I mean so many new folks coming in asking questions in the same forum where all they have to do is glance down and there is the thread that is talking about what they want to know..Either they're to darn lazy or they just don't SEE IT!!

 

Or maybe when someone signs up require them to read a Top 10 bullet pointed list of board rules before they are allowed to join. Then if they do post a duplicate, they're fair game. Blinking search is a good idea but I can see it becoming distracting after a while.

 

How about showing similar topics before letting someone create a new thread?

Example:
1. New Thread
2. Topic (ex:flooding or mpg)
3. Would show a list of existing threads about their topic
4. They continue with the new thread if desired

Basically incorporate the Search function into the Thread Creation function.

 

You might have something there

 

Not only does an application have to work, but you have to make sure that the users use it correctly. It does not matter how well it SHOULD work, only how well it works in the hands of the end user.

 

Will this work temporarily?

 

Too subtle.

 

This is exactly correct. Right now, everything works as it should, it's just that the users aren't using the forum correctly. What we have to do is find ways to educate/force a few users to use it correctly, without penalizing the rest of the users (whether with more work, stumbling blocks, etc.). A clever idea.

It would be interesting to see how well the search engine would be able to pick up on topics. For example, I entered "What mileage are you guys getting?" into the search engine, and got 184 results, some of which were on topic, some of which were way off. If someone is too lazy to look through the exisiting forum, I doubt they'll look through 184 results.

The other thing is that a search puts a load on a server, and making the forum do a search everytime someone starts a new thread, it would bog the server down tremendously.

So, we'll definitely take it into consideration, but we have to think of how we handle the other issues it brings up (like only doing this for users with less than X amount of posts).

---jps

 

I am currently working on an ELECTRECUTE command in my spare time. My goal is to be able to shock certain thick-headed users thru their keyboard. If I get it working I'll share the source. :D

But seriously, you brought up several flaws with my plan that I did not see. My specialty is mainframe apps, so I am not too familiar with web server issues.

If the problem is bad enough, it might be necessary for the mods to preview new threads from the newbies. I do not think it is to that point yet.

 

Gad, it has been years since I worked on mainframes. I even have experience with punch card printers and readers.

I don't see us using up moderator's time for something like redundant threads. It's a little nagging problem that doesn't create that much disruption compared to other things that the moderators are tasked with taking care of.

And the other thing we have to consider is how much we want to hack the VB software. There are already issues that need to be addressed (like the cookie logon issue where people will sometimes show up as someone else).

---jps