Continuing the discussion from Survey: CHOWHOUND or not CHOWHOUND?:
I Was a member of chowhound. I wasnt the best contributer, but I tried. Then, one day my name no longer existed…I wrote to to TPTB and they said that I would have to make a new user name . My first thought was; I finally am able to talk to folks as a member of this group and now I have to start over. These folks dont like newbies.
I truly didnt feel like starting over again. So I quit.
If it makes you feel any better, the real purpose of the new Chowhound is to deliver any and all ads without screening for content in any way, they have no control over who places pornography, or other offensive, noxious ads unless they get reported by site users, then they say they can bar them afterward, never before they arrive.
So we have been treated on CH to multiples of a photo of the Obamas alleging infidelities breaking them up and the kosher boards have received advertisments and recipes posted for pork/hams more than once.
The total lack of control of incoming material is a true testament to how little anyone thinks of CH. They’re just cashing in while they can, til it’s no longer even useful for that. No respect to for readers/users at all.
That’s because they were too busy hunting down long term rogue members who dared question their wisdom!
No, it’s worse than that; it’s to maximize traffic stats. They say they have thousands of “partners” and advertisers and they never see the ads until offended users bring them to their attention. After the fact, they are able to ban certain ones. But for now, the offensive ones are being reported to their “advertising dept.”
They don’t want to stop the incoming traffic.
Is this where we complain?
Just noticed that their COTM (the only thing I read since joining HO) is Alison Roman’s Dining In.
Really? Like this doesn’t scream desperation? Gawd.
I just have to train myself not to go there. It’s the internet, for gawd sakes I should know better. I just took it off my bookmarks.
I don’t buy cookbooks anymore. I search the internet for recipes. And then not follow them .
COTM at CH is totally participant driven. That cookbook makes sense if you study the patterns which have developed over the years. September usually gets an easy meal cookbook. Probably because school is back in session, fall holidays coming up, days getting shorter so people feel pressed for time. There have also been several months of books which call for ingredients that can be hard to find - often the pendulum swings to the other extreme when folks are tired of running around.
December tends to get a book on baking or entertaining. January people want lighter food after holiday over indulgence so Asian foods often win the vote. Summer becomes more produce and outdoor driven in the choice.
DOTM has similar cycles. Cassoulet won’t stand a chance in the summer but has a pretty good shot in February. (December is to busy with holiday demands, January people are dealing with holiday weigh gain, February is cold and dark so the dish will appeal.) DOTM is also completely participant driven.
Once you see the pattern it is easier to choose the most opportune time to suggest a book or dish you want to focus on.
Someone who has a frequent presence on the threads will generally get more traction for their suggestion. Some months are more interesting than others!
The funny thing is I mentioned Dining In, only because Roman was a Bon Appetite editor and because her cookies were everywhere when it first came out. And it got completely shot down, something about her fingernails. 
It really is comical.
I don’t even know why I care, I guess I because I enjoyed COTM for years and I think it’s an amazing resource and it’s sad to see it come to this.
I was excited about Fress, even though I wasn’t planning on cooking from it, and it got 22 responses, most of them from one person.
Oh well, I hope the powers that be turn CH around, until then I’m happy here and Instagramming. I wish them the best, I really do.
Crazy! I really think timing is everything there. If a book is too new it won’t fly. It seems like there is a point where enough people have become aware of a book and that is the point when a nomination will have a chance.
I tend to follow COTM after the fact. It can take months to get the book through my library. So I peruse the reviews at that point.
It really is an amazing resource, I know you had a lot to do with it, I give credit where credit is due.
I must’ve spent all of 2015-2016 perusing the archives. Honestly before that I read Serious Eats and watched Food Network, that was the extent of my cooking ( and working at a pizzeria, which wasn’t cooking at all, imo). I learned so much from those threads.
Now there’s EYB and Food52 and tons of others, but there’s nothing like reading those thread and being motivated to cook. I hope they keep them up forever.
Actually, no. I lurked for the first 8 years sporadically. Initially it was very NYC oriented with not much about cooking or the rest of the country. Thread formation was very awkward to follow since I did not have a computer of my own.
I became involved with DOTM organization when the person handling it went awol due to some extreme personal issues. The person who had originated the idea was in the midst of planning a wedding and not on line much. When the nomination thread didn’t appear as it should have I started one. Did that a couple of times, fortunately no one felt I was stepping on their toes, and I became part of the organizer group by default.
After the fiasco that led to HO I started trying to remove myself from the responsibility. Took a while until there were enough other people willing to do it. Now I lurk and participate once in a while.
It was wonderful in the glory days! I met some great folks, learned of amazing restaurants and resources and my cooking skills and repertoire improved faster than ever before.
I’m not willing to provide free content for the corporate ownership of CH for many reasons. But I do hope that the archives of those glory years remains accessible for a long, long time!
That’s right, you were DOTM moderator, I must be thinking of someone else.
Anyways, it’s an amazing resource, I caught the tail end of it, actually I remember a few of your posts, I started commenting in 2015, but I wasnt as involved in DOTM.
I don’t do it anymore because I started posting to some other forum, then referring to EYB, which is just easier by default, then it deteriorated to what it is now. It’s a shame. I really enjoyed those threads.
Oh, and they started removing my posts! That was the biggest motivation to stop. No way I was going to spend hours on my posts, just so they’d remove them because the mods don’t “like” me. Yeah, no… f that. They can keeptheir photo-less crap posting for themselves.
The organizers have no moderation abilities. They just take turns setting up the nominations, counting the votes, trying to redirect if things move too far from the originators plan.
Organizer, I meant organizer, the person who posts the threads. Anyways, it’s been fascinating, I don’t mean to bail on this thread, but it’s getting off-topic.
Sure there are places like that. Here, for instance!
Desperation on whose part?
I have never read chowhound but it is mentioned often enough on HO that I wondered what the deal was. I didnt bother signing up but from just a glance its so crowded with information I wouldnt know where to begin.
Makes me appreciate how streamlined HO is.
I caught it at the end of its natural life. So many good content providers!! I couldn’t believe the melt-down, the contempt for the posters who really had something to say.
Now, here we are. Keep the content coming! Cool weather is on the way. Good cooking weather, people!
Dan you win a special award! No, I’m serious, there’s an entire thread devoted to you.
May I ask how you found HO? You are a rarity, most of us are from Chowhound, I think I found it when my posts started disappearing and I knew I was going to get das boot soon, someone told me to post here. It was @Presunto ! Why yes, it was. I used to post at another forum with her and I was complaining about Chowhound. Still not banned, yet… maybe after my last post, now I am. 
