Is everyone on holiday or just slacking off?

@JPB,

JPB wrote:

So, if I don't think the difference is the format then what is it? As strange as it may sound I think it's the fact that noddy isn't here keeping an eye on the behavior of the regulars and welcoming the newbies. She was often one of the first three responses to any newbie (outside of politics), if not the first. She encouraged discussion and set a warm, welcoming tone.

I think you have a good point here, Noddy really did take on the welcoming duties for the site. I remember when a lot of newbies would tell us how welcoming they found this forum, in contrast to other forums they had experience with. Noddy really did make up a big part of that.

But I also do think the site format is at fault for a few things on this count. In the past you could see the member's post count on each of their posts, now you can't and it's harder to tell if you are talking to a new member. We need to change this but I hope others of us can pick up Noddy's torch here.

We also used to send an invitation to introduce yourself to new members. They used to get a PM upon registration and I think that helped too. We'll have to work on getting that working again.

Since we launched the new software we've had a lot happen to our fledgling business. Three of the 5 members in the business had to seek new employment since we started, the ad market crashed (it's starting to recover now) and we had to stop working on a2k in order to devote time to some of our other verticals that can actually make money.

But there is a bit of good news on that front. We are using a2k software for another forum within our "money" niche, and because of this we are going to do some development on a2k shortly.

When we left off, we stopped at a friends feature that we were waiting to complete in order to officially launch the new site. Now that the other forum also needs this feature we can spend some time on it and within a few weeks we should be finished. The friends feature is going to be a2k's core marketing (word of mouth and search engine traffic has always been the key to a2k's growth) and once it's ready we will be sending an email to the user database that should draw back a lot of people who haven't been around in years.

We'll post something when its ready but hopefully others here can help welcome people back and keep the momentum going. And as always please vote down the trolling (and those who serve as an echo chamber for it) instead of responding to it.

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An example.....

Chai has a thread about a religion free society....I saw it late last night when I got home from tinkering in my shop....I made some half-ass remarks....but thought/am still thinking about the deeper issues....it is a neat concept, and I really do enjoy hypothetical thinking.....what if.

I'm about to leave for the afternoon, I need to move a....well, a rock garden I guess...something my dad started but never finished....lots of cinder blocks, wire, mortar...etc.....sledge hammer work...macho-manly type stuff....and while I'm being a brute, my mind will be free to ponder the threads I've seen here last night and this morning. As I pound away, I will, as I normally do....work things out in my mind....perhaps "writing" a few thousand words in my head.

But, when I get home, instead of writing it down for you guys to see....to share, which is what I believe this site is really about....the sharing of ideas...knowledge....I will not do so, I will simply remain content that I have thought it out, at least enough to satisfy myself....then just store it away in my memory....for what later purpose, I'm not sure.

But that's just me, I've for the most part always been this way....always the daydreamer, and when asked just what exactly it is that is so interesting....when I do explain, I nearly always get that....wtf look. Even though, this site...as well as others, are a perfect outlet for said dreaming....it's just a hard habit to break...though I'm not really sure I want to either.

Chai...if you are reading this....I'll tell you another thing that I do, in those tiny replys of mine....or even the rare long ones, I often put in little clues to things....references I suppose. In your thread I was talking about, I mentioned...a guy worshiping the sun, noon, and Ra {Ra was used as a sound, so I cheated a bit, but it fit}...anyway, that one is pretty blunt, others are more obscure.....I don't know why I do this....I guess to see if anyone is paying attention...or will get it....I don't know, it just flows out, and sometimes sounds babbleish, but I can't resist.

Spendi has a similar style to his writing, and folks oft think he's nuts....but I usually get him....some of his posts I would consider brilliant.

1 Reply

@2PacksAday,

You know, I only opened this thread today because you were the last poster.

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@Robert Gentel,

robert :
good to hear that you and friends "are still in business" and that things are even picking up a bit - sure hope recovery continues at a slow pace - or we might all face another bad crash (if it improves too fast , i mean . slow and steady usually serves everyone best ) .
thanks for all your hard work and "best of luck" - so it takes more than just luck to run a business i believe - itn't it 5 % luck and 95 % sweat ?
but those 5 % might just put you over the top .
hbg

1 Reply

@roger,

roger wrote:

You know, I only opened this thread today because you were the last poster.

On a site such as this, it don't get much better than that....thanks Roger.

Yeah, I'm still here...kids are all gone to a BD-party, and it is so quiet I hate to leave.

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@Eva,

Ditto Eva! Although for me, slacking off may include more a2k time. My computer has also become a lot more persnickety lately.

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@hamburgboy,

hamburgboy wrote:

thanks for all your hard work and "best of luck" - so it takes more than just luck to run a business i believe - itn't it 5 % luck and 95 % sweat ?
but those 5 % might just put you over the top .

Thanks. We'll settle for just no bad luck, which would allow us to reach "ramen profitable" before the year is out. If we can reach ramen profitable we'll be fine.

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Hmmmm... Thinking.

I joined A2K 3 or 4 yrs ago, and showed up again a few months ago.

Yes, it's different now. NOT as warm and friendly. I find many more discussions which seem hostile or angry; I read a bit, then move along, not replying.

I must admit I often don't get Chai2's jokes, and sometimes feel hurt by her comments. At the same time I really like her ready wit and often find myself laughing aloud at her replies.

Once Osso asked Chai2 to PM her (forgot the thread, sorry) about what appeared to be hostility on Chai's part, and Chai responded "I don't need to PM you...".

Well, she coulda PM'd Osso just to let her know she WAS, in fact, joking. Later in that thread it was clear Chai was, in fact, joking, but Osso (and I) didn't get it with her previous post.

I can't help but think the "old" A2Kers would have sent that comforting PM.

Am I wrong?

And yes, I really miss Noddy.

Glad to hear changes are coming soon.

1 Reply

@BorisKitten,

I hope you don't take this as unfriendly but what was your point in singling out one person? You could have just left it at the sentence above.

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@Mame,

I used the (unfortunate) Chai2 as an example; many other posters do the same thing... that is, joking in a way that may be taken as hostility.

I actually do NOT think Chai2 intends to be hostile, yet she sometimes appears that way to me.

And no, I don't think you're being unfriendly here!

Chai2 deserves an explanation for my "singling her out." I don't think she'll be offended by my comments: If so, Chai2, please accept my sincere apologies.

1 Reply

@BorisKitten,

Oh, and I mentioned Chai2 only because I remembered that particular incident. There have been many others which I don't recall at the moment.

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@roger,

roger wrote:

You know, I only opened this thread today because you were the last poster.

Y a know....that's an interesting comment re partly why a bunch of regulars (other than normal, natural attrition) may be around less.

When I look at new posts, the last poster is the really visible one....and there are a bunch of trolls where, if I see that they posted last, it doesn't seem worth looking at the thread. Not so much because THEY are there...but because, (as I maundered on somewhere else recently) you can bet your arse that the thread has degenerated into an insult fest between the trolls and a few folk (often with the best intent) still see it as their mission (and they HAVE chosen to accept it) to fight the good fight against the trolls.

Also, there's a bunch of folk (a lot of whom haven't been around much or at all for a short or long time) where, if I see they have been the last poster (unless the thread REALLY doesn't interest me) I will always look.

Now, if I were really still enthusiastic about this (or any other) site I would be looking around much more for new and fascinating folk.

You really do get what you put in, I think.

A feature I am really hoping the gang get time for at some point is the micro-sites where a user can choose who gets in feature that was discussed early on.

Not so much to have a place where only people I like get in, but I'd love to be able to use it as a therapy discussion site for a bunch of folk in real life I barely get to see any more, but would really like to talk about work related stuff with.

Might well not work, as I don't think many of them are computer give a rat's arse...but it would be fun to try.

1 Reply

@dlowan,

yeah.

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Who is a troll? Well, your basic old TOS ignorer plus a certain amount of constancy at it. I've changed my mind on who is trolling a couple of times out of very many, though mostly not - and I've tried not to not feed.

I figure that some percentage will try to engage them. I'm for those who try to work a thread past all that. It does happen, trolls need sleep too.

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@Robert Gentel,

Robert Gentel wrote:

JPB wrote:
So, if I don't think the difference is the format then what is it? As strange as it may sound I think it's the fact that noddy isn't here keeping an eye on the behavior of the regulars and welcoming the newbies. She was often one of the first three responses to any newbie (outside of politics), if not the first. She encouraged discussion and set a warm, welcoming tone.

I think you have a good point here, Noddy really did take on the welcoming duties for the site. .... We need to change this but I hope others of us can pick up Noddy's torch here.

We also used to send an invitation to introduce yourself to new members. They used to get a PM upon registration and I think that helped too. We'll have to work on getting that working again.

...

But there is a bit of good news on that front. We are using a2k software for another forum within our "money" niche, and because of this we are going to do some development on a2k shortly.

When we left off, we stopped at a friends feature .... The friends feature is going to be a2k's core marketing (word of mouth and search engine traffic has always been the key to a2k's growth) and once it's ready we will be sending an email to the user database that should draw back a lot of people who haven't been around in years.

We'll post something when its ready but hopefully others here can help welcome people back and keep the momentum going. And as always please vote down the trolling (and those who serve as an echo chamber for it) instead of responding to it.

Speaking from the Modding end of things -- there are a lot of excellent folk on A2K. We truly don't worry about most people. We're very excited about the friend feature, and I personally suspect it will defuse a bit of the "hey, the last poster was a jerk so I won't respond to that topic" issue. After all, if instead you are following your buddy Friend, but Jerk is the last poster, it stands to reason you'll check out what Friend said anyway, regardless of Jerk's post position on the topic. Jerk's prominence on the topic only comes from being the last poster, but Friend's got a special place in your heart. Friend's prominence isn't topic-specific, if that makes any sense.

And, ah, Noddy. It's been almost a full year since, well, you know. I think her legacies are kindness and plain speaking. She was truly lightning in a bottle.

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I think about Noddy and I want to dab my eyes. She truly was a wonderful woman and a real lady.

1 Reply

@jespah,

jespah wrote:

Speaking from the Modding end of things -- there are a lot of excellent folk on A2K. We truly don't worry about most people. We're very excited about the friend feature, and I personally suspect it will defuse a bit of the "hey, the last poster was a jerk so I won't respond to that topic" issue. After all, if instead you are following your buddy Friend, but Jerk is the last poster, it stands to reason you'll check out what Friend said anyway, regardless of Jerk's post position on the topic. Jerk's prominence on the topic only comes from being the last poster, but Friend's got a special place in your heart. Friend's prominence isn't topic-specific, if that makes any sense.

I don't understand, but that's ok. Probably along the lines of facebook, or some such, and since I don't facebook I don't get it. On the surface of it it sounds cliquey as hell but I'm speaking from a zero knowledge-base on how these things work. I'll put my wait-and-see hat on, hate it in the beginning, as I hate all change, and learn to love it or leave it based on what I see like I usually do.

I think Rob and Nick (an unnamed others) have done a great job on working through some of the earliest issues with the new format. I love a lot of them and have left a few alone (ignore a poster is one I've yet to use). Some of us adjust to change easier than others and I know of a few folks who left when the new site was first launched and haven't been back (or back much). I think if they came back now they'd have a much better experience. I'm glad the broadcast welcome back is in the works.

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@Sglass,

Sglass wrote:

I think about Noddy and I want to dab my eyes. She truly was a wonderful woman and a real lady.

Very true, Sglass.

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@Mame,

Hi Mame. How'ya doin' ? I've had a busy summer with business trips to the East Coast ; a week at Hatteras for fishing; and lately pleasant time up at a unique place on the Russian River in California. I hope you are well, happy and your always interested, interesting and cheerful self.

Like you I also note the absence of familiar & amiable folks on the site. Still, I check in every now and then.

1 Reply

@jespah,

jespah wrote:

After all, if instead you are following your buddy Friend, but Jerk is the last poster, it stands to reason you'll check out what Friend said anyway, regardless of Jerk's post position on the topic.

How is that different from following Friend's recent posts through his or her profile? That's what I currently do.

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Is everyone on holiday or just slacking off?

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