Hi all,

I have been a member for many years, even in the old forums. I miss how we used to talk to each other and post daily. We all knew each other well and truly had so much fun. Guess all that is just not going to come back. it was just how it was then. i'm guilty i rarely check in here also, but its mostly cuz i can go weeks without signing in and nothing is different from the last time i was here. ok..rant over! Still love this place and all the people i knew from way back then that are still here, quietly of course.

I miss it too. But the Internet continues to evolve, and we have to evolve along with it lest we be left behind. A lot of fan communication happens on Facebook and other social media sites these days. It's spread all over and difficult to keep up with, but I'm glad the communication is still happening. I'm also glad that this forum still exists and some of us still use it ^_^ I hope the need and desire for forums like this never disappears.

I'll admit it is difficult to remember to log in. Most of my interactions take place on Facebook now. But I do still keep coming back to this place in order to keep track of ALL the Rainbow Brite news.

I think the reason why there isn’t much activity on the forums is because forums in general are not as active as they once were. Nowadays, social media sites are a more popular method of communication. I also think it’s because Rainbow Brite is a pretty quiet fandom. Halmark is putting effort into getting the series known again with the new toyline (which has been pretty successful in sales) but I think what will get even more activity is if Rainbow Brite gets a new, longer-running TV series to go with it. There’ll be a lot to discuss if there was an ongoing series airing, because there would always be new content. The new reboot even got some people to return to the forums for a little while, although it seems like it was only temporary since the reboot was so short lived.

Despite of the lack of activity on the forum, I’m still more comfortable posting my fanart/fanfics on the forum than Facebook. I think there’s a higher chance to get rude comments on Facebook (the site is known for it) than on a forum because Facebook doesn’t have as much moderation as a forum would. For someone who makes content for the series’ less popular characters (at least in the English speaking fandom), I’m more comfortable posting here than on Facebook.

I just leave this in its own tab so I always remember to look at it now. I too miss the old days. There was a lot of fun and random silliness here too. Even the storytelling/RP section had enough members to be its own little community. And yeah, the social networks have really wrecked places like this. Sadly the "replacement" for message boards doesn't have the same feeling at all. When I met people on fan boards, it always felt like friendships were forming. Meeting new people on social networks on the other hand, more often than not, always felt more like forming connections with business acquaintances. A couple people I met on different fan boards are still in touch with me after over 15 years. That's something I've never seen happen with social networks. The internet is definitely not what it was. It used to feel like a playground where recess never ended. Now it just feels an endless sociopolitical debate where everyone screams opinions at one another.

- Lifetime member of the Rainbowland Mafia

Nice to see you posting again Miss Dragonfly, I was wondering where you'd gone after not seeing you post in a while.

i'm guilty i rarely check in here also, but its mostly cuz i can go weeks without signing in and nothing is different from the last time i was here.

Same.

I just leave this in its own tab so I always remember to look at it now. I too miss the old days. There was a lot of fun and random silliness here too. Even the storytelling/RP section had enough members to be its own little community. And yeah, the social networks have really wrecked places like this. Sadly the "replacement" for message boards doesn't have the same feeling at all. When I met people on fan boards, it always felt like friendships were forming. Meeting new people on social networks on the other hand, more often than not, always felt more like forming connections with business acquaintances. A couple people I met on different fan boards are still in touch with me after over 15 years. That's something I've never seen happen with social networks. The internet is definitely not what it was. It used to feel like a playground where recess never ended. Now it just feels an endless sociopolitical debate where everyone screams opinions at one another.

- Lifetime member of the Rainbowland Mafia

Not sure how'd I'd respond to this, but... I can see it and I feel you. Patticularly the screaming opinions part.


<3

I also miss it It was so much more fun when there was a lot more activity here. I miss seeing all the familiar "faces" I just can't do the Facebook stuff for Rainbow Brite- it doesn't have the same appeal as the message boards. In a weird way posting on Facebook about RB feels so impersonal to me... I feel almost like Facebook is a separate world for me- Facebook is for friends and family that know me and then places like this are my 80's fans family. I have been visiting the MLP boards a lot more, because it is still very active to get my 80's toy discussion fix but RB is my favorite and I do miss the active days here

I agree with a lot of the above posts. I miss the old forum when it was really busy, fun, lots of topics and things going on and actually able to form friendships and meetups and have rational conversations and posts with other members. I've been FB friends and in contact with other lots of people from other fandoms like MLP, Carebears, Lisa Frank, Jem, etc-But with Rainbow Brite I have very few friendships sadly- kind of seems more like a very tight-knit group compared to many others IMO.