> However, I still maintain, strictly from a
> CUSTOMER point of view, it makes a lot of
> sense to create a one-stop shop, where I
> don't have to spend hours trying to find
> what I want. All the experts in their
> various fields of expertise, would be far
> more effective in delivering a better
> product to the customer.

> it really bothers me that
> all my favourite shops could not be under
> one big roof. I could save a lot on gas,
> frustration, and time.

Interesting idea. However,

YOUR one-stop-shop would be different to another person's one-stop-shop. And it would be different again to Your one-stop-shop two or three years from now.

As Your interests change your one-stop-shop would also need to change.

Think of the Younger woman... lingerie, hair salon, tanning salon, latest in clothes trends, coffee shops, etc. Be nice in a one-stop-shop, right?

Now think of her 30 years from now. No more lingerie store. Hair salon doing the same style all the time so don't need to go to those new fandangled ones. Coffee? Too busy with other things. Maybe now plays golf or lawn bowls regularly.

Same person who needs a totally different one-stop-shop.

So one forum "owner" could have another "expert" answer questions. And we could all go to just one forum.

But dang if that forum wouldn't become a mish-mash if this and that and nothing in particular and end up perishing.

You might like Dobermans, cooking Italian, cross-stitch, line-dancing and screenwriting. A single forum with all of those things may be fine for you. BUT, most other people couldn't care less about those things. Oh sure they may like one or two, but not all of them.

As more and more questions gets asked about things they have no interest in they would cease to participate and leave and the forum would die.

Even big department stores have their goods sectioned off to make it easier to find.

A single site with multiple forums would be similar. However, seeing as everything online is only a click ot two away, whether it's on the same site or not, it takes just as much effort to visit different forums on the same site as it does to visit different forums on the one site.

By not having one-stop-shops and by having "targetted" forums instead, I know I can get the answers to the questions I want without bothering anyone. And I also know I am not bothered by too many posts which don't interest me.

There's a forum which gets around three hundred messages a day! And it's niche.

Add that forum to a few other high-volume forums and You'd have to wade through a few thousands messages a day to see if there was anything for you.

Just give me the info. I want without having to sift through loads of stuff I'm not interested in.

One-stop-shops can't do that.

Michael Ross.