Forums | MacLife

ScifiterX · 2009-01-19 11:10 pm

The issue with networking & servers is you can't split servers out and a lot of the networking stuff in there is can be pretty high end. If you were going to roll the posts into any forum it be better to roll them into Pro Shop and spiritually split network by saying high end stuff is to be posted in Pro Shop while everyday networking stuff is to be posted in Everyday Tech.

Macskeeball · 2009-01-19 11:19 pm

There's a problem with that. Where do you think the people with the answers to high end networking (and programming) questions are more likely to spend their time: in Everyday Tech or in artsy-fartsy creative professional land? These are two different sides of the brain.

ScifiterX · 2009-01-19 11:24 pm

If I were going to condense Digital|Life I'd do it this way

In Tech News
Old Forums archived within: In Tech News
New content accepted: Technology news

Everyday Tech
Old Forums archived within: Everyday Tech, On the Go
New content accepted: General tech discussion, Tech support (desktops/portable/networking)

The Pro Shop
Old Forums archived within: The Pro Shop, Programming & WebDev, Networking & Servers
New content accepted: Professional/Semiprofessional Publishing, Multimedia, Audio, Graphic, Web Design, Programming, and Network & System Administration

Games
Old Forums archived within: Games
New content accepted: Games

ScifiterX · 2009-01-19 11:26 pm

Macskeeball wrote:
There's a problem with that. Where do you think the people with the answers to high end networking (and programming) questions are more likely to spend their time: in Everyday Tech or in artsy-fartsy creative professional land? These are two different sides of the brain.

One might argue there is benefit in mixing both those side.

Macskeeball · 2009-01-19 11:38 pm

My idea of a condensed Mac|Life is below. Bold text items are categories, not forums.

Mac|Life
-Mac|Life Readers
-Forum Feedback

Digital|Life
-Tech News & Discussion (In Tech News + non-tech support part of Everyday Tech)
-Tech Support (Everyday Tech + On-the-Go + Networking & Servers)
-The Pro Shop
-Programming & Web Dev
-Gaming
-Clan Mac|Life (all Clan [MA] stuff)

Real|Life
-Unplugged
-Ministry of Free Thought

Other Digital|Life*
-Bootcamp**
-Vintage Apple
-Hardware Hacking***
-Distributed Computing (Folding + SETI, and potentially other projects)

* Having an "Other Digital|Life" category seems inelegant, but if you were to put those forums in Digital|Life then two very popular forums (Unplugged and MiniThink) would be too far down.

** Perhaps Bootcamp belongs higher up, near Tech Support. It's certainly much, MUCH more active than any of the other forums I put under "Other Digital|Life."

*** "Hardware Hacking" could be rolled into either Tech News & Discussion or Tech Support. Incidentally, a recent hardware mod discussion (Funky Monkey and his iBook photo frame) happened entirely outside of "Hardware Hacking." Had it been posted there, it probably wouldn't have gotten much attention.

Last edited by Macskeeball (2009-01-21 11:49 am)

ScifiterX · 2009-01-19 11:45 pm

Clan Mac|Life I've long argued should be condensed. I've gotten argument after argument about losing history (though frankly that already happened twice) every time I bring it up.

As it stands I'd condense it this way

Create a forum called Clan Archives toss all the old [MA] General, Squad, and Xans B&G posts in there but make it read only
Roll the Various Clan Game Forums in a Forum called Clan Barracks and make it only open & visible to Clan Members, Moderators & Admins
Rename [MA] Officers so it's called Clan HQ and make it only open & visible to Clan Officers, Moderators & Admins
Start a new open Clan forum for the purposes of recruitment and bragging.

ScifiterX · 2009-01-20 12:12 am

With the way the forums are currently set up these are more likely and better options

Mac|Life
- Mac|Life Readers
- Forum Feedback

Digital|Life
- In Tech News (Technology Headlines)
- Everyday Tech (General Discussion & Tech Support) {It's too late to split off general discussion}
- The Pro Shop (Professional & Semi Professional topics)
- Gaming (Nuff Said)
- Team Mac|Life (Distributed computing like SETI & F@H) {Name reflects our SETI @ F@H Team identity}

Real|Life
- Unplugged
- Ministry of Free Thought

Alternative|Life
- Bootcamp
- Vintage Apple
- Hardware Hacking

Clan Mac|Life
- Recuitment
- Clan HQ <Restricted & Invisible>
- Barracks <Restricted & Possibly invisible>
- Archives <Locked> (Old Clan [MA] Records)

or

Mac|Life
- Mac|Life Readers
- Forum Feedback

Digital|Life
- In Tech News (Technology Headlines)
- Everyday Tech (General Discussion & Tech Support) {It's too late to split off general discussion}
- The Pro Shop (Creative Professional & Semi Professional topics)
- Coding & Connections (Programming, Webdev, and Network & Server administration)
- Gaming (Nuff Said)
- Team Mac|Life (Distributed computing like SETI & F@H) {Name reflects our SETI @ F@H Team identity}

Real|Life
- Unplugged
- Ministry of Free Thought

Alternative|Life
- Bootcamp
- Vintage Apple
- Hardware Hacking

Clan Mac|Life
- Recuitment
- Clan HQ <Restricted & Invisible>
- Barracks <Restricted & Possibly invisible>
- Archives <Locked> (Old Clan [MA] Records)

Macskeeball · 2009-01-20 12:41 am

Just to make sure, is there agreement (not just between Sci, Orion, and I) on merging On-the-Go into Everyday Tech or it's equivalent?

Last edited by Macskeeball (2009-01-20 12:43 am)

ScifiterX · 2009-01-20 1:09 am

Not exactly

I brought this topic up with the other so the other moderators can discuss it earlier this evening. But as yet no one has really started talks. My list here isn't really to be construed as agreement but rather possibility based on a combination what has been discussed by the mods in the past, what is feasible, what been said in here, and a few bright ideas of my own to handle things if things were to be changed.

I personally have no objections to merging On-the-Go & Everyday Tech if it's decided they need to be merged but am not quite convinced they need to be merged yet. (Though I can see some benefit in doing so.)

Macskeeball · 2009-01-20 1:18 am

Distinguishing between mobile tech and everyday tech may have made sense a few years ago, but laptop sales have been dominating desktop sales for a while, for the whole industry. Other "On-the-Go" devices? Cell phones and iLife devices like iPods, digital cameras, and video cameras. These days, those are everyday tech.

ScifiterX · 2009-01-20 1:31 am

I don't disagree. There are some aspects which portable system users have to deal with which desktop users don't and vice versa but the exclusive issue aspect isn't particularly large anymore. It is still there but arguably not significant enough to merit it own forum at our current traffic levels. I'm just not sure yet if it is insignificant enough to merit a merger which can't be easily undone. As a result, I'm still debating my stand on that in my own mind.

justine · 2009-01-20 4:01 am

Don't get your hopes up about all the changes you guys are proposing. Its not likely the forums are going to be completely revamped.

Former Windork · 2009-01-20 8:01 am

Condensing eleventy thousand barely used forums into a handful is completely revamping? I've managed a forum or two in my time. It's really not that hard to combine a few forums and hardly qualifies as an extensive renovation project.

dv · 2009-01-20 10:34 am

Former Windork wrote:
Condensing eleventy thousand barely used forums into a handful is completely revamping? I've managed a forum or two in my time. It's really not that hard to combine a few forums and hardly qualifies as an extensive renovation project.

Of course not; but we have to argue about it some more.

And if you've admin'd a forum before, then you know how non-trivial it is to pull the threads apart after the fact; like we might want to if we condense them down one way and then somebody else has a better plan.

Not that I have a better plan. shrug

ScifiterX · 2009-01-20 10:51 am

Quite.

If we do anything it's only going to be if we've decided it's the best option.

Former Windork · 2009-01-20 11:04 am

dv wrote:
Former Windork wrote:
Condensing eleventy thousand barely used forums into a handful is completely revamping? I've managed a forum or two in my time. It's really not that hard to combine a few forums and hardly qualifies as an extensive renovation project.
Of course not; but we have to argue about it some more.

And if you've admin'd a forum before, then you know how non-trivial it is to pull the threads apart after the fact; like we might want to if we condense them down one way and then somebody else has a better plan.

Not that I have a better plan.

Pull threads apart? I'm talking about a wholesale folding of one forum into another one, not sifting through thousands of old threads or splitting topics.

dv · 2009-01-20 11:07 am

Former Windork wrote:
dv wrote:
Former Windork wrote:
Condensing eleventy thousand barely used forums into a handful is completely revamping? I've managed a forum or two in my time. It's really not that hard to combine a few forums and hardly qualifies as an extensive renovation project.
Of course not; but we have to argue about it some more.

And if you've admin'd a forum before, then you know how non-trivial it is to pull the threads apart after the fact; like we might want to if we condense them down one way and then somebody else has a better plan.

Not that I have a better plan.
Pull threads apart? I'm talking about a wholesale folding of one forum into another one, not sifting through thousands of old threads or splitting topics.

Exactly. There's no "Undo."

Gurlugon · 2009-01-20 12:26 pm

What happened to the school board anyway

ukimalefu · 2009-01-20 12:30 pm

Gurlugon wrote:
What happened to the school board anyway

Student Lounge?

It was inactive for a long time, so i was merged with Unplugged.

dv · 2009-01-20 1:03 pm

Gurlugon wrote:
What happened to the school board anyway

They were alternately either bought by corrupt businesses, or browbeaten and infiltrated by either book burning religious nut-cases or uberliberal PC douchenozzles. take your pick.

Oh, wait, not that school board... wink

justine · 2009-01-21 8:45 am

Gurlugon wrote:
What happened to the school board anyway

It took 9 days before anyone noticed it was gone.

mrreet2001 · 2009-01-21 9:25 am

Macskeeball wrote:
My idea of a condensed Mac|Life is below. Bold text items are categories, not forums.

Mac|Life
-Mac|Life Readers
-Forum Feedback

Digital|Life
-Tech News & Discussion (In Tech News + non-tech support part of Everyday Tech)
-Tech Support (Everyday Tech + On-the-Go + Networking & Servers)
-The Pro Shop
-Programming & Web Dev
-Gaming
-Clan Mac|Life (all Clan [MA] stuff)

Real|Life
-Unplugged
-Ministry of Free Thought

Other Digital|Life*
-Bootcamp**
-Vintage Apple
-Hardware Hacking***
-Distributed Computing (Folding + SETI, and potentially other projects)

* Having an "Other Digital|Life" category seems inelegant, but if you were to put those forums in Digital|Life then two very popular forums (Unplugged and MiniThink) would be too far down.

** Perhaps Bootcamp belongs higher up, near Tech Support. It's certainly much, MUCH more active than any of the other forums I put under "Other Digital|Life."

** "Hardware Hacking" could be rolled into either Tech News & Discussion or Tech Support. Incidentally, a recent hardware mod discussion (Funky Monkey and his iBook photo frame) happened entirely outside of "Hardware Hacking." Had it been posted there, it probably wouldn't have gotten much attention.

I vote for this one...

ScifiterX · 2009-01-21 10:19 am

Not gonna happen due some of the former merger we've already made and the nature of some of the forum he's jamming together.

Macskeeball · 2009-01-21 1:39 pm

As of this writing, the Mac|Life Forums have 1,604,295 total posts. I did the math, and literally 80% of those (1,287,907 posts) are in Unplugged, MiniThink, In Tech News, and Everyday Tech.

What does that mean? It means that 84% of the total number of forums (21/25) make up only 20% of the forum activity. Forum organization should try to reflect the reality of the activity.

All the Clan forums combined get only 3% of the forum activity (48,953/1604296), yet they make up 36% of the total number of forums. The concern about preserving the history of 3% of the forum activity seems a bit removed from reality if you ask me.

mrreet2001 · 2009-01-21 1:44 pm

At one point today I was the ONLY member here eek ... what's that mean ... nothing but it was damn freaky.

Forums | MacLife

#26 2009-01-19 11:10 pm

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

#27 2009-01-19 11:19 pm

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

#28 2009-01-19 11:24 pm

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

#29 2009-01-19 11:26 pm

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

Macskeeball wrote:

#30 2009-01-19 11:38 pm

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

#31 2009-01-19 11:45 pm

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

#32 2009-01-20 12:12 am

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

#33 2009-01-20 12:41 am

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

#34 2009-01-20 1:09 am

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

#35 2009-01-20 1:18 am

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

#36 2009-01-20 1:31 am

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

#37 2009-01-20 4:01 am

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

#38 2009-01-20 8:01 am

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

#39 2009-01-20 10:34 am

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

Former Windork wrote:

#40 2009-01-20 10:51 am

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

#41 2009-01-20 11:04 am

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

dv wrote:

Former Windork wrote:

#42 2009-01-20 11:07 am

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

Former Windork wrote:

dv wrote:

Former Windork wrote:

#43 2009-01-20 12:26 pm

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

#44 2009-01-20 12:30 pm

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

Gurlugon wrote:

#45 2009-01-20 1:03 pm

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

Gurlugon wrote:

#46 2009-01-21 8:45 am

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

Gurlugon wrote:

#47 2009-01-21 9:25 am

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

Macskeeball wrote:

#48 2009-01-21 10:19 am

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

#49 2009-01-21 1:39 pm

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

#50 2009-01-21 1:44 pm

Re: Can we please merge some forums?

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