BlueChicken

I really like that... there's nothing worse than not knowing what you did wrong. :-)

Rhonda

I'm not always sure what is appropriate and what isn't in GCC. I know we talk in the PDA and one thing leads to another so stopping and thinking oh that should be on the GCC wouldn't occur to me. I am not sure I am comfortable asking after and discussing someone's health on the GCC. We do discuss personal issues as problems with kids and that was something I thought was not wanted on GCC.
We have joked around and played with poetry and that was not wanted in the main stream part. So I would find it hard to respond in the GCC for fear of offending. In the PDA I know I am not offending if I say something silly and joke around. I feel more comfortable there.
To tell you the truth I never read the GCC. Because it isn't listed in the recent topics I forget it is there.
Again this is just my opinion!!

Minda

I would like to see GCC and PDA combined. When someone wants to vent, would it help to lock the thread and ask us to use a PM to respond. That way, we can send our messages of support right to the person who needs them.

sewjoyce

First, I would like to thank Admin for the great site we have here and I greatly appreciate all the work you all do. Without it, I would have many lonesome days and nights. And I've actually learned a lot here and all of it not necessarily about quilting. I've also made a lot of friends.

I do not read the PDA on a regular basis -- maybe twice since it began. To me, it's simply overwhelming. I used to love reading the GCC but since it doesn't come up in the "Recent Topics", I very rarely go there either. And I feel like I'm missing a lot of things.

I would like to see the GCC put back the way it was and also included in the Recent Topics once again. If it's something that I don't want to read about, I'll just skip it and go on. Or if I open a topic and then don't care for it, I can leave it alone and go on. I've heard several comments that people don't like using the PDA and don't want to break any rules, so they end up not posting anywhere.

I think it would also help if people made the title of their posts more plain -- such as "Quilt Finished", "Today's Joke", "I'm Ill" or even, "I hate my neighbors". At least then, we know what we're getting into before we open the thread.

Again, I love this place and hope you can resolve these issues to everyone's satisfaction. And I'll know you'll try :D :D

barnbum

That makes perfect sense. It's usually what is done on the horse forum I stop in at--and everyone can see why the post was locked--and it fades to pages beyond.

One very important issue with me is to explain clearly what is in the post on the subject line. I use the whole line sometimes to make sure I'm clear--so some can skip it if they choose. There should be so surprises.

sewsewquilter

This is a good suggestion.

sewsewquilter

I find that I use "Read new messages since my last visit" from the home page instead of going to "Recent Topics" because recent topics no longer has all topics in it. I just skip over the post I don't want to read. If I only wanted to see post about quilts then I go to that topic, i.e. pictures, etc.

I'm pretty easy going and know that there are a lot of different type of people in the world. So this board is going to be pretty diverse also. Are there a few members that I never read their post? Yes. I don't find that to be a problem. I try to live and let live.

I don't read the PDAs much. There are two I look it. One about Morgan and the one about trying to think like Dear Jane did to make her blocks. I didn't know I was missing the quilts in progress in the PDAs. :-( They are always fun to watch. Wish those people would change their subjects lines so I would know to look. :-)

Thank you Admin for asking our opinons. You don't have to. You and the moderators run a great board. Thank you!

Roben

I could quote saravincent's entire post to agree, but for brevity I'll just say I agree.

I work, and work some nights at a local shop - I check in daily, but using the "Read New Messages Since My Last Visit" it is a bit daunting to find 7+ pages of posts, a large number of which are PDA's, jokes, cute stories - anything but quilting. That wouldn't be a problem if I were on a general subject board, but on a quilting board - things I might be able to help with or might be interested in are just getting lost in the sheer magnitude of 'other' stuff.

I could just click on 'Recent Topics' - but after a full day away at work, I'm going to miss posts beyond that one page, so that doesn't work.

I could try to skim by topic title - but as has been noted in this thread, that only works if the topic title actually reflects what the topic is, which isn't always the case.

I've read at least 3 instances throughout this thread where Admin has said, in one form or another, "It's not working." Guidelines aren't being followed no matter how many accommodations are being made. Opening up GCC , I fear, will result in the very same issues as before - unless the rule of 'behave yourself' is enforced. There are members here who have been on since the beginning in 2006, and have never had to be sent a PM to behave themselves - so I daresay it is possible to show some restraint, think about other members before posting and to be reasonable.

amma

If I remember correctly, we were asked to make sure a variety of topics were in the CC section...so if there are already 3 or 4 posts of vacations, then is it not appropriate to post additional ones in your PDA? The same with pet pictures, family pictures, jokes, etc.. I thought that most were following the rules...Most then change their title to reflect these topics with a current page number.... and like Lacelady said, sometimes the pics are to go along with a conversation or an explanation to one...

Some of us post pics in our PDA and at the same time in the Picture section or in the appropriate Swap threads, too... the reason for posting in your PDA also, is that allows for more personal chit chat regarding the pictures, not just generalized comments...which would run the page numbers waaay up on some of them, which would be a problem for some members with little time to read through 5,6,7 pages for each picture...so they get the best of both worlds... also if there was any more chit chat/joking/etc.. in the swap threads, IRR threads, it would be even harder to keep up with them!!! It makes sense to keep these ongoing coversations contained in a spot that does not upset the majority of the members.

I posted my antique quilt blocks in both places...with more discussion in my PDA of the history that would not necessarily have been interesting to everyone...and it tied into the death of a family member, also....

As far as pics of our current projects in the PDA section....well, they are there for a number of reasons, one being it is nice to get view points and ideas on them as you are going along as well as encouragement to stick with them, and two if we all posted our current projects in process in Pictures, you would have a hard time finding completed quilts to look at, and three, not everyone enjoys looking at these and some will complain that their completed quilt pictures will get buried within a day or two...which happens now, already. I skipped two days of looking at pictures and new ones had already been pushed to page 2...and as more members join and are posting it will be pushed even further back and again, members complaining that they have to do too much searching...Most of the time we also change our title to reflect these pictures and their page numbers...
The same chain effect could happen in Pictures, if 5 of us regularly post our current projects, 5 more join in, 5 more, 10 more...you would eventually be asked to open a new section just for this..

Bearisgray has an awesome ongoing journal of her progress on her Dear Jane quilt...if this was in the Picture section it would get buried often, but one glance at her subject title and you know right were to find it...but she also has a number of posts that are related not to quilting but random thoughts about Jane's life or her's...tools from that time, whether she had field help, bear's garden, family, other topics that would be considered "off topic" if it were in with Pictures... In my opinion, that is what really makes her journal stand out...and such interesting reading....and then there is also the point that we get into discussions on these thoughts and that is very enjoyable too!

I prefer to keep surgerys, venting, deaths and prayer notices in the PDA section...that way everyone can post without worrying over whether there are too many listed at a time.... How many members feeling will get hurt if their thread is locked because there are all ready 4- 8 similar threads? Members will start complaining again if they see too many of these, and they can get buried within 1-2 days...not everyone is on the board daily...we can talk in the PDA section about these in great length if we so choose, ignore those we don't wish to read or respond to, without having to worry about offending anyone, or talking about these things in the Chat Room...sometimes I think it would be better to take some of those conversations to a PDA instead of clearing out the chat room, when the conversations get lengthy about illness, death, etc... and people came in to talk quilting or other lighter subjects....

I think that something must be right in the PDA section...a number of threads have a great amount of views, and not just from regular PDA posters. Many members pop in a read and never post a reply..some admit to reading regularly but rarely posting replys...but they enjoy what they see and read there...most will not post to this thread either, they are readers, not reply-ers

Are you afraid that the CC section will die out??? I understand your concern over quilt related pics being kept out of the Picture section. How about this??? Since I am daily in the PDA section, and if there are pictures in there that could also be appropriately placed in the Pictures section, I can leave a reply asking if they would please consider posting this particular pic over there too, for the whole board to enjoy? The same with family, animal, vacation, etc... pics if there are not too many already in the CC section. I am in the CC section daily, too. I don't think the others in the PDA section would mind this, and it may solve the problem that you are having with the PDA section. Let me know if this would help and you have yourself a volunteer!!! Or if I can help in any other way...I have been reading here since shortly after the board started up, and signed up twice as a member since early 2007...I appreciate it being here, and would like to help in any way that I can to keep it going and to keep you happy with it's contents. :wink:

I would really hate to lose the PDA section, and I think opening up CC again to it's old rules, will bring all of the old problems back out again...

sandpat

While I think about this some more, the thread will grow by 50 pages, but I have to say that I don't go to PDA..it is just tooo overwhelming for me to tackle. I had no idea that people were posting GCC type of things there. I really really miss having GCC the way it was. I'm a big girl and I could skip what I didn't want to read and could easily figure that out by skimming the title. Even if the title was..well...not exactly what the thread was about, I usually knew that by who the poster was.

As far as newbies stumbling on the site and not staying because of what was in GCC??? When I started, I found the quiltingboard through the newsletter, then the forum and I didn't even know that GCC was there for the longest time! I only looked at Main and pictures.

I know that as the board grows and the membership increases your job is harder, but this just doesn't seem like rocket science to me. Read what you want to....don't read what you don't want to. Admin...if there are people getting waay out of hand on a continuing basis..well...after a warning via pm...there is a reason that you are able to ban them from the site. The overwhelming majority of people here do abide by the "spirit" of the rules with no problems.