Board Clean-Up?

[Just Pomegranates]

I'd post this topic in Suggestion Box, but based on the activity on that section of the forum, it seems like it would get more attention here.

Anyway, I've been thinking for a while that maybe doing a big clean-up on various sections of the forum like main/random weirdness/etc could be something to consider?

Because, as far as I can tell, a lot of sections of the forum don't get many posts in threads past the first few pages and the rest seem to a lot of doubles/triples/etc of the same type of threads or are just completely not relevant anymore and look like they just never got cleaned up and deleted. Main itself has more then a 1000 pages and from what little bit I know about forums that having a lot of pages like that tends to slow the forum down and whatnot as well as just looking generally un-maintained/un-tidy.


I don't know if any of the admins/mods are potentially interested in that idea but that's been on my mind for a while when I'm more active on Bus and I thought I'd put it out there seeing as people have been trying to do more with the forum to get it cleaned up and working more efficiently.

[kiwi33]

I appreciate your thoughts .

Certainly main, RW and place have many long/inactive threads. However, that does not slow down access to the board.

You might like to check out this thread: http://buslist.org/phpBB/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=190329.

What Mia has raised in it is that there are some threads which need to be cleaned up. Please feel free to help out here - all on the staff team will value that .

[treasure]

i think sending some old threads to an archive database has been done before, but i don't know the reason why it was done or what benefit it might have.
i find many pages of threads indicates the age and popularity of the board/forum, it doesn't have a negative feeling to me, but i can understand that it can feel like pointless mess. some old threads, like most of sourcebook or place, shouldn't be removed/archived but perhaps other forums could be cleaned out?

[Just Pomegranates]

some old threads, like most of sourcebook or place, shouldn't be removed/archived but perhaps other forums could be cleaned out?

Yeah, I meant it more in the sense of forums like random weirdness, main and nest maybe if the user hasn't been around in years and years if you get me, and if they were active again, would more then likely just start new threads anyway. Sections like that I feel (while they don't have a negative feeling) just seem like they could use a bit of a 'spring clean'.

[Spidey]

i think sending some old threads to an archive database has been done before, but i don't know the reason why it was done or what benefit it might have.

Yes; it has been done. The reason why was because deb was upgrading to a new version of phpBB and the database was absolutely MASSIVE, so she archived posts from 2001 (the newest incarnation of the board's inception) to 2004 or 5.

I don't think that this will ever happen again unless we need to change or massively upgrade board software, or it just gets too *big* - if the database was huge back then, I'd hate to see its size now.

[swirlish]

I'm not sure I (me as swirlish, not as an admin) like the idea of moving threads that users have made for support or fun or whatever. But please please please, it's really awesome that you want to help cleaning bus up, we'd love any input and ideas you have. If you could describe a bit more about what you envision - that might help me understand better?

And if you have ideas for sourcebook, coping, structuring important threads everywhere, posting new threads/stickies/whatever - just let us know. Ideas how we can promote various forums would also be great (I personally love B&A and think it deserves a lot more attention than it gets).

It makes me really happy that you all want to help with this Bus is such a special place and it's mainly because of our wonderful users.

[Just Pomegranates]

I'm not sure I (me as swirlish, not as an admin) like the idea of moving threads that users have made for support or fun or whatever. But please please please, it's really awesome that you want to help cleaning bus up, we'd love any input and ideas you have. If you could describe a bit more about what you envision - that might help me understand better?

An example of what I'm trying to describe is in Games there are multiple word association threads (click and click and click and click) and I guess the point I'm trying to make is do we really need four different threads for exactly the same purpose? Wouldn't it make more sense to just have one?

And another example, building on that, is all the counting threads in Games. There's too many to even link and my thoughts are the same in that do we really need all of those when they're essentially doing the same thing?


I don't know if that better clarifies what I'm trying to describe in terms of a clean up.

[wabbit]

my thoughts on those sorts of threads....(my apologies if this makes no sense whatsoever, my brain is a little fried).
i can see your POV and sometimes i think it can be annoying having so many essentially the same if you only follow certain threads and have to wade through a lot of threads to find them, but from the times when ive needed distraction ive found it useful because it means more threads i can post in and therefore the longer i can distract myself with those sorts of threads. if there was only one of each sort of thread it would be useful when im trying to keep up with whats being posted but not so useful when i really need distraction and no one else is online to post something for me to reply to.

once again, sorry if that makes no sense....

[Just Pomegranates]

I can see your point with that.
But I guess I've been members of really tidy forums for so long, and now being a mod myself on one of those forums, that's become second nature to expect that kind of standard. *shrugs*

[amerylis]

I think anywhere other than games I'd agree with you. but the purpose of the games forum is to be there as a distraction and I think that having only one of each sort of thread would be detrimental to that.

Thank you for all your hard work though

[Just Pomegranates]

Games was just an example. If people feel it's better left the way it is then that's fine and the concept can be considered for other areas of Bus.