A few suggestions to make the forum a better place.

General discussions relating to the story.
Lost Soul
Posts: 7
Joined: Fri Aug 09, 2013 8:30 am
Location: North East USA

A few suggestions to make the forum a better place.

Postby Lost Soul » Sat Aug 10, 2013 4:06 pm

Hi,

My name is Mark. I'm new to the forum, and am very glad to be here. Chris has touched my heart just like he has touched all yours.

I was really surprised, considering Chris' global inspiration on people, that there are not a lot of people online here at any one given time. Also there are quite a few members who have only posted once. There are some huge time lapse between posts, and many unanswered questions laying around. I would have thought, seeing this is the only forum I know of about Chris, that there would be much more activity here.

I made my first post a few days ago, and its still not shown up on the thread I posted it on. I completely understand that the mods, and admin volunteer their time. I also understand the forum software is outdated, and is vulnerable to spam bots. I do get why every thread, and post is previewed before being exposed to the open forum. But here lies a problem. Because of the delay it makes it impossible to carry on a "live" conversation with other members. Being able to converse without hesitations will spark a continued interest in its members, and will draw new members in to help the forum grow. The way its set up now is more of a "PostaNote" system. Which is fine if that is what you want, but it lacks the ability to generate friendships through daily banter, and alienates people with mild interest because of the delay of, with lack of a better term, immediate gratification. We all know the tension when a web site hangs. Its even harder waiting for days to see your thoughts appear in a thread. There is not even an option to PM/email the Admin to send him my thoughts. So here they are.

(Please keep in mind I'm a very direct, forward person with an open mind. I will not take anything personal if you decide to throw the whole idea in the trash. And please dont think I'm trying to tell people what to do, even if it sounds that way. I'm not trying to step on toes, just sharing knowledge, and experiences I've gathered on other forums. I also tend to be long winded at times.)

These are my suggestions.

1. Create a simple question test in the registration process. This will weed out bots, and people who come here to troll. Some simple questions about Chris, the book, and/or the movie. Obviously anyone who has interest sparked by the story can easily answer them. After they pass give them full power to post freely without delay.

2. Promote a self moderating forum. This can be done by members hitting the report button when something slips through that is not suppose too. They will not have mod powers, but will help the mods do their job more easily because the mods will not have spend a lot of time looking through the whole forum for bots, and trolls. I'm sure long term members will gladly help keep the forum clean. On a large forum it can get a little overwhelming, but for a small forum like this it will be effortless. And as the forum grows, and you get to know members true character, you can assign more mods as needed. This will spread the workload, and make it easier to keep the forum clean. Its also a good idea to have mods in different time zones, so while one mod sleeps, there are others who are awake.

3. This is a large endeavor, but will pay off huge in the end. Change the forum software to the latest vBulletin software. Its not that hard to learn, and will greatly enhance the members experience here. It also provides better tools for the admin, and mods to use. The forum is small enough that the transition will be effortless. People on the internet already are accustomed to vBulletin software. The majority of forums on the web use it.

4. Set up a donation system to help pay for the new system, and upkeep. I'm sure once you get rolling members will gladly help on a regular basis. I know I would.

If you can implement these suggestions your traffic will greatly increase. When your traffic increases your search engine rating goes up. When your search engine rating goes up you will increase exposure, and draw more people here. You will bring Chris' story to the masses, and help spread his inspiration to the world. It will also help his charity, because more people will know about it, and will want as much info on Chris as they can get. Just like we all do.

One thing I've learned in life is we surround ourselves with others like ourselves. Example, a hardened thieve would never be surrounded by totally honest people in his life. The people who are touched by Chris' will come, just like we did. This forum could be a great, and positive place to get Chris' story out there. "Build it, and they will come." LOL 8-)

Its a win, win for all. If I can help in anyway I will. I've never used vBullitin, but I'm good at finding resources. I'm also an artist, so if you need banners designed, or any other graphic art for the webpage just let me know.

Please post your thoughts, and thanks for reading my brick. :D

Mark

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