And with numbers such as you're talking SS I just can't see it be a Mod problem... I mean how many people could you guys actually drive away from here! ;-)
The new forum is coming and will keep things pretty busy on your end... I'll be curious how things fare after that. Should give a good indication of how much it has to do with the current situation.
I have tended not to name names specifically. But since you mentioned this site... Yes, they rack up some incredible numbers. Now, they may have a bit more than twice the registered membership of vdr, but even factoring that in their numbers are off the charts.Quote:
There is one site out there, TSG
Hmm.........go there answer a few queries and come away within about five minutes.To many peeps with an attitude problem for me though there are lots of good folk posting there as are here and I mean no disrespect to them.I believed I mentioned before about this [VDR] being a site with an adult attitude to responses.Quote:
Originally posted by SuperSparks
There is one site out there, TSG, that kicks every other site's backside. They have an average of 2,800 posts per day.
I personally don't think we need to go down that road to increase membership.Its like if I owned a bar I could get all sorts of folk through the door if I was prepared to put up with lets say the less celubrious charaters and the odd bar fight.
The key is what are the problems, differences, etc.Quote:
And with numbers such as you're talking SS I just can't see it be a Mod problem
Quote:
Originally posted by 104456
Hmm.........go there answer a few queries and come away within about five minutes.To many peeps with an attitude problem for me though there are lots of good folk posting there as are here and I mean no disrespect to them.I believed I mentioned before about this [VDR] being a site with an adult attitude to responses.
I personally don't think we need to go down that road to increase membership.Its like if I owned a bar I could get all sorts of folk through the door if I was prepared to put up with lets say the less celubrious charaters and the odd bar fight.
Very well said 10, I couldn't agree with you more. I notice the "attitude" over there too. Which, perhaps, is just another illustration of the power of search engine rankings, that they can attract such numbers without being a particularly friendly place. There is no need for that to happen here though, when we start growing again.
So I sit here thinking... what the hell is TSG. Trying to guess... hum, little game in my head. Gave up and googled.... oh yeah! I remember those guys/that guy. Way back they twisted me up in a ball ... I over-stayed my welcome very quickly.
Found a good place here and there ya go.... so, get the new board in place and we'll see who number one! ;-) But, would rather be number whatever here than #1 there!
Lucky I didnt mention TOS or JTS then :rolleyes: :D
oooooohhhh! I should be hating you about now! :p :p :D
All the mods huh.....I didnt realize we were required to post......sometimes a good mod can just sit back and read.....been lurking this thread since it started....Doc as usual you make some good points...and are keeping this thread moving along nicely.....
Very interesting thread. Have actually read all 17 pages, with approximately 40 different posters. Although a very minuet % of the membership, I applaud DrMDJ for starting this thread.
Appears to be getting repetitious, however, a lot of good points have been made, and most certainly welcomed comments, that hopefully will not be taken lightly, by Management and the Mod's.
Before I give my thoughts I would like to clear one thing up about one of the other sites that has been mentioned here. Cybertechhelp (CTH). I mod over there and have been for a couple of years. Why? because a couple of years ago I was asked by the owner, who was a member of VRDR.
That particular site is solely owned by one individual. His goal is to break even, between the ad's and the subscription's he manages to do so. Obviously not a big Corporation/Company, owns/runs the site by himself, and does it for the love of computers and trying to help folks out...enough said.
Which gets to one of the comments made in this thread. WHY? have folks migrated to other sites? That is the crust of the problem here at VRDR, Can anyone answer this? NO! just provide some insight on the possible causes.
Having been here for 7 long years, and have probably been the longest active moderator, I will give you my thoughts. In my mind, there are many factors that drive people away from any site;
- No answer's to post
- Taking to long to get an answer
- Getting the wrong answer
- First time poster not feeling welcomed
- Only answer is a link to a MS KB or another site
- Rude member's
- Rude moderators
That's it, simple as that. I somewhat agree that the forum software may have something to do with it, but that is not keeping members away, come on...If new members are posting simple questions, because they are beginners, they don't know the difference of VB software. I will say that for those that have experienced the upgraded software, that it is more user friendly, don't need to use HTML code for your post, and the colors are more eye appeasing, then the dull gray here. -although some like the gray.
Back to my proposed list above. Most are easy solutions, a couple are not. It is the Mod's/Admin job to greet and welcome new members. Not that I am the ultimate mod, but I believe you will not find a post of mine for a brand new member that doesn't start out Welcome to VRDR. A very simple phrase, but a potent one. Some members will even welcome new members, if they are the first poster for their thread. Easy..
I have seen many posts go unanswered for many hours, sometimes a day. I always try to answer the unanswered posts first, but like most of us we are not here 24/7, so when I do answer, in these cases, I try to explain why no one has answered, or at least recognize to the poster, that I see no one has been around to help. I have seen other members do this.. Easy
Wrong Answers This one can get you in trouble. Mod's are expected to chime in, if it looks like the answer may do some harm, or is completely off-base. In the past this has been done by both mod's and members very rudely...Member goes away
Answer is a Link. Member did not come here to be told here is a link. Hell, the member could of searched and probably found that link. -Member goes away - Links are very useful, I use them all the time, however, you must show relevance to the link and explain why that link may help..
Rudeness, we are all human and can take something said many different ways. Most members and mod's are polite, some haven't been. How you deal with a Rude Member, obviously, depends on the situation. Mod's are sometimes referee's.
Has the hammer come down on these member's too quickly? Probably. Has emotionalism played a part in the hammer? Probably, can that be fixed? YES, we have already started that.
I will tell you that when I first started to Mod at VRDR, we had a different admin's. They did not participate, and quite frankly, the forum's were just a small part of their duties, and most of the time were overlooked. This is not the case today as you can see.
As many of you have said the membership here at VRDR is declining, new membership is declining, not at an alarming rate, but one that is of concern. I like many have been frustrated, as many of these discussions (although private) have started and then faded away with no conclusions or actions taken.
Do I have any answer's NO, although I will say if any of the thoughts, suggestions in this thread Just Fade Away then this has been a BIG WASTE OF TIME. I've said enough for now, but will summarize my thoughts, for what it is worth. In my opinion Being Blunt what needs to happen at VRDR to increase and sustain membership;
1. Moderators must get more Pro-Active in trying to settle disputes, rudeness, and controlling the board, rather then bringing down the hammer too quickly. - This has already been discussed, amongst ourselves at length.
2. Search engines need fixed so VRDR is at least on the first page - software may fix this
3. Discussions like this, whether in a forum .or in our private mod forum, must have conclusions, recommendations, and actions on these recommendations, not just fade away.
4. We all must continue to solicit those individuals with the knowledge to help, to help. And we must all be Polite in correcting someone that may of given wrong advice or misled a poster.
We must continually seek members thoughts on improvement - in all my years here this is the 1st time, that I can remember, this has happened.
And finally, yes finally This thread is getting long and some of the content is getting lost and too repetitious. As mentioned Greengoose is trying to summarize the fine points. Once this is done, then these should be presented to ADMIN, with recommendations to make this site more appealing, inviting and bring VRDR back to where it was several years ago.
And thatttts alll folksss.
To my shame, I have just discovered this thread, but to my credit I too have read all 17 pages.
While I very much want to contribute to the continuing success of VDr I can`t think of much original to add. Most of my opinions have already been aired but I do not want to be classed in the “apathy” category, so to follow the boss`s orders and at the risk of repetition here are my thoughts.
I`m a relative newcomer and do not understand the references to how the posts and discussions used to be more interesting and challenging. Actually, reading this thread has “burst my bubble” and left me reeling. I had no idea there was discontent in our ranks, rather I thought the forums were doing a good job in helping people as most of them had their problems solved. Of course I have no experience of how it used to be and accept your judgement on the deterioration.
Type specific questions in and the same handful of forums are returned every time, none of them being VDr although I know for a fact that the answers could be found here. Showing my ignorance here, but if Google can find the others, why can`t it ever find VDr?
Is it possible to get VDr listed in help articles in the most popular PC magazines? I have no idea how you would do that but I remember when I was just starting out with computers I used to buy lots of these mags and check out all the help sites.
It is the same with every service/business. You have to advertise to get customers otherwise they will not know you exist. Similarly in every business, the customer base is always changing. Some come and some go. We will always have people leaving and must find a way to be more visible on the search engines to replace them. I`m sure this will help.
Variety
Yes we need more variety in instruction at all levels. If you are looking to attract newbies, perhaps a forum dedicated to tutorials. I personally have found that a tutorial is the best way to learn something new rather than asking a question here and there. It is so much easier to have the whole process explained in simple terms in one article. There are experts on so many subjects. Why can they not produce a series of articles entitled “How to………” or similar heading calculated to produce lots of hits on search engines and bring people to the site? You know what I mean……..the titles would be simple and only contain words which searchers might use. The title is all important.
Posts
I have noticed they are fewer in number these days too. I agree that there is a lot more competition around for VDr so I hope that better search results might help.
Other Forums
I too visit other forums (some only once) but VDr is my favourite for many reasons, among which are
It is suitable for all ages. On some forums the language is deplorable with insults flying back and forth
I lurk on one very knowledgeable forum but there is a clique of long-standing members which often starts discussing the topic among themselves and the poor questioner gets forgotten. Never have seen that happen here.
No one is ever talked down or made to feel stupid.
I was just about to post when I saw Murf`s post and would add my agreement with some of his points.
Especially
No answer's to post
Taking to long to get an answer
Only answer is a link to a MS KB or another site. I have noticed some people do not like this.
When all the ideas are stirred together in the pot, I hope you end up with a recipe for success.
I would hate to lose what is for me the best overall forum around.
Elaine
As has been mentioned above, SE's have trouble with dynamic links, which all the thread links are, but there is a resolution in the newest versions of this software, which we'll be upgrading to within 2 weeks time. That should greatly improve SE rankings.
SE = Search Engines
I moderate at one of those other forums. Many of the mods there and many members are also members here at VDr. Even the site Admin/owner is registered here. I don't believe any of us consider VDr. a "rival" site - there's certainly no 'competition'.
I've been a member here for a few years, and used to post here a lot more often. As time went by, I saw petty arguing amongst members here happen a little too often. As BJ says, 'we're only here to help'. This is a tech-help forum. People come here (initially, at least) for help in fixing something that is a little beyond their knowledge at the moment. When that help is offered, in a friendly and understandable manner, that's it. The job is done, and likely that person will return again....and again, and again.
After not being made to feel very welcome here several times, I simply stopped posting here. I still stop by to read now and again, but as has been mentioned there are other sites that have a different 'feel' to them. Some are appealing to me, and some I visit once. But they're all different, in one way or another - I don't consider any of them 'competition' against another. Moderators from both here and CyberTechHelp moderate together on yet another board. Great! Any free, knowledgable help that's offered is a good thing. Members will go where they feel most comfortable, or where they think they'll get the answers they need in a timely fashion.
So I still enjoy VDr., and think it has a lot of good qualities - and a lot of great/talented members. And I respect many of the folks here. Still a lot of excellent help here, but it's not the friendly place it used to be.
Hey zipulrich, good to see you chime in... I'm also registered "over there" ... don't spend a great deal of time there. Not unlike many of us I'm registered at quite a few sites... many of "the others" are very specific in nature. The solutions I search for dictate where I go more so than any other thing. Yet, I still call VDr home...
And competition truely does not enter into it... more about making us a better place. Murf made some excellent points... and oddly enough, shortly after I read his post I was looking at another thread. One response, which was rather curt and gave no help to the poster... I see the problem.
In many respects it's an evolutionary thing... member levels, in terms of time invested. Those that have been around for a while will stray, for whatever reason.
That is not a problem, when there is nobody to pick up the slack... that's a problem. Those that lurk, as I once did, look at the posts or experience them first hand. The thread I mentioned above showed me a poster that will not be back... and the member who posted the first answer is not really helping matters and is not needed here. The third post was mine... but doubt if I'll see an answer to it from the original poster.
It's a "community" here, thus... the Mods set the tone but the members do so too. Seems there has been a break in the evolutionary chain. Some just don't get the fact that the "ties that bind" are formed very early.
It's about the people and there are too many here that I'm not ready to give up on. It's not about long-timers or short-timers being bored... it's about those that ARE here, and giving them some proper assistance. Even if you can't answer the question, simply say hey, provide a bit of comradarie... good lord have a bit of fun.
We'll see where we evolve now won't we.
Wazzzup zip, great to see ya. ;) BJ
But they also have some pretty reidiculous threads going over there (TSG) in their off topic forums like alphabet games thet you post the word starting with the next letter so you could get 100 posts easily to that thread in one day.Quote:
Originally posted by DrMDJ
I have tended not to name names specifically. But since you mentioned this site... Yes, they rack up some incredible numbers. Now, they may have a bit more than twice the registered membership of vdr, but even factoring that in their numbers are off the charts.
A person needs help and decides to try a Google search. Doesn't know exactly what to search for regarding his problem, but he does know the term "tech support".....he/she types it in and voila....TSG comes up #1. Another one decides to use "computer tech support"....TSG comes up as #2. Doesn't surprise me why their numbers are so big and frankly it doesn't impress me either. I see the large numbers more as "nature's course" than the site's popularity. New people who discover a help site will generally go back to it the next time (or hang around) rather than wander over to another one.
("Nature's course": #1 hit...National Geographic.) :D
How many people will type in "virtual doctor" when looking for tech support?
I have been a member of a PC user group for 17 years. My user group has a WebBoard Forum area but most members do not participate for a variety of reasons. The software interface is old and out-of-date. Only about 5% of our members post messages. We actually have more non-members posting than members.
IMO, the primary reason that people join user groups (UG) and people post to a single tech support site is that they are looking for a concentration of experts on many diverse subjects. This is especially true for leading edge subjects. Remember, there are membership dues for user groups.
The UG had tried radio ads, PR firms, paying for ads in major newspapers and all sorts of press releases all to no avail. We knew that what we had was very valuable but that most people in our metro area didn't even notice that we existed.
75% of our members are IT professinals, developers and small business owners. Why, because everyone is trying to stay ahead of outsourcing and a variety of other job related issues. All of our volunteers come from this group.
I bet that if you looked at VDR, you would find similar stats. However, that doesn't mean that end-users or newbies are not welcome. We go out of our way to welcome people. I send out an email for each new member, where I ask three questions:
Have you ever attended one of xxx meetings prior to joining?
What are your computer interests?
How did you hear about us?
VDR could do something similar to this and automate it. If VDR does this, it must come from someone, whose name they see when they visit VDR, so that there is a personal connection.
From a high of 2,500 membership in 2000, we have had a steady leakage of members not renewing. Since we are a non-profit, membership dues is our support. What was discovered when an analysis was done by one of the members, was that the UG leadership had persisted in doing things the same way that they had done in the 1980's and 1990's, when the UG was flush with members and income.
A marketing campaign was developed and since June 2004, we have seen a steady increase of new members. In fact, we have a 300% increase in new memberships compared to a year ago. But we are creating win-win situations for our members. We have upgraded to Windows Server 2003 from W2K and we are in the process of deploying SharePoint Services (WSS) and SharePoint Portal Server (SPS). This deployment also includes SQL Server databases for all of our administrative functions.
We have an 18 member development team (one third of our team have multiple Microsoft certifications) and anyone that develops an application or does any other significant work can add that to his resume, once the application is deployed.
In the last 4 months, we have had 3 people join from Chicago, 1 from Kentucky and 1 from Pennsylvania. This is in addition to the 10 plus out of state members that we already have.
Our website did not look professional and it looked like it was designed in ten years ago with technology from ten years ago. Until we can convert our website to SharePoint, we have redesigned the homepage and made it W3C compliant. We have also established a SharePoint SIG.
All of this is to show prospective members that whatever their level, we have something for them.
For newbies or main frame computer people we have a 12 hour session which covers every aspect of the computer in both an overview and some detail. The 12 hour session is scheduled over a 4 month period. We are also considering starting a computer clinic for members.
Both my UG and VDR have high quality products, which were not displayed very well nor were they marketed as well as they could be. It was discovered that most (63%) of our membership leakage occurred 1- 2 years of membership. So, we have started the email campaign and several other strategies to make a connection with every new member.
Pertaining to Google. Keywords were used on our old website homepage (total site is about 250 webpages) and the UG had a page rank of 6/10. With the new design, we are 5/10. I did a Google for PC User Group and we were listed on the 3rd page. The user groups which were on page one had a lot of substantive links on page 1. Do a search and see what you find?
I think that once we get SharePoint deployed we will increase our page rank but that is just conjecture on my part for now.
Since June 2004, our membership is no longer declining but is on an up trend line. VDR can do the same type of thing.
Cheers,
Linda
;)
When I first started hanging about this site, my wife remarked are you sick ?Quote:
Originally posted by bistro
How many people will type in "virtual doctor" when looking for tech support?
I had to explain that it was a computer help site and nothing to with health issues.
Still took some convicing.
I have read this thread through several times now as I am Starting to break it down into action items. The first effort will be making sure all are tabulated. Nothing missed.
But I have noticed something, a question that DrMDJ has asked continually one way or another all through this fantastic thread.
To paraphrase - Why are the members not staying but going elsewhere?
We have seen a little effort in replying, but not a ground swell of comments.
Is it because these members don't know this thread is here? Or is it something else?
Seems to me this question needs to be answered. It would be nice to have thousands answer. But probably not realistic. I would think we could get enough for a statistical sampling though.
I would think that a fair amount of the traffic is of a transient nature. Meaning that someone has a pc issue they need solved, and once it is, they move on. Not everyone is as interested in experiencing the global community that the internet affprds.
Maybe we should start a seperate thread dedicated on that very question?Quote:
To paraphrase - Why are the members not staying but going elsewhere?
A practical question, if I may. How are the people who went elsewhere going to see it if they aren't here?
Doc, check your pm's. BJ
JPNYC,
No question we can't expect input here from those who have gone completely. But there are many people who fall in to the class being discussed who do maintain some sort of presence here. There are also indications I've seen (based on some observation) that this thread is no secret to far more people (more of these people) than the actual participation level indications. And though it may be second hand knowledge, there are also people still here that know (by virtue of acquaintance and such) why others have left/cutback.
Well I'm most interested to hear any of their reasons that they'd like to offer. As for the participation in this thread, as a general rule I think people are far more vocal about things that irritate them, and tend to say nothing if they think things are mostly ok.
Unless I grossly misunderstood the good Doctor, thats exactly what this thread is meant to answer.Quote:
Originally posted by hongman
Maybe we should start a seperate thread dedicated on that very question?
Here is something that VDR could do or something similar to this:
Your Friends at VirtualDR.com
Insert attached GIF
Miss You!!!
Come check out all of the changes at VDR ...
Can ask 3 questions with an email link and conduct a survey. Based on my experience over the last 10 months, if you make the email longer than that, most do not respond at all. I have gotten the best response from 3 short questions.
IMO, one of the three questions needs to be "What are your computer interests?"
Suggestion: Survey questions need to be posed in a positive point of view or be open-ended.
This is what the UG is sending out to our expired members, who have not renewed and it has produced very positive results.
So that this email message would not be perceived as SPAM, I would say that you could problably do this once a year but no more than twice a year.
Cheers,
Linda
:D :rolleyes: :D
I think that's a GREAT idea, Linda. The board mail won't support images, but the mass mail idea is terrif!!!! Thanks.
AUP ?Quote:
Originally posted by Abhoth
I just googled for computer help forum ... VDr was down about 14th on the list, which isn't horrible. But better search engine performance/results would assist I'm sure.
A cleaner more feature rich BB system would be helpful too in my book... and it's a tech forum, would be only right to keep the software up to date eh? ;-)
A size reduction in the header banners would be a nice move, although that may be dictated by Jupiter and out of your hands... but I'm runnin' on a 19in. monitor @ 1280 x 1024 and the banners up top look pretty large... don't even want to see what that looks like on a smaller monitor running a lesser resolution!
As far as the "tension" that's been noticed around here.... my apologies for being unable to speak to that one. As I haven't noticed it... sure, over the years I've been involved in a few threads that have pushed the envelope. And have seen some folks get a little slap on the wrist... Haven't really noticed too much in the way of "heavy handedness" ...... Bottom line in that area is quite simple, obey the rules and no worries. And the mods MUST enforce those rules or the forums will die a very quick death! To be quite honest I've never read the AUP in a serious way, but it's really about common sense now isn't it. Don't be a jerk/idiot/mean people that suck type and you're good to go!
I frequent any number of forums, as others do... these days you can find places that are more specific to the issues you want to deal with and thus you go there with questions.... But, in my travels, VDr continues to have a very low rate of unanswered questions and a very helpful group of people answering those questions.
Just my latest 2 cents worth...
what's that,lol!
be QUITE honest,i REALLY have no idea [and am NOT ASKING FOR EXPLANATION,LOL],
however,just reading this post,SUGGESTS that it's all about rules.
well,MY take on that is be nice,be considerate,speak only to issues you totally understand [when answering] and stay on topic.
i TRY to get here everyday,but there are days like today when daughter had an accident a block from our house or i get home/online late.
i find the board informative,members knowageable and friendly.
so much so,that i have links to this board on several of my webpages.
i've even put it onm a hotkey [alt-w] to gethere quickly each night.
maybe i'm blind or have tunnel vision and only see what i came here to see,lol,but i don't see personal type stuff alluded to here.
if there's anything I can do to help this group grow,i'm your man,just ask.
Let me apologize up front for not seeing this thread sooner. I've read through a few pages, starting with the very first post and so on. I don't know what has been said thus far but would like to comment.
I became a member here because I had a problem I couldn't solve on my own. Discogail and others were very patient, enthusiastic, and helpful. I was glad I joined and felt right at home, thanks to them.
Later, I had another issue. It didn't get the attention the other one did. Desperate for a solution, I tried another forum. Honestly, that site offers all that VDR seems to be lacking. I'm a Moderator there and have no complaints.
When I began studying HJT logs, I decided to 'practice' with logs already posted in sites. I started to see numbers of HJT logs that hadn't been responded to after several days had past or even longer. This was also true for other questions. It's understandable that logs and any other problem can't possibly be attended to instantly and resolved in a flash. But, several days (and longer) is a bit much.
Additionally, the ones who 'moderate' a topic are hard to find. Off and on, I've browsed here and it seems a few of them haven't been around in ages. Though, I may be wrong.
People join help forums searching for help or offering it. More likely, more the first than the latter. If help is not obtained, they will move on.
Just my 2 cents.
Good pick up I've noticed that some moderators don't post for months on end.Quote:
Originally posted by Diana67
Additionally, the ones who 'moderate' a topic are hard to find. Off and on, I've browsed here and it seems a few of them haven't been around in ages.
I guess they could just be lurking, but I would have thought to be a moderator at a site would mean a more proactive roll than just lurking ??
And all you have to do is go here http://discussions.virtualdr.com/index.php?s= and then click on the moderators name on the right hand side to then goto their profile and see how long since their last post.
The “official” requirement for Moderators is that we spend at least an hour per day (five days a week) “monitoring” our assigned forums. Most do more than this and keep an eye on other sections…. Monitoring means looking for bad posts/spam/things that shouldn’t be posted. Posting in threads is optional;)
Yes this can be very true. Truth is that in most cases most people just don't participate or get involved period. But silence can also be the outcome of other thought processes, Things like:Quote:
Well I'm most interested to hear any of their reasons that they'd like to offer. As for the participation in this thread, as a general rule I think people are far more vocal about things that irritate them, and tend to say nothing if they think things are mostly ok.
- Fear that negative things said will have repercussions
- A feeling that nothing will be done/changed in response to input
- Feeling like one has been down a given road one or more times before and nothing changed
- Reaching the point of anger, hopelessness or whatever where a person just flat out doesn't care (or care enough) anymore
I mention these things for no other reason than to simply point out that silence does not always mean everything is OK.
Thank you, Diana67, great input :)
On the subject of posts not getting addressed, yes I can absolutley see how that would drive someone elsewhere. We've all been on that road where something's gone bad, we're desperate and in the dark, and it's easy to see how one would go elsewhere for a solution if a response isn't offered in a timely manner.
I checked the mods profiles, and with the exception of only a couple, the rest all have full time day jobs. Come home after a long day, mod here for an hour (and often elsewhere), that's a pretty full plate (and doesn't even include "down time"). Perhaps more of us 'regular members' can take off some of that weight and try to keep an eye on posts that sit unattended? Have tried to do that myself in the past, but will readily admit I've fallen short. I just saw a post last week that was going unanswered for an extended period. The "right" thing for me to have done would be to pop in, offer a greeting, say I didn't have an answer but that hopefully my response would bump the post up and it would get attention. But I didn't do that, instead I left it for 'someone else' who was sure to come along with an answer. :o
Also, we can and should keep an eye on posts that are going south pretty quickly. In 4 1/2 years, I only reported one post to a mod one time. Couple years back, it was getting late in the p.m. (US time), two 'newer' members having a rapidly escalating flame war with each other, it was bad. I PM'd the mod who oversaw that forum (and based on other responses posted, I wasn't the only one reporting the thread), and the mod was on it within a very short time, gave them a stern reminder and locked the thread. (The two members going at it were booted off not longer after, they just wouldn't let up with the attitude). At any rate, my point is if an issue does slip past a mod, we can always utilize the "report this post..." link.
So we can 'self-monitor' to a degree. Guess what I'm trying to say here is since it's a community, certain aspects can (and should) be watched by the community itself.
Good to see more varied input, would be great to see more!!
Bumping threads and using the "report this thread link" are great ideas that anyone can do.
The report link sends an email out to ALL the staff members. We might not be logged on here but if we have our email open we'll see the message in a matter of minutes.
Thanks Kat, yes we do appreciate any help the members can give us & there are times that some of us just cannot be here. I think the mods do a teriffic job. This has been discussed in the mod forum about post's going unanswered for long periods of time.We would rather a member help out with the majority of questions. If one of us jumps right in on each & every question that comes up members start thinking whats the point of them being here.
Our thought on the situation is to let members try an answer first then if nobody replies in a timely manner then one of us steps in & tries to help.BJ
Good point from a different angle. Hadn't occurred to me that too much helpful mod input could backfire. What a fine line ya'll have to walk ;)Quote:
Originally posted by BIG JOHN
If one of us jumps right in on each & every question that comes up members start thinking whats the point of them being here...
I have two Mozilla browers open which stay in memory. At 4:55 a.m. Central Time this thread had 6199 views. At 7:02 a.m., 6249.
50 views in 2 hours.
Sure do wish those voices with their additional input would make themselves heard. It all matters and counts :) There's got to be a lot more input on the issue of why people go elsewhere and then stay once they get there.