The Fora: A Higher Education Community

General Category => Suggestions, Comments, Questions => Topic started by: Myword on March 16, 2023, 06:52:08 AM

Title: Why so quiet?
Post by: Myword on March 16, 2023, 06:52:08 AM
Seems quieter than usual, mainly in the last 2 months. Lack of new posts. I searched for the fora in a search engine using different key words
like faculty forum, higher education, and nothing like this came up. So someone looking for a forum like this would not find it. TheFora name is so dull and generic, no wonder. Are users migrating to another site? I don't know any others.  Change the name to Forafaculty or something. To me, the research scholarship is most important and I have posted lots of times.
I have been in this at the start with the old CHE board when things were very different.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Parasaurolophus on March 16, 2023, 07:43:52 AM
I think the main issue is that internet fora are dying. It's not that people are moving to other fora, it's that everyone is using Reddit (shudder), FaceBook, and Twitter instead. The old forum got to capitalize on the forum's heyday; we moved over in the decline. It also had the advantage of being affiliated with (and this advertised on) the Chronicle's site.

But yes, it would be good to have an influx of new members to keep things going, and it's worth thinking about how we can do that.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Wahoo Redux on March 16, 2023, 08:54:20 AM
I remember a similar question in the old CHE forum after, I believe, 2008 when things turned sour for the first time.

At first, we (or at least I) felt part of a community and I was enthusiastic about academia.  The CHE fora was a good place to take part in the big conversations going on.  I liked getting in debates and pulling pranks (I was not the only CHE member to troll for fun occasionally) and I gravitated toward and learned a lot from the job boards.  It was also fun as a grad student and then young academic staff member to listen to the old war stories from the DSMs.  Even if the tribe could be pretty touchy sometimes, it was still worthwhile.

And now COVID and the demographic cliff a lot of the fun has gone out of academia.  It is kind of a depressing place to be.  Happy foras may be a thing of the past.

Reddit is not bad but it is so huge that one never learns the personalities and the discussions tend to meander + it is a much more difficult ap to read.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Myword on March 17, 2023, 02:45:46 PM
 I doubt The problem is  with the internet forums, Covid and Reddit, I am a member of three very active forums, and one is professional--not education. Hard to compare this forum with ones open to  the public at large.

The issue is apathy, but no one admits this. Lack of interest in others in Higher Ed. and low desire to disclose problems, setbacks, questions, ideas, feelings, etc.   I'm not criticizing. On the internet people are like quasi real characters or phantoms. We don't know where they live, identity, their subject expertise or anything else With some exceptions.  I am no different. Maybe academics are simply rather unsocial beings, private.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Wahoo Redux on March 17, 2023, 07:13:56 PM
The old CHE forum was hoppin' back in the day.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: AJ_Katz on March 19, 2023, 05:34:48 AM
Not having Mamselle posting makes the fora look less active in the past two months.  It would be interesting to know the stats on how much she posted on here.  I post questions as frequently as possible here to try to keep it going. 

I just don't think the younger generation is aware or interested in message boards anymore.

Reddit threads that I've seen related to academia often have people giving horrible advice.  So it's a shame. 
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: AJ_Katz on March 19, 2023, 05:35:45 AM
I wonder...  could we get affiliation with the AAUP and be posted on their website as a resource?
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Parasaurolophus on March 19, 2023, 07:58:13 AM
Quote from: AJ_Katz on March 19, 2023, 05:34:48 AM
Not having Mamselle posting makes the fora look less active in the past two months.  It would be interesting to know the stats on how much she posted on here.  I post questions as frequently as possible here to try to keep it going. 


She averaged about 6.5 posts a day. She really commented on everything.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: downer on March 19, 2023, 08:38:59 AM
It might be relevant to remember Eigen's post from last year:
http://thefora.org/index.php?topic=3191.msg116628#msg116628
He asked for someone to take over running the website at some point. Nobody with the relevant skills stepped up.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: AJ_Katz on March 19, 2023, 12:17:32 PM
Quote from: downer on March 19, 2023, 08:38:59 AM
It might be relevant to remember Eigen's post from last year:
http://thefora.org/index.php?topic=3191.msg116628#msg116628
He asked for someone to take over running the website at some point. Nobody with the relevant skills stepped up.

Yes, I recall that conversation.  I'm not sure it was ever through to make an affiliation with another organization like AAUP. 

Having more people engaged here could also help to find someone both able to and willing to share the load.  Just a thought.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: lightning on March 19, 2023, 01:53:48 PM
Quote from: Wahoo Redux on March 16, 2023, 08:54:20 AM
I remember a similar question in the old CHE forum after, I believe, 2008 when things turned sour for the first time.

At first, we (or at least I) felt part of a community and I was enthusiastic about academia.  The CHE fora was a good place to take part in the big conversations going on.  I liked getting in debates and pulling pranks (I was not the only CHE member to troll for fun occasionally) and I gravitated toward and learned a lot from the job boards.  It was also fun as a grad student and then young academic staff member to listen to the old war stories from the DSMs.  Even if the tribe could be pretty touchy sometimes, it was still worthwhile.

And now COVID and the demographic cliff a lot of the fun has gone out of academia.  It is kind of a depressing place to be.  Happy foras may be a thing of the past.

Reddit is not bad but it is so huge that one never learns the personalities and the discussions tend to meander + it is a much more difficult ap to read.

^
This.

The problem is not thefora, branding, non-affiliation, nor old-fashioned discussion platforms.

The profession has changed.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Ruralguy on March 19, 2023, 06:48:28 PM
Honestly, I feel that our younger faculty, although extremely talented, can take or leave the job, in the psychological sense at least, more readily than me and especially my senior colleagues who have been retiring over the last few years. They seem less agitated by real problems, but I think they are more trained to not let it get to them any more than any other job. Better therapy maybe.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Myword on March 20, 2023, 07:22:51 AM
Well, if each member could post a note on their department web page, or the old-fashioned paper bulletin board if you still have one. Or newsletter, that helps.  Just a brief mention of its existence and subforums.
Often,  those with the most experience, professionally, have less reason to seek or give advice, and the younger ones are uninformed or uninterested to contribute advice or information.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Wahoo Redux on March 21, 2023, 09:52:50 PM
Quote from: Myword on March 20, 2023, 07:22:51 AM
Well, if each member could post a note on their department web page, or the old-fashioned paper bulletin board if you still have one. Or newsletter, that helps.  Just a brief mention of its existence and subforums.
Often,  those with the most experience, professionally, have less reason to seek or give advice, and the younger ones are uninformed or uninterested to contribute advice or information.

Hmmmm...I am relatively sure that none of my (former) colleagues come here.  And I'm okay with that, especially since I frequently post about my school(s).
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: jerseyjay on March 22, 2023, 04:37:40 AM
Quote from: Ruralguy on March 19, 2023, 06:48:28 PM
Honestly, I feel that our younger faculty, although extremely talented, can take or leave the job, in the psychological sense at least, more readily than me and especially my senior colleagues who have been retiring over the last few years. They seem less agitated by real problems, but I think they are more trained to not let it get to them any more than any other job. Better therapy maybe.

I am not sure if this is meant as a criticism or not, since it seems to be a much more healthy way of looking at things. I am also not entirely sure if it is true. That said, it would seem that in many fields at least, younger faculty have already had to make peace with the fact that they were very unlikely to have got a faculty job in the first place, and having got one, that it is not unlikely that they wouldn't end up working in academia their entire life.

In my personal case, after I graduated with a PhD in history, I spent more than a decade in precarious and casual jobs (adjunct, visiting professor, etc.) before I got a non-academic job and made my peace with the fact that I was never going to be an academic. Then through luck, I got hired on the tenure track. I managed to get tenure. Now my university is going through a major crisis, and tenured faculty have been made redundant, assistant professors have not been reappointed, and all searches have been called off. In conversations with my peers, there is a consensus that if we get laid off, there is very little chance of ever getting an equivalent position again and that we would probably find something outside of academia.

On top of it, in the past period my job has become less and less personally fulfilling as my teaching load has gone up (both in the number of courses and in the number of students), the amount of service has increased, and things that make the job either more enjoyable (money for travel) or bearable (secretarial assistance, postage, books in the library) have dried up.

I wouldn't say that we can take or leave the job, but rather that we have reconciled with the fact that it is very likely we will have to leave it, whatever our desires. Most of my friends who went to graduate school, whether or not they got the PhD, have found employment outside academia (or at least outside the tenure track). Again, this is not all by choice.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: downer on March 22, 2023, 04:47:23 AM
Quote from: Wahoo Redux on March 21, 2023, 09:52:50 PM
Quote from: Myword on March 20, 2023, 07:22:51 AM
Well, if each member could post a note on their department web page, or the old-fashioned paper bulletin board if you still have one. Or newsletter, that helps.  Just a brief mention of its existence and subforums.
Often,  those with the most experience, professionally, have less reason to seek or give advice, and the younger ones are uninformed or uninterested to contribute advice or information.

Hmmmm...I am relatively sure that none of my (former) colleagues come here.  And I'm okay with that, especially since I frequently post about my school(s).

Yes, people will be reluctant to advertise TheFora precisely because often they come here to complain about their colleages or admin. No one has said that they have recommened the site to a friend or colleague.

I don't think many posters see the quietness on TheFora as a problem, but the place does seem to be dwindling. I haven't looked at the stats though. Maybe that's a false impression.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Sun_Worshiper on March 22, 2023, 09:26:22 AM
A few thoughts:
1. It is a busy time, with the semester in full swing and many of us drowning at work.
2. We are mostly, if not all, academics, and sometimes after a full day of teaching/research/admin stuff, we don't really feel like talking about those things online.
3. It is a small community and so we all more-or-less know where everyone stands. For example, if there is a thread on student debt, we all know where everyone is going to land, so why even bother pursuing it?
4. There are few provocative takes that prompt a lot of argument or posters willing to go to the mat over some discussion topic. Most of us drop our two cents and move on.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Ruralguy on March 22, 2023, 10:01:16 AM
Ignoring the trolls, I have actually found that a number of reasonable fora members have contrarian opinions on several topics here and there.
I actually think you'd see varied opinions on student debt, though they might be the same varied opinions we've all heard elsewhere.

We just don't seem to be the "go to location" for certain questions. For instance, we all recall the annual "which is the one true job for me?" type of posts that were frequent between late fall and early spring  on the old fora. Now I think we see a couple of those per year. Of course many of us just aren't on the market. But that could be a major factor in reducing traffic. The members just don't have those kinds of questions a lot, so we're not seeing put those questions and comments to others.

But one thing I can say: It always surprises me how many intelligent people don't know the norms of academia or even really how to deal with other people fairly well.  That is, I think,  maybe more of us, including me, should be asking more questions!
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Parasaurolophus on March 25, 2023, 08:27:47 AM
I do think we need to find a way to get ourselves onto the first page of Google search results. The question is: how?

Although I've posted links to us in a few places, it's not really the sort of thing one can just post to one's website without potentially outing oneself. Being linked to by one of the higher ed publications would certainly help, and I can inquire with them, although I'm not optimistic that they'll want the association.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: lightning on March 25, 2023, 11:00:45 AM
Quote from: Ruralguy on March 22, 2023, 10:01:16 AM
Ignoring the trolls, I have actually found that a number of reasonable fora members have contrarian opinions on several topics here and there.
I actually think you'd see varied opinions on student debt, though they might be the same varied opinions we've all heard elsewhere.

We just don't seem to be the "go to location" for certain questions. For instance, we all recall the annual "which is the one true job for me?" type of posts that were frequent between late fall and early spring  on the old fora. Now I think we see a couple of those per year. Of course many of us just aren't on the market. But that could be a major factor in reducing traffic. The members just don't have those kinds of questions a lot, so we're not seeing put those questions and comments to others.

But one thing I can say: It always surprises me how many intelligent people don't know the norms of academia or even really how to deal with other people fairly well.  That is, I think,  maybe more of us, including me, should be asking more questions!

The question posts about careers have floated over to Reddit. I have read them, and I'm just not interested in helping those folks out. The level of discourse is just way too low. Many of them are too clueless to warrant any effort to give advice.

I don't think the newer generations of young academics seek out career advice in forums, and the ones that have the potential to become successful don't turn to reddit either.

The career advice posts that I have read (as a lurker and as an active participant) that helped my career, on the old CHE fora were priceless, because I couldn't get that advice anywhere else. My own advisors, back in the old times, were clueless about the career aspects of their profession and were not the best place to turn to, for career advice. The old CHE fora, articles & interactive comments, filled that gap.

I have a feeling that get-a-job-keep-a-job posts are dwindling because universities are now actually mentoring their grad students and their Assistant Professors. Even some universities are offering professional development/career advancement advice sessions for their NTT faculty. And, people can actually hire career coaches and career consultants, today. There are now many books on how to succeed in academe, and they are written by respectable people. There are YouTube videos on how to succeed in academe (although the YouTube videos are often produced by people, with questionable credentials, they get lively conversations going about the topic). All of the above simply didn't exist as much back then, and places like The Fora had no competition, unlike today.

I think that proper career mentoring is a good thing, but that means less relevance for The Fora. I'm fine with that.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Ruralguy on March 25, 2023, 11:38:49 AM
I think your points about better mentoring and better resources such as coaches and books make sense and are consistent with what I see of candidates (other than some searches that have been forced to go with some *very* inexperienced candidates).
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: bio-nonymous on March 31, 2023, 07:18:03 AM
Sadly, fora members like myself could partially be to blame. I have been a member of the old fora since 2009, and now the new one and have not yet contributed more than 200 total posts over the past 14 years. I check the fora quite often and read what others post, but don't often reply. In the past I have felt like not sharing or initiating topics because of a couple of times another poster "jumped on me" for my post (why seek out abusive interactions?). Now it is more that I don't have much to say on the topics others post, and I normally chose not to debate politics and so forth. While I wish the new Fora was as vibrant as the old, it is what it is--and I accept my role in this by not participating to the extent that perhaps I should. Getting disassociated from the Chronicle of Higher ED may also have stifled growth of new membership perhaps, evidenced in that we don't see nearly the amount of "job search" and career questions as we used to from junior folks and trainees.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Cheerful on March 31, 2023, 12:12:02 PM
Quote from: lightning on March 25, 2023, 11:00:45 AM

The question posts about careers have floated over to Reddit. I have read them, and I'm just not interested in helping those folks out. The level of discourse is just way too low. Many of them are too clueless to warrant any effort to give advice.

I don't think the newer generations of young academics seek out career advice in forums, and the ones that have the potential to become successful don't turn to reddit either.
...
The career advice posts that I have read (as a lurker and as an active participant) that helped my career, on the old CHE fora were priceless, because I couldn't get that advice anywhere else. My own advisors, back in the old times, were clueless about the career aspects of their profession and were not the best place to turn to, for career advice. The old CHE fora, articles & interactive comments, filled that gap.

r/professors on Reddit is a massive Whine Fest.  I visit periodically and it's always the same. Yes, many r/prof posters have a long ways to go in terms of wisdom and maturity.  Nothing like The Fora or CHE fora.  The layout here is also much more organized and user-friendly.

I learned a great deal from the CHE fora.  Those were the days.  Some humorous story-tellers also posted there.  Now, I have little left to learn about academic career basics -- learned it and lived it.  But I continue to acquire new nuggets of info and insights here which I appreciate, thanks.

Kind of unfortunate when someone swoops in to ask urgent questions, regulars here help out, and then OP never returns to share and contribute again.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Bbmaj7b5 on April 06, 2023, 04:50:52 AM
You might also look at the reduced participation as a sign that many in need of urgent help have gone on a career path that has taken them out of problematic situations.

I started participating in the old CHE forum when I was two years into my academic career as a 40-something assistant prof. It was an essential part of my network of advice, even though the number of fellow engineers appeared to be relatively small, and the subset of that who were at R1s appeared to be a much smaller percentage of that already small number. I would go to the CHE forum for general advice about academia. Once my need for that kind of advice started to tail off, I participated less and less. On occasion, I had weighed in with my own advice to particular problems, but I don't think I was that helpful, so I would mostly hang out in the Cafe section, participate in the limericks or haikus and tell everyone what kind of lowbrow rock music I was listening to at the time.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: downer on April 06, 2023, 06:52:54 AM
What about giving back to others, passing it on for good karma?
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: research_prof on April 06, 2023, 12:34:35 PM
Quote from: Ruralguy on March 19, 2023, 06:48:28 PM
Honestly, I feel that our younger faculty, although extremely talented, can take or leave the job, in the psychological sense at least, more readily than me and especially my senior colleagues who have been retiring over the last few years. They seem less agitated by real problems, but I think they are more trained to not let it get to them any more than any other job. Better therapy maybe.

If you meant to really say that new faculty have much less tolerance to accept sh@t given to them by their employer, I absolutely agree with that and I see it as a good thing. My employer asks me to go teach even if the weather outside is almost deadly--why would I care that much about my employer in this case? I would do what's best for me. And yes, if that means I need to take or leave the job, then so be it. I will leave the job and find something else to do in my life.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: dismalist on April 06, 2023, 12:41:13 PM
Quote from: research_prof on April 06, 2023, 12:34:35 PM
Quote from: Ruralguy on March 19, 2023, 06:48:28 PM
Honestly, I feel that our younger faculty, although extremely talented, can take or leave the job, in the psychological sense at least, more readily than me and especially my senior colleagues who have been retiring over the last few years. They seem less agitated by real problems, but I think they are more trained to not let it get to them any more than any other job. Better therapy maybe.

If you meant to really say that new faculty have much less tolerance to accept sh@t given to them by their employer, I absolutely agree with that and I see it as a good thing. My employer asks me to go teach even if the weather outside is almost deadly--why would I care that much about my employer in this case? I would do what's best for me. And yes, if that means I need to take or leave the job, then so be it. I will leave the job and find something else to do in my life.

This is all just perfectly rational -- merely means self-interested -- behavior: When young one can create, accumulate and monetize knowledge in many subfields, so they won't lose much by being disloyal. They may even gain. Old farts have accumulated some knowledge and don't have much time to expand it. So, grin and bear it.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Ruralguy on April 06, 2023, 01:24:57 PM

Wow, the last couple of posts are rather cynical, though I suppose not inaccurate!

What I mean tis that I think younger faculty don't let it "get to them" at all, one way or another. They seem to be able to take it or leave it. They are quite professional and very good. Some go, some stay.  Some put a lot into their job, but even if they do, they aren't overly attached, I'd say. I suppose you can put that in terms of "loyalty."

But I wouldn't say that I am particularly loyal either. Its more accurate to say that I am more involved at an institutional level because by the time you are a full prof, you can change things you want to change (though, I have found out that I have surprisingly little power in some areas, and probably way too much in others). Also, my interests are somewhat aligned with the institution because one of the primary ways I can get more money or more recognition (assuming that scholarship and teaching don't go down the rain) is via service. I'm not saying that I get paid by the committee or anything. I just mean that over time, if Dean sees I am involved, more likely to pick me over someone else (given same scholarship and teaching) for a salary boost. You can certainly try for that via scholarship production too, its just harder for me to do that now at my age.

Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: RatGuy on April 06, 2023, 01:51:46 PM
I've visited and posted less frequently for reasons that have nothing to do with the job stuff -- indeed, its a seismic shift in my personal life that has me changing my habits and reevaluating the stuff I do during the day.

I'll also add that we haven't had a good story thread in a while. Fake Jake and some of the plagiarism chronicles made for ripping reads. I miss reading about those types of gonzo experiences.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Aster on April 10, 2023, 04:04:53 PM
I would be here much more often if this discussion board was still operated by the Chronicle of Higher Education.

And I would visit the Chronicle of Higher Education much more if it still contained an online discussion board.

The Chronicle of Higher Education really shot themselves in the foot.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: downer on April 10, 2023, 05:08:14 PM
CHE didn't want visitors. They wanted subscribers. The Fora didn't seem to provide subscribers. The effort it took to keep The Fora going wasn't worth it to them.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: lightning on April 10, 2023, 08:57:25 PM


Quote from: Aster on April 10, 2023, 04:04:53 PM
I would be here much more often if this discussion board was still operated by the Chronicle of Higher Education.

And I would visit the Chronicle of Higher Education much more if it still contained an online discussion board.

The Chronicle of Higher Education really shot themselves in the foot.

Quote from: downer on April 10, 2023, 05:08:14 PM
CHE didn't want visitors. They wanted subscribers. The Fora didn't seem to provide subscribers. The effort it took to keep The Fora going wasn't worth it to them.

My uni had an institutional subscription (at great expense, I might add), so everything on the CHE web site could be accessed by me and my co-workers via institution log-in credentials or being physically on the campus LAN. When the CHE dropped the Fora and comments on articles, I don't think it was a coincidence that my uni dropped their institutional subscription. The Fora added value to the CHE product, but the CHE didn't seem to think so. It's a loss for CHE, as far as I'm concerned. I'm not all that concerned about no longer having access to CHE articles. The articles really started going downhill.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: ciao_yall on April 11, 2023, 06:34:19 AM
Quote from: downer on April 10, 2023, 05:08:14 PM
CHE didn't want visitors. They wanted subscribers. The Fora didn't seem to provide subscribers. The effort it took to keep The Fora going wasn't worth it to them.

The way you get subscribers is getting visitors, who are then exposed to the subscriber-only content.

The way you keep subscribers is building personal engagement and connection on a website, which keeps them returning and remembering why they didn't mind paying for content.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: downer on April 11, 2023, 07:34:00 AM
Quote from: ciao_yall on April 11, 2023, 06:34:19 AM
Quote from: downer on April 10, 2023, 05:08:14 PM
CHE didn't want visitors. They wanted subscribers. The Fora didn't seem to provide subscribers. The effort it took to keep The Fora going wasn't worth it to them.

The way you get subscribers is getting visitors, who are then exposed to the subscriber-only content.

The way you keep subscribers is building personal engagement and connection on a website, which keeps them returning and remembering why they didn't mind paying for content.

Maybe so. But it's hard time for journalism and there's some liability in having random people add comments on pages that a web based source hosts. IHE also scrapped reader comments. I remember there was once a thread on the old fora about how many people there had CHE subscriptions, and almost no one did. So it didn't work for them. Maybe if they had done it differently, it would have. As I recall, they didn't even run ads on the old fora. I haven't seen any other online journalistic publications which allow completely free range reader generated discussion and use it as a way to generate subscriptions.

NY Times and other papers do continue to have reader comments on articles. Slate does it too. I'm guessing that they hire one or more people to supervise those comments.

These days Reddit occupies the main space for free range discussion. That relies a great deal on volunteers.  There's Twitter, and academic twitter was interesting. It probably still is but I left twitter.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Anselm on May 04, 2023, 11:12:26 AM
Maybe we can have a recruitment drive?  Invite a coworker to join The Fora.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: downer on May 04, 2023, 01:01:30 PM
Quote from: Anselm on May 04, 2023, 11:12:26 AM
Maybe we can have a recruitment drive?  Invite a coworker to join The Fora.

I'd never do that, although I was chatting to a teacher friend the other day about how internet academic discussion places can fill a gap left by the deterioration of academic life.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Parasaurolophus on May 04, 2023, 02:10:53 PM
Quote from: downer on May 04, 2023, 01:01:30 PM
Quote from: Anselm on May 04, 2023, 11:12:26 AM
Maybe we can have a recruitment drive?  Invite a coworker to join The Fora.

I'd never do that, although I was chatting to a teacher friend the other day about how internet academic discussion places can fill a gap left by the deterioration of academic life.

I've pointed some friends and acquaintances in our direction.

What we really need, though, is to be Googleable. Preferably on the first page of results.


So... we need to be linked to from prominent pages (including, shudder, ReddIt). What else goes into SEO these days?
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Wahoo Redux on May 04, 2023, 06:00:33 PM
It would be easy to post this address on Reddit if you like.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Myword on May 05, 2023, 07:03:58 AM
There are tech people who specialize in this, paying for higher priority in search results. I don't know of any myself.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Parasaurolophus on May 16, 2023, 10:37:23 PM
I've tinkered with some of the forum's guts, which I think should help with indexing. We'll see whenever the Google spiders come crawling.

Quote from: Wahoo Redux on May 04, 2023, 06:00:33 PM
It would be easy to post this address on Reddit if you like.

I think it's good to do that sort of thing whenever the opportunity arises.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: polly_mer on June 09, 2023, 04:34:37 PM
Have you considered how little content is available without logging in?  I have vague memories of discussions early on about locking down to members only.  However, there's no reason to join based on the publicly available content.

In contrast, some corners of Twitter are still very active with the kinds of discussions the CHE fora had in the heydays.  I received a Goodbye Cruel Fora-like response the other day on a thread about why self-funded humanities PhDs were a bad idea.

However, someone did recommend these fora on the professors subreddit in advance of the 12 June going dark.  Maybe you'll pick up a few.

I'm not coming back because the conditions prompting my leaving have not changed with that person still here as a regular participant while being humored for spewing ignorance.

Pity.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Wahoo Redux on June 09, 2023, 04:50:23 PM
Polly, you are greatly missed.

Perhaps just tone it down a bit.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Parasaurolophus on June 10, 2023, 06:16:14 PM
It's worth a try. I can rejigger those settings.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: KiUlv on June 11, 2023, 02:07:59 PM
Quote from: Wahoo Redux on March 16, 2023, 08:54:20 AM
Reddit is not bad but it is so huge that one never learns the personalities and the discussions tend to meander + it is a much more difficult ap to read.

I joined this forum years ago. I read a lot, but didn't post very often. Unless I bookmarked, it was hard to find my way back sometimes (especially after it moved). I joined Reddit late in the game (just this past year, I think) and have spent some time there. I remembered about this place when someone posted it on Reddit, and I was happy to find my way back.

While Reddit is huge, as mentioned, and it may be hard to get to know people, this board has a sense of a well-established "club." It felt hard to "break in" as someone who was new to the profession (I'm still junior faculty, although I'm not a "junior" in life :D). Initially, I felt like I was trying to tiptoe into someone else's exclusive party. That, combined with the threads that can go on for years, makes for an overwhelming (maybe even intimidating) experience for those new to the board. I'm not saying that is necessarily bad, but it does make me more hesitant to try to jump in. I do appreciate the relative privacy, though.

Just a few rambling thoughts-- pardon my intrusion!
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: ciao_yall on June 11, 2023, 04:03:41 PM
Quote from: KiUlv on June 11, 2023, 02:07:59 PM
Quote from: Wahoo Redux on March 16, 2023, 08:54:20 AM
Reddit is not bad but it is so huge that one never learns the personalities and the discussions tend to meander + it is a much more difficult ap to read.

I joined this forum years ago. I read a lot, but didn't post very often. Unless I bookmarked, it was hard to find my way back sometimes (especially after it moved). I joined Reddit late in the game (just this past year, I think) and have spent some time there. I remembered about this place when someone posted it on Reddit, and I was happy to find my way back.

While Reddit is huge, as mentioned, and it may be hard to get to know people, this board has a sense of a well-established "club." It felt hard to "break in" as someone who was new to the profession (I'm still junior faculty, although I'm not a "junior" in life :D). Initially, I felt like I was trying to tiptoe into someone else's exclusive party. That, combined with the threads that can go on for years, makes for an overwhelming (maybe even intimidating) experience for those new to the board. I'm not saying that is necessarily bad, but it does make me more hesitant to try to jump in. I do appreciate the relative privacy, though.

Just a few rambling thoughts-- pardon my intrusion!

Welcome!

I found this group to be very helpful and welcoming. Still, they are very direct. If you come here asking for advice, you will get pretty straight-no-chaser advice, even if it probably wasn't what you wanted to hear. If they disagree with you, they will tell you point-blank.

Personally, I appreciated that directness in learning how to transition from a corporate to academic career.

Jump in, KiUlv, the water's safe! Those fins are dolphins, not sharks.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Caracal on June 12, 2023, 07:36:59 AM
Quote from: polly_mer on June 09, 2023, 04:34:37 PM

I'm not coming back because the conditions prompting my leaving have not changed with that person still here as a regular participant while being humored for spewing ignorance.

Pity.

Good lord...
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: KiUlv on June 12, 2023, 08:45:03 AM
Quote from: ciao_yall on June 11, 2023, 04:03:41 PM

Welcome!

I found this group to be very helpful and welcoming. Still, they are very direct. If you come here asking for advice, you will get pretty straight-no-chaser advice, even if it probably wasn't what you wanted to hear. If they disagree with you, they will tell you point-blank.

Personally, I appreciated that directness in learning how to transition from a corporate to academic career.

Jump in, KiUlv, the water's safe! Those fins are dolphins, not sharks.

Thank you! I appreciate that! Although I'm several years in now, sometimes I don't even know what I don't know. The academy is a beast of hidden agendas and moving staircases. At least it feels that way sometimes.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: ciao_yall on June 12, 2023, 09:43:20 AM
Quote from: KiUlv on June 12, 2023, 08:45:03 AM
Quote from: ciao_yall on June 11, 2023, 04:03:41 PM

Welcome!

I found this group to be very helpful and welcoming. Still, they are very direct. If you come here asking for advice, you will get pretty straight-no-chaser advice, even if it probably wasn't what you wanted to hear. If they disagree with you, they will tell you point-blank.

Personally, I appreciated that directness in learning how to transition from a corporate to academic career.

Jump in, KiUlv, the water's safe! Those fins are dolphins, not sharks.

Thank you! I appreciate that! Although I'm several years in now, sometimes I don't even know what I don't know. The academy is a beast of hidden agendas and moving staircases. At least it feels that way sometimes.

That's why this group is so helpful. People are very cautious about their real identities, but willing to share stories, ask advice and speak honestly.

Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: kaysixteen on June 12, 2023, 12:46:12 PM
Is it just me, or did the fora experience some sort of www revision today?  Does this mean that there will be some new and improved functions here?
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Parasaurolophus on June 12, 2023, 01:54:28 PM
Quote from: kaysixteen on June 12, 2023, 12:46:12 PMIs it just me, or did the fora experience some sort of www revision today?  Does this mean that there will be some new and improved functions here?

https://thefora.org/index.php?topic=3473.0
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: eigen on June 12, 2023, 01:57:10 PM
Quote from: Wahoo Redux on May 04, 2023, 06:00:33 PMIt would be easy to post this address on Reddit if you like.

A bit late to this, but it is. We also have a sub over there (r/thefora).

It gets discussed occasionally in r/professors and r/academia and people end up here. I think we're getting a large number in the last bit with some of the Reddit changes / blackout, based on the number of people who've sent me messages on Reddit to be approved.

Re: Search Engine Optimization.... A lot of it just takes time. But if I search for higher education forum, we're currently the 4th hit in Google, which is pretty good. A lot of the challenge is what terms are here and indexed.

For those who weren't around at the time, one of the reasons we limited viewing of the whole forum is that we kept having the site shut down due to webcrawlers taking all of our bandwidth. That could be solved by moving to more expensive hosting, but it seemed a small benefit at the time, relative to use.

We can absolutely tweak which forums are available to view with/without registration. Another option, especially from an SEO perspective would be able to write up a "What are these fora" post and plop it in the forum available to view without registration.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: hmaria1609 on June 12, 2023, 03:46:49 PM
This new look reminds me of similar message boards I've used. Many thanks to our forum admins for the upgrade!
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Liquidambar on June 12, 2023, 05:01:51 PM
Quote from: eigen on June 12, 2023, 01:57:10 PMWe can absolutely tweak which forums are available to view with/without registration. Another option, especially from an SEO perspective would be able to write up a "What are these fora" post and plop it in the forum available to view without registration.

I like the idea of a "What are these fora" post.  Also, could we have a couple on-topic forums viewable in place of the off-topic?  "Teaching" and "Job search" would give a nice sampling of what's discussed here, versus "General discussion" and "Suggestions."

ETA:  Glad to hear we're the 4th hit in Google--that's quite good!
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Parasaurolophus on June 12, 2023, 10:20:27 PM
Quote from: eigen on June 12, 2023, 01:57:10 PMRe: Search Engine Optimization.... A lot of it just takes time. But if I search for higher education forum, we're currently the 4th hit in Google, which is pretty good. A lot of the challenge is what terms are here and indexed.




Hmm. On my end, we're in the middle of the fifth page of results for the same search. Still, that's better than a few weeks ago. (I added some indexing terms then--it seems like we had none--so I guess that helped?)
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: eigen on June 12, 2023, 10:24:02 PM
What are you searching for, term wise?
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: namazu on June 12, 2023, 11:18:19 PM
Quote from: eigen on June 12, 2023, 10:24:02 PMWhat are you searching for, term wise?
Not Parasaurolophus, but if I search for higher education forum it's result 4 in Google for me. 
higher ed forum actually gets the top result!
faculty forum and university teaching forum yield so many other results that The Fora don't show up.

I haven't tried searches without "forum" in them, which is undoubtedly a mistake, as "bulletin board" and "discussion" and "sub[reddit]" might be more common search terms.

Thanks, Eigen, for continuing to do all you do.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Parasaurolophus on June 13, 2023, 08:33:07 AM
Quote from: eigen on June 12, 2023, 10:24:02 PMWhat are you searching for, term wise?

higher education forum

(higher Ed forum does get to #3, however)


It could just be a regional difference, although I thought that there was no such difference for the US and Canada.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: eigen on June 13, 2023, 11:00:41 AM
That's really interesting. Regional differences would be one explanation, the other might be google displaying different results depending on history.

If I have time, I'll play around with some different devices and see if I get similar results.

I think if we wrote an explanation post that was crawlable, that would help capture some of the other terms people might use to search (i.e., discussion board, job search, faculty jobs, etc.)
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Juvenal on June 13, 2023, 03:14:59 PM
My post count is nowhere near anywhere meriting note.  I just managed to make "1000" posts in the CHE forum (so much for vanity) before it closed.  Far behind the stalwarts, but I was there from the "beginning."  Some--long ago--might remember me there as "Ming." Ah, distant days!

Nowadays, the new "Fora" is OK, but not really something to check in on much.  Prytania (and Mamselle) gave a lot of vitamins, much missed.  Thus, nowadays, what tussles there are seem to be in the "cancelling" of Dr. Seuss.  It does get wearisome, the back and forth.  Yes, yes, I know there is no need to look there, but wit vs. dudgeon is hard to find.
New format?  Again, OK, but content does not seem likely to change much.  Not that I have much to contribute.  Age, body collapse--You know, those kinds of things.  Not far from being an octogenarian with other worries.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: marshwiggle on June 14, 2023, 05:38:20 AM
The various media for discussion like this change as technology changes. It seems like a one-way street.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Ruralguy on June 14, 2023, 07:46:59 AM
One thing I have noticed among academics is that even scientists engage in "magical thinking" such as "we will always have at least the number of tenure track positions we have now, no matter what the circumstances."

Almost all academics go through "administrators are evil" phases, and will rarely  *fairly* examine the reasons why certain decisions were made.  Granted, many administrators go through the "faculty are spoiled brats and not as smart as they think they are" phase as well.

I bring this up because I think Polly often did a good job at examining some of these issues by revealing the state of the profession and discussing some of her own professional examples (particularly at "Super Dinky College").  However, sometimes responses to criticism appeared to be dogmatic. Even so, I wouldn't mind seeing more from time to time.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Caracal on June 15, 2023, 08:06:47 AM
Quote from: Ruralguy on June 14, 2023, 07:46:59 AMOne thing I have noticed among academics is that even scientists engage in "magical thinking" such as "we will always have at least the number of tenure track positions we have now, no matter what the circumstances."

Almost all academics go through "administrators are evil" phases, and will rarely  *fairly* examine the reasons why certain decisions were made.  Granted, many administrators go through the "faculty are spoiled brats and not as smart as they think they are" phase as well.

I bring this up because I think Polly often did a good job at examining some of these issues by revealing the state of the profession and discussing some of her own professional examples (particularly at "Super Dinky College").  However, sometimes responses to criticism appeared to be dogmatic. Even so, I wouldn't mind seeing more from time to time.

I agree that Polly did sometimes have useful and interesting things to say. I think the response to criticism went beyond dogmatism, though. If you disagreed with anything she said you were deluded at best, and possibly had malicious intentions. At any rate, you were dangerous and you had to be destroyed. It's quieter on here, but I actually think there have been some interesting and useful discussions and it's nice to know that you can write something and come back to find some thoughtful responses without having to worry that you'll find some unpleasant personal attack.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: marshwiggle on June 15, 2023, 10:37:14 AM
Quote from: Caracal on June 15, 2023, 08:06:47 AM
Quote from: Ruralguy on June 14, 2023, 07:46:59 AMOne thing I have noticed among academics is that even scientists engage in "magical thinking" such as "we will always have at least the number of tenure track positions we have now, no matter what the circumstances."

Almost all academics go through "administrators are evil" phases, and will rarely  *fairly* examine the reasons why certain decisions were made.  Granted, many administrators go through the "faculty are spoiled brats and not as smart as they think they are" phase as well.

I bring this up because I think Polly often did a good job at examining some of these issues by revealing the state of the profession and discussing some of her own professional examples (particularly at "Super Dinky College").  However, sometimes responses to criticism appeared to be dogmatic. Even so, I wouldn't mind seeing more from time to time.

I agree that Polly did sometimes have useful and interesting things to say. I think the response to criticism went beyond dogmatism, though. If you disagreed with anything she said you were deluded at best, and possibly had malicious intentions. At any rate, you were dangerous and you had to be destroyed. It's quieter on here, but I actually think there have been some interesting and useful discussions and it's nice to know that you can write something and come back to find some thoughtful responses without having to worry that you'll find some unpleasant personal attack.

If Polly was guilty of this, then there are still more than enough to take her place. (Although perhaps not with the same views as she expressed.)
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Caracal on June 15, 2023, 06:17:03 PM
Quote from: marshwiggle on June 15, 2023, 10:37:14 AM
Quote from: Caracal on June 15, 2023, 08:06:47 AM
Quote from: Ruralguy on June 14, 2023, 07:46:59 AMOne thing I have noticed among academics is that even scientists engage in "magical thinking" such as "we will always have at least the number of tenure track positions we have now, no matter what the circumstances."

Almost all academics go through "administrators are evil" phases, and will rarely  *fairly* examine the reasons why certain decisions were made.  Granted, many administrators go through the "faculty are spoiled brats and not as smart as they think they are" phase as well.

I bring this up because I think Polly often did a good job at examining some of these issues by revealing the state of the profession and discussing some of her own professional examples (particularly at "Super Dinky College").  However, sometimes responses to criticism appeared to be dogmatic. Even so, I wouldn't mind seeing more from time to time.

I agree that Polly did sometimes have useful and interesting things to say. I think the response to criticism went beyond dogmatism, though. If you disagreed with anything she said you were deluded at best, and possibly had malicious intentions. At any rate, you were dangerous and you had to be destroyed. It's quieter on here, but I actually think there have been some interesting and useful discussions and it's nice to know that you can write something and come back to find some thoughtful responses without having to worry that you'll find some unpleasant personal attack.

If Polly was guilty of this, then there are still more than enough to take her place. (Although perhaps not with the same views as she expressed.)

In the world, sure, but I haven't really seen it here lately. There's sometimes some disagreement and it occasionally gets a little grumpy or passionate, but I haven't seen it become personal in the way it used to get on here. It would be silly to argue that you can't take some arguments or opinions as the result of malign intentions or willful ignorance, but I only want to arrive at that conclusion as a last resort when more charitable interpretations fail.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Caracal on June 16, 2023, 04:02:17 AM
At any rate, I don't think we need to rehash stuff. I guess it would be nice if we got some new users, but I do think there's something to be said for calmer and smaller.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: downer on June 16, 2023, 04:21:18 AM
I'd say the main advantage to more contributors is to increase the chance of finding people to do the work to run the site, so it isn't left to the goodwill and availability of basically two people.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Myword on June 19, 2023, 10:23:11 AM
 Well, I see some nice changes since I last logged in. Except the print is smaller.

My  interest is in Research Scholarship and nothing much new happens..


                           
the forum would be livelier if people would post open ended questions on academic concerns that we have opinions on...general, personal as if a survey. What if--- Why do-- Do you ever--
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: eigen on June 19, 2023, 06:25:09 PM
As a note, I wonder if we might consider breaking some of our super long threads into those by season, if not month?

A few people mentioned trying to move over here from Reddit recently, and that it felt very hard to get started because most of the active threads were multi-year discussions to catch up on.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Hibush on June 19, 2023, 06:56:24 PM
Quote from: namazu on June 12, 2023, 11:18:19 PMNot Parasaurolophus, but if I search for higher education forum it's result 4 in Google for me. 
Number 1 at DuckDuckGo! I get #6 at Google, with the Facebook Higher Ed Forum at #3.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: dismalist on June 19, 2023, 09:40:26 PM
Quote from: eigen on June 19, 2023, 06:25:09 PMAs a note, I wonder if we might consider breaking some of our super long threads into those by season, if not month?

A few people mentioned trying to move over here from Reddit recently, and that it felt very hard to get started because most of the active threads were multi-year discussions to catch up on.

It's true, some threads just don't die, and hell they should! Reminds me of the old fora on which somebody was often called "the thread killer" [don't remember who] and was appealed to from time to time. 

For current participants, it'd be hopefully enough to know, with Bismarck, that the trick is knowing when to stop!
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Parasaurolophus on June 19, 2023, 10:19:57 PM
Quote from: eigen on June 19, 2023, 06:25:09 PMAs a note, I wonder if we might consider breaking some of our super long threads into those by season, if not month?

A few people mentioned trying to move over here from Reddit recently, and that it felt very hard to get started because most of the active threads were multi-year discussions to catch up on.

That could certainly be done. I can close a few and re-open them as summer threads on the 21, to see how that goes.


Quote from: dismalist on June 19, 2023, 09:40:26 PMIt's true, some threads just don't die, and hell they should! Reminds me of the old fora on which somebody was often called "the thread killer" [don't remember who] and was appealed to from time to time. 


The_Fiona
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: marshwiggle on June 20, 2023, 05:22:41 AM
Quote from: Parasaurolophus on June 19, 2023, 10:19:57 PM
Quote from: eigen on June 19, 2023, 06:25:09 PMAs a note, I wonder if we might consider breaking some of our super long threads into those by season, if not month?

A few people mentioned trying to move over here from Reddit recently, and that it felt very hard to get started because most of the active threads were multi-year discussions to catch up on.

That could certainly be done. I can close a few and re-open them as summer threads on the 21, to see how that goes.


I have no idea what that means.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Parasaurolophus on June 20, 2023, 07:18:39 AM
Quote from: marshwiggle on June 20, 2023, 05:22:41 AM
Quote from: Parasaurolophus on June 19, 2023, 10:19:57 PM
Quote from: eigen on June 19, 2023, 06:25:09 PMAs a note, I wonder if we might consider breaking some of our super long threads into those by season, if not month?

A few people mentioned trying to move over here from Reddit recently, and that it felt very hard to get started because most of the active threads were multi-year discussions to catch up on.

That could certainly be done. I can close a few and re-open them as summer threads on the 21, to see how that goes.


I have no idea what that means.


The 21 is the usual benchmark for the changing of the seasons. On June 21, it will be summer.

Or do you mean the procedure in question? I will close some overlarge threads. And then post a new thread by the same title with a seasonal designation.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: dismalist on June 20, 2023, 12:43:58 PM
Quote from: Parasaurolophus on June 20, 2023, 07:18:39 AM
Quote from: marshwiggle on June 20, 2023, 05:22:41 AM
Quote from: Parasaurolophus on June 19, 2023, 10:19:57 PM
Quote from: eigen on June 19, 2023, 06:25:09 PMAs a note, I wonder if we might consider breaking some of our super long threads into those by season, if not month?

A few people mentioned trying to move over here from Reddit recently, and that it felt very hard to get started because most of the active threads were multi-year discussions to catch up on.

That could certainly be done. I can close a few and re-open them as summer threads on the 21, to see how that goes.


I have no idea what that means.


The 21 is the usual benchmark for the changing of the seasons. On June 21, it will be summer.

Or do you mean the procedure in question? I will close some overlarge threads. And then post a new thread by the same title with a seasonal designation.

You don't need to post a new thread with the same title. If somebody misses his or her thread s/he can post a thread with  another name.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: marshwiggle on June 20, 2023, 01:34:22 PM
Quote from: dismalist on June 20, 2023, 12:43:58 PM
Quote from: Parasaurolophus on June 20, 2023, 07:18:39 AM
Quote from: marshwiggle on June 20, 2023, 05:22:41 AM
Quote from: Parasaurolophus on June 19, 2023, 10:19:57 PM
Quote from: eigen on June 19, 2023, 06:25:09 PMAs a note, I wonder if we might consider breaking some of our super long threads into those by season, if not month?

A few people mentioned trying to move over here from Reddit recently, and that it felt very hard to get started because most of the active threads were multi-year discussions to catch up on.

That could certainly be done. I can close a few and re-open them as summer threads on the 21, to see how that goes.


I have no idea what that means.


The 21 is the usual benchmark for the changing of the seasons. On June 21, it will be summer.

Or do you mean the procedure in question? I will close some overlarge threads. And then post a new thread by the same title with a seasonal designation.

You don't need to post a new thread with the same title. If somebody misses his or her thread s/he can post a thread with  another name.

What happens to a thread that's "closed"? I guess it will drop off the leader board after a few days if it's not pinned somewhere. If someone wants to start a new one, it could be tedious for a while for people who remember the old one and want to find it to quote from it.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: dismalist on June 20, 2023, 01:56:22 PM
Quote from: marshwiggle on June 20, 2023, 01:34:22 PM
Quote from: dismalist on June 20, 2023, 12:43:58 PM
Quote from: Parasaurolophus on June 20, 2023, 07:18:39 AM
Quote from: marshwiggle on June 20, 2023, 05:22:41 AM
Quote from: Parasaurolophus on June 19, 2023, 10:19:57 PM
Quote from: eigen on June 19, 2023, 06:25:09 PMAs a note, I wonder if we might consider breaking some of our super long threads into those by season, if not month?

A few people mentioned trying to move over here from Reddit recently, and that it felt very hard to get started because most of the active threads were multi-year discussions to catch up on.

That could certainly be done. I can close a few and re-open them as summer threads on the 21, to see how that goes.


I have no idea what that means.


The 21 is the usual benchmark for the changing of the seasons. On June 21, it will be summer.

Or do you mean the procedure in question? I will close some overlarge threads. And then post a new thread by the same title with a seasonal designation.

You don't need to post a new thread with the same title. If somebody misses his or her thread s/he can post a thread with  another name.

What happens to a thread that's "closed"? I guess it will drop off the leader board after a few days if it's not pinned somewhere. If someone wants to start a new one, it could be tedious for a while for people who remember the old one and want to find it to quote from it.


The idea is to kill threads, not keep them alive! :-)
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: marshwiggle on June 20, 2023, 02:05:05 PM
Quote from: dismalist on June 20, 2023, 01:56:22 PMThe idea is to kill threads, not keep them alive! :-)

Oh, the threadality! Won't someone think of the threads?!?
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: Parasaurolophus on June 20, 2023, 02:29:37 PM
Quote from: marshwiggle on June 20, 2023, 01:34:22 PMWhat happens to a thread that's "closed"? I guess it will drop off the leader board after a few days if it's not pinned somewhere. If someone wants to start a new one, it could be tedious for a while for people who remember the old one and want to find it to quote from it.


It just becomes impossible to add new replies to the thread, and yeah, it drops down the page over time. It can be re-opened at any time.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: dismalist on June 20, 2023, 03:30:41 PM
Quote from: Parasaurolophus on June 20, 2023, 02:29:37 PM
Quote from: marshwiggle on June 20, 2023, 01:34:22 PMWhat happens to a thread that's "closed"? I guess it will drop off the leader board after a few days if it's not pinned somewhere. If someone wants to start a new one, it could be tedious for a while for people who remember the old one and want to find it to quote from it.


It just becomes impossible to add new replies to the thread, and yeah, it drops down the page over time. It can be re-opened at any time.

Ooooh, fantastic! Then if someone requests reopening the thread, you can take a coupla' days processing and handling!
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: ciao_yall on June 20, 2023, 04:27:02 PM
Quote from: dismalist on June 20, 2023, 03:30:41 PM
Quote from: Parasaurolophus on June 20, 2023, 02:29:37 PM
Quote from: marshwiggle on June 20, 2023, 01:34:22 PMWhat happens to a thread that's "closed"? I guess it will drop off the leader board after a few days if it's not pinned somewhere. If someone wants to start a new one, it could be tedious for a while for people who remember the old one and want to find it to quote from it.


It just becomes impossible to add new replies to the thread, and yeah, it drops down the page over time. It can be re-opened at any time.

Ooooh, fantastic! Then if someone requests reopening the thread, you can take a coupla' days processing and handling!

Or you can just search for a keyword and it should pop up. Then post and it will go back to the beginning.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: marshwiggle on June 20, 2023, 05:11:50 PM
Quote from: ciao_yall on June 20, 2023, 04:27:02 PM
Quote from: dismalist on June 20, 2023, 03:30:41 PM
Quote from: Parasaurolophus on June 20, 2023, 02:29:37 PM
Quote from: marshwiggle on June 20, 2023, 01:34:22 PMWhat happens to a thread that's "closed"? I guess it will drop off the leader board after a few days if it's not pinned somewhere. If someone wants to start a new one, it could be tedious for a while for people who remember the old one and want to find it to quote from it.


It just becomes impossible to add new replies to the thread, and yeah, it drops down the page over time. It can be re-opened at any time.

Ooooh, fantastic! Then if someone requests reopening the thread, you can take a coupla' days processing and handling!

Or you can just search for a keyword and it should pop up. Then post and it will go back to the beginning.

If I understand correctly, since the post can only be to the "new" thread, the old one will stay buried.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: eigen on June 20, 2023, 05:31:05 PM
Just have the last post in a past thread link to the new one, and the first post in the new thread link to the old one.

Like an ouroboros.
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: dismalist on June 20, 2023, 05:40:54 PM
Quote from: eigen on June 20, 2023, 05:31:05 PMJust have the last post in a past thread link to the new one, and the first post in the new thread link to the old one.

Like an ouroboros.

The ouroboros eats its own tail. Presumably it dies. This is what threads have to do!
Title: Re: Why so quiet?
Post by: ciao_yall on August 07, 2023, 09:00:46 AM
Reviving this thread after having deleted the sinkhole known as reddit.

The professor thread - since I don't teach anymore, I don't have much to say or learn regarding the topics being posted.

The rest was just not making me be a better person. And wasting my time reading about other people's bad behavior and dumb posts from other parts of the interwebs.

The final straw was when I read something a bit cuckoo on LinkedIn and thought about posting it to /linkedinlunatics or /linkedincringe and decided it was probably better that I stop perusing LinkedIn.

So my social media is you all, and a focused use of Facebook. Now to stop clicking on "listicles" but one thing at a time...