Time to amend the Off-Topic status?

[Bugs ****ing Bunny]

I think it was about 4 or possibly 5 years ago when I predicted that affording users of the Off-Topic the status of second-class citizens would cause a decline. By this, I'm referring to a number of issues- Markos's open ambivalence to the forum, the loss of post counts from it, and the blanket refusal to contemplate creating new forums that might not be considered to be "On Topic" (a history forum springs to mind, such as the rather excellent one run at CFC).

Back then, in 24 hours the number of Off-Topic threads receiving posts was consistently stretching over 3 pages (even in the summer, seasonal-theory victims), and was more often than not around 4-5 pages. Now it's averaging about 1.5 pages.

Poly is also slipping behind CFC in terms of activity (Hello Locutus! You're wrong, incidentally. I know you're clinging to a reed of tenuous hope, but when measured beyond reasonable doubt, you're wrong).

Is it just me, or does anyone else see a connection? Denigrate a core pool of users who sustain the site between the launches of new titles, and you create a long-term weakness. It's not rocket science, is it?

So is it time to start reversing those policies, or are we dealing with people too intransigent to consider it? I'm expecting some sort of flippant dismissal here, but I might just be proved wrong.

[Dis]

so what are you proposing? Post count? I think it takes more than that.

First of all, the site in general needs to be first rate. And easily accessible and able to find downloads as easy as any other site. If the on topics are generating interest, then off topic will stay strong.

Off topic seems to be relying on older posters. As I mentioned when seeing most people start posting in poly because of civ2. Civ 2 is ancient history. Sorry to say, but it is. We need fresh blood. I think we should be friendlier to newbies and not call them DL's. I'm serious. *diss runs from the inevitable abuse he's about to recieve*

[Zoid]

*Zoid slaps Dis around a bit with a large trout

[Dauphin]

This thread should be moved to the OT.

[Zoid]

A serious discussion in the OT?? Heaven forbid!

[Provost Harrison]

Free life poly memberships for all regular OT members! And post counts would be nice, if just for the statistical knowledge. I did am approximate calculation on what my real post count would be, and I'd have been a Sid by now

[PLATO]

I don't know what the answer is...but something needs to be done.

[LordShiva]

Originally posted by Dis
I think we should be friendlier to newbies and not call them DL's.

[Dis]

of course, I wouldn't mind having post count back.

But really. They just need to ease up on the moderation and allow people to just have some fun. And the off topic would be A-OK.

[MarkG]

Re: Time to amend the Off-Topic status?

Originally posted by Lazarus and the Gimp
I think it was about 4 or possibly 5 years ago when I predicted that affording users of the Off-Topic the status of second-class citizens would cause a decline.

and it only took 4-5 years for you to be right

By this, I'm referring to a number of issues- Markos's open ambivalence to the forum

huh? you could argue about Dan (he never posts in the OT ) but me? these days I post more in the OT than in all the other (except A/C) forums together!

the blanket refusal to contemplate creating new forums that might not be considered to be "On Topic" (a history forum springs to mind, such as the rather excellent one run at CFC)

why not a politics forum? and a joke one? and what about a babes sub-forum? please can we have a babes sub-forum? where would you draw the line?

[Will9]

Maybe for every 3 posts on the OT forum could count for 1 post on all other forums.

[Robert]

I'm not a huge off-topic visitor (used to be one during the big christianity/atheists debates years ago though 8)) but I think Lazarus is right.

A community can only live if it has a place where it can talk about stuff that's not directly on the topic of the site. Postcounts are childish but it works. It keeps people active. I'd say that in the OT all posts with more then 50 characters get a postcount. Mods can see if people are spamming (posting BS posts to get over the 50 oftenly)

Post count is childish, but in the end humans are childish. People like it to have a position somewhere. To be one of the veteran members. If you give people a huge postcount you bind them to the site. You give them a reason to return, because at that site they are someone. Maybe that's one of the reasons that I'm still here and not on CFC. Here I'm a veteran user, at CFC I'm just another n00b .

And regarding the sub-off-topic forums, I think Lazarus is right as well. If you start politics, religion, history subforums (to name a few) people will start using it. If they use it, they're bound to the site more.

That's an easy marketing trick, use something that has nothing to do with the product to attrackt people to the product and keep people interested in the product.

And of course there's always the question where to draw the line. But the fact that a line is vague is not a good reason to not draw a line at all. (or to draw the line very close). The line should be drawn where you draw it, and I think with Lazarus that the position where you (Markos, Dan) drawed the line is not the best position in the interest of Apolyton.

[Bugs ****ing Bunny]

Re: Re: Time to amend the Off-Topic status?

Originally posted by MarkG
and it only took 4-5 years for you to be right

Yep- there's the flippant dismissal. Damn, I'm good.

why not a politics forum? and a joke one? and what about a babes sub-forum? please can we have a babes sub-forum? where would you draw the line?

Why even ask? You're immediately digging in on the position you fixed years back.

Rather than simply dismissing these suggestions out of hidebound intransigence, why not poll some opinions?

[MMC]

On a serious note, how about a category dedicated to home-grown stuff. Not mods, but full games and designs for such.

[daydream]You never know... some firaxians may happen to look in and make a game based on the most popular suggestions. [/daydream]

But I don't recall CFC having a section like this, and I believe it would make a decent addition to the site. Also a simple thing like updating the site to the latest version of the forum software could have an impact.

[RGBVideo]

how about a category dedicated to home-grown stuff. Not mods, but full games and designs for such.

Forum index --> Other Games --> Other Games

you're welcome