Hiyas - 
Yes the site is still very much in use.
You do bring up some very good points here though and all of these things fall on my shoulders.  Therefore, I offer you my sincerest apologies.  Allow me to try and explain and tell you what I plan to do about it.  
Updating the news is one of those matters that does seem to fall through the cracks.  However, since you bring it up, I will be making it a priority to get a post up.  
 
As to user access, I have an issue on the site with spam accounts.  I try to get in and grab the legit users and get them activated as quickly as I see them, but sometimes new user accounts do also slip past me.  I assure you that as of this moment, you now have access to post to the site.  In an effort to rectify this situation for the future I'm going to make a post asking that any new members send me a PM here and I will get them activated as soon as I see it).  
 
I hope that helps.  Again I apologize for the inconvenience, but I do appreciate you bringing this stuff to my attention.
Regards,
Vallikat