READ NOW OR YOUR POST WILL BE DELETED!!!!!!!

Muffinman · Post by **Muffinman** » 25 Feb 2006 22:54

There are still users posting new threads without abiding by the new rules.
PLEASE READ THE RULES: it's very simple.

Okay, so I want some feedback on this forum now. Is it too restricting/limited? Do you feel less inclined to post because of the new rules/organization? Are the rules too strict?

Is it a good idea? Do you think it works well? Does it make it easier to find topics you're looking for? Is it convenient?

Elaborate if you feel like it. I am thinking of organizing the Health and Injuries forum in a similar way, but I don't want to make people feel like I am trying to take over the forum and make it the way I want it and be all controlling or anything. So speak up. Any suggestions/complaints/comments?

Please vote in the poll (I tried to cover as many options as I could, but I'm pretty tired...)

Muffinman · Post by **Muffinman** » 04 Mar 2006 01:48

You guys are still not reading the rules.

Anz · Post by **Anz** » 04 Mar 2006 08:53

And I wont be. MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

ok, ok. I did.

Dude threathing like that doesn't help

Muffinman · Post by **Muffinman** » 04 Mar 2006 09:17

I'm not trying to threaten

I made polls to see if people wanted this, and the results were unanimously for it. Now people are still making new threads a few threads up from those of the same topic, this makes me think that the rules aren't being read. The capital letters and "threatening" is only to get peoples attention so that they read and post in threads that have already been made about the topics they are interested in.

Outsider · Post by **Outsider** » 06 Mar 2006 06:37

I simply do not like how many topics now LOOK since you've copied half-a-dozen responses from one thread and dropped them into another thread dealing with the same topic. Quotes and bold type and all that other good stuff are now gone, and there are some other problems with appearance and content too.

Perhaps you should have simply dropped a link in each thread linking it to the other threads of the same topic.

I don't know. I just don't like how it looks, which makes it more difficult to read.

I have more complaints, I just don't feel like elaborating now.

edit: sorry to come off all harsh, Chan, but its early Monday at work, and I'm feeling crappy.

brinard · Post by **brinard** » 06 Mar 2006 08:19

just as ive been told - theres already a topic on ________ , check here, i still like having people answer my question... even if its already been answered... it makes modified seem like a community, rather than a library. i try n search sometimes, but others i dont... no offense but maybe posting rules are alittle too much now. i definently feel less inclined to post, cause someone will tell me to use the search... so i just dont even bother most the time... plus, im still a newb, so i already dont want to post if its unneeded

hope this makes sense....
brian

Bagira · Post by **Bagira** » 06 Mar 2006 13:46

I personally made sure not to put any input on the first "Should I do this" type topic that Erik set up so that I could avoid one of these "You voted for this, but you don't like it" topics, which is basically, what this is.

Nor did I read Erik's idea post throughly, thus what I had in mind he would do is create these new topics that would be part of some sticky. The topics would cover issues covered before. General FAQ type stuff. Videos, compilations of suggestions, etc. The rest of the board would be untouched.

I think the idea I mentioned above is fine and thought it was Erik's intention. The threads he would have created would have eventually gone to the bottom of the stack(yes, literally stack) and would only be listed in the Sticky Compilation thingie. Any new good suggestions would be added to the compilations of suggestions located at the bottom of the stack.

Don't throw all the blame at Erik. If the Trick Tips board is impossible to set back to a previous date(impossible because, while modevia probably does regular backups of the board, it wouldn't do regular backups of JUST the Trick Tips board) we can always just go back to the old system and just make these Allstar compilation of vids/suggestions etc as I am saying...and leave the rest intact...

Anyway, onto my personal views of the forum system. It simply shouldn't have any rules other than not to write obscene or offensive material. Rules like not being able to post new threads are silly IMO. Restrictive too.

What is most important (to me), is the look. If it does its job well, it's probably beautiful. That can be applied to all sorts of things besides forums/sites. Take Engineering. If a nuclear power plant does its job well, it will look amazing to engineers because they can understand what goes on, but it will still look beautiful to the uneducated because it won't be messy and thus fuck up. Note, I'm not talking about aesthetics; definitely not about art. Just functionality.

Getting back to the new Trick Tips forum, let's take the contrapositive of my previous statement: If it doesn't look good/beautiful, it probably won't work well. As Jon mentioned, the look is pretty shitty. I can second that. All emphasis and diagrams have been removed. Each thread is around 30 pages long. What newbie or seasoned veteran is even going to consider navigating 30 pages of condensed stuff? Plus, it looks monotonous.

Anyway, I have offered a new proposal.

How about we:

1. Keep Erik's modifications(pun unintended) for the time being.
2. Kill the 'Don't create new threads' rule.
3. Create a single thread and sticky it. Label it as 'FAQs and Compilations' or the like.
4. Modify(pun unintended again) Erik's condensed threads into LOCKED threads, which only the admin/mods can change.
5. Mods will parse those threads and condense them even more and take out a lot of crap. A lot of suggestions are repeated. List them in Numerical order, FAQ form, whatever works.
6. Community is happy.

Oh, and yes, Erik, this will be a HUGE and grueling process, so if you need help, ask and ye shall receive?

Comments on this? I seriously wouldn't like to see Erik's hard work go to waste.

Muffinman · Post by **Muffinman** » 06 Mar 2006 14:00

I guess I wasn't clear enough in what my intentions were when I proposed them (although that also changed when I realized I couldn't merge topics).

I agree with the ugliness of the copied and pasted threads, and I'm sorry. Before I started I thought I could take individual posts and move them into different topics (like I just said). When I had done almost all the work I realized that I couldn't and didn't have any other solution for compiling information about the same subject in one thread.

I understand what you mean about keeping the topics I've made a list of and everything and at the same time allowing the complete freedom of posting your own topics of any nature. But then I'm not sure if the idealism of my organization, which 19 people seemed to agree with, would be fulfilled.

Would we allow any new topics, and only the first new topic with a new subject would be added to the "master list"? What would happen to all of the new information that is added to new threads -- the master list will become old and useless if new threads aren't incorporated into it somehow. Suggestions for this problem?

EDIT: Oh yeah, and you guys mentioned the complete removal of all bold and italicized text and diagrams. This was only in the copy-and-pasted text, which was from duplicate topics. This could be avoided in the future if need be. I also had someone reformatting those copy and pasted posts so that they are more legible. I realize this is a small part of what is being complained about, but I thought I would explain.

I'm glad to have feedback in any case.

Jorden · Post by **Jorden** » 06 Mar 2006 19:53

Erik, I have a simple idea that might settle some of your woes. Most people (like myself) ignore the sticky threads -- even if it says "HOLY CRAPP LOOKEEE HEEREE AAAAAHHH!!!". Many of these sticky threads have just been around forever and rarely have any new or exciting information. I always look for the thread below the stickies for the hot new happenings in freestyle. I was so blind to the new stickies I was unaware until you said I broke the 'rules'.

If you want people to realise that your sticky is new and fresh put a 'Last Updated On...' in front of your 'Read Now!' thread titles. That way they know you mean business.

Just a thought man.

Have a good one,

Jorden M

Faco · Post by **Faco** » 07 Mar 2006 02:49

Yeah, Sticky should be called "Warning" or "Important" or "How to not get banned".

But yeah...I'm gonna go read them now

Muffinman · Post by **Muffinman** » 07 Mar 2006 05:13

Okay, I'll consider the date thing. Thanks guys.
As for the freedom of posting, I'm not sure what I should do about new posts now. For instance, t1337dude. He's posted about 4 new topics in a couple days. The lastest is a question about ATW, which already has a thread. I 'merged' his other topics because they already had threads, but I'm not sure if I should touch this one according to what you guys are saying above my last post.

What do you suggest is to be done with such a post? Leave it? If I ignore all posts then what's the point of the master list and threads? They'll be ignored by users and they will lose their purpose.

Muffinman · Post by **Muffinman** » 13 Mar 2006 16:59

Well, nobody's replied, and it's been a week, so I merged that one topic, and another regarding Crossbody Rake that materialized today...

Rieferman · Post by **Rieferman** » 14 Mar 2006 15:13

Yo erik, I think you've done a good thing with the organization. If someone posts instead of checking things out, PM him and delete I guess.

Only thing that I could offer is that in reading some of the posts where you put in entire threads, it's tough to discern one post from the other quickly (hate to be snobby, but I usually scan tips for names that I know because I trust that advice more). Might be some quick fix to find all headers and bold them or something.. Any which way, your efforts are appreciated

I'm not volunteering, but here's what I just thought: Fun project later would be to get people who would know to review the tips and pick the best of the best out for each category. Take all those, clean up the language/punctuation, and throw into one big dictionary.

(edit: my middle name is Erik - with a 'k' even - so in some 3rd grade way you and I are related)

Muffinman · Post by **Muffinman** » 14 Mar 2006 15:49

Well, like I've said, I had a helper cleaning up those cut-and-paste posts where I copied what was written from new threads and deleted the threads. Now, however, I've heard a rumour that I will be able to actually MERGE threads soon... so that should eleviate frustrations due to the mass cut-and-paste posts.

My name is Scandinavian because I am part Norwegian. I was named after Erik the Red, the viking. Nobody really knows how to spell it, though, even on here when it is right there as my username in every single post

ObArA'BaRs · Post by **ObArA'BaRs** » 19 Mar 2006 18:40

i got a question why cant we show any pot content or drug content for an avatar like pot or mushrooms. Is it really that affensive to show a plant

JeffRichards · Post by **JeffRichards** » 21 Mar 2006 19:21

ya dude, bud its a beautiful plant....

Kyle Hewitt · Post by **Kyle Hewitt** » 22 Mar 2006 16:53

I've had no problems with the rules since I joined this awesome website, why change it now?

ObArA'BaRs · Post by **ObArA'BaRs** » 26 Mar 2006 09:51

im not asking for a big change. If u asked 95% or more of the poeple on this website i would think they wouldnt care about a beautiful plant called cannibus

slapdash21 · Post by **slapdash21** » 26 Mar 2006 11:12

i dont think thats accurate. probably more like 60 percent. and it doesnt actually matter, because most of that 60 percent dont want to be associated with a forum that encourages illegal behaviors, in case they are ever investigated by potential employers, which does happen.

READ NOW OR YOUR POST WILL BE DELETED!!!!!!!

What do you think of the new organization of this forum?

READ NOW OR YOUR POST WILL BE DELETED!!!!!!!