This Forum needs Restructuring - Needs Sections

Posts: 2252 · Posted: Thu Mar 10, 2005 1:37 pm Post subject:

hotrod wrote:

dconnor wrote:

The problem is hotrod;
I would love to have a perfectly organized site, but, much like this thread, no one would post in the correct category - and I would spend all of my time moving threads around.

I'm sure there would always be people who post in the wrong category, but it doesn't take long to move a couple of posts. But don't look at the glass half empty, it's half full. Think of all the people who would benefit from organization. Even yourself. Pretty soon some members will come up with something that really cool and you can sticky it in a specific section.

Most importantly, if people can quickly search some of forum thread within a specific topic, they are less likely to post repetitive and easily answerable questions. Which I'm sure would save you and the other mods loads and loads of time.

I do not disagree with you, with the exception of "moving a couple of post around..." Just the fact that you started this in the wrong forum goes to show the extent of the problem.

We have gone there to some degree. The LNP and Fax, Tivo, Alarm forums are new and doing well. What makes them successful is content. There was enough specific discussion going on in the Vonage forum regarding these issues that warranted them getting their own forum. I really do not want to have any dead forums, i.e., French Canada.

I think what might help is a better search tool, such as a Google solution, rather than the non intelligent search that is provided in the forum software.

Posts: 44 · Full Forum Member Joined: Jan 21, 2005 Posts: 44

dconnor wrote:

I do not disagree with you, with the exception of "moving a couple of post around..." Just the fact that you started this in the wrong forum goes to show the extent of the problem.

We have gone there to some degree. The LNP and Fax, Tivo, Alarm forums are new and doing well. What makes them successful is content. There was enough specific discussion going on in the Vonage forum regarding these issues that warranted them getting their own forum. I really do not want to have any dead forums, i.e., French Canada.

I think what might help is a better search tool, such as a Google solution, rather than the non intelligent search that is provided in the forum software.

Yes I realize that I started that in the wrong forum, now, Embarassed

but that's because I never look at the first page of the forums, because of the way they are structured
Vonage-VOIP
Vonage-Canada
Vonage-French
Vonage-UK

Without scrolling down, I never see the other sections and so I (maybe others too) I assumed that all of my Vonage-US questions go in the Voip forum. And I figured most people go there.

I see something like this. The outline at the left doesn't show the dependencies quite right.

Vonage Voip
-Router Issues
-Fax Tivo Alarms
-Number Transfer
-Dashboard/Account
-VoiceMail/Features
- ETC.
Vonage Voip International
-Canada
-UK
-French
-All others
All to Do with The Vonage Forum Boards
-Site Suggestions
-Site problems

I'm just trying to help. I think some reorganization would be really beneficial to everyone. Especially new comers who may technically challenged and may be having phone problems, so they are anxious, upset and need to find answers and get help fast.

I've been trying to find some forums that I like to give examples ....two that come to mind are
http://club.cdfreaks.com/
I like their forum categories and then subforums within some of the more broad categories.
Same with
http://castlecops.com/forums.html They don't have sub-forums but they do have their forums grouped by content. Here is seems more like a list.

I realize you started this whole forum and many congrats and thanks are due, I'm just trying to say due to it's increase in size and popularity, some restructuring may be needed.

And a new search engine would also help.

Posts: 2252 · Posted: Thu Mar 10, 2005 2:56 pm Post subject:

ah, hmmm. ok. hmmm, me thinking. (two hours later) hmmm.

Where is reebok with an opinion when you need him? He is like a cop, here all day, but not when you need him....

good idea, let me think it through

Posts: 44 · Full Forum Member Joined: Jan 21, 2005 Posts: 44

dconnor wrote:

ah, hmmm. ok. hmmm, me thinking. (two hours later) hmmm.

Where is reebok with an opinion when you need him? He is like a cop, here all day, but not when you need him....

good idea, let me think it through

Along with reebok, where is everybody else, 142 views and only a handfull of votes and posts. It's certainly an interesting topic, but nobody's postin or votin'

Posts: 2252 · Posted: Thu Mar 10, 2005 4:26 pm Post subject:

hotrod wrote:

Along with reebok, where is everybody else, 142 views and only a handfull of votes and posts. It's certainly an interesting topic, but nobody's postin or votin'

Statistically, thats about right. You must be a member to post/vote.

Posts: 3198 · Posted: Fri Mar 11, 2005 11:58 am Post subject:

haha, ouch, no love. I'm a fireman, not a cop ;)
do I want this? no not really. I like sitting with one browser open in the general forum hitting refresh all day. lnp and data subforums are nice, because I can ignore them. but if it were split into many categories, I would have to have multiple windows open. The users from foreign countries forum is a great idea, for obvious reasons.
so, I'm being selfish perhaps because no I don't want to have multiple windows open, but as long as the subforums are ones I don't want to track anyway, then that's great. selfish, but still my opinion. and I think dan is right on, people post in the wrong place constantly, at every forum I visit or have visited. when there's only one person here to move them and do everything else related to the site, it can be tedious, and a pain I'm sure.

Posts: 2252 · Posted: Fri Mar 11, 2005 11:25 pm Post subject:

reebok wrote:

I like sitting with one browser open in the general forum hitting refresh all day...

I hear Amazon is having a sale on 21" monitors. Wink

I can make a new "category" that visually moves the International (.ca & .co.uk), to their own group, that is not a problem, in fact I will do that.

A router only forum is hard, because that is really the core of the content/questions... having a router only forum will cause lots of confusion in the Vonage forum.

I do feel that a feature request/discussion forum is warranted.

Rants Forum? - As long as this site proudly displays the Vonage logo, we will not have a rants only forum. I have said it many times, we are here for support and help - on a positive front. Members that would like to rant can do it someplace else. Please respect that.

So, can we meet halfway?

Posts: 44 · Full Forum Member Joined: Jan 21, 2005 Posts: 44

Yeah thanks. Part of my problem was that when I joined originally I just saw the First three sections, Vonage, Vonage Canada, Vonage French,.....
so I bookmarked the first section and I only when there. Now I go to the main page and hit "view posts since last visit" and that helps,

I was just thinking on the way home from work one night how this forum could be restructured to help others find information quicker and easier.

I don't want a rant's forum, I was just trying to categorize all of the threads I was reading. I agree a rant's section would be conter-productive.

Thanks