dare i voice an idea for a new forum?

Something Else · Post by **Something Else** » Tue Apr 26, 2005 8:25 pm

notevenpretty wrote:Lots of the people who hang out on Life After are twenty somethings, and lots of the discussion about things which would be discussed on a twenty something board go on over there at the moment. If that makes sense

That's all well and good, but isn't it rather exclusionary of those of us who are 20-somethings who aren't ready for "Life After"? Honestly, I've never even looked much at the forum, because it doesn't sound like it applies to me, but 20-something issues certainly do.

caterpillargirl · Post by **caterpillargirl** » Tue Apr 26, 2005 9:22 pm

i must say i'm liking this idea much more than the other recently proposed boards, but that's purely for selfish reasons, i feel this could be a board where i'd actually belong.

i'm normally against the idea of further subdivisions.

mama · Post by **mama** » Tue Apr 26, 2005 10:33 pm

I've been here a loooooong time, in fact so long ago, that there were only two forums and reading the posts was a nightmare.

I just looked and as of today, we have 18 forums (not including the admin/tech or the ones accessible by mods or admins only), 8 administrators (and I'm not including ben or deb here) and 23 moderators. Bus averages over a thousand posts per day as it is and an average of 60 topics per day.

Now, if we added forums for each topic that was discussed (in this post or others), we'd be adding 4 new forums, each of those forums would have to have a least 2 mods (3 if they're very active) and we'd probably have to add at least two new admins.

This place is daunting enough for new users. Are we sure that we want to make it more complicated?

Carolyn

swanfaerie · Post by **swanfaerie** » Tue Apr 26, 2005 11:30 pm

dreams wrote:I'm a twenty something and do often find myself drawn to the arc as a lurker (too young to post but more in depth conversations/points of veiw etc), but only when i can cope with it.
(snip)
Perhaps an option would be to lower the 'age limit' of the arc to 25?

dreams

as an "arc'er", i'd like to say that we don't card people who post there. i've gotten some of the best advice (in my place) from teens who have shown me wisdom beyond their years.

so altho i only speak for me, i don't see a reason for you to not post in arc just cuz you're not yet 30.

swannie

Something Else · Post by **Something Else** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 6:00 am

Mama wrote:I've been here a loooooong time, in fact so long ago, that there were only two forums and reading the posts was a nightmare.

I just looked and as of today, we have 18 forums (not including the admin/tech or the ones accessible by mods or admins only), 8 administrators (and I'm not including ben or deb here) and 23 moderators. Bus averages over a thousand posts per day as it is and an average of 60 topics per day.

Now, if we added forums for each topic that was discussed (in this post or others), we'd be adding 4 new forums, each of those forums would have to have a least 2 mods (3 if they're very active) and we'd probably have to add at least two new admins.

This place is daunting enough for new users. Are we sure that we want to make it more complicated?

I was also here when there were only two forums, and while I'm nostalgic for that at times, I think the board as evolved to fit evolving needs. As it is, there are a lot of posts on the main forum to keep up with. Imagine if all the posts from the other forums were suddenly dumped in there. Posts would be buried on a second or third page by the end of the day, preventing as many replies. Compartmentalization is what keeps such a large board manageable.

Yes, a new board would require more mods, and possibly more admins (I'm not as sure about that, but I'm not an admin either). And obviously we can't have a board for absolutely everything. Even as it is, it is sometimes difficult to keep tabs on the boards I'm interested. But I just don't know how much adding an additional, self-explanitory board (20-something seems to me a lot more clear by its title than "Random Weirdness", for example) would complicate the board too much for new users.

I have to say I have mixed feelings about a new board for 20-somethings. While I am a 20-something, and can see value in having a forum for this age-group, I question where the line is between having an appropriate diversity of forums and over-compartmentalization and fragmentization. While I believe prudence should be used in forming new forums, I don't think the current number of forums should prevent a new one from forming if it is determined to be worthwhile.

And now I'm sure that my informative words have cast no doubt on wise readers as the appropriate course of action here

Ray

pretty · Post by **pretty** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 10:37 am

JadedNaive wrote:
notevenpretty wrote:Lots of the people who hang out on Life After are twenty somethings, and lots of the discussion about things which would be discussed on a twenty something board go on over there at the moment. If that makes sense
That's all well and good, but isn't it rather exclusionary of those of us who are 20-somethings who aren't ready for "Life After"? Honestly, I've never even looked much at the forum, because it doesn't sound like it applies to me, but 20-something issues certainly do.

I agree completely. I was just explaining (very badly) why people were talking about Life After in relation to a twenty something board.

mallie · Post by **mallie** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 11:11 am

I must admit, I really like the idea of a 20-somethings board. I feel a bit hypocritical saying that when in the post on a gender-division I didn't agree with that kind of division, and that may be because this is something that appeals to me personally and the other didn't.

There are a lot of people that would fit a board like that. Main does seem to be primarily teenagers, and arc has a bit of a different focus age wise, that somewhere in the middle could be good.

I know what people are saying about life after and arc being used. I've posted on arc before. I follow the Felo thread, and will reply to posts if I have anything to add, but I don't think I've ever made my own post there other than posting my stuff on felo. As it is, I am very young/immature compared to people there, and this can make me hesitant to post there, despite knowing I am quite welcome to.

Life after is a board I rarely go on. I really don't feel like I fit in over there. I've never delved into it much, only responded once or twice there. I might be reading the blurb about what it is for too literally, and although SI is not much of an issue to me now, I honestly can't say I've made the committment to stopping it.

I rarely post my own topics on main, although I do reply there. Mostly though, I stick around place, and coping. I love place, and have gotten to know some wonderful people in more depth than I would otherwise. It can be hard to get into a more general discussion though, as it isn't really fair to go off too tangentially in other peoples places when something comes up.

Having a place where some of us mid-range aged folk could post would appeal to me, as main moves pretty fast sometimes that such topics would be hard to have stick around long enough to really get anywhere with. I think sometimes its also difficult with main because so much of it does seem so desperate and at crisis point, or with general requests for hugs or sitting with people that it doesn't feel like the place for (hopefully) long detailed discussion. This is just my perception though, and is not intended as criticism.

Of all the alternatives people have suggested, the stuff about Arc makes most sense to me. Arc is pretty laid back, and not too busy. Encouraging more of us 20-somethings to head over there could be a good way to go.

mama · Post by **mama** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 1:45 pm

Let me pose a situation here and see if anyone can come up with a valid counter argument.

Okay, say we do form a *20 something * forum* (this is hypothetical ONLY). Then Dina comes along and says, "well, you made that forum for them, why can't I have the forums I requested?". After that, Space_Man comes along and wants to know why, since we have made the other fourm, he can't have what he originally requested~`a relationship forum.

OH, but I'm not through yet

. We've got four new forums now, BUT, along comes the younger teens, who say that they relate in a different fashion than the older teens and want a forum of their own. THEN, you have someone who comes along and says that we need a forum that deals with sexual abuse, a forum that is for parents only and another one for friends (and we do react/respond differently). And the list goes on.

Where do you stop?

Carolyn

mallie · Post by **mallie** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 2:28 pm

Well you can't base making a new forum on 'it was done before so this must be okay'. It needs to be looked at individually, on the merits of each suggestion (i.e., exactly how it is done now).

That being said, although I like this idea of this, I don't think my reasons for wanting it, or support for the idea are sufficient to say it should happen. I can see reasons for and against, and for the other recent suggestions you mention, but honestly, I am sure I feel more favourable to this one because it is something that appeals to me personally, whereas gender and relationship based forums don't.

What I do think that this thread, and Dina's and Spaceman's indicate is that there are needs that people feel aren't being filled as well as they could be. Maybe new forums would help this, maybe adaptations to existing ones, or just gathering new ideas (e.g., like dreams suggestion that the age limit on arc be lowered).

In this instance, what other solutions could be suggested to satisfy the people who feel a 20-something board is warranted ?

Sioneld · Post by **Sioneld** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 3:16 pm

I see the arguments for and against this. The arguments against are more in relation to "how to we continue to manage such a growing board" and "does this further segregate us". Shouldn't the question more be related to "how will this in any way help BUS members?". And I don't know the answer to that either.

I can only speak personally and say that I almost never go to main a) because it moves too fast & is daunting and b) because I find a lot of the posts frustrate me in a way that is inappropriate to specify, but I just don't go there.

I also have never ventured into Arc because it's specifically for those over 30 and I know those under 30 are welcome, but it still doesn't seem appropriate no matter how many times people say it's ok.

So, we have main, which is mostly populated by mid to late teens as far as I can tell, with some other age groups thrown in and then Arc which is 30+. So the question is, where are the 20-30 age group "at home"? Other than Place, which as Mallie said isn't really open for a general conversation since each thread is "owned" by someone and therefore should remain relevant to them.

In short, currently, Place is the only forum I regularly frequent because I don't feel comfortable, for a variety of reasons, in some of the others. And I haven't stopped SI, so Life After isn't relevant to me either.

mama · Post by **mama** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 10:01 pm

As Swanfairie said, they don't card people in ARC. It is open to anyone who wants to go in there. In fact, I've seen several of the younger ones post in there.

Carolyn

Chimera · Post by **Chimera** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 11:10 pm

There are lots of people in this community who are already uncomfortable with the amount of administration and number of mods and admins that we have now. I imagine that we'd get numerous complaints if we added even more mods and admins to handle additional fora.

Jessica

Boogie Man · Post by **Boogie Man** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 11:43 pm

well, i dont really mind either way, because its not something that effects me. i'm a teen and while main could be seen as mostly teens, its not something i can really fit in with.
as long as RW is still running im happy.

peace

Boogie Man · Post by **Boogie Man** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 11:47 pm

oh and i think the amount of mods and admins we have now is good.
i dont see anything wrong with more mods either. i think thats what makes our community so cool is the fact that we have lots of people willing to put thier own time into keeping the board running well.

peace

frances · Post by **frances** » Thu Apr 28, 2005 8:25 am

i have to say this idea reqlly appealed to me, enough to make me want to post in it's favour. the point is us twenty somethings have no where really to go, i find a lot of my time is spent answering posts about school and ow god damn horrific the whole thing is, but for me the biggest change in my life was going to university, struggling with my independence and trying to balance things like paying bills for the first time and deqling with my own life rather than having it regimented for me by school and my parents etc. Maybe we could hae some kind of home leavers board? where it's not completely aimed at twenty somethings, but people who are dealing with this new and complex world that the arc-ers have long left behind and a lot of people aren't at yet.
As for the fragmenting of the board, none of the new forums that have been made in the 3 years i have been here have taken a substantial amount of traffic away from the main board, yes occasionally it makes me sad that there are people out there i have never even come across because they post exclusivelly in one of the forums i don't check, but doesn't more boards mean more choice? we can all find somewhere to make us feel comfortable. And as for the number of boads, there are a few that i don't really see the point too, or that appear very similar to others.
Just some thoughts, i would absolutely love a twenty something board, i feel as though i want to grow up with bus by my side but sometimes it draws me back into a teenage mindset and i find myself feeling more alienated from it.

caterpillargirl · Post by **caterpillargirl** » Fri Apr 29, 2005 5:34 pm

Mama wrote:they don't card people in ARC. It is open to anyone who wants to go in there.

i appreciate this is true, but from what i've seen arc is a pretty close-knit little community.
i can't help that feel if arc suddenly became an unoffical "non-teenager board", and started getting heaps more traffic because of this, then some of the original people who use arc might feel a little swamped, i certainly wouldn't want to play a part in that happening.

Dina · Post by **Dina** » Mon May 02, 2005 12:56 pm

Mama wrote:
Okay, say we do form a *20 something * forum* (this is hypothetical ONLY). Then Dina comes along and says, "well, you made that forum for them, why can't I have the forums I requested?".

Well I promise I won't do that. At least not as long as there is an argument for how it affect one's self harm being around 20, and I haven't been able to convict the board about how gender does.

Myself would though rather say that the teenyears affected my self harm behaviour more than the years around 20 (I'm about 25). And according to researches it's in the early teenyears most people start or further develop it. So for me it seems more relevent to create a teenforum than a 20-forum.

Generally I don't see the reason to not start a new forum only because there already is quite a few. This argument seem to be used frequently and I don't see the point with it. The discussion should be focused on however there is a need for a certain new forum or not, and if one come to the conclusion that there is a need then the discussion can start about how the need can be satisfied, on BUS or maybe by starting a list, or another webforum which can be linked to from BUS, well there is quite a few options if one got fantasy. But there should be an ongoing general discussion on how to handle an expanding BUS, with more and more members and many needs.
Just some thoughts.

/Dina

Oh, and Lonely Planet (travel page for backpackers) is mucho bigger than BUS and quite hard to handle but one thing which do make it a little easier is that one can choose in the profile which branches to be viewed. For example if putting that on BUS, I personally could choose to not view F&F-forum, Before and after, Games, Expressions, Going Away, because I never visit them. If I do one day want to check them out it's easy to go and change my profile. It's just an idea about how making it a little more userfriendly if wanted/needed, though I'm aware it doesn't solve anything with the need for more admins/moderators.

Mistress · Post by **Mistress** » Tue May 03, 2005 5:32 pm

I came across this thread randomly and I must say I like the idea of a forum.. maybe not for twenty-somethings per se, but for those of us who are leaving our younger selves and lives behind, but don't yet feel adult as such or fit in to a more mature community. There again, this is a very subjective view

I know that a lot of times, I'd like to post on main about issues around uni, leaving home, and growing up and having to take care of myself now. But I often don't, as the times I do the threads get few replies and quickly drop off the first page. And if I really would like some feedback, I feel awful bumping my thread and whoring board-space.

As for posting in Arc, I read there quite a bit, and do feel that I'd like to post. What stops me a lot of the time is that I *am* a lot younger than most of the people there - mentally in with regards to my lifestyle etc. (not quite the right word but hopefully you get what I mean) and I don't feel.. like I'm in the right place. I feel like I'd be in the way, almost of other things that are more suitable to that board.

Also with regards to Life After - I agree with what Mallie said. I know it says "Recovering" in my sig, but that's a recent thing and I don't feel confident enough about it to go post in a place that's about stopping self-injuring. That isn't me, because essentially what I'm saying is that the option is still there if I need it.

Anyway, long post, but basically it would be nice to have somewhere to find people who I have things in common with. I don't have many friends from this board, mainly because it's hard to find people like me. There's no place for the 20s among us to congregate and get to know each other.

Jaime

Tiarin · Post by **Tiarin** » Wed May 04, 2005 4:09 am

just thinking about this, i'm wondering if there are two different (though related) problems.

the first is that main, just because it's so big and moves so quickly, is a hard place to feel like you're getting to know people or have more in-depth conversations about things. the smaller boards do a better job of that, but it sounds like there are a number of people who don't feel like any of the boards we have now are places that work for them when it comes to meeting this need.

the second is that people are having a hard time finding a place to talk about issues related to being a 20-something.

i guess i'm splitting it like that because it seems like the teenagers here, despite being the majority group, might also have those concerns about main, and might therefore like a particular board aimed at them. and it would be weird if the board ended up being segregated by age; like others, i like hearing from a mix of perspectives.

so i'm wondering if there would be a way to address the need for another smaller community (without necessarily limiting it to 20-somethings), and also the need for 20-somethings to have a place to talk about their concerns. i know that i personally would be interested in a board that was slower and welcomed more thoughtful discussion of si and i guess general life issues than is usually possible on main. and i could see this proposed board being a good place for that kind of thing, though i'm not sure it would have to be connected to age (or would that defeat the purpose of the suggestion?)

the potential for further compartamentalization (is that a word?

) does worry me. and i share the concerns which have been raised about the number of boards we already have. however, it does sound like there is a need that isn't being met, and i think that's worth talking about.

dragonfly

Priceless · Post by **Priceless** » Wed May 04, 2005 6:54 pm

I still dont understand it with the life after, i dont go there, quitting is a rare accasion for me.
but id like a board were i could get more mature views on things not hugs i hope things are better, im sorry if im offending anybody, but i dont think i belong in the arch, im not thirdy but id like to get theire advice.
so i hoped you could either lower the age on arch? or make a twenty somthings board?

dare i voice an idea for a new forum?

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