ParanetOnline
The Site => Site Suggestions & Support => Topic started by: iago on June 02, 2010, 01:50:33 PM
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So now that we're into the realm of the new boards and all, it seems to me like there's not a lot of "space" left that would need a general, catch-all board like Mac's to exist. At this point, it feels -- to me -- like the "Community" category of boards *is* MacAnally's (and if so, could stand to be renamed as such). Am I wrong?
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I think that there's a place for just about everything at present. If folks come up with more ideas for topics that aren't covered, we can made adjustments, but I don't see the need for a catch-all. I'm cool with renaming it to Mac's.
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As long as there's a place for general, unspecified, undirected conversation, I think we should be just fine. The only two things I would expect of it are:
1) Rename it as you yourself suggested.
2) Make it as easy to find from the board directory as Mac's was.
With those two things, I think it would satisfy anyone who isn't dead-set on finding problems. :D
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I think you've got it more than covered. And I think if members find something missing or lacking perhaps they could petition you for it? But as you've said elsewhere, even nonsensical, PG-13 threads have a place in the community boards.
Just my $0.02. And thanks again.
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if it says Mac, it's cool with me. I don't drop in often anymore, but I like to know it's there. You know, the "Everybody knows your name" syndrome. I also think that it is an entry door for new people. You could always say, "stop in at Mac's" to the new guys and you could get a sense of who they were.
That general entry door is just a nice welcome and a great spring board. IMO
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As long as there's a place for general, unspecified, undirected conversation, I think we should be just fine.
I second Shecky on that. I guess the chat partially covers that, but I know there are people around who prefer the (slightly) slower paced atmosphere of talking in a thread.
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I am one of those people who likes the slower paced convos, the ~pop in and see what everyone has been up to~ kinda-gal. I like that kind of format over the chat. I would absolutely love for the place to be MacNally's again.
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I am one of those people who likes the slower paced convos, the ~pop in and see what everyone has been up to~ kinda-gal. I like that kind of format over the chat. I would absolutely love for the place to be MacNally's again.
Yep. And that's what all of the Community boards are, in aggregate, I think. As far as general conversations go, I think a combination of the Other Silliness and the Story of Us boards does the trick -- the latter, in particular, works well for getting-to-know-you threads.
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Change Community to Mac's, and maybe rework some of the board descriptions to reflect the changes. (There is some redundancy, like pointing to Media Favorites for video games when I think the description for one of the games boards includes video games.)
MacAnally's as a name has been around forever. Maybe it's silly, but, as someone who followed over from the old mailing list, I'd hate to see the name go.
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Change Community to Mac's, and maybe rework some of the board descriptions to reflect the changes. (There is some redundancy, like pointing to Media Favorites for video games when I think the description for one of the games boards includes video games.)
MacAnally's as a name has been around forever. Maybe it's silly, but, as someone who followed over from the old mailing list, I'd hate to see the name go.
Yeah, that's pretty much my plan and perspective. :) I'm just looking to see if I'm off base. :)
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I'd get yelled at at work for popping up the ajax chat window. They're pretty liberal about stuff, but there are limits.
Overall, you've done a pretty decent job at compartmentalizing McAnnaly's into a bunch of cubicles. It's a happier, more structured place now.
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Wait, you mean this place was sopposed to be structured? Aw man.
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Its like that credit score commercial. We were a "bad 509" but after some watching and guiding we're on our way to becoming a "Who's a good 745? You're a good 745!".
YOUTUBE (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6rIjd7Wds8)
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As long as there's a place for general, unspecified, undirected conversation, I think we should be just fine. The only two things I would expect of it are:
1) Rename it as you yourself suggested.
2) Make it as easy to find from the board directory as Mac's was.
With those two things, I think it would satisfy anyone who isn't dead-set on finding problems. :D
+1
As long as there's still a catch-all that doesn't include the new chat feature, I'm fine with not having this anymore and renaming the whole section Mac's.
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I'm another one who's in favor of having one slower none directed conversational thread - in my case, even though I could access chat from work, when I'm most likely to be on the forum, it's verbotten and
since I'm the enforcer I really can't pull a do as I say, not as I do. (And it wouldn't need to be archived-
when it got to the split point it could be split and the older portion dumped.)
Other than that, renaming Community to Mac's sounds like the way to go.
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As long as there's a place for general, unspecified, undirected conversation, I think we should be just fine. The only two things I would expect of it are:
1) Rename it as you yourself suggested.
2) Make it as easy to find from the board directory as Mac's was.
With those two things, I think it would satisfy anyone who isn't dead-set on finding problems. :D
I'm another in favor of long undirected conversation threads. I don't have a computer at work and tend to work weird hours so the chat feature is of very limited use in my situation.
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I think the drawback of chat is that it is just idle chitchat between a few people, whereas in the thread form it becomes a conversation that people work together to create over time.
It seems more like a collaborate effort at decoration than conversation, with pictures and comments and such.
Truly, it is reviving the art of conversation.
Ok, that was overly dramatic, I like the threads, is all :D*shrug*
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I get that. But persistence is part of what gave rise to the problems that prompted the big redecoration (people coming in hours or days after someone misbehaved and getting riled up all over again), so I do regard the chat option as having features that are better than threads, too. ;)
I don't think that "undirected conversation" is really established as a *positive* pattern here on the forum. And even so, the "and other silliness" part of the Forum Games area does suggest to me that a little undirection is still possible.
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I get that. But persistence is part of what gave rise to the problems that prompted the big redecoration (people coming in hours or days after someone misbehaved and getting riled up all over again), so I do regard the chat option as having features that are better than threads, too. ;)
Hmmm, tricky. Give a guy some paint he could make a Mona Lisa or slop curse words on the wall...
I do not envy your choice, Sir.
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Its like that credit score commercial. We were a "bad 509" but after some watching and guiding we're on our way to becoming a "Who's a good 745? You're a good 745!".
YOUTUBE (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6rIjd7Wds8)
But...But...I thirive in Chaos and Annacy...
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Wait, you mean this place was sopposed to be structured? Aw man.
I liked having Mac's as a catch all, and the angst corner as a catch all with passion.
Personally, I don't like having everything so segmented and organized. Makes me confused if I have a borderline topic that might fit in a couple spots. Or I might miss something I would be interested in because somebody else did, and thought differently than me in where to post.
I also prefer the board to chat. Chat is transitory and seems like a commitment. I think chat is nice to have(even if the client being used isn't the most robust), but I don't think that it should be touted as a substitute for anything.
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I liked having Mac's as a catch all, and the angst corner as a catch all with passion.
The passion was a big problem.
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Wait, you mean this place was sopposed to be structured? Aw man.
I liked having Mac's as a catch all, and the angst corner as a catch all with passion.
Personally, I don't like having everything so segmented and organized. Makes me confused if I have a borderline topic that might fit in a couple spots. Or I might miss something I would be interested in because somebody else did, and thought differently than me in where to post.
I also prefer the board to chat. Chat is transitory and is much more of a time commitment, along with being less forgiving if you want to take a second to think. I think chat is nice to have(even if the client being used isn't the most robust), but I don't think that it should be touted as a substitute for anything.
But really, I like threads better. For example: The Chuck Norris jokes irrationally annoy me an extreme degree. So much of the time, chat is absolutely useless to me. I can choose to not visit a chuck norris thread with no penalty in community participation. Not so in chat.
Sorry about the double post. Didn't realize it was posted the first time. Leaving this one since I had added a bit.
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Yeah, that's pretty much my plan and perspective. :) I'm just looking to see if I'm off base. :)
I actually think of the whole thing as "Mac's", with various sub-forums for talking about the books, media, games, etc.
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But...But...I thirive in Chaos and Annacy...
*blinking my eyes* wait, I think my color red has chaos, but your color of white craves law and order! That places us as enemies, but then why do I feel the compulsion to hug you and forgive your sins? he he
I agree with Curly, but that's my liberal heart. What if you deleted the flame post so it isn't out there forever for re-hash?
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Am I wrong?
No. Never. ;D
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As you see, I'm a VERY infrequent poster. However, I've been (mostly) lurking here for years. I'm glad to see this reorganization and refocusing, because the general vibe of the place had definitely gone downhill, to the point where even my lurking was becoming less and less. I do like the idea of keeping MacAnally's as a general non-directed conversation area -- every board I frequent has such an area, and I find that it's the best, quickest way to get a feeling for the general environment of the board. What are the board norms, how are they enforced, are new voices welcomed, and so forth.
As for the chat, I enjoy an occasional chat, but I don't think it serves the same function as a general discussion area. Yes, that can be both good and bad, but speaking as somebody who tends to lurk more than post, and needs to feel fairly comfortable with the community before posting, I won't even dip my toes into chat until I've posted quite a lot more than I have here, and until I think I'll recognize and be recognized by some of the folks in the chat.
Iago and all the mods -- thanks for all of your work on this project!
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I agree with Curly, but that's my liberal heart. What if you deleted the flame post so it isn't out there forever for re-hash?
People send PM's to figure it out, or just ask in the thread and are informed.
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Personally, I kind of feel like a general catch-all (and undirected topic)board might contribute to the problems already encountered before in Mac's... As it is there seems like there's something for everyone in the community section, and then there's always the chat now too :)
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The passion was a big problem.
Says the guy who killed his best friend Rodrigo for money, and who was indirectly responsible for the deaths of Othello and Desdemona, simply because he didn't get the promotion he wanted. ;)
Or maybe I'm thinking of a different Iago...
Anyway, I see your reasons for not having an Angst corner anymore, but I still really feel that there needs to be a genuine off-topic section, even if it's only to take rambling from other threads and put them in the proper place. The problem is that admins will never think of enough categories to satisfy everything, or even most things that people want to talk about. And threads have a bit more permanence than the chat section, which does make a difference, especially when people have different schedules and can't get to the forum at the same time.
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At the end of the day, what makes this a community is not ordered discussion (well, not primarily; we obviously put a LOT into ordered discussion of something we all have in common). Community happens organically... which must allow for SOMETHING of the non-directed group conversation (which I differentiate sharply from "discussion", but that's just my take), or it stagnates. And if there's anything this community isn't, it's stagnant.
We need some yeast or the whole thing will fall flat and risk becoming boring (ever eaten matzah? :D ). And that would be a horrible shame, given the liveliness of the thing that brought us all together in the first place.
My official two cents' worth: Keep one non-directed, non-organized, non-titled (well, it HAS to have a title, just not a specific one that limits the category) subforum. Police it more heavily (when you have wild yeast, you always run the risk of breadsplosions), being sure to rub the puppy's nose in it immediately so he knows what he's done. Heck, call the place "Enough Rope" if you want - make the whole Community forum "Mac's" and call the free-for-all room "Enough Rope" - to drive the point home.
... jeez, I don't just stretch a metaphor, I put it on the frickin' rack.
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At the end of the day, what makes this a community is not ordered discussion (well, not primarily; we obviously put a LOT into ordered discussion of something we all have in common). Community happens organically... which must allow for SOMETHING of the non-directed group conversation (which I differentiate sharply from "discussion", but that's just my take), or it stagnates. And if there's anything this community isn't, it's stagnant.
This argument makes sense to me, and so do Fred's reasons for not favouring non-directed discussion; I would regret the absence of non-directed discussion, but not to the extent of expecting that Fred should provide it, I'm very cognisant of being here at all as a benefit we in general derive from a great deal of work on some people's behalf and very much do not want to be ungrateful.
... jeez, I don't just stretch a metaphor, I put it on the frickin' rack.
Insert MSD allusion here.
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I'm brewing an idea. Mac-style.
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Does it come in a brown unmarked bottle? >.>
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Does it come in a brown unmarked bottle? >.>
Kinda! :)
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This argument makes sense to me, and so do Fred's reasons for not favouring non-directed discussion; I would regret the absence of non-directed discussion, but not to the extent of expecting that Fred should provide it, I'm very cognisant of being here at all as a benefit we in general derive from a great deal of work on some people's behalf and very much do not want to be ungrateful.
Agreed. Anything other than regimented discussion of the books is eventually going to bubble up and get smelly all over Fred; the only question is balancing between the demands on Fred's time, energy and general put-up-with-itness, and the general spirit of this community. I think we as community members need to find some way to step up and keep the smelliness to a minimum, but damifino exactly HOW. :-\
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Kinda! :)
I see "The Bar" has been created, and the ground rules ("Accorded Neutral Ground") set. Whenever you open for business, I'll be happy to be a customer. :)
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Does it bother anyone else that there are 11 subthreads in McAnally's? Shouldn't there be 13? :D With child boards, there are too many.
I dunno. It's just me.
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Does it bother anyone else that there are 11 subthreads in McAnally's? Shouldn't there be 13? :D With child boards, there are too many.
I dunno. It's just me.
LOL!See? There should be Weird and The Goddess thread added. Kali says so! ;) :D
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*chants* weird, weird, weird...
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LOL!See? There should be Weird and The Goddess thread added. Kali says so! ;) :D
Egads, I've been misquoted! :O
I'm fairly sure Weird is now Chat. ;) Have you been in there? Very weird. I have spent much time analyzing the situation in Chat carefully, and can assure you of its Weirdness.
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Egads, I've been misquoted! :O
I'm fairly sure Weird is now Chat. ;) Have you been in there? Very weird. I have spent much time analyzing the situation in Chat carefully, and can assure you of its Weirdness.
True - the chat is Very weird! But it's not very Weird!
I spent a bunch of time in there yesterday. It's not horrible. It's just different, with different plusses and minuses which add up to something less than the Glorious Weird for me personally.
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Mac's is back as The Bar. This topic, then, I think is closed. :)