Posted by Dinah on June 16, 2005, at 4:21:40
In reply to Re: which small board, posted by Dr. Bob on June 15, 2005, at 23:54:30
> > if the concern was that posters wouldn't know *which* small board to join, their could be a portal from the main boards to the small boards which could only be entered by altering your registration to mark that you wish to participate in small boards (which would expire if you didn't join a small board in a reasonable length of time). Once within the portal, those who wish to be part of the small boards could read all the small boards. Or whatever.
>
> Part of the idea was to limit posters to one small board at a time, right? I know, more exclusion, but that way they wouldn't be spread as thin...
>
I wasn't suggesting they could join more than one small board. You hadn't appeared too open to the idea that reading posts on small boards be limited to only those who could post on them, so I was trying for the next best thing. Since your stated objections to limiting the reading to those who could join in was based on the idea that people would not be able to decide which small group to join.> So if the idea is to require people to join in order to read, then:
>
> 1. Their decision to join can't be based on the discussion. Could it be based on the activity level and a list of the members? What about making information like that available to everyone?I wouldn't know if that would be the sort of information that people would like to have. You would have to ask the people who would like to join one.
>
> 2. If they do join, then they can read the discussion. Say they change their mind. How long should they need to wait before being allowed to switch? Since if they can switch right away, that's like being on both boards at the same time.
>
I don't know. What do you think is fair?
> 3. Or, say they join, but don't post. Could they keep their place? For how long?I would think that would lead to a lot of small dead boards, if they're allowed to keep their places. What sort of length are you thinking about? Could people specify a vacation in advance? Would one or two posts be enough to keep their spot open in a work crunch?
>
> > My concern has always been mainly for those who run across small boards through google search, or happen across them accidentally while going around Babble, and get smacked across the face with a "you are not authorized to post to this board, which is full" when they try to join in.
>
> *That* has been your main concern? What if I just add, in the "post a follow-up" area, a reminder that it's a restricted board and that non-members will get an error if they click?
>
> BobSigh. Sometimes asynchronous communication *isn't* easier. Sometimes it's easier with instant clarification. And hand gestures.
Do you remember how some people decided to post on Babble? Or on Social, if they came here for a medication search? Some people decided to come here based on conversations they found amusing or charming. And when they tried to join in, they were welcomed. That's a gracious, warm, charming, welcoming community.
If they came upon the same conversation on a restricted entry group, it would be equivilant to again trying to join in, but not being welcomed. Afterwards they might decide that this is not a particularly gracious, warm, charming or welcoming community.
So Karen Kay, for example, apparently brought many people to Babble with her delightful ways. People who later stayed and continued to post. Had Karen Kay been so delightful behind a glass door where others could see, but not join in, would the result had been the same? I think it wouldn't have been. Had Karen Kay been so delightful behind a closed door, her posts would have had no impact on new posters, because no one could have run across them.
And contrary to your theory, I don't think that people who were charmed by that conversation, but unable to join in, would be as thrilled being told that they couldn't be part of that group, but they could be a part of this other group instead, as you apparently think.
Plus, my guess is that the set of potential posters who don't post because their posts are googleable and readible by friends and family who might notice that they are posting on the site as they sit in their offices or family rooms is greater than the set of people who don't post because they find Social larger than they would wish.
How many people post on Social at any given time, anyway? Your proposed small groups were limited to 25, right? How many different posters are there on Social in this and the last archive? 50? 100? 200? Any benefits size wise to the new groups might depend more on stability and continued posting (longer than the typical poster now posts on Babble) than on sheer numbers. Posting stability on Babble has historically been low. People find they are spending too much time here. Or they get better. Or they get angry. People feel that if they don't keep up with the posts for a while, they don't know anyone when they come back. The latter could be something curable by small groups, offset by the fact that if many people do that, the group won't be active.
poster:Dinah
thread:441543
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/admin/20050614/msgs/513570.html