???
I don’t know that anyone can answer definitively, but I’ve thought the same thing.
I’ve been a poster since 2003 or so; I simply didn’t re-up once the board went free, as it was my impression that the board is actually better off with people who see ads, and ads don’t bother me. I use an ad-blocker called “ignoring them.”
I seem to recall that we were once promised that the change-over would involve changes in titles as well, so that paying posters would be called Subscribers and long time posters Members. That seems to have fallen by the wayside, assuming it was not a lie in the first place.
I think lots of former members have lapsed, like me. For a while there, it wasn’t clear whether the PTB actually preferred us to re-up memberships or to see ads. Last I heard, they’ve come out conclusively in favor of memberships, but I haven’t gone to sign back up since then.
Another “guest” who’s been here for seven or eight years now checking in.
ETA: Hey, check it out - just over nine!
It’s partly that more and more long-time posters are classed as “guests” because “guest” now means “Someone who chose not to re-up now that the boards are free”. I think there might be a slight increase in “drive-by” postings from random internet denizens now that they’re not seeing that the board as subscriber-only.
I used to be a member.* Now I’m a guest. I’ll bet there are a lot of people like me.
Why?–because when I tried to re-up like a good Doper citizen, the damn Paypal software wouldn’t accept my debit card.
So I got downgraded to a mere guest. And you know what?–I discovered that it don’t make no difference. I still have a lot of fun every time I log in, and sometimes I even learn something 
.
I never pay much attention to usernames, anyway, and don’t notice whether the word ‘guest’ is shown under the name. After all, when fighting ignorance, it’s the content of the post that matters, not the reputation of the poster
*(and not just any ol’ member—a charter member. Not that I cared about the title. Or understood why anybody else would care…but it did save me 7 bucks. )
A look at Alexa over the last two years suggests that traffic is heaviest in the summer, lightest in the winter, rises in the spring and drops in the fall. This is consistent with my gut feeling over the years.
So there’s more traffic, and more guests than members…
If you look at the “joined date” for a lot of the “Guests” you’ll see many have been around a long time.
I’ve been seeing a lot of new names, and a higher than average amount of spelling errors/grammar mistakes/abbreviations than I’m used to from this board, mostly from people labeled as Guest.
In addition to the abundance of posts by people who used to be members but quit paying for the opportunity (given the shift from pay to post), I think I am not the only person who is still a member who is spending less time here.
Some of it is because I’m busier than I used to be, and some of it is that I’ve found someplace else to hang out, and some of it is that I don’t like it here as much as I used to.
Are any of those bad things? Well, if too many good, interesting people find other hangouts, or just don’t spend time here, it becomes a less desirable place to be, and more people find other hangouts.
On the other hand, who cares about me and my posting habits? Me–that’s who.
Drive-by guests are a neutral force.
But former members who are now Guests aren’t neccessarily contributing less content-wise, so it’s sad if they decided the board was no longer worth paying for, but not so sad if they just missed a deadline, or just otherwise aren’t interested in paying.
Um, that’s confusing at best. But I don’t know how to write it so that it makes sense. I guess, if we are losing your contributions, I’m sad to see you go, but if it’s just the money, no big loss.
I’m always a little sad to see posters whom I love who have become Guests, even though I know it no longer means “unlikely to post here again”.
That explains it!!! SMDB started listing me as “Guest” a few weeks ago and I just thought something was broken. I had no idea the board was changed to free or that it was time for my dues. I guess I will have to think about paying up…
Right, my Q in the OP has been answered and I appreciate it.
kittenblue, you noted “a higher than average amount of spelling errors/grammar mistakes/abbreviations than I’m used to from this board, mostly from people labeled as Guest.” I agree. We’ve got to stamp that out before it spreads. 
I was a Charter Member until I decided to let my subscription lapse earlier this year.
Me too. I actually kinda like “Guest”. Makes me feel like I’m welcome here.
Of course, we all know it really means “hope he leaves soon”!
I think my credit card expired so I couldn’t be bothered to re-up. Now, if there is some relevance, I mention the town I live in. The number of posts one has does not seem well correlated to the quality there of, so I regard it as insignificant.
I expect to be treated better now that I am a guest. I demand good towels and fancy soaps.
I was a fan of the Straight Dope from the time the first book came out, but I didn’t sign up when the board was pay, so I’m a guest, but I’ve been here longer than most people on this board. So the guest doesn’t necessarily mean new.
Hello all.
(I’ve been lurking, racking my brains for my password, and outta nowhere I remember it)
I beg to differ. 