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Thanks Admin - didn't know about that one!

I am disappointed that Links and Resources plus Chit Chat will no
longer appear on the Recent Topics board.
Many of us have limitedtime to use the Message Board and some days that is the only
section I have time to read.

Also, some of our members work hard
to find resources on the net for the rest of us. Many of them are quite
worthwhile and I do think that they should appear on Recent Topics as
well. These new ideas provided as links provide just as much
inspiration and worthwhile tips as the lovely pictures and other posts.

I still don't see the reason for the change.

"If it isn't broken, don't fix it" :shock:

I SECOND THAT..... :D

Over time, the most common type of complaint I received about the General Chit-Chat topics listed on the Recent Topics page is exactly what you said. The only thing is they specifically do not want to read non-quilting stuff.

So we have users with limited amount of time who use the Recent Topics page to catch up with the latest discussions.

The problem is some of them want to socialize here more than read about quilting, while others want the opposite -- they want to read quilting discussions.

Neither one of those groups of users is right or wrong -- simply different ways of using this site.

Normally, it would be a tie, since I don't want to make the site less usable for someone on purpose.

But since it's a quilting website, it makes sense to go with the group of users that want to read about quilting more than other topics.

I'm still not sure about the Links section. I might add it back. The problem here is that new links seems to be posted in batches. I don't know why people do it, but I see the pattern over and over. Some days, there aren't any new links, and then 10 or so posted within just a few minutes.

That pushes all others topics on the Recent Topics page down by 10 or so positions. And any user that checks the Recent Topics page after the latest "batch", would see a collection of links instead of a balanced mixture of various types of posts.

That's the most common complaint about Links in the Recent Topics list.

Once I figure out how to add links to the Recent Topics without actually clogging up the whole list, then I'll turn them back on. For now, it requires some thinking.

You could restrict the number of links allowed per day (per person) or you could request that the links per person be all in one post not 10 posts with just one link. I think I favor the last option. I agree that I hate to see the links that relate to quilting not be in the recent topics but it can be difficult to get past too many.

I'm considering all ways of doing it. Right now, I have other things I must deal with, but I'll get back to the Links section a bit later.

Admin, I love all the changes you all have made!! I went away for a few days and come back and find changes!

As the others before me, I would never want to offend others. also like the idea of recieving a PM if we do something wrong. I like to check the board out early in the morning and see all the new questions on quilting. I have learned so much that way! And the pictures are a great encouragement to us when we are in a rut. Seeing what others have done, makes me want to get right back to quilting!!
So, thanks to all of you for the great job you do! Right now we have a lot of traffic in the new section, but will probably taper off when us hens get used to it!! LOL

Ninnie in NC

I can't speak for either Admin or Shadow Dancer on this because we've never compaired numbers, but I can tell you that I get surprisingly few complaints considering the number of active members we have. Most of the time, if Member A complains to me about Member B, it isn't really that either has broken a rule or done something wrong. It's because they each see things differently and one has irritated the other.

We started out with very few rules. We members hissed and howled at the very thought of rules. (guess who was the BIGGEST troublemaker around here. :roll: ) we more or less "wrote" our own rules and "taught" each other what was and wasn't acceptable behavior. We preferred to work things out ourselves and only dragged Admin into it if there was a hardhead or two who wouldn't cooperate with the group.

That worked well when there were only a few of us posting and participating regularly. But as we've grown, we've discovered by hit, miss and the hard way that some things need to be officially discouraged or banned in order to keep this a comfortable, friendly and informative place for everybody. Soooooo every once in a while poor Admin has to add to or tweak the rules a bit more. (We've been spoiled rotten by all the freedom so you can be sure a new rule is only rolled out after careful consideration.)

99.99999% of the time, if a member actually "messes up", it's by accident.

If your post disappears and you didn't get a pm about it, then we're sending a gentle hint. It was a boo-boo, but not one big enough to earn you so much as a written "tsk tsk". (Remember, we Adminize and moderate in our spare time so - as Admin pointed out - there isn't always enough time to send notification.) We assume you'll get the hint and we can all quietly and calmly go about business as usual.

if the mistake is a bit more serious, we try to let that member know where they went wrong and how it can be straightened out. The contact is for the purpose of guidance and education. I almost never feel i have no choice but to really chew him/her out about it.

when members grumble among themselves by pm, but don't discuss it with Admin or a moderator, it's no better than back fence gossip. it has no genuine value or influence on how things are done or run.

Trust me ... if Admin or a moderator hasn't said something directly to you, then you aren't in trouble. ;-)

P.S. I'm living proof that you can make mistakes here AND get in trouble AND be forgiven AND live to tell about it. :lol:

Thanks for that Patrice - clearly, eloquently and honestly put as usual!

BTW the new section seems to be working out great - it's being used loads (which may be partially novelty value), but it's a great way to keep in touch, share jokes and funnies with who you know are like-minded people and look for news on specific fellow boarders! Thanks again for introducing it - I LOVE it!