What happened to Wilders Security?

There is also the fact that multiple vendors used to use this as their official forums (ESET, Acronis, etc) and they are gone now. ESET was actually what brought me here.

 

im here all the time i just dont pm bc all what i had to say was said...
And nothing new happen in security scene, no new cool unique software.

or you want grove up offtopic and bloat forum with talk about not security software.. i dont think so.

 

I visit this forum and MT regularly but don't post much. Similar as @Quassar I also don't have much new to say.

Comparison of different AV software can be interesting and video reviews and tests can give me some information about specific AV software. But overall I don't see much new development in this area. Protection wise I don't care if AV software detects 95% or 99% of samples in a test since I don't even remember when was the last time I had to clean up the system after infection.

IMO the market for home security software has matured and most interesting things happen in enterprise or government sector which is ATM out of my interest area.

 

The older I get the less I talk and the more I listen, which carries over to this forum. Isn't that way for everyone, but for me it's less write and more read.

 

And how long ago did Windows 11 leak? How long ago did Vivaldi launch? Etcetera, etcetera.

 

Most of the knowledgeable members - whom I guess I'm not allowed to mention - who routinely discussed in depth and at length about computer security, and were able to captivate the interest of so many, myself included, in these forums have left long ago. Their absence is for me the biggest loss of this Security forum, and one of the reasons I post less often here.

 

I think you all have hit the nail on the head. I came here many years ago and was a lurker for quite a while even before that for ESET. Now that they and some others are gone, traffic is down. Also let's face it, the main attack vendor is enterprise with malware/ransomware etc. Most home PC's could likely get by with WD and uBO in a browser and be fairly safe.

Not the mention Norton buying up everyone, so less companies and software to even talk about. It comes down to enthusiasts like us, but with less to talk about, the forum activity dwindles. We also have the site rules. A vs. B discussion is a showstopper. I get that it can turn into arguments, but unless people are putting each other down or personally attacking one another, I see no reason to lock every thread due to this ancient rule.

 

I think that even without the A versus B rule, people wouldn't engage into heated discussions about AVs. Very few people here at Wilders consider an AV as an important part of their security nowadays, why talk about it?

The security environment has changed dramatically, as far as I'm concerned malware is a thing of the past (XP days), people talk about security as being a 'hobby' it is no longer about protecting a machine from real threats. As a result there was a significant drop in users interactions, I for one, I'm more concerned in the OS functionality, creating fast and reliable OSs images, never for issues related to malware.

 

For that, you have MDL forums (MyDigitalLife forums), topics about Windows customization and Office are so abundant it's hard to keep on track, yet not impossible.

 

I read the posts and I agree with all of you.

But I think the main reason for the decline is that this forum has stagnated. They have not changed and innovated with changing times. They have a set of rules, and they stick to those rules even if the rules no longer make any sense, or are actively contributing to the forum's decline. This is the same reason that has resulted in the demise of a lot of big businesses and corporations around us. You need to change with changing times or you lose.

The structure of the forum has stayed the same for many years now. The admins have ignored the emergence of smartphones and tablets. There is no dedicated section to discuss Android or iOS related issues. A vast majority of the younger generation don't even have a PC, they do everything on their smartphones. So why would they come to a discussion board primarily discussing computer software?

I am not saying that the admins and the moderators are doing a bad job, it is just that they have failed/are failing to provide a platform for engaging discussions by innovating with changing times.

 

+1

 

Foremost, you all have valid points but I see two main reasons for the decline that have already been stated.

Who owns Wilders? Can he/she comment on this thread and clarify how he/she sees the future of Wilders?

 

Plus 1 for a comment of the forum owners

 

https://twitter.com/paul_wilders
https://www.wilderssecurity.com/threads/how-is-mr-paul-wilders.429965/#post-2924571

 

Thx. I have no social accounts but will post there.

 

I've been a member for a long while of MalwareTips forums and recently of BleepingComputer forums who without any doubt are more active and deal with a lot more topics related to computers security and what not. The problem is (with me) that I feel like a drop in the ocean in those forums, completely lost and end up coming back to Wilders as quickly as possible. There is something peculiar about Wilders which other forums don't have, but I agree with Spartan and others that something ought to be done to inject a new life here...

 

I agree with what Hadron said about dated titles.
For such threads, it could be wise to rename them to more general and up-to-date titles.

Specifically regarding that Firefox's massive overhaul moves to beta thread, it is now the thread about Firefox Beta channel and Nightly channel.
Perhaps renaming that thread to something like "Firefox beta and nightly" could be an idea.

N.B. That beta thread is not about the Firefox Release channel.
Two different threads are about the Firefox Release channel: New Firefox Browser Version Released and Mozilla Firefox.

As the "New Firefox Browser Version Released" thread is not only about updates but also has general discussion, just like the "Mozilla Firefox" thread, I wonder if merging the two could be an idea. However, I don't know if it would be wise and desired to merge those two Firefox Release channel threads, I'm afraid it would leave a mess.
If desired, perhaps an idea could be to close the least active "Mozilla Firefox" one, with an admin post referring to the active "New Firefox Browser Version Released" thread. And I suppose that more active "New Firefox Browser Version Released" thread should be renamed to something more general.

 

I totally agree, we have to many software threads now and those 2 discuss the same thing which is, Firefox.

The best idea is to close the Beta Firefox thread and rename the Regular one to "Firefox Discussions".

 

... or have a new main section forum "Browsers" with sub-forums for the mainstream browsers (Chrome, Edge, Opera, FF, Vivaldi and Alternate) with all particular threads for each.

 

I do not agree.
I think we need one separate thread for Firefox Release channel, and one separate thread for Firefox Beta + Nightly.

 

I also agree. It would get way too cluttered to have 1.

 

Don't take everything so literally. It was an example of an ancient rule that does not make sense.

 

I understand what you mean. I visited sometimes MalwareTips forums and it seems, as other Forums,
coldly technical and aseptic. I agree that Wilders has a dimension and a tone more personal and friendly.

 

I think that Moderators too have some opinion about the question of this thread.

 

I have the opposite impression regarding MalwareTips.