Forum Cleanup
Posted: Sun Oct 08, 2023 8:48 pm
This is radical. I expect push-back, especially from Paul, but I'm putting it out there for people to ruminate on for a while until the appropriate time.
As we are hoping to attract hobbyists, educators, and grade 5-12 students, the forum is an excellent way to introduce OpenXTalk. It should welcome new coders with a clearly labeled, safe, respectful forum.
o Categories. I suggest simplifying forum categories to: OpenXTalk Downloads, General Discussion, Workshop, Opinion & Editorial. No sub-categories. Unlike LC with bewildering forum choices, fewer is better. Paul, you set up the forum and original categories. Would you be willing to change them as we transition from club startup to public help & resource.
o Category Content. Are postings older than four months still relevant? Delete or move to an Archive category.
o Bots/Spam. I also suggest Paul give forum keys to Richmond who has offered to monitor and remove unwanted inappropriate posts.
o Ease Of Use. Maybe I'm forum-challenged, but a post always takes two tries. I can attach one image, but must submit (twice) and immediately edit the post to attach another image, repeating as needed. I can't attach a zipped folder at all, yet others seem able. And the Edit option for a post disappears. These may turn off many new users from this valuable resource. Can these be fixed?
The way the forum looks and works reflects heavily on public perception of OpenXTalk.org.
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As we are hoping to attract hobbyists, educators, and grade 5-12 students, the forum is an excellent way to introduce OpenXTalk. It should welcome new coders with a clearly labeled, safe, respectful forum.
o Categories. I suggest simplifying forum categories to: OpenXTalk Downloads, General Discussion, Workshop, Opinion & Editorial. No sub-categories. Unlike LC with bewildering forum choices, fewer is better. Paul, you set up the forum and original categories. Would you be willing to change them as we transition from club startup to public help & resource.
o Category Content. Are postings older than four months still relevant? Delete or move to an Archive category.
o Bots/Spam. I also suggest Paul give forum keys to Richmond who has offered to monitor and remove unwanted inappropriate posts.
o Ease Of Use. Maybe I'm forum-challenged, but a post always takes two tries. I can attach one image, but must submit (twice) and immediately edit the post to attach another image, repeating as needed. I can't attach a zipped folder at all, yet others seem able. And the Edit option for a post disappears. These may turn off many new users from this valuable resource. Can these be fixed?
The way the forum looks and works reflects heavily on public perception of OpenXTalk.org.
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