It's gone, I'm afraid, at least for the time being. There simply hasn't been the demand for or use of it.

Forsooth good sir!
If there had been no babble on box I would not have been able to recommend to young Markus good bookshops in Amsterdam.  Nor would others be able to express to us all different thoughts or music of what they thought were a Thelemic nature. And all sorts of other applications. But tis your call of course.  It just seemed to fill the grey area between proper post and chatty info that humans need.
I would just miss it.

The chatbox was great for chatty info as you say, Chris. To make this relevant to the moment, the chatbox could be useful to someone wanting to know or knowing if the unrecoverable Bogus thread is cached anywhere.
Or for saying something like, "It is hoped that no threads that discussed the mythological creature Echidna in the private area are unrecoverable, if they ever existed at all. :-X". 

😀

The forums of this site is listed at http://www.lashtal.com/forum/index.php

A forum called Stuff described as "Members only. Wander up to the bar and buy the rest of us a drink while you talk about ... stuff. Stuff that's at least slightly relevant to the site but which doesn't fit neatly into any other Forums.", is listed under the subheading Community.

From the description of the forum Stuff, babble on stuff could be done there. To make this obvious to all, the said forum could be renamed into Stuff and babble on, or Babble on and stuff, and be described as "Members only. Wander up to the bar and buy the rest of us a drink while you babble on about ... stuff. Stuff that's at least slightly relevant to the site but which doesn't fit neatly into any other Forums."

This site looks terrible right now- like it's renting cars. I've always loved the chat box. Maybe I'm an idiot... But isn't this supposed to be the Aleister Crowley Society?!

We are currently working on a completely new web site on a completely new platform so don't expect much to be done on our current platform.

And this being Aleister Crowley Society has what to do with chat box? I'm sorry but I fail to see the connection. 🙂

I'm not sure that 'terrible' is fair - but then I am biased. I don't get the 'renting cars' reference, either, but presumably you're complaining that the site is showing its age. Which of course it is!

As eol has mentioned, we're working on a redesign which will tackle three particular issues:

1 - Accessibility. It's been pointed out to me that the 'pale blue on white' text in the menus and the forum summary isn't the most legible combination.
2 - Responsiveness. With a substantial proportion of visits to the site being made from mobile devices, it needs to look better on smartphones and tablets.
3 - Simplicity & clarity.

The chat box is a great feature for those who access the site & want to reach out to others without the dominance of certain people on the forums. I'm concerned that maybe the look of Lashtal.com will be drab. AC had a vibrant & colorful personality, & his Society should reflect this, no? I love this place & appreciate your efforts!

Oh, please spare us. Quit complaining and whining. The administrators have explained their goals. What else do you want?

^^^^ Thank you, Shiva, for illustrating my point about the usefulness of the chat box. It's a vital component for the site. Especially for new-comers, it's an area to share without being bullied. It's free of the formality, degrees, etc. It adds some cheerfulness!

::)

It may add 'cheerfulness' but it averaged fewer than one post a day in the year it was available. Only 31 members participated at all. Horemakhet contributed two posts.

I'm not saying that there's no place for a Chat Box - there is, which is why I'm exploring options with the new site format - but the Babble On box was ugly and clunky and it failed to engage the enthusiasm of members here. Not unlike the Blogs.

These are completely underwhelming statistics and clearly demonstrate why the box has been abrogated.

Looks like it's renting cars or maybe more like a car crash ?!  I preferred the previous format of it before it was supposedly “changed for the better” the last time, several months ago now.

Norma N Joy Conquest

I think it looks fine as it is.

Re the Babble Box, I used to take part in the banter from time to time like all the other kool kats, but can't say I viewed it as a must-have feature of the site, so wouldn't miss it were it to return to the Sunken City, waiting for the aeons to pass until once more the stars are right.

Thanks for the feedback, chaps: all comments gratefully received, the more detailed the better, and will be taken into account for the next upgrade. Oh, and Jamie: please don't feel you need to wait 'several months' to provide that feedback. The site exists for the pleasure and utility of its membership, after all.

Thanks – although I wasn’t aware of any particular feedback which I didn’t get around to contributing.  I don’t know about anyone else, but I seemed to have more difficulty just accessing it after the most recent upgrade.  But that might just be my usual inexpertise with all things technical in general! 

Is there any timeline for when the new site format including the replacement for the old Blogs & Babble on box might be up and running?  I cannot recall reading of one.

N Joy

No, sorry, but 'soon.' As I mentioned in the announcements, though, 'the Blogs will not be transferred to the upgraded LAShTAL.' The Chat Box may return if I can find something that works well and isn't as obtrusive as the old software.

'Babble On' chat box has returned.

I've also brought in functionality for Blogs and have started to import old Blog posts (copying and pasting, so it may take some time). Your Blog posts are already there, Jamie.