Improve the forum on the video page ~ add an ignore button

[annie]

I think it speaks well for this series that it appeals to people of "all ages", and it's great that anyone can add comments on the video page.

However, the kiddies have gotten into this little clique that has to exclaim "ffiiiiiiiirst" as it's team yell, or something.
The way that forum runs -- all one long, vertical thread -- you have to scroll through all of the posts. It's also basic, good ettiquette to try to read all, or at least a good number, of them before posting so you're not just repeating what someone else has said. It's obnoxious to have to wade through that "fiiirst! me me me me I beat you! I'm the best!" mentality, if you're not into that, and those posts also lengthen the one l-o-n-g column you have to scroll through.

Several adults at that page spoke up about the "fiiirst" nonsense, and of course got put down. I was sorry to see that, because I had hoped the kids might get a clue and respect the forum at large.
That is just not going to happen.

Would it be possible to add an "Ignore" button", like the Yahoo forums (and other forums) have so that people who want to read through the video forum can do so, without having to wade through the kiddie clique?
I'm sure the kiddies would love to ignore some of the adults who post, too, i.e. an "Ignore" button would have broad appeal.

Maybe the software will not support that... I think it's a great job that you all are doing, anyway, and applaud and thank you for keeping up the good work... but I know a number of people who have just quit participating in the video forum because the kiddie factor is threaded all through it and it does get really annoying. I think people come to the forum to de-stress and enjoy their time, not to deal with kids some more.

Anyway... I hope it's possible to add that feature, but if not, Oh Well!!

[Killthesmiley]

i agree about this first nonsense...
it's getting old and ridiculous. At first I thought it was cool and funny...but now it's jsut stupid.
I'm not sure baout the ignore button because these people who do it might acually ahve something decent to say because i"ve seen smart people doing this...but can we have a note from site admin or soemthing that says if you comment this, it will be removed asap, and you will be asked to no do it again...
or something because it's getting to become a waste of everyones time and scroll button.

[annie]

That's a good point about the ignore button, Killthesmiley. Sometimes, I'd just rather do without whatever else is said by the "fiiiirst" cliquette, but I know I'd miss reading some of the people, even though they intermittently post like they're trolls.

Your idea of a note from the admin is the best solution, so far, in my opinion. Let's hope there's some good action taken!

[The Creators]

That's a good idea. Not sure if we can currently do it, but I'll keep that in mind as we develop the features on the site.

[trainer101]

I wouldn't mind the complete elimination of the comments section to encourage greater participation in the forums. I too find it extremely difficult to weed through all the chatter - kinda like the first chat session.

[Broken Kid]

I wouldn't mind the complete elimination of the comments section to encourage greater participation in the forums. I too find it extremely difficult to weed through all the chatter - kinda like the first chat session.

Yeah... I tend to agree, even though I don't think this will happen. There are often some very productive and important comments in there, but I find it essentially impossible to weed through all the junk to find them. Better if they posted here!

[treefunk]

I don't think I could agree any less with what's been said in this thread. Except, that is, for the suggested ignore feature, that would be nice as there are some contributors who only post hurtful & unproductive comments.

I wouldn't mind the complete elimination of the comments section to encourage greater participation in the forums. I too find it extremely difficult to weed through all the chatter - kinda like the first chat session.

Couldn't disagree any more. I find it extremely difficult to weed through all the chatter in the forums. Whereas on the main site, you can just search for the names of contributors who regularly post interesting information. Moreover, the main site gets a lot of very interesting posts from people who are new to the site and might not make it so far as the forums. What's more, the forums (to a casual observer like myself) seem dominated by nasty flame wars that we usually lack on the main site (except, that is, for the recent one perpetrated by people for whom skipping past a one-line post that says "first" is too taxing).

Furthermore, the main site has developed its own weird, funny little culture. The regulars there are not the same as those in the forums. To ask for the effective destruction of this community simply because you prefer the forums seems unfair.

There are often some very productive and important comments in there, but I find it essentially impossible to weed through all the junk to find them.

That's what LGPedia is for! Also, if you're interested in a topic, try searching the video comments. Unlike the forums, the main site's comments are easily searchable.

[Broken Kid]

There are often some very productive and important comments in there, but I find it essentially impossible to weed through all the junk to find them.

That's what LGPedia is for! Also, if you're interested in a topic, try searching the video comments. Unlike the forums, the main site's comments are easily searchable.

I don't understand. When someone makes a good point, someone else goes and adds it somewhere into the LGPedia? Wouldn't it make more sense for people to post things on a similar topic in a similar place (like the forums)?

I know these won't go away, and I'm not saying they should. However, there's no organizational system on the main page. If you read regularly, perhaps you know some names to search for, but then you'd be missing people who post and aren't regular or on your list.

I don't think there's any more or less flaming going on in the forums. Mostly I feel like it's an issue of organization and or archiving. After all, who's going to go back four videos and search through 800 comments, as opposed to going to Plot Discussion and finding the thread?

All just my opinion as a forum user, and others' opinions as video commentors are equally valid. It's fun to go on chat and see the separate groups mix and discuss issues in one place!

[treefunk]

I don't understand. When someone makes a good point, someone else goes and adds it somewhere into the LGPedia? Wouldn't it make more sense for people to post things on a similar topic in a similar place (like the forums)?

I think it makes more sense, once a topic has been talked out in either the forums or the video comments, to add the conclusions to LGPedia. That weeds out the chatter, flaming, and speculative missteps and creates a slick encyclopedia entry containing only relevant information in a convenient format.

[trainer101]

I certainly wasn't attacking the users of the comment section - sorry if that's how it was interpreted. I was mearly stating that it's very difficult to sort through the ideas when there is no division of subject matter.

I bring it up because I'm interested in reading other theories and opinions but there's no way to sort ideas and no integration with the forums. At least in the forums I can search through various subsections for pertinent information.

[annie]

Couldn't disagree any more. I find it extremely difficult to weed through all the chatter in the forums. Whereas on the main site, you can just search for the names of contributors who regularly post interesting information.

That doesn't make a lot of sense to me, but to each his or her own. Logically, it's just a lot easier to look at organized threads, than to scroll scroll scroll scroll scroll down one long column.

.................................

Moreover, the main site gets a lot of very interesting posts from people who are new to the site and might not make it so far as the forums. What's more, the forums (to a casual observer like myself) seem dominated
by nasty flame wars that we usually lack on the main site (except, that is,
for the recent one perpetrated by people for whom skipping past a one-line post that says "first" is too taxing).

Ooh *zing!* I think I've just been flamed. LOL
It wasn't an issue of it being "too taxing", but I've already explained my perspective on it, and you've already shown that your mind is closed to that, so I won't reiterate.

..................................

Furthermore, the main site has developed its own weird, funny little culture.

The main site has become cliquish, yes. I have been going to the site since early September -- reading, not posting. It started out on the level but it has become pretty narrow and dominated by some people who act very proprietary and are often immature, though some of those people do post some intersting things, and some "outsiders" do dare to try to participate, so it's not always just the clique there.

..................

There are often some very productive and important comments in there, but I find it essentially impossible to weed through all the junk to find them.

That's what LGPedia is for! Also, if you're interested in a topic, try searching the video comments. Unlike the forums, the main site's comments are easily searchable

Well, you are certainly entitled to your opinion on that, and your opinion carries as much weight as anyone's, but please realize that not everyone shares your opinion. The Main site becomes a mess and frankly, not worth scrolling through after the ninth or tenth "Fiiiiirst". It could be fine for everyone, but cliques aren't about consideration of "outsiders".

I am really glad this is being discussed ... thanks all!!

[annie]

I think it makes more sense, once a topic has been talked out in either the forums or the video comments, to add the conclusions to LGPedia. That weeds out the chatter, flaming, and speculative missteps and creates a slick encyclopedia entry containing only relevant information in a convenient format.

I disagree that this is a good solution. It's fine to sift for the "wheat" and add it to LGPedia as a side-source, but handing the Main site over to lots of chatter and a territorial clique is just silly.
The reactions to the attempts to tone down the nonsense remind me of tweens getting in a tizzy and wailing about being awfully abused when Dad or Mom tell them to tone it down.
Can't the clique have fun without demanding that it dominate the board and run roughshod over others who would like to read the comments and occasionally participate?

[annie]

I certainly wasn't attacking the users of the comment section - sorry if that's how it was interpreted. I was mearly stating that it's very difficult to sort through the ideas when there is no division of subject matter.

You didn't seem like you were attacking -- please don't take the guilt trip... from what I've seen, most of the now-regular users of the comment section are defensive and aren't open to hearing anything resembling criticism. It's become it's own dysfunctional little community, unfortunately, although there are some very interesting, creative ideas, if you're willing to sift through all the other stuff.

[Terryfic]

It would make sense to me for the comments on the main page to also be in a thread on this board. This board is a phpBB so it should have a MySQL database with all the relevant data/metadata in it. It would not be an impossible task to make it so posting on the main page would add that post to a particular thread (in say the videos section) and likewise any the posts directly from this forum to that thread would be posted on the main page. Basically make a single thread about each video accessible from two locations. This would of course require a universal login (something that really should have been implemented from day one).

[trainer101]

It would make sense to me for the comments on the main page to also be in a thread on this board. This board is a phpBB so it should have a MySQL database with all the relevant data/metadata in it. It would not be an impossible task to make it so posting on the main page would add that post to a particular thread (in say the videos section) and likewise any the posts directly from this forum to that thread would be posted on the main page. Basically make a single thread about each video accessible from two locations. This would of course require a universal login (something that really should have been implemented from day one).

That's a very good idea. You should pass it along to TWJ.