Wandering topics

Scout

Scout

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There are a number of topics in various forums here that tend to drift off their original topic and tend to contain some quality posts.

An example at the moment is the "What is that device" albeit a poor enough example, Would it be an idea to split these threads so that the now and often interesting topic can have its own thread.

May by use of the report button someone could submit a request to do a split??? I know there are a couple of drawbacks but just for your consideration. :P
 
Scout said:
There are a number of topics in various forums here that tend to drift off their original topic and tend to contain some quality posts.

An example at the moment is the "What is that device" albeit a poor enough example, Would it be an idea to split these threads so that the now and often interesting topic can have its own thread.

May by use of the report button someone could submit a request to do a split??? I know there are a couple of drawbacks but just for your consideration. :P
Click to expand...

Do you know how many threads there would be if they were split every time someone went off-topic? Too many.
 
Not every thrad but there is some good post buried in rubbish.
 
I believe the forums are already set up in a way that would alleviate this problem...IF the members would learn where and how to post their information. A good thing to do is to clean up the titles of these posts as well, especially the ones that are actually part of the thread? You will see a title that says "New Tool Comes Out for EMS" than the only line in the thread says something like "What do you think"...those are just poorly written posts and should be addressed. This is a social site for EMS, if you see a new tool, GREAT, post the information for it though. Like a Link to a web site selling them, or cut and paste info about the tool and write your own critique on it. Add a picture of it...SOMETHING other than "What do you think".
Its these posts that bump other knowledgeable and useful topics out of the recent topics section so that people that just quickly browse through these recent posts dont see anything worth while and leave...but the real intelligent topics have been pushed off the page.

I moderate for 3-4 other firefighter/EMS web sites and know how frustrating it can be to moderate these things though! lol:rolleyes:
 
firemoose0827 said:
I believe the forums are already set up in a way that would alleviate this problem...IF the members would learn where and how to post their information. A good thing to do is to clean up the titles of these posts as well, especially the ones that are actually part of the thread? You will see a title that says "New Tool Comes Out for EMS" than the only line in the thread says something like "What do you think"...those are just poorly written posts and should be addressed. This is a social site for EMS, if you see a new tool, GREAT, post the information for it though. Like a Link to a web site selling them, or cut and paste info about the tool and write your own critique on it. Add a picture of it...SOMETHING other than "What do you think".
Its these posts that bump other knowledgeable and useful topics out of the recent topics section so that people that just quickly browse through these recent posts dont see anything worth while and leave...but the real intelligent topics have been pushed off the page.

I moderate for 3-4 other firefighter/EMS web sites and know how frustrating it can be to moderate these things though! lol:rolleyes:
Click to expand...

The problem with that method is that people ARE asking what others think about something. If you end up posting a link with a critique of the "tool" then it becomes advertising as far as we're concerned and it will get moved to the Advertising forums. If a member posts a link and says what do you think about this, we're most likely to treat it as advertising and remove it...you wouldn't believe the number of spammers that try this method.
 
Well, it does stink when you have a 6 page thread like "What I hate most about EMS" that suddenly has a random post ranting about the new president that takes it for a 6 page spin in politics, and instead of chopping the new six pages of political drool off to a new thread, the whole thing just gets locked so nobody could discuss the original topic.
 
Any discussing will end up leading where the participants want it to. Most threads start out with a question that has been ask a thousand times before. Then as they progress, they turn to information that is very educating to people. Unless a thread turns into a nasty fight, I think they should be allowed to run their course. That is where some of the best information comes out in.
 
Summit said:
Well, it does stink when you have a 6 page thread like "What I hate most about EMS" that suddenly has a random post ranting about the new president that takes it for a 6 page spin in politics, and instead of chopping the new six pages of political drool off to a new thread, the whole thing just gets locked so nobody could discuss the original topic.
Click to expand...

You could just re-post a topic with your new question again...
 
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