Probably the best mistake football manager made!?

Basically my point of the thread is if it wasn't for the ultimate cock up of the activation issues for football manager I would most likely still not be on these forums, but I am so glad I was forced almost to come on here in search of a fix, as I now use this to enhance my enjoyment of the game, which I would say is 10 fold. My question is this...

How many people are now registered on here and use the forums because of the FM09 activation issues, but continue to do so because of the brilliance of the community?

And to the community who was here before the activation issues, have you seen activity on the boards increase, seen more releases then normal? Do you prefer it before or now?

Me, however, I'm not exactly gonna come out and say I hope they make the same mistake again. It was utter, utter stupidity.

I use it to post angry comments about DRM Ive used this forum for many years before that debacle so i dont really count .

I joined up as a result of activation.

Got a bit carried away as you can see.

I joined before well before. It's a bit of a mixed bag. Forums are always busier when game demo's and pacthes, and newer game releases are released. The community is ace I have learned so much on these forums. From those that have contributed.

I have been registed for a bit, but I have been a bit busy playing the game to post much.

I've been registered a while now and have seen a big change in the use of these boards. There's a lot more users now which is probably due to, partly, the activation issues last year and of course the growing use of the t'internet in the last 5 years. Some threads do amuse me and sometimes give me a laugh when i read some responses. But overall i'd say the boards are better for it and they probably have one of the best communities around

I joined up cause of the issues. Now I do visit these forums almost daily, but don't tend to post much, as most of what I want to say is on these forums somewhere. Oh that and as a lot of the people that tend to post think they know everything and would never be interested in rational reasoning over an issue...

activation was fine for me, didn't really use the forums though until this year.

But how many browse here without actually joining?

How many buy FM but have never, ever been here?

Fascinating questions:)

There are incidentally over 200 non members browsing the forums at this moment.

I can't really remember why I joined, I know I was looking here for the Mac patch when it first came out, because I was waiting for it to buy FM09, but I don't know how I knew it needed a patch or whatever so I was probably here before.

When I first joined there was alot less members, naturally. The game has become massive over the last few years and attracts more more members all the time. Id say if you checked how many people registered in 2009 compared to 2004 for example, it would be a huge difference.

That has it's pros and cons. There are alot of very dedicated fans now that post some excellent ideas, theories, tactical help etc.. But there are also an awful lot of rubbish non-sensible posts out there that really clutter the forums up...not that im suggesting this is one

I have been a member here for a very long time, but I am not a frequent poster, however I do browse the forum on a regular basis.

Do you prefer it before or now?

Before. Mike7077, CaptainPlanet, Glamdring, Ched, Swarfega are all sorely missed. Chopper99, Neji, Celtic1967 were also more active back then.

It's nice to see AcidBurn, dafuge and SCIAG in GD more, but they can't hold the place together on their own.

Not to mention how fantastic I was.

Before. Mike7077, CaptainPlanet, Glamdring, Ched, Swarfega are all sorely missed. Chopper99, Neji, Celtic1967 were also more active back then.

It's nice to see AcidBurn, dafuge and SCIAG in GD more, but they can't hold the place together on their own.

Not to mention how fantastic I was.

was?!

havent seen Ched, Glamdring, or isuckatfm around for ages, you could always rely on those two for quality posts...

isuckatfm is the best thing about the tactics forum.

I only said "was" because i'm not as active these days, the morons won If I was allowed to return properly GD would return to greatness.

If so many people have had problems then there's a chance they won't buy the next version. I doubt the bugs have had a "New Coke" effect. If people miss the good old days then they'll buy the old games.

But how many browse here without actually joining?

How many buy FM but have never, ever been here?

Fascinating questions:)

There are incidentally over 200 non members browsing the forums at this moment.

The people I know outside of the internet world that play FM do not use these forums at all. Strange thing for me was posting on here and in the Sunderland thread with AcidMonkey, after awhile we relised that we are cousins and had no idea that each of us were posting on the same forum.

I didn't really post here much before and I mainly prefer the good players and team guide forum. There are alot of good users here at times the threads on here can bring up some great debate. Along with some decent humour but it also brings along annoying threads asking the same old questions time and time again.

I joined up for the Story Forum, its not often I venture into this section of the community.

I like to lurk....

Dont we all lol

This forum only has a tiny minority of FM's fan base worldwide.

I just joined because I noticed the address on (iirc) the back of the instruction manual.

I joined these forums because of EHM07. And after I realized the next EHM game wasn't going to be released, I stopped going on the forums. (I didn't have a lot of posts anyways)

And then I bought FM08, got hooked on it, and became more active in the FM forums. I bought FM09 through Steam, and made a home in CSE with my annual SC2BC challenge, and maybe making another one if I feel like it for FM10...although I'm also a frequent visitor to the newly created Careers forum now.

I posted here before activation. Can't even remember why I signed up but I bet y'all glad I did

I joined up here when i got 08 and i agree, the forums were better then. The 'i hate FM' brigade were a tiny tiny minority and no-one took themselves so seriously.

The forums were once very popular with quality threads and posts, but after few months of coming over to this new forum things slowly changed, the skinning forum was nearly dead with very little activities going on. GD was full of people trying to police the forums rather then trying to help members and when you did have people trying to help threas would turn ugly with argumentative posts.

These were many reasons why i slowly stopped posting and visiting. I have also noticed that there are many active members of the forums missing.

But from my personal point of view i think things are improving and hope it stays this way.

This forum is better than it was a couple years back when there was the 'forum police' going round and scaring off new users who had dared to repeat a topic or not properly search before asking a question. I have no doubt that many potentially good users never returned because of those idiots. But fortunately SI gradually noticed this and installed more good quality mods which they have continued to do recently aswell.

I also think the forum seems quite 'open' at the moment, with a healthy mix of experienced and new users. Having cliques is never a good thing as it stiffles and skews opinions, with clique members patting each other on the back for any idea they come up with, whilst opinions on a non-clique member's idea are often disregarded alot quicker.

I would like to add that more people are joining the forums that are outside the UK and Europe. Whenever I came on, there were barely anyone on because most of Europe would be asleep, since I usually post after 7pm EST. Nowadays there are more people from Asia and Oceania, along with more fellow North Americans, so it's not that lonely anymore.

I used to log on in the morning to find the whole page being rancer talking to himself

I've been on here for a few years but never really came on that often unless it was for a patch but after reading some posts and generally enjoying the banter that happens I've decided to become a bit more involved with the community. The "I Hate FM" clan are slowly fizzing out and most people that do post this sort of thing do tend to have very valid reasons for their argument yet I will still disagree with each and every 1 of them because of the love I have of the game!

I've put forward a few suggestions that on the whole have been accepted as pretty good ideas but obviously some people haven't agreed yet this is the whole point of a community like this, if everyone agreed with everything then this place would be boring!

I used to log on in the morning to find the whole page being rancer talking to himself

Ah the good old days.

The forums are blocked at school, so whenever I come back home, and after dinner, when the majority are not on, the first page of CSE is filled with 'Last post by rancer890'.

I got some competition these days though.

I just joined because I noticed the address on (iirc) the back of the instruction manual.

WHS. Had no real reason for signing up, and didn't post much until the FM08 Arsenal thread, which was awesome, and then started to post more in all sections.

Gone off GD massively though, I mostly post in OTF now, occasionally GPGT

Ah the good old days.

The forums are blocked at school, so whenever I come back home, and after dinner, when the majority are not on, the first page of CSE is filled with 'Last post by rancer890'.

I got some competition these days though.

Yeah. Man them days were fun. What, we're talking a year ago at most .

I don't post here as much any more. That is mainly due to the lack of debate that happens on the forums. It just seems that I am seeing the same questions constantly and it is difficult to engage in debate. Don't get me wrong, I think the community here is great and there are some top characters, I just don't find it as engrossing as I once did; maybe the new release will change that.

I would like to add that more people are joining the forums that are outside the UK and Europe. Whenever I came on, there were barely anyone on because most of Europe would be asleep, since I usually post after 7pm EST. Nowadays there are more people from Asia and Oceania, along with more fellow North Americans, so it's not that lonely anymore.

Add Africans to that list! :-D Although here in South Africa I go to sleep at roughly the same time as the Europeans. ;-) Btw I visit the forums regulary, especially while following updates concerning the new FM version. So as I anxiously wait for and day dream about FM10's nearing arrival, I occupy my time by reading topics on the forum though I don't post all that often.

I don't post here as much any more. That is mainly due to the lack of debate that happens on the forums. It just seems that I am seeing the same questions constantly and it is difficult to engage in debate. Don't get me wrong, I think the community here is great and there are some top characters, I just don't find it as engrossing as I once did; maybe the new release will change that.

I know what you mean. A few years ago I tended to lurk more, but would've posted more had I known GD would turn into primarily a questions thread as opposed to a discussion / debate

I joined after I found FM 07 for digital download somewhere, and didn't really visit the forums much until FM 08 and now I spend a lot of my time in CSE, occasionally venturing out to look at posts in other areas. I am one of those North Americans that rancer is talking about although I was here before him, I wasn't all that active in the beginning.

Where are all these yanks coming from?

Yeah. Man them days were fun. What, we're talking a year ago at most .

I don't post here as much any more. That is mainly due to the lack of debate that happens on the forums. It just seems that I am seeing the same questions constantly and it is difficult to engage in debate. Don't get me wrong, I think the community here is great and there are some top characters, I just don't find it as engrossing as I once did; maybe the new release will change that.

These days I only post in GD unless: (1) MLS threads!, (2) FM2010 news, like the blog, or (3) interesting ideas written by posters with a 'world class' or 'continental' () reputation.

There's too many moan threads, boasting threads, threads where one accuses another of cheating, and there's already threads about asking 'when is FM10 demo coming out?', etc. I agree that it's not much of a discussion forum anymore. CSE and Career forums don't have unless threads, and it's a smaller community, so most forumers know each other.

Judging by everyone's posts about "the good old days", maybe it's worth SI making a new "Debates" forum?

Basically all the good threads here moved to Debates, and GD just becomes a place for whining rants and general questions?

What can you say; your first sentence makes no sense

I agree, I am hoping it will improve after this years release, but hopefully the new comers will come here in a positive mood rather than a negative one.

I joined after playing FM2007. I haven't posted regularly since around January though as I got bored of FM08.

However, my last result thread has been continuing my legacy up til the time of my return.

The help on these forums is fantastic......I am glad I joined

I joined up here when i got 08 and i agree, the forums were better then. The 'i hate FM' brigade were a tiny tiny minority and no-one took themselves so seriously.

08 had so many complaints its not funny, even the activation issues dont compare (08 probably is the single most annoying game ever to be fair). The forums are actually quite alot more chilled out now (especially this one).

edit: I seem to remember SI people complaining about the type of posts in (specifically) this forum about that time. They didnt like the way the forums were, seems to me they gave Moderator status to the right people.

A lot of the negative posts are more brought about by frustration than actually disliking the game - I know on FM08 I had a few points which I didn't like. Mainly because I started a lower league game and the players I got in were experienced and had good stats, then 6 months down the line were just eating wages and unable to play.

I joined when I got FM07 though, was having some issues with one thing or another, this seemed like the best place to come to get answers.

Now I usually stick around for the stoke team guide thread, although this year dabbled in the tactics and the 1000 goals challenge thread lol.

I used to log on in the morning to find the whole page being rancer talking to himself

lol some things never change

I've been here for years. I've moved from England to Scotland to Nepal to India to Thailand and now to Cambodia, but in all that time I've been right here.

Even after all this time I still learn a lot, mainly from the Tactics forum gurus, still check the Graphics forum for new stuff creative fans have made, and still learn the odd thing or two on GD.

Actually in the early years I was a LLaMa fanatic, but I was deemed not fanatic enough by the fossilised old guard and got osctracised. Turned out to be a blessing since I would never have honed my tactical skills; the Tactics gurus are so much more constructive and helpful.

For all the trolls, muppets and socially dysfunctional pre-teens who clog up the odd thread, I do think that in the main we have a great community here.

I've been here for years. I've moved from England to Scotland to Nepal to India to Thailand and now to Cambodia, but in all that time I've been right here.

Six countries in five and a half years, are you on the run?

Six countries in five and a half years, are you on the run?

I was posting here under a different regime before 2004. I won't even mention how many WAGS that have lost out to CM/FM in that time - more than countries!!

On the run? You know, wherever you go, with a laptop you always have FM with you. I've finally found a warm climate and city full of cheap beer and sweet seductive beautiful women to ignore in order to appreciate the optimum conditions to play FM

Ankor beer and FM

Ankor beer and FM

Yup. Angkor beer 50 cents. FM priceless