One of the first things I did when my first home computer was set up, some five years ago, was to look for websites relating to astrology. My searches led me, eventually, to several message boards, or forums (fora?) I've contributed or lurked on one or two of these from time to time ever since.
Astrology message boards are a great resource for beginners and intermediate students - the trick is to find one compatible with your own level of knowledge and style of applying it.
After reading the boards for a while it becomes obvious that each appeals to a particular type of contributor. There are a few boards for beginners who love to chat in terms of Sun signs, often about relationships and love affairs, e.g. "Is Taurus and Scorpio a good match?" There are one or two which specialise in traditional astrology or Vedic where contributors are mostly experts. Members there have been known to deal harshly with the odd hapless beginner who stumbles in by accident, asking for someone to look at his /her chart - in the hope of a free reading! Those boards are probably best used for reading and learning only, unless one is very experienced or very thick skinned! I'm neither, so I lurk. Luckily there are some boards which appeal to the in-betweens, like me, who have climbed out of the Sun sign rut, but are not up to elite conversation with the experts. All types of boards have helped me to form my own views about this fascinating yet frustrating subject.
I've noticed that interest in astrology message boards has decreased in the last year or two. Former contributors may have found other things on-line to spark their interest, blogs perhaps, or My-space, Flikr, and similar sites. Some message boards might well face extinction in the next few years. Unless there's a regular input of ideas and questions from a reasonable number of contributors, and some "new blood" is added occasionally, interest is bound to drain away. It would be a pity to lose them, but a kind of cyber-evolution may be in action - it'll be inevitable at some point in the future.
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