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Post by walker on Aug 11, 2006 17:20:01 GMT -5
This message board is already the coolest ever but I had just a few ideas that might make it a little better.
One, maybe two of the forums could be lost: say "The Living Room" and "Announcements." I've found concentration makes conversation seem more unified and intimate.
Second, could the forum link on the dappled things website be made somewhat more prominent? I would like to see as many people know about this as possible. I've already learned a lot for myself and I wish there were more people to share with.
Last, it is possible to add an "Interests" slot to the profiles, so we could have a little bit of background about different people?
Thanks for listening to my drivel.
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Post by Bernardo on Aug 11, 2006 18:47:27 GMT -5
Walker,
Thanks for your suggestions! I agree that concentration makes the conversation more "unified and intimate," which is why I tried to have as few different forums as possible when setting up this website. At the same time, I think a certain number of different categories is necessary to give people an idea of what is being discussed on the site. For example, no one has made posts about prayer, most probably because we don't have a "Spirituality and Prayer" section or something of the sort. For this reason, I would like to hear from more forum users before eliminating one of the forums.
I also agree that we need to get as many people to come to these forums as possible. I'll ask our webmaster to put up an announcement on the sidebar and advertise the forum through our list-serve.
I like your idea about the "interests" slot. I'll ask Frank about it as he's the one who manages the boards.
Thanks again!
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Post by Bernardo on Aug 16, 2006 17:35:42 GMT -5
Walker, I hear back from Frank who tell me that "the only info you can put into a profile has to go in the fields already provided. I have no way of changing that." So unfortunately, there's no way for the moment to add an "interest" section to the profile. You might be able to do some of that through the "Introductions" thread, though I realize it's not a great solution.
Regarding your other two concerns, the an announcement about the forums will appear on the website soon, and I'd still like to hear from other members about whether we should merge any forums.
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Post by Frank on Aug 16, 2006 22:27:51 GMT -5
Well, the "Workshop" and the "Arts & Culture" are our two most popular boards, so those should remain independent.
I guess it would make sense to merge "Announcements" into "The Living Room", and simply make our miscellaneous announcements there.
Maybe we could merge "Dappled Discussion" into, say, "Arts & Culture", but I would wait to see if Dappled Discussion picks up (in activity) after a new issue is published and people have fresh fodder for discussion.
There's always the option of making "sub-boards", FYI. That is, boards within boards. Just let me know whatever you want me to do.
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Post by walker on Aug 16, 2006 23:44:55 GMT -5
"Dappled Discussion" is cool. I like that people can get feedback on their articles. One thing we did at "Lumen Vincens," (roughly "Dappled Things" at Franciscan University) was to open up a thread for every article published in our last issue, to feel out which people liked or didn't and why.
I guess it is a pretty good idea to let things stay, perhaps ... survival of the fittest. If there are any really superfluous forums, I'm sure they'll make themselves known soon. Thanks, Bernardo and Frank for your responses!
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Post by cristina on Aug 23, 2006 9:41:44 GMT -5
I would like to suggest a forum where users can celebrate their literary successes (whether in Dappled Things or elsewhere), and perhaps even post their successful works. Somewhat similar to the Workshop but instead of posting works in progress, users post works that have already been published (perhaps after several rejections) or which have won in literary competitions.
This is one way to encourage forum users to write and keep on writing, whether in "Dappled Things" or elsewhere. It will also be a way to see if "Dappled Things" is, indeed, successful in honing new literary talents who could influence the literary world.
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Post by cristina on Jan 19, 2007 10:34:24 GMT -5
A board or sub-board of the Workshop board I would suggest is one on research. I think of it as a place where members could posts requests for -- and receive replies on -- background information they need for their works -- for example, on historical periods or countries where they want to set their stories.
What do you guys think?
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Post by katycarl on Jan 19, 2007 13:10:24 GMT -5
Cristina, I would find that helpful. Good thinkin'! Of course there's no replacement for looking into things oneself, but we can be resources for each other in this respect. Other people may be experts in something someone wants to know about, or may have library or museum resources within their reach that someone else wouldn't because of where they live.
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