Just a thought for the board

kalynn12

As we seem to have quite a few new users on iPhone/iPads who don't see the announcements at the top. I know that TTGP have sticky "announcements" that always show at the top of the discussion chain that says: if new click here first. I don't know how they got them set up but maybe we should try to get one added and we can put the blog, other housekeeping items, sigs, etc in there. That way no one will have the "i didn't see the announcement" excuse.

blackbird818

kalynn12

MissMheMhe said:

Despite the device one uses to access TTCAL, I don't necessarily think a sticky post is the answer. While I agree it would be so much easier to have a dedicated post stick at the top, not every poster is going to bother to read it. Believe it or not, some ladies come here solely to raise hell. Sure, they may play the sorry card, but ultimately they want to rile us up.

I am in NO WAY pointing fingers here. I am only using my almost 2 years of experience on TTCAL as a guide.  

Now, for genuine posters....why would you just barrel into a support group and not want to get a feel for how things run and introduce yourself to your audience? I guess I just don't get how someone brand new to TTCAL would just come and post randomly about their wonky cycle or about anything before they intro and get a feel for how this place runs. 

When I was new, I lurked for over a month before introing. I was in hell for that month. Sure I had questions about what was going on. But I never thought of asking the group those questions before I got to know the ladies and the board. And the board was entirely different then than it is now. The members of two years ago were even more protective of each other than we are today. There was absolutely no spewing of P&R from anyone. If you tried, you were quickly reprimanded. And it worked. This board has become soft over the past year and a half. And that is okay. Change is okay. With new members come a new way of doing things. But that does not mean everything has to change. And that change does not happen overnight. 

Also, someone correct me if I am wrong, but we lost our sticky posts when the bump was fixing the formatting, correct? I know we had one at one point, but cannot remember when it was gone. 

You make very valid points but I do think it would be useful for newbies who do care and want to be here. I lurked for a couple of weeks before I intro'd and as I only have an iPhone it took me awhile to figure out where the blog everyone was talking about was, I had to finally log onto the site on my work computer (which I don't like to do as they track that stuff).

I have not seen a sticky on this board since I joined but TTGP definitely has them but they say announcement under them so maybe they are set up differently?

kalynn12

I just looked at TTGP again, they have a new to the board one, one on flagging guidelines (we might need this one too), how to change your sig and PSA on name changes.

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uneek1323

I agree with @MissMheMhe.  The link is in people's sigs and if anyone took the common courtesy to lurk for even one week, they would know to check the blog. Those who don't probably wouldn't read it if it was stapled to their head. 

kalynn12

uneek1323 said:

I agree with @MissMheMhe.  The link is in people's sigs and if anyone took the common courtesy to lurk for even one week, they would know to check the blog. Those who don't probably wouldn't read it if it was stapled to their head. 

Hi uneek1323, if you are on the apps or iphone then you can't see people's signatures and would only know about the blog if they are mentioned in a post and then log on to a regular computer to look.

It was just an idea.

uneek1323

kalynn12 said:

I agree with @MissMheMhe.  The link is in people's sigs and if anyone took the common courtesy to lurk for even one week, they would know to check the blog. Those who don't probably wouldn't read it if it was stapled to their head. 

Hi uneek1323, if you are on the apps or iphone then you can't see people's signatures and would only know about the blog if they are mentioned in a post and then log on to a regular computer to look. It was just an idea.

I can see sigs on mobile. I get that it was just an idea you were throwing out. I'm just giving my opinion.

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blackbird818

I can't see sigs mobile either.

gingerkid9989

meladoriestar said:

uneek1323 said:

kalynn12 said:

uneek1323 said:

I agree with @MissMheMhe.  The link is in people's sigs and if anyone took the common courtesy to lurk for even one week, they would know to check the blog. Those who don't probably wouldn't read it if it was stapled to their head. 

Hi uneek1323, if you are on the apps or iphone then you can't see people's signatures and would only know about the blog if they are mentioned in a post and then log on to a regular computer to look.

It was just an idea.

I can see sigs on mobile. I get that it was just an idea you were throwing out. I'm just giving my opinion.

Interesting. I can't see sigs mobile either. Did you set it up to allow sigs somehow?


I can't either. Please do let us know if there is a setting. I would love to turn it on.

uneek1323

It's in signature settings.

lms1981

gingerkid9989 said:

meladoriestar said:

uneek1323 said:

kalynn12 said:

uneek1323 said:

I agree with @MissMheMhe.  The link is in people's sigs and if anyone took the common courtesy to lurk for even one week, they would know to check the blog. Those who don't probably wouldn't read it if it was stapled to their head. 

Hi uneek1323, if you are on the apps or iphone then you can't see people's signatures and would only know about the blog if they are mentioned in a post and then log on to a regular computer to look.

It was just an idea.

I can see sigs on mobile. I get that it was just an idea you were throwing out. I'm just giving my opinion.

Interesting. I can't see sigs mobile either. Did you set it up to allow sigs somehow?

I can't either. Please do let us know if there is a setting. I would love to turn it on.

Ditto. I also couldn't find the blog everyone was taking about (found it finally by googling...) I don't ever access these message boards by a regular computer and I'm guessing I'm not the only one.

blackbird818

uneek1323 said:

It's in signature settings.

I had found that before. But I don't have it checked to hide sigs, and I still can't see them.
????

avioletsky

ahenson818 said:

uneek1323 said:

It's in signature settings.

I had found that before. But I don't have it checked to hide sigs, and I still can't see them.
????


I've had it checked for at least a month and never see sigs on mobile. So annoying.

avioletsky

Also I wish the heading on the regular web version was bigger. It didn't stand out to me that an announcement was there. I would love a sticky post at the top that was informative and friendly with a side of dont cross us.

uneek1323

bbg676 said:

I use my phone daily to log on and I also cannot see signatures (except the one time my phone glitched as I opened a post).  I didn't realize there was a setting I could use to change it, and I will look into it.

But I think the bigger issue is that if someone is new to the entire community, board, and site, and accesses it solely from their phone, they will most likely not even realize or understand there is said features.  They arrive here from google, set up a quick account, and can't see signatures from their phone.

I know I took an unannounced break the past month or so, but I've been around here for almost a year.  What I've noticed is the same thing gets offered up (to make a sticky for new members) repeatedly, and we always give the same reasons as to why it isn't a great idea. 

In this instance, I honestly don't see the harm in creating a single post and having a mod (any mod) make it sticky for us.  Writing up a *read me first* post is pretty short and simple and could hopefully cut down on the few people who, honest to goodness, don't realize their post is in bad taste until it's too late.

I know my opinion is unpopular among long-term members and I understand that there is a want to keep the board as similar (and amazing) and it was when we first 'got here'.  Our grads set up an amazing group for us and it can be hard to make a change, even a small one, that alters the group setting we have here.  It is easy to get stuck in the 'but they probably won't read it anyway'/'what is the point' mindset, especially if it is all we've ever heard before.  I just think that this is a feature that would benefit the community and it wouldn't hurt to have an actual discussion on it. 

::shrugs::

This isn't an actual discussion?

SandSunBliss

ahenson818 said:

uneek1323 said:

It's in signature settings.

I had found that before. But I don't have it checked to hide sigs, and I still can't see them.
????

I also have it unchecked and can't see siggys on mobile. It's the pits. I do think making the heading a little larger and having a sticky would help. Do I think it would catch everyone, no. But I do think it would help some people who are genuinely trying to use the board appropriately. ETA: fat fingers

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kalynn12

MrsDeo said:

I asked Petra to see if she could set up a sticky post for us about a week or two ago, and she said she's working on it.

That's awesome to hear, I truly do think it would be of value to new board members.

gscoville

In our school district right now we're in the beginning stages of changing how we do things to hopefully benefit more students and ensure that more of them get what they need from us. Inevitably there are some teachers who grumble about how there will always be such and such students who will buck the system regardless and who the changes won't help. We keep having to steer them back to the point that if it helps even one, we have to try, and it will certainly help more than one. I think putting up sticky posts is along the same vein. Will everyone read them? No, we know we won't ever catch everyone no matter what, and the trolls will just do what they're going to do anyways. But if even a few legitimately well-intentioned newbs read them and get something out of them, they're well worth putting up.

KMW08

I think part of the Q&A misconception comes partially from the mc/pg loss board. I haven't lurked there in ages, but when I came to TB that's the board I briefly started on. mc/pg loss at that time was definitely not a "community" and just had a lot of random (like myself) newbies looking for answers or validity in our feelings. To which a lot of ttcal'ers responded to the questions there.

I will say that I probably had some dumb questions, I'm sure I still have dumb questions but I had participated on forums before, so I knew to lurk a bit to try and get the feel of the board.

@MrsDeo you're on top of it!

@gscoville that's a valid point, ones better than none.

@wickedsugar you're definitely right, there's always going to be special snowflakes that are beyond helping.

ashtonblair123

I think it's a good plan, and it definitely couldn't hurt.I only thought to lurk because I've been criticized on another board rather harshly. People who are just looking for a place to ask a question at first glance would think this was the correct place to post. A board that says trying to conceive after a loss doesn't scream support group in the title, where most people would think that the miscarriage/pregnancy loss board does and I'm sure most people consider this to be the appropriate place to say hey I have this this and this happening do you think I could be KU since I don't understand my cycle since my loss. Before reading the blog and seeing someone getting their a$$ handed to them for a similar post, I would have thought that.

[Deleted User]

meladoriestar said:

Honestly, when I first came to thebump last winter, I didn't realize that these boards were set up as a support group. Maybe it was a stupid mistake, but I didn't realize it was a consistent group of women supporting each other; I was under the impression that it was simply a forum for asking and answering questions. After some stupid posts, and some honest answers, I realized my mistake, backed off and lurked, and then came back. I know that many of the inappropriate posts are from women who have similar misconceptions as I had. Of course there are the trolls that just want to start drama, but there are also women who are honestly struggling and dont realize the nature of this forum. (Maybe we should have realized, but until coming here, I had never been part of any internet forum). For that reason, I would be in favor of a sticky post.

This is why I usually give people the benefit of the doubt when they post. I think a lot of people get linked here from Google. That's what happened to me when I was having my first loss. I was Googling symptoms or whatever and ended up on The Bump as well as a number of other TTC-related forums. I remember feeling so confused, lost, and scared, and I try to remember that these other women are probably also furiously searching for answers or positive outcomes when they end up here. They may not all be familiar with how forums work, especially this one. I don't know if sticky posts would make a huge difference because more than likely when they Google they're linked to particular threads (which is why old ones get bumped) and may not see the main page before linking, but they might help.