to me.

I will admit that there are days when I am very tempted to fold this site. When I come home from a week of travel and there are piles of moderation reports, threads sent to me by Mrs. Fin, and other stuff that is a function of people being assholes, I do wonder why we keep the site open.

When I get that feeling, I look at Hunt Talk engagement and I realize there is no other social media platform that could fill its place. Our FB page has 500K followers. Our IG page has 145K followers. I hate both of those social media platforms and we don't post much there. As a result, Hunt Talk provides many "X" more engagement than those other platforms ever will. And, I get to own/moderate this social media platform. It doesn't take long for the "WTH am I doing" feeling to pass and I dive into the pile of moderation requests and accept that as a cost of hosting something worthwhile.

I'm always open to more and better ways to operate this platform. The reality of a social media platform, including Hunt Talk, is this - the quality of the platform is a function of the quality of content shared and the maturity of the people who are engaging. Yeah, HT might not have an algorithm, so you decide what you get to see, but the quality of what is here to see is a function of all of us.

Thank you!

 

[brownbear932008]

I've personally talked with some top notch guys here over the years both on the phone and in person and by pm. Sure during the off season it gets crazy and people get cranky (me included). But it is a great place at the end of the day and I've learned so much over the years from HT on more topics than I care to even go into.
If there is a day it is no longer a platform to visit I'll sure miss the folks here. I LOVE the draw excitement folks show when they draw that great tag and even more I LOVE following them on the hunt through the story if they are nice enough to share it with us. Then again maybe I'm just a HT addict and I have a problem

 

[Deleted member 20812]

I’ve made some great friends through Hunt Talk. While I feel many of the Johnny come lately folks sometimes offer very little, that’s also part of growth. No way to stop it.

And, it’s true. It IS a conscious choice to interact with assholes.

This is hands down the best hunting forum I’ve spent time in, IMO. All that said, I think everyone can benefit from an interwebz sabbatical now and then.

 

[hank4elk]

"I'm a loser, but I'm not what I appear to be..."

Oh, wrong thread.

 

[Desk Pop]

The problem with HT is the same problem with all social media. Randy brought it up in his post by touching on anonymity, but really Mike Tyson sums it up best.

...but at least here some of you guys seem like the kind of people who I wouldn't mind sharing a campfire with.

 

[vagabond]

It baffles me how we managed to kill any elk all those years ago without the internet and this plethora of information. And scouting, WTF was scouting? We used to just call it "happy hour"!

 

[mtmuley]

The problem with HT is the same problem with all social media. Randy brought it up in his post by touching on anonymity, but really Mike Tyson sums it up best.
View attachment 274983
...but at least here some of you guys seem like the kind of people who I wouldn't mind sharing a campfire with.

Any you want to punch in the face? mtmuley

 

[SAJ-99]

I'll be interested to read some of the perspectives on Hunt Talk, for many reasons.

This is a social media platform, albeit one that we control rather than one that is controlled by AI, algorithms, and off-shore moderators. Being social media, it will attractive some who want nothing other than to stir the pot. The ability to have anonymity causes people to interact in ways they likely would not interact in person.

If folks find that this platform has low value, that is important to know, as this site is expensive to maintain, both in terms of money and time. I often say that the last of our platforms I would ever give up on would be Hunt Talk, due to the value it serves in engaging people to take action on important issues.

Finding the proper balance of moderation is difficult. I tend to lean toward less moderation, rather than more. I know that allows some threads to get in the weeds before I close them. It also allows some people to prove their ignorance and remove any further doubt.

Hunt Talk has 20-30 lurkers for each registered user. Very often my posts and my moderation are focused beyond the individuals commenting. I am often focused on those I know who are lurking. I am confident that this site gives policy makers a lot to think about.

In our divided world of politics, it is nearly impossible to keep folks from spewing political opinions, partisan comparisons, and making every issue a defense of, or a support for, their own political views and voting habits. Maybe I need to toast those members who only interact on threads that go into the political weeds, often as the result of posts by these hyper-political members.

I feel there is a place for hunters interested in conservation, access, policy, and public lands that is not driven by the stupidity of algorithms found on IG, FB, or other ad-based platforms. That is why we invest as much time and money as we do in this platform. There have been opportunities to sell this platform and recoup our 14 years of investment, plus some. But, I suspect it would get rolled into a bigger enterprise and become purely a monetization play. At this point in my life, that has little interest to me.

I will admit that there are days when I am very tempted to fold this site. When I come home from a week of travel and there are piles of moderation reports, threads sent to me by Mrs. Fin, and other stuff that is a function of people being assholes, I do wonder why we keep the site open.

When I get that feeling, I look at Hunt Talk engagement and I realize there is no other social media platform that could fill its place. Our FB page has 500K followers. Our IG page has 145K followers. I hate both of those social media platforms and we don't post much there. As a result, Hunt Talk provides many "X" more engagement than those other platforms ever will. And, I get to own/moderate this social media platform. It doesn't take long for the "WTH am I doing" feeling to pass and I dive into the pile of moderation requests and accept that as a cost of hosting something worthwhile.

I'm always open to more and better ways to operate this platform. The reality of a social media platform, including Hunt Talk, is this - the quality of the platform is a function of the quality of content shared and the maturity of the people who are engaging. Yeah, HT might not have an algorithm, so you decide what you get to see, but the quality of what is here to see is a function of all of us.

I too want to say thank you. Although a shiver goes down my spine to think what it could look like in 2024, and the amount of work from the team to keep it on the rails.