Bumping

[Ted]

the latest juke box the songs stay up for a period of several weeks (it seems) and the list gets longer instead of bumping someone out.

BINGO!

Interacting with the Latests Posts part of this site is a very limiting way of experiencing this community. Jukeboxes are where it's at.

No amount of commenting will change your song's position in the Latest Songs jukebox  – if someone replies individually to every comment on their own song post, that still won't change the position in the jukebox. That is probably why it is frowned upon "a little."

Self-bumping (a.k.a masterbumping) is annoying when done in excess. But there's no way you could ever reply to the comments on your own song posts without self-bumping. What constitutes "excess?" I don't know. I've masterbumped a bunch of times – when an old song of mine presents itself to me and I want to talk about it again for some reason. Nobody has ever slapped me on the wrist.

For my own recent songs, I try to let them collect comments until the comments stop coming. And then I watch the song slide down Page 1 of the Original Songs board. When it goes to Page 2, that's when I reply to the comments, all in one shot. This MO prolongs the discussion life of the song, and gives other song posts more breathing room. If there are no new comments that merit a reply, I let it sink into possible oblivion. That's my protocol, not a rule, or even established etiquette here. I probably overthink it. I came up with this protocol before jukeboxes came along – precisely because I didn't want my craving to talk about my songs turn me into a bump abuser. 

For similar reasons, the Jukebox Primacy Principle (I just made that up) is why the site requires an MP3 for each song post: MP3s can be added to the jukeboxes, video links can't.

[Ron D Bowes]

Well, I read the "how to get more comments thread" and taken heed of these comments on this thread. Trying to find anything on this site is a chore. I mean - I tried to check what i have uploaded so I don't duplicate and finding my own jukebox isn't exactly plain to see. I've tried not saturate with my songs. I have tried commenting on loads of songs, but it's like most sites. The input you do is never equal to the input back. So, when you have done your best and you see your 4th song with minimal interest while old songs with double figures pushing your song off the page it is disheartening. I mean, I found my personal jukebox the other day by accident and now I can't bloody find it again. I think maybe I am a square peg trying to fit a round hole.

[Zoltan]

The personal jukebox is under your name. On every post you do. Same as mine.

[Ted]

So, when you have done your best and you see your 4th song with minimal interest while old songs with double figures pushing your song off the page it is disheartening.

Again: Jukeboxes are where it's at. People (like me) can bump the ancient past 1000 times a day, and it won't change your song's position in the Latest Songs jukebox.

The only thing that can push your song down in the Latest Songs jukebox is another newer song. (That is why one of the few hard-and-fast rules we have here is "Don't dump your back catalog.") Currently the oldest song in Latest Songs was published 10 days ago. Only a new song will push it out of that particular jukebox.

I do think this site is not as intuitive to use as it could be. I hear you. Like, isn't it weird that you can't find a member's jukebox from their profile page? I don't know why that is. Maybe the structure of this forum software makes it hard to modify that page. Or maybe they never thought of it, and nobody ever requested it.

But over the years they have tried to do what they can with this forum software to make it easier to find music, and to encourage members to comment as much as possible.

Apart from the jukeboxes, the main menu is your friend. The very first column of the first tab will help you keep track of the topics you have started or joined – and will help you find topics you haven't seen yet. (The one I use the most is "New Replies to Your Posts.")

[Pru]

i think that re-visiting older songs is a great thing. i go back and listen to old stuff now and then and nearly always hear songs i'd missed when they were originally posted, mostly i admit my uncles songs.

i don't get it why some members get uptight about the amount of hits/reviews their songs get. who gives a rats arse as long as somebody has heard your tracks. i don't think there should be any ego BS on this site.

[Ron D Bowes]

i think that re-visiting older songs is a great thing. i go back and listen to old stuff now and then and nearly always hear songs i'd missed when they were originally posted, mostly i admit my uncles songs.

i don't get it why some members get uptight about the amount of hits/reviews their songs get. who gives a rats arse as long as somebody has heard your tracks. i don't think there should be any ego BS on this site.

Because if your song is pushed down the list it ain't getting many listens either.

[Ted]

Because if your song is pushed down the list it ain't getting many listens either.

Nothing but newer songs will push your song down the list of Latest Songs jukebox.

Here's a snapshot of the Latest Songs jukebox taken just now. Your most recent two songs are there, and have been there all day – in spite of many, many comments being posted on other songs. There have been 43 comments on songs today, if I'm not mistaken. Your songs haven't budged.

[Ron D Bowes]

Because if your song is pushed down the list it ain't getting many listens either.

Nothing but newer songs will push your song down the list of Latest Songs jukebox.

Here's a snapshot of the Latest Songs jukebox taken just now. Your most recent two songs are there, and have been there all day – in spite of many, many comments being posted on other songs. There have been 43 comments on songs today, if I'm not mistaken. Your songs haven't budged.

I don't really use the jukeboxes, but I appreciate you pointing it out. Truth be told plays are not important to me. I get far more plays on Spotify and I am paid for it. Crap pay - but pay nonetheless. It's the interaction I came for. Without comments their ain't any intercation. As I say. I am obvioulsy square and it oughta be round LOL. No worries, I shall seek my thrills elsewhere. I shall still comment on tracks I enjoy though.

[Mike_S]

I think bumping probably goes up and down in frequency and over time evens itself out, but mostly it's never a usually big problem. People like to ocasionally pass comment on a older song for whatever reason but I think mostly newest songs get the lions share.

Generally speaking amount of comments on new songs do vary as well for whatever reason, but I find this site fairly good for people passing comment compared to other sites. But what you get out of it will be related to what you put into it. But like anything worth something in life it might take a bit of time.

[Ted]

I don't really use the jukeboxes. ... It's the interaction I came for. 

I've been trying to convert you. You'll get the most out of this community if you learn to love the jukeboxes.

When a song is playing, you can click on the COMMENT button, and a new tab will open with that song's topic.

Yeah, I think it's a bit clunky. But I love the community here more than I love the interface. They've done a lot of work within the constraints of this forum software. But still there's a learning curve if you really want to get the most out of what goes on here.

If this were a monetized community – and thank goodness it isn't – I'm sure that the forum software would have been scrapped a long time ago, and the whole site would be optimized towards conversions – ad clicks, purchases, affiliate marketing, promoted posts, and all the horrors of the commercialized Web. Note the absence of all of that shit, as you are frustrated by bumping, and with boring people such as myself who want to make you love features that you don't want to use.

But along with our non-commercial, non-monetized bent comes our keen sense of when people are coming here merely for commercial reasons. This is no place to monetize your music, or to boost your SEO. I'm a web marketing guy. I promise you this site is a dead end for people who come here merely to pimp their YouTube channel, their music blog, their Soundcloud profile, their Apple Music page, their Spotify, their podcast, etc. I say merely because none of that disqualifies someone from participating. But the clunky factor, the learning curve is, in a way, a small hurdle that someone needs to get over; it shows that they really are here for the community first and foremost. 

There are some real professionals on this site who do all of that monetization stuff elsewhere – yet they still stick around, because this place is a sounding board, and a learning community. People come here who write songs and record at home – they do both – and after awhile, they get better at both.