Why isn't there more action on ARRL forum?
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| Sep 13th 2012, 00:48 | |
aa6eTotal Topics: 0 Total Posts: 0 |
The ARRL Forums on arrl.org have been up for over a year, but there seems to be relatively little activity. League members have access to senior HQ staffers and many other experts and members of the field organization. So what can or should be done to stimulate more good discussions and Q&A? I realize there is "quantity" and there is "quality". The signal to noise ratio is pretty good here. Certainly it is much lower on some other big ham forum sites! I listed a few issues that occur to me. Vote your preference and/or leave a comment with your suggestions. Thanks! 73 Martin AA6E ARRL Technical Advisor |
| Sep 14th 2012, 18:51 | |
0008006140H80Total Topics: 0 Total Posts: 0 |
I surf the forum weekly and answer when a fellow ham posts a question I have an opinion but often the question is either resolved or the fellow ham has moved on. The forums should be fun like the airways - where seldom is needed net police so a long list of rules is self-defeating. Just have fun - be respectful and enjoy your ARRL forum. My $0.02 I found nothing in your poll to check so I didn't :) |
| Sep 14th 2012, 20:23 | |
N0NBTotal Topics: 0 Total Posts: 0 |
I think this forum software is one of the worst for online forums that I've used. PHPBB or Simple Machines Forum would have been far better choices, IMO, but they likely don't "integrate" as well in between the blue bands on each side of the content. 73, de Nate >> N0NB.us |
| Sep 15th 2012, 01:12 | |
W0BTUTotal Topics: 0 Total Posts: 0 |
I fully agree. This forum software is simply awful. And I have stated almost exactly the same thing here in the past, more than once, in detail. 73, Mike www.w0btu.com |
| Sep 17th 2012, 17:22 | |
WT3OTotal Topics: 0 Total Posts: 0 |
I only found out about this forum by searching for something on the ARRL's main page. Has this forum been promoted in QST at all? 73 de WT3O |
| Sep 22nd 2012, 21:02 | |
W0BTUTotal Topics: 0 Total Posts: 0 |
Since there hasn't been much activity on this thread, I thought I would re-post what I said about this forum software over a year ago (July 28, 2011, http://www.arrl.org/forum/topics/view/48 : - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - "Are there are a lot of features in this forum software that are currently disabled? If not, perhaps you should think about switching to something else (and sooner rather than later). Really. QRZ uses vBulletin, while eHam and AMfone use the free SimpleMachines forum software. Although people may debate which is best, the reality is that both are very widely used on the web and have features that are very much needed here indeed. Although styled text, attachments, avatars, signatures, would be nice, they are not absolutely necessary. But here's just a couple of things that this forum BADLY needs: 1. The New Posts feature is OK for now, because there are so few threads. But when it gets more threads, it's going to be a LOT of work to search for unread posts. I use http://forums.qrz.com/search.php?do=getnew&contenttype=vBForum_Post and http://amfone.net/Amforum/index.php?action=unread several times a day, and think this site should work the same. [Don't you?] 2. Subscriptions to threads. I know that's being looked into. Although some people prefer e-mail notifications, all that is REALLY needed is a page users can visit to see if there are any new posts to them. I use http://forums.qrz.com/subscription.php several times per day, and also think this site should work the same way. Unless those features --along with others-- are added to this forum, I guarantee you that many people are just not going to stick around, let alone take this forum seriously. Both QRZ and AMfone makes it VERY easy to find new posts (eHam less easy, but FAR easier than this forum) and I hope that the ARRL sees that as well. I am not complaining; I want this forum to succeed. Please take this as constructive criticism. Nor am I siding with a particular site; I use QRZ, eHam, and AMfone, and I enjoy them all. Why doesn't the ARRL ask for volunteers to assist? There are competent programmers that would fall all over themselves to join a group to improve the way this forum works." - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Then, in May, AA6E suggested the following (which I fully agree with!) at http://www.arrl.org/forum/topics/view/471 and I replied as follows: - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - "Forum admins please note: It would be very helpful to have a "subscribe thread" default option that would send an email whenever a new message comes in on a thread you started or contributed to. 73 Martin AA6E " [my reply:] "GREAT suggestion, Martin! Every major ham radio forum but this one has this feature. However, I suggested this and other badly needed changes to this forum at http://www.arrl.org/forum/topics/view/48 (on July 28, 2011) as well as other places. But nothing has happened to date. It does not make the ARRL look good, to put it mildly." - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - I have also mentioned that I hate being automatically being logged out of the forum. No other site does this! I am not anti-ARRL. If I was, I wouldn't bothered to post this. I hate to say this, but it seems to me that nobody at the ARRL cares about any of this. 73, Mike www.w0btu.com |
| Sep 24th 2012, 01:14 | |
WB8ZTPTotal Topics: 0 Total Posts: 0 |
First I would like to say I enjoy the forum and have learned a lot by reading some posts. As stated by others, an email sent to any thread that you are involved in would be great. The gray lettering on a gray background (Read Bing definition; dull, dreary, monotonous) isn't the best format. Another common comment I read is exposure, needs more. I hope the Forums survive, some good information in here! 73, Mark Pogany - WB8ZTP |
| Oct 2nd 2012, 00:21 | |
AC9GKTotal Topics: 0 Total Posts: 0 |
I accidentally found the forum while surfing for something else. I will try to remember to check it out more often. Steven Stuckey N9WNN Indiana |
| Oct 18th 2012, 09:15 | |
PE1HZGTotal Topics: 0 Total Posts: 0 |
There are many other forums (eham.com comes to mind). I have not found a compelling reason to prefer this forum above another. |
| Oct 20th 2012, 21:26 | |
aa6eTotal Topics: 0 Total Posts: 0 |
I suggest that one of the best features of this forum compared with others is access to the ARRL staff, especially on technical questions. As a part-time volunteer at ARRL HQ, I am routinely amazed by the staff's willingness to go the extra mile with members who post/email/write in (and even phone in) their questions. There is good advice available on other forums, but there's a lot of noise (dubious info and opinion) that gets posted also. 73 Martin AA6E ARRL Technical Advisor |
| Jan 29th 2013, 00:18 | |
N4AABTotal Topics: 0 Total Posts: 0 |
I find it impossible to locate all of my posts. Only forum I cannot go to my profile and click on a link that shows a list by subject of my posts. Nor select 'send email when a reply is made to a topic I'm following'. But. No spam, no yelling, no bizzare adverts, no blinking text, no multi-color links all over the pages... I prefer it here. |
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