Kudriemitchie Outstation

Agreed.

Start with the TLCCSA who maintain it http://www.tlccsa.asn.au/kudriemitchie.php and then S Kidman and Co http://www.kidman.com.au

Must be repeating the subject.

And still expects others to do his research

OT Actually I think it is one of this forums major issues, you can't keep old threads going, and have to start new ones on the same subjects and rehash the same old info.

How many threads do we need on Solar cells, Sat phones, etc with identical information.

This is the reason I regrettably dropped my membership recently. I am totally sick of so many new threads on subjects that have been up tens or hundreds or times. This format encourages rehash threads.

Perhaps it also explains why there were 2 - 3 pages of new threads per day which has dropped to 2 - 3 days of new threads on the front page. I suspect others are bored with old news.

rant over.

Forum threads are what librarians call emphemera. Reruns are inevitable.

And there's a shifting population on a forum, as old hands pass through the stages of learning, contributing and moving on, to be replaced by new hands.

A forum can quickly go downhill without good moderation. People forget their manners. This is my run down on bad forum etiquette:

1. Don't search first for an answer to your question.
2. Don't provide enough detail for people to answer it.
3. Don't thank people for responding.
4. Don't answer someone's question but argue that it's the wrong question, or based on the wrong assumptions or is otherwise stupid.
5. Make your first post on a forum a request for help not a contribution or introduction.
6. In a difference of opinion play the man not the ball.

Yes agreed Sigmund, one other forum I'm on LCOOL is extremely well run and locks non compliant threads or multiple threads promptly. It meand that one or two threads generally will be very complete on a particular subject, even if the info is years old. I also like the subject categories so I don't have to read all threads unlike this forum. Also this forum locks threads that are 3 months old so even if you do the right thing you often have to start a thread on the same subject for an additional comment, and that starts the whole show all over.

There is some fantastic info on this forum but being a paid site with additional advertising it needs to be at least as good as free sites that don't have advertising IMHO, and it isn't.

Boobook and Sigmund make good points. However on another forum I am involved with that gets a lot more traffic than this one, the perennial questions are still asked week after week after week even though threads there are never archived. I sometimes waste a lot of time doing searches for them, as I do here too. If the same question was asked within the last day or two, threads on the forum I refer to are combined, otherwise good information is just fragmented across many threads and it becomes too much for those researching.

This forum doesn't allow you to ask without a reminder to do a search so there is really no excuse, even for new members. I have even had replies elsewhere like; I know but I am not going to waste my time searching/reading (or similar). These people get no more help from me.

Many member spend a considerable amount of time formulating replies, and to do it again and again it too much.

Subject categories have been suggested many times, but on a small traffic forum like this, it is better as it is. On the other forum I referred to, most look at latest posts which covers all sections, and Admins are always having to move posts to the correct areas as well as add more information to topics. Too many sections is confusing for newcomers. On C&M magazine forum there are lots of sections, and people post anything anywhere so it becomes pointless having them, and no tidying up is done. Information is therefore even more fragmented and lost.

A good search facility here would make the process a lot easier for both newcomers, or for long term member like me to find information for others.

Facebook is drawing away members from regular forums with so many interest groups, but it is more social than an information source as good information posts are soon lost down the line and cannot be readily found again. Those who like the social aspect of the internet seem more at home with Facebook.

We are off topic for Marty's question, but it is all good information for lazy posters to read, as well as perhaps feedback for site owners.

The way around the issue of “rehashed” topics is to introduce new topics, perhaps a different angle on an old topic, or something that is now topical for travel and tourism in Australia that wasn’t yesterday.

I think there is plenty of stuff out there that can be discussed. It might be an experience or insight you had recently.

I can’t imagine a world where we can’t think of something new to talk about…

Ultimately, the forum is a community in which people come and go so it is inevitable that there will be common topics that will appear; some more regularly than others.

There is no obligation for anyone to respond, but it is incumbent on everyone to ensure any comments or responses are respectful of the views of others and courteous when interacting on in the forum – doing this is the best way to attract thoughtful and resourceful content, from both members and non-members alike.

If we were standing around the camp-fire “having a chat” I’m sure that as people come and go the same topic will come up, I don’t see the forum any differently.

And here is my take on topics that constantly reappear – it is encouraging to see that there are “newbies” or not so “newbies” out there coming to ExplorOz to ask questions on topics that most of us are interested in. For sure, a simple search may answer some, perhaps not all questions.

But a question never asked is an opportunity lost for all of us to learn and develop…

Cheers, Baz – The Landy