JimLucas Posted August 21, 2003 Share Posted August 21, 2003 This is a branch from the "Do you like the new Forum?" topic. Couldn't you tell? Well, as far as I can tell, there's no way to change it to something more informative, as one could by changing the subject lines on individual messages in the old Forum. I just picked a thread/tree from the old Forum to analyze. I picked an extreme case, of course, since the extreme cases is where one encounters extreme problems. The original subject line was "Why are Englishes more popular than duets?" That tree reached a total of 64 messages. In all, it included 15 different subject lines (I didn't count the addition of "RE:" as a change). There were 16 different branch points -- individual posts which had more than one direct reply. 22 different individuals contributed to the tree. One could *see* this information in the tree structured display of subjects. No, not the numbers... that took a bit of work, and is something I don't particularly care about. I counted them only to illustrate my point. No, what can be seen is *who* contributed, *where and when* the threads branched (frayed?) and subjects changed (or at least someone acknowledged a change). *That* is what interests me, *not* the count. One could quickly see whether a "topic" with 64 "replies" had numerous participants like the above or was simply a 2-person exchange. Or to use myself as a personal (bad?) example: You might want to ignore a long back-and-forth between Göran and me, but you might become curious if you suddenly saw a third-party poster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Edgley Posted August 21, 2003 Share Posted August 21, 2003 Not to be a troublemaker (at least that's what I would like to think of myself), but if it were put to a vote, I wonder what percentage of the members would like NOT to switch to this new style forum! Most us the comments re shortcoming of the new format I agree with. Regarding Paul's exhotations to "experiment" and try things out, some of us just have a few minutes a day to check out the forum, and have other things to do, like building concertinas, for example. One of my sons and one of my daughters are computer programmers and they find it hard to understand my reluctance to sit down and learn HTML, for example. Those who use computers as a lifestyle (or means of earing a living), usually find it difficilt to understand that most of us only consider computers a tool, not an end in itself. The easier to use, with the smallest learning curve, the better. Some forum members will have the time and interest to experiment. Others will just not contribute at all, or as frequently. As I've said before, this type of format is the reason that concertina.net is the only site I visit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandy Winters Posted August 21, 2003 Share Posted August 21, 2003 Frank, I'll second that. Should I add an *emoticon*?? Gimme a break!! ;-( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Schwartz Posted August 21, 2003 Share Posted August 21, 2003 some of us just have a few minutes a day to check out the forum, and have other things to do. That's exactly why the new forums are here to stay. I currently don't have any time to read the forum posts at all, or to play the concertina. So yes, I'm on a mission to automate more of the site (the forum was a good start), so that kind people like Ken can also donate their time and do more on the site (without having to learn HTML or programming, as you point out). Vote? That sounds like all the talk and email banter years ago about reviving the C&S Magazine. People were ADAMANT that there MUST be a print version because online is hard to read, blah blah blah, but guess how many people were willing to actually CREATE and PUBLISH a print version. You don't have to be a programmer to understand the various forms of ZERO. Okay, so I just went ahead and started Concertina.net on my own... Thanks, Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimLucas Posted August 21, 2003 Author Share Posted August 21, 2003 Okay, so I just went ahead and started Concertina.net on my own And therein lies the heart of the matter. I much preferred the old format, even though it lacked a search facility, BUT... Paul is owner and captain of this ship (and most of the crew as well), and he has every right to sail it where and how he wants. We're just along for the ride, and we're not even paying passengers. We can make suggestions; we can complain; we can even bicker and scold. But if any of us wants to steer a ship, we're going to have to build or buy our own... AND be responsible for the maintenance. Paul, I may not agree with all of your choices, but I firmly believe that it is *your* right to make them. Three cheers! /Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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