I've actually set up a forum or two to promote my inventions. Hard to get people to them.

The trouble with your proposal is that the 20-40 people I want to stay in touch with would need 20 to 40 forums to stay in touch with their 20-40 people. We could spend all day checking out the forums of our closest contacts. A universal forum takes away a lot of that work.

If anything, your response kind of proves the need for a universal forum. The question is: should it driven by a corporate entity or by a co-operative movement?

If a co-operative forum is ever set and serves needs because of its universality, I think many people would make it their primary forum.