Virtual+Communities-+LOST+Forum

PURPOSE** The purpose of this page is to log my experience with the LOST fan forum I have joined for my Com Arts 346 Practicum project. I have been obsessed with this show for years and am looking forward to discussing the last season with other fans. I chose to join the LOST forum as opposed to another forum for another show because LOST is full of mysteries and endless possibilities of things to talk about. I have no experience with any kind of media fandom or online forums so this will be a learning experience for me.
 * Lauren Miller- Discussion 302

 http://losttv-forum.com/forum/forum.php - this is a link to the forum's main page where you can access many different discussion topics Today I registered on MyMedia-Forum.com to become of a member of their LOST forum site. There were plenty of different sites to choose among but MyMedia seemed to have the largest variety of discussion topics as well as the most active members. Registration was fairly straightforward and just required creating a username and password as well as providing an email address so members can also contact you privately to further discuss issues that have been posted in the forums. Next I will decide what discussion topic to enter first. There is EXTENSIVE list of rules and I want to make sure that I understand them and know how to use the site before taking action as the creators seem really intense and hardcore about their rules. Below see the registration process.

Today I posted my first comment on the LOST forum. I added to a long thread discussing the Man in Black, a character who was first seen on the Season 5 Finale. I am not sure if I posted in the right area and how to see if people are responding to my comment. Also I am a little nervous that what I said has already been commented on and that people will get annoyed...as I said the rules are very strict and the LOST fanatics get angry if you break them. Below see my post in the drafting stages and also when it was added to the forum discussion.



And as I predicted someone saw my post and told me that this had been discussed in detail. Hopefully I will be able to come up with more to impress these people when the show begins next week.

I have been posting more frequently in many areas of the forum and getting a better idea of what to do. The other members get mad if you do read through the ENTIRE thread and if you repeat anything that has been said. Yes, I love this show but these people are obsessed and kind of nuts. I think that participation in the forum will get easier once the show starts TONIGHT and there is more to discuss besides the events of 6 months ago.

Just watched the LOST premier and was less than satisfied with the first episode of the final season. I am interested to see what other people thought on the forum which I am sure is exploding now that the episode as aired.

I am finding it difficult to find things to post about. Some of these people are so intensely involved in the show that they have posted on every little tiny aspect of the show and then they get mad if something is brought up again if they have already analyzed every inch of it. Here are some of my most recent posts:



Here is a link to a page where you can see my posting history in all areas of the forum. http://www.losttv-forum.com/forum/search.php?searchid=3017796

Here are some of my posts following last night's episode. It was actually a good episode and a lot was going on on the forums after the episode. These people seem to want to analyze every single aspect of every single second and must rewatch the episode over and over and over. I do not have this kind of dedication to the show. I am having a hard time following my thread posts and the replies because there are sooo many different forums and so many places to post. It is hard to see where I last posted and who responded. On a better note, I have not been getting yelled at as much for posting old or discussed ideas probably because it is not the off season and everything has not been brought up millions of times.



I have started to post more frequently and people have been replying to what I am saying rather than ignoring me or yelling at me for repeating things. I have discovered that is possible to create a profile and an avatar but I am not sure how to do it and need to investigate. I am also going to start building my profile and adding friends as I just found this feature. Screen shot of my recent posts:

I now have a profile picture of my dog Sammy and his favorite toy, one eyed Santa! See below!

I finally figured out how to add friends to my profile. I am starting out slow by friending the people who have looked at my profile (which I now need to figure out how to edit). Hopefully this will help me connect with more people and make better use of the site.

Today I figured out how to edit my profile and now actually have some information about myself posted online. I was a little worried about putting too much personal information online so I kept it pretty basic. See my profile below. I have also been trying to add friends but have not had anyone accept me yet. Also...I have noticed some threads about a LOST finale party through the internet. This really shows the community feeling that some get from this site. I am hoping that my new profile and future friends will help me feel more included in this community attitude. Blow also see a screenshot of an invitation to the finale party...I think I will attend my own in person one instead haha.

I got my first friend today! I also joined found a place to join groups like on Facebook so that people can see what else you are interested in. The fist group I joined is a group for Twilight fans. Below are pictures of my first friend and my groups. I am slowly starting to enjoy participating on the forum and not just using it for the assignment.

As of now I have 3 friends...so we are improving slightly. No one has attempted to message me or write on my profile wall so I am going to try and contact them. Below see pictures of my "friends" as well as some recent posts. I have been trying to follow the posts that I have written in the past and read people's responses and reply again...sort of as a conversation. The problem is that this site is not so easy to work and very difficult to find old posts. I remain stuck on 3 friends as no one else is willing to accept me as a friend. I have also tried messaging my "friends" and have not received any responses. Also, my group membership has been basically a waste of time as no one discusses anything in the group forum...the groups feature seems to exist just to show others what you are interested in.