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We NEED some thread organization!


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TM2 Dinobot, there is no "swear filter". Anything you post, will show up. It is this way because the members here have always been vigilant about not posting harsh language. Personally, harsh language does not offend me, but we focus on toys here and tend to have a small but substantial membership of young, impressionable folks.

On the other hand, "older" sure doesn't mean more mature in every case. Anyone here can call me a douche bag to another member and I doubt I'd ever know, because I don't monitor PM discussions and neither do any of the other staff. However, I really don't see what calling a staff member names behind their back and trying to incite another member does to help resolve an issue you have. In fact, its cowardly.

I invite ALL members to openly discuss problems you have with MMV, without fear of consequence, unless you become insulting. If its a problem with a staff member, come to me directly.

Nobody is deleting or amending posts to censor the discussion. Its just not being done, so stop with the conspiracy theories.

I've known many of you for quite a while through this place and we are, for the most part, all friends. As said many times before, this place is what you make it. Just because you don't carry a title of staff, doesn't mean you don't help run the place.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Sigh...

OK, here I go. This is going to be a rant, so pop some popcorn and get comfortable!

The rash of threads about release dates has continued unabated. On the first page of the TV & Movie forum, We now have FIVE threads with the words "this week" in the thread title:

24 Minimates this week?

Anything out this week?

ST Wave 2 Minimates this week?

24 Series 1 and BTTF this week

... and the most recent:

Rocky 2 Minimates - This Week?

Some of these threads are short, some are long, and some have become the de facto threads for discussing their product lines, in lieu of other, established threads. To add to the confusion, we even have threads that discuss TWO product lines: 24 Series 1 and BTTF this week , and Star Trek and BSG2 Minimates Today, and Back to the Future and '24' packaged shots at DST's Myspace page.

Folks, it just doesn't make sense to post a thread about release dates. Most of these threads include the question, "Does anyone know when Product X is out?" No one EVER knows exactly when a product makes it into stores until it's ACTUALLY IN STORES. Release dates get moved up or back, delivery trucks get delayed, and so on. And once someone DOES find a new release in stores, you can be guaranteed they will be posting on here within hours, and usually with pics, too.

Furthermore, it makes no sense to include the phrase "this week" in a thread title. Three weeks after the thread goes up, it's still got that "this week" in the title. One quick glance at the forum would make someone think that about 19 different products were all released in the last 7 days! I realize you can see when the thread was first posted, but that doesn't make the forum any easier to use.

We've been getting several new users to our forum, which is a fantastic thing. I welcome all fresh faces around here. I suspect some of these might be new to online forums as well, and it's these people I feel bad for with regards to our thread organization. It's enough of a hurdle to master online etiquette, let alone having to wade through multiple threads about the same topic.

Some have pointed out that it's easier for new users to ask a question than read through a dozen threads to find out what they want to know. Well, that's true. However, new users ought to expect to do a little research about their new hobby before blasting away with questions. But, why not make it easier for our new members! Wouldn't it be great for everybody if we had all our discussion about Product X in one thread?

A collectibles discussion board is much more than a place to find out when the latest releases are out. At its best, it is a repository for the entire history of collecting a certain product. In ONE well organized thread, you can read about when the first pics were released, what people planned on doing with the new parts, when the toys finally hit stores, what people thought of the paint apps, etc. This is how it's supposed to work.

Now I'd like to point out one thread that has been working like a dream: the For A Few Dollars More box set. All discussion about this product is contained in this one thread. There's a nice big image of the product on the very first post - a classy touch, and very helpful for new users. The title of the thread clearly states what the thread is about (and notice there's no mention of release dates!) And, people have been posting their comments about this product only in this thread.

I sincerely hope the FAFDM thread continues to be the only thread used to discuss this product. But I GUARANTEE you that as soon as someone posts a "When is FAFDM set in stores?" thread, the conversation will be derailed.

I realize when someone has some important information about a product, they want to get it out to people, and that's great. That's what the whole Interwebs are for! But we've all got to realize that posting to an existing thread brings that thread to the top and puts a handy little orange box beside it. This calls just as much attention to the issue as posting an actual new thread does. May I also strongly recommend using the "View New Posts" link in the top banner, just to the right of My Controls. It's the most useful tool on this forum!

I know I've harped on this issue a lot lately. I hope I haven't offended anyone. I know everyone wants to know when the latest releases are out in stores, and you can count me in that group! The user TBT! has suggested, and I wholeheartedly agree, we ought to have one pinned thread where people can post their latest finds. Not in-depth reviews, mind you, just a quick "Hey, I saw DC Wave 6 at Comic Shop X in Chicago!" I've seen this system work great on other boards, and I am confident it can work here.

But the flip side of this is that we need some real thread enforcement. When someone posts a thread that just asks when Product X is released, a mod ought to lock the thread and politely ask that the user check the releases thread, and continue discussion in the established Product X thread. I realize no one wants to be the 'bad guy' and lock threads left and right, but there has to be some kind of guidance on this forum, for the good of us all.

Well, I've written a small novel, so before my fingers fall off, I'll sign off.

Long live MMMV!

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Sigh...

Something on your mind Jad?

Oh lordy! :blink:

*snip*

I know I've harped on this issue a lot lately. I hope I haven't offended anyone. I know everyone wants to know when the latest releases are out in stores, and you can count me in that group! The user TBT! has suggested, and I wholeheartedly agree, we ought to have one pinned thread where people can post their latest finds. Not in-depth reviews, mind you, just a quick "Hey, I saw DC Wave 6 at Comic Shop X in Chicago!" I've seen this system work great on other boards, and I am confident it can work here.

A fair point and it appears another mod has taken note of the threads you mentioned and done something about it. I think that TBT's idea has legs and I'm going to take it forward to the other Mods and see what we can do.

But the flip side of this is that we need some real thread enforcement. When someone posts a thread that just asks when Product X is released, a mod ought to lock the thread and politely ask that the user check the releases thread, and continue discussion in the established Product X thread. I realize no one wants to be the 'bad guy' and lock threads left and right, but there has to be some kind of guidance on this forum, for the good of us all.

Trouble is, we're not omniscient, nor are we omnipresent. We're just working joes giving a little bit of our free (and not so free) time to help out. We don't as Mods go looking for problems. That way lies the overmoderated killjoy type forum. Something we're occassionally accused of being anyway, but I digress...

If we come across a problem we try and fix it. If we don't come across a problem where you or other members believe there is one, then we need to know about it. That can be done by using the 'report a post' button. Don't be afraid to use it. We'd rather investigate a thread and not find a problem, than not know about a problem and in our ignorance leaving it to fester. It also helps you (not just you Jad) avoid unnecessary criticism from other members by reporting a problem privately rather than posting it up for all to see.

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Thank you Rad, I appreciate knowing that my comments are being heard. I think I've spoken my mind on this subject. Even if there was a glitch in the system and each new comment showed up as a new thread, I'd still stick around because of the great and generous members here. I'm glad to be a part of this community!

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I'm relatively new to the whole web forum thing mmmv being the first one I've ever been on but I do think Soylent bean has a point and I appreciate his making his ideas "public". Going to one thread to find out about a plague makes sense plain and simple. Just asking yourself before you, "makes a new topic" if it's really necessary? would help alot. What I'm afraid of is say I want to know about Horrible plague 21 and I check one thread all the time to keep updated mean while someone is posting important info about this plague in another thread. Just sayin' is all.

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