I'm coming late to the party here, but.... I very much agree with Scrappy. It got a little stifling here for a while. But then, that's what we do when the game threatens to get out of control, right? It does feel like they're starting to "let 'em play" a little more now.
I think there have been very noticeable changes for the better.
- The dialogue is much more civil
- The amount of dialogue has increased significantly.
- Previously "settled" topics have come up for open and honest debate.
- There are many new contributors
- Not-so-new contributors are contributing more frequently
- Some of my long-time favorite posters, sadly absent for a time, have returned
- The amount of inside humor has fallen off dramatically. Of course, the only inside jokes I ever really objected to were the ones I didn't get.
- This place still has some personality, and we can still cut up a bit at the back of the room. Sometimes.
And I don't think that's all just because of the season starting. Some honest discussion about what the forum ought to be, though somewhat painful at the time, has produced some positive change. And kudos to the mods as well for subtly (or not so) herding us en masse in a little better direction.