@CCadmin_Jon if you do a poll I don’t know if this would help you but I’ll throw it out there - gather some info/data on what type of device people use the forum MOST on -desktop, laptop, tablet, phone. Or “top 2” devices they use it on. I think that might need to be a factor in any additions or changes.
Particularly interesting, ok. But what you said ‘inspiring or interesting’ sounds unkind. Maybe it isn’t intended that way but I go by the I don’t have to say all the things I think in my head guideline along with if it isn’t hurting anyone else and I can ignore it, why do I care.
Hey in defense of the old politics and election forum, most participants were thoughtful and articulate. Some veered into passionate and a few couldn’t help themselves and had to throw in insult with opinion. It does not bother me to hear people defend their positions or disagree. I don’t know why it makes some uncomfortable.
My 13 year old was in the hospital for more than a month just prior to the election back then and the politics forum with its discussion and debate got me through some long difficult days.
Both the kid and CC are 12 years older and I guess they both had to grow and change.
@doschicos what about creating new threads using an IPhone. There is no way to do so when using an iPhone. I’ve looked and looked…no option.
Have you seen a way to start a new thread on an iPhone…anyone? Please let me know…
I’m not the only one who has reported this as an issue.
@thumper1 scroll down to the orange box, “Ask your question now.” That’s how you start a new discussion.
@MaineLonghorn found it.
BUT who would ever have thought that if you had a financial aid question and you were IN that forum…that you needed to leave there and go to the main page to start a new thread?
The ask your question now…doesn’t appear when you are in a forum…on an iPhone.
Bad design. But at least now I know!
ETA…this is another example of how this site differs in use from device type to device type.
@thumper1 on my iPhone if I click on the Financial Aid and Scholarships forum, I can scroll all the way down and find the orange box. It would be helpful if it were at the top and said “New Thread.”
"Particularly interesting, ok. But what you said ‘inspiring or interesting’ sounds unkind. Maybe it isn’t intended that way but I go by the I don’t have to say all the things I think in my head guideline along with if it isn’t hurting anyone else and I can ignore it, why do I care. "
I was referencing someone else’s characterization of the thread. My main point is that some years ago we were told to not start personal threads- i.e. “Help me plan my daughter’s wedding” or the like. I didn’t see how this was any different, but, yes, I am very able to not read the fan club thread. Judging by all the messages I’m getting, I’m not alone in my feelings but many are not comfortable expressing this sentiment because it will bring out the firing squad.
Since we are already so far off topic…
If there were a parent cafe blog cafe, I would happily read all your blogs, and kind of really love that idea.
I imagine it like Open Salon back in the day.
In the fantasy CC world where we get what we ask for… I vote for a blog section.
eta… since this is actually a serious suggestion… maybe the blogs threads could be locked for comments, but moderators would delete comments against TOS. There is the PM function if readers want to contact the blog writer. Would this work? I realize it isn’t at all the purpose of the site at this point in time. But it would be so interesting (at least to me! lol)
eta 2… also, in my fantasy there is a sub-section to the blog section of CC, that is pandemic diaries… and it’s all a sub-section like election cafe used to be, so no one uninterested has to be bothered
If you don’t want mega threads, you could have a reply limit and once it is past that number the thread could continue in a second one with the same name. Massive pandemic thread - 2 and once that hits the max reply count do the same again (massive pandemic thread - 3). A message board I used to use did this and it worked. I think we had a 200 reply limit. We were not always exact but kept pretty close to that. When some of the big threads others mentioned would have not had the same flow and wouldn’t have worked well if that had been done to them.
My tennis forum has reply limits on threads… Our “live commentary” thread is on volume 136.
Our US Politics thread in on volume 13.
5100 is approx the max replies per thread. But someone always starts a new volume a bit before that is reached.
At the top of each new volume in first post, a link to previous volume is added.
We also having very lax TOS rules. Pretty much anything goes - except racist, homophobic or anti-Semitic remarks.
Also when a thread in Non Tennis starts to get very popular (like the US Pol thread did,) it is moved into a subforum of Non Tennis called “chat threads”. None of the threads in there have anything to do with each other. They have just been deemed long enough and popular enough to get moved from Non Tennis to the Chat.
The “A Day in the Life of Social Distancing” thread serves as a pandemic diary of sorts.
The CC TOS rules should be clear and consistentWhen exceptions are made for certain posters to post certain things that were not previously allowed, it gives the impression of favoritism. If the shortage of mods is allowing this, then CC needs to figure out a way to get more mods. If you are looking for the clicks to make money, then maybe pay some money for mods.
Regarding the length of quoted responses, I’m not sure what is meant – the length of quoted material from a cited source, or the length of the quotes from previous posts? We didn’t have the quote feature on CC until fairly recently (I don’t remember if it was once available, then removed in a previous revamp). The danger with the quote button is that it will quote the entire post, and it takes more effort to cut that long quoted portion to just the pertinent parts.
Jon, no offense intended, but yours is just the latest in an attempt to make the site better. And with every revamp of the site, it gets worse. The team that fixes issues usually doesn’t have much understanding of the usability of the site. You seem to have some opinions about changing more of the very nature of CC, though. Your issues seem to go to the heart of the parent value to this site. And I don’t think you realize what makes the CC community unique. Don’t take what the DC Urban Moms say about this site to be the ultimate authority, okay?
If the issue with long threads is that the moderators might not understand the context, making a new numbered thread isn’t going to help at all. All it does is breaking up the posts, it doesn’t actually change how many need to be gone through dos “context.”
To get back to topic (not sure how this thread digressed to discussing what threads some like or don’t like, as thats not really the focus of the original post) - if the question is to how to best navigate and moderate the site, it seems the goal is to find a comfortable balance between what the software design team can do to improve the navigability of the site, and have practical guidelines for the moderators and that posters understand, and accept the decisions they make. IMO, posters should be required to read and agree to the rules and TOS before they are allowed to post. Mods are human, and are doing the best they can. Perfect consistency between mods, even when they discuss issues as a team, is unlikely. Cut them some slack.
As for the navigability, the PDB know the site has access/navigability issues. Sorin has a long list of concerns expressed previously. We can reiterate here some of the biggest problems that have not yet been addressed.
Its impractical to say a thread or forum should be unmoderated but also say that they shouldn’t allow attacks or insults, as that requires moderation (or responding to post reports, which is also moderation). My sense is that the site gets to choose how much moderation they want. We have 2 choices- take it or leave it. This is a free site- the owners set the rules.
Not sure when the “start new discussion” option became the orange “ask a question” box. Its still very hard to find on the phone, and my phone keeps closing the site or jumping around and resetting so its, for me, essentially unusable for starting a conversation or sending PMs . If I am not alone in this, its an issue for the site and the many who use their phone to access it.
So thanks for opening this conversation, @CCadmin_Jon. Hopefully there is helpful feedback here, and that this thread can be productive, helpful and positive, if everyone’s goal is for CC to be a site where they want to remain active.
What does the “DC Urban Moms” have to do with this? Just curious.
And consider being a bit less uptight on what can be posted, what threads can be started.
Ok…back to my somewhat off topic thing. I found the “ask question” orange box on my iPhone.
If I’m in the financial aid forum…and i scroll all the way down…I get to the list of Highlights. Just above that, is the orange box to “ask new question” (when did it change to that wording).
BUT…this only appears when my phone is in landscape position. It’s not there when in portrait.
I tried it several times.
@jym626 wrote
“my phone keeps closing the site or jumping around and resetting so its, for me, essentially unusable for starting a conversation or sending PMs . If I am not alone in this, its an issue for the site and the many who use their phone to access it.”
My iPhone does the same thing lately. I haven’t looked at CC on any device other than my phone in years. This is a new issue for me.
@thumper1 You care correct as I just tried on my iPhone and played around with it. The orange Ask your question now only appears in landscape view! I would not have know that was where one could start a new thread.
Wait, why did starting a topic change to asking a “new question”? I dislike that.