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CoreJay
Member Posts: 17
This was taken from another topic, but I thought it would fit better here.
This forum needs a clearly defined lounge. If there isn't one then the top-most forum will be the lounge. I've seen that happen on almost every board with no social area. It's supposed to be the "Intro and Misc" forum, buy they need to rename it to something more obvious, like "off topic" so it stands out.
Also "Working with GameSalad" is too general, so things remotely related to GameSalad seem to go in there, and the other focused boards get less attention. Just having sections like Design, Art, Audio, and so on is better. Makes each forum have an obvious use, and threads on those topics easy to find.
Basically it would make searching, finding topics, and general use of the forums more intuitive.
EDIT: Added a poll, just in case someone has an opinion, but doesn't have much to add.
This forum needs a clearly defined lounge. If there isn't one then the top-most forum will be the lounge. I've seen that happen on almost every board with no social area. It's supposed to be the "Intro and Misc" forum, buy they need to rename it to something more obvious, like "off topic" so it stands out.
Also "Working with GameSalad" is too general, so things remotely related to GameSalad seem to go in there, and the other focused boards get less attention. Just having sections like Design, Art, Audio, and so on is better. Makes each forum have an obvious use, and threads on those topics easy to find.
Basically it would make searching, finding topics, and general use of the forums more intuitive.
EDIT: Added a poll, just in case someone has an opinion, but doesn't have much to add.
Comments
The biggest issue for me is searching for an answer in the forums. Yesterday I had to scroll through over a month of posts to find what i was looking for as the search didn't find it for me lol! So anything that makes finding an answer easier will be good. Also I'll be less likely to ask the same question someone else did a week ago.
Anyone noticed how the forum pages are flying by quicker now? Those pages are really growing. a testament to GameSalad's success I suspect.
It's all good. The forums sometimes seem more addictive than Facebook
In fact if anything I want a clear social area to avoid having social topics be barred. Right now I am a bit wary about responding to anything social in "Working with GameSalad".
Often on new forums, when moderation suddenly decides to clamp down after a buildup of forum drama, they go lock crazy. There's just not enough hours in a day to read everything. Locking is usually easier than moving, and busy moderators go for the easy way to clean up the threads. That's something I'd hate to see happen.
Here's the issue...
Working with Gamesalad has over 2300 threads on a range of topics. All the other sections average a mere 300. The actual social board "Introductions & Misc" only has about 250. This is common for a new board. The top most category is the one used by default when people are unsure where a topic should go.
It's a bit confusing for newer users. When someone ends up posting in the wrong place, frustration happens, people complain... then the locks come.
All it takes to solve it is some clever renaming and category descriptions to make it more obvious which section is for which topics. This reduces the workload on Moderators, allowing them to take time and read a thread instead of locking it to save time when there is too many to sort through.
The alternative is the mods end up clamping down after enough drama, and the place ends up with more locks than Fort Knox.
I've seen it happen before, and it would be nice not to have that happen here.
All that said, the "Latest Discussions" section is fine as it is. I'm just talking about the categories at the top of the page. ( The color coding idea is pretty ace though! )
Just to be sure it's clear again, I don't want anything locked or barred. Just sorted out better to reduce confusion and complaints.