For me, one of the great things UBBdev has given me is the opportunity to learn and develop my skills. I wouldn't go as far as calling myself a programmer, but I certainly don't flinch when looking at some perl, xhtml, xsl, css, etc. (etc. is not a programming language
). I've also had the opportunity to improve my graphics skills and understanding of developing a style, layout and interface that users appreciate.
I think that there will always be an ebb and flo as new people come here, and older people move on to something else. The important thing is for us to provide an environment where people can learn and develop their own skills.
I for one would love to see more people, and newer people take a crack at writing some modifications on their own. However, I realize that the dynamics have changed a great deal over the last couple of years. A lot of things have been added to UBB, and the code is a more structured and restrictive than before. Coders have to worry about things liking breaking the cache, etc, which poses more challenges. But hey, what not take up the challenge and learn a new language in the process!
To me, a community is made up by the people who participate in it. I don't think that the staff of UBBdev should be the ones that dictate what direction UBB Development goes...but the UBB enthusiasts that come here to play.
There are a lot of people here who have questions, interests and expertise in a variety of things. I think it would be great to help others in things beyond just the UBB code itself.
In any case, we have great things planned for the future. We're not going away anytime soon!
