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Parting Shot
By that I mean I expect I won't have any more complaints about the TPM software change. Not that I don't miss the old functionality, but that newcomers are feeling the need for exactly those things we used to have. To wit:
1) Full access to all posts and comments of any member,
2) Preview/Edit, of course,
3) Negative as well as positive recommendations,
4) Internal messaging,
5) Private rooms.
I am not saying that TPM should not have updated its software, or even that these and other features are necessary. I am, however, saying that it would be a nice gesture for Andrew and Josh to acknowledge the inherent value of these features, and to acknowledge that we were not being whiny by saying we missed them.
Can we note the natural genesis of cliques and friend circles? Can we agree there is nothing wrong with that? If one feels welcome one will come back, and that should be a goal, right? If there is a worry about cliques scaring away newbies, an answer would be more ways to continue a conversation. Then the networks won't hog live threads to talk to each other.
So here we are. We all seem to want some way to rate posts up and down, too. This would improve quality. We all seem to want ways to follow conversations and interesting threads. This would encourage readers to return repeatedly. How about a radical idea---posts that have to achieve a certain number of recommendations to get posted in the first place? Another radical idea---more than one topic! (Like more than the primary mudmatch.)
All right, newbies---it's your turn. Have fun, and don't leave a mess.
Comments (6)
Re Tom's feature #3: could we have a way to recommend good comments below a bad post? Good responses to bad posts are one of the things I most value, and usually find here.
May 2, 2008 4:12 PM | Reply | Permalink
Ah now, that is quite an interesting comment!
To me it's a bit of evidence that the conscious decision of chosing a software program because it promoted a chance for more people to post blogs and get attention with their blogs, over a software program which did not inspire blogging but rather commenting and discussion, was a big mistake if one was looking for higher signal-to-noise ratio and less pandering to largest audience.
One workaround, if one wanted to backtrack a bit and return some balance between the egotistical blogging thing and a bit more of the discuss thing is:
A GLOBAL TRACKER of some kind, a list of all posts with comments on the site, with either the number of comments noted OR (a less fruitful, as it promotes lowest common denominator somewhat) to have them jump to the top of the list with each new comment.
This allows those who come for thoughtful discussions to seek them out from a simple list, judging by title and activity.
May 2, 2008 4:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
P.S. Tom's #1 suggestion is also a way to help with this problem, and I personally really really have always used this function above all others on forums, as I have time and the drive to find posters that stimulate my thought, HOWEVER, I must admit it also can lead to insular groups and the clique problems. Global tracking is something that helps keep things fresh and open to newbies.
That said, there is a lot that could be accompliahsed just by fixing the damn Reader Blogs page so they don't post the full text on the Reader Blog page but only a few lines of introtext and fit more blogs on it! Users could then can scan a much larger selection on the page much more easily and see how many comments each post has and decide from there what's worth jumping into. We know it's not impossible because the contributor blogs have introtext and a "read more" link at the bottom, (only god knows why a programmer does one thing for one section and another for the other section--just to complicate things and cause database breakdown later so they can make more money fixing it?)
May 2, 2008 4:54 PM | Reply | Permalink
Hey Tom, somewhat off-thread meta,
Do you realize you have been well-trained to churn? With a less start-your-own-blog-oriented system, this post of yours would have been more useful within Genghis' thread, where Josh and Andrew said things about the new system that might be helpful to the rest of the community.
Yes, of course you do, you were smart enough to know that with this system, that would be yesterday's news, it would soon scroll away, and that starting a new thread to keep the topic going would be a wise idea.
Pre-emptive "excuse me" to those who don't like meta meta: what does this system do to understanding of actual important news? Certainly it throws away the benefits of the spiderweb communication effects of the internet. Instead, everyone just keeps restating their own opinion and throwing away what was said yesterday. The birthing of blogging in itself, is in a way, is responsible for part of this. Bloggers gained notoreity and websites with audiences by responding to other bloggers not as a comment on the original blog, but by starting a new blog entry on their own site, with a link back to the rival blogger's post. From the start, it was all about grabbing the microphone, getting the mouse clicks where you wanted them at the expense of more direct communication.
You noted elsewhere about the relationship of laissez-faire forums to conservative theory. I would also throw out that there in this way of workign there is a relationship here to unitary my-way-or-the highway International Relations, talking past one another, or communicating not at a table but via pronouncements.
Another note: it struck me yesterday that despite the lauded unifying nature of the new design, the irony is that the owner of this site is not able to easily communicate to his whole audience, as I see no evidence that many users over at Election Central or on Reader Blogs even saw, much less read Josh's April 22 post on "Acceptable Commenting."
Will bow out now, nuff said.
May 2, 2008 6:07 PM | Reply | Permalink
I did in fact first intend to comment on Genghis' post, but it wa up to almost 300 comments, and due to expire soon.
I pulled the trigger too soon, though, and should have waited until suppertime or later this evening. I think I'll repost this. It's just so funny to read repeated "new" ideas from new readers that replicate what used to exist. Like engineering designs too good to miss, some stuff seems natural given the intent to have a community.
May 2, 2008 6:20 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yeah.
Repost. That's an excellent idea.
I'll plug it in "popular" threads. Why TH not/
;P
May 2, 2008 9:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
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