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<p>At the risk of being derided again for having no life (in re 10,000 posts) and be reminded to be nicer to “new members” I will respond. </p>
<p>Having been here since the beginning of this version of CC (and much earlier) I know a bit about how this site evolved into its current incarnation. Further, one could only imagine that among the thousands of posts, I would have liked to avoid repeating the same points over and over again. Fwiw, regarding organizing older linked threads in the forum HAS been done, and more than once. It does not work very well, and I know this because I have done it more than once, and with limited success. One of the weak elements of any “best of CC” list is that it is inherently subjective and cannot possibly address what is important to each individual who visits the site. </p>
<p>However, you should know that the creators of this site did NOT want a static site that is meant to function as a reference source because the information gets stale and perhaps misleading. They do not want people to come here to merely “consult” a stack of stories; they want members to participate and they want the information to be fresh and lively. This is accomplished by joining, lurking, asking questions, and perhaps answering the queries of others. It can also be accomplished by selectively pointing to older favorites. </p>
<p>I believe that most everyone --ranging from whoever has been here for a long time to having just joined-- has a list of suggestions to make CC a better or different place. Yes, I would love to have an easier search tool (but I have learned that googles works VERY well on this site) and I would love to have a lively and up-to-the-date list of linked FAQ. But, but, that is not the way this was envisioned by Roger Dooley, the architect of this site. And, somehow, it is hard to challenge his vision as College Confidential, despite its glaring shortcomings, has been wildly successful.</p>
<p>When reduced to its bare essence, this site is an exact reflection of what members want. If someone wants to spend time searching for great historical information, he and she can do it. If someone wants to post a thread that is chock-full of great links, he and she can DO it. CC does not have a dorm full of working elves who will do it for you! When all is said and done, the presence on the fora of THAT particular thread will rely on the continuing level of interest it generates. After a while, it is bound to be dragged down in the arcane world of past threads as it is replaced by newer and more timely information. And all that is needed is a new post to bring it back to life on the first page of a forum.</p>
<p>As a final note, I believe that new members who discover this site rarely see their questions unanswered, including the most esoteric and challenging queries. In some cases, the answerers might even include members of those “no life” and “mean senior” groups!</p>