Member Greetings/Goodbyes Forum Suggestion

[Konata]

I hope this topic is all right (and I hope there isn't a topic/forum about this already. I can't find one), I'm really skeptical when it comes to creating these kinds of things.

Just a suggestion. I've been on a couple of other forums and I thought the Member Introductions and Leavings Forum was a really nice asset to the board. I've noticed that many more members feel more welcome because of it, since they get their own nifty little thread where they can introduce themself and get greeted with a "Hello," "Welcome and read the rules," or "Hey, another (insert anime here) fan!"

And if people are leaving the forums, whether or not for a week to a month, or even forever, it might be nice to have a topic of their own so people actually know what's happening, instead of users having to wonder what ever happened to Poster # X, and why he/she stopped posting for X years. In those topics, I tend to see a "Thanks for Poster #Y because she's been so nice to me, and also to Poster #Z since he was so awesome. And lastly, thanks to the rest of you for being the super cool anime fans that you are!" And if you're one of them, you feel so special~ :'D

Anyways, point is, I think that OtakuBoards should have a Greetings and Goodbyes Forum~ Any contradictions, complaints, agreements, or other opinions on this suggestion?

Thanks for reading, I hope this isn't that bad of a topic.

So sorry m(_ _)m

[Desbreko]

[color=#4B0082]We actually had an introduction forum here for a long time until it got removed. You can read about it in the [url=http://www.otakuboards.com/otakupedia/?p=40][u]Newbie Lounge[/u][/url] Otakupedia article. We've eased up on the "no introduction threads" thing since then but I doubt we'll make a new intro forum any time soon.

We are, however, working to put together a welcome PM that will be sent to all new members upon registration. It should help people get acquainted with the boards without needing a whole forum dedicated to intro threads.[/color]

[Gavin]

[SIZE="1"]You're in the right forum for this Konata, but unfortunately Otaku[B]Boards[/B] already had a Newbie Lounge which fulfilled nearly the same function as the Introduction Forum you've suggested, and over time it simply decayed into mass spamming. As for the Goodbye Forum, well most people who've left normally leave their goodbye message in their signature as Goodbye messages are considered spam.

Personally I'd support an Introduction Forum if it could be prevented from going to hell with spam and had a dedicated welcoming committee. I have to admit on the few other boards that I've joined, I have found that an Intro forum where you're welcomed does make you feel much more welcome in the community.

[[b]Edit[/b]] Seems Des beat me to it.[/SIZE]

[Konata]

>_> Wow, I can't believe I missed that article while browsing the Otakupedia. Sorry I didn't see earlier; I used the Search OB function before I made the topic just in case there was something pertaining to the matter of introduction threads, but I got way too many results of irrelevant topics. Plus, I didn't use the keywords "Newbie Lounge", either D: (Hope I don't get in trouble for this topic, I would probably be scoring a lot of bannination points in some other places for creating a topic that has already been answered (ﾟДﾟ≡ﾟДﾟ) )

And I'm surprised the Newbie Lounge turned chaotic on that. At most of the other anime forums and boards I've been to, the General Discussion and Forum Games were the more chaotic, opposite of the Greetings and Goodbyes, ha-ha~ I understand though. If something went horribly wrong once, why do it again, expecting different results? Unless you had a different variable playing into it, but that's a whole other case.


[quote]As for the Goodbye Forum, well most people who've left normally leave their goodbye message in their signature as Goodbye messages are considered spam.[/quote]
So really, Goodbye Topics are spam? I can understand if it was a "hi leaving for a day kthxbai" thing, but if you're one of those long-time members, probably here since the beginning of OB's creation, and everyone knows you, because you've posted so much during the course of your time; over time though, things aren't the same anymore, or maybe you have higher priorities, or something, and you want to leave... I think it'd be fair if you got your own topic or what not, instead of having to leave OB with a "I'm leaving, forever~" in your signature. Maybe you'd get a few goodbyes by PM, but some people might not even notice your "goodbye" in your sig. Same goes for topics, people might not see your topics, but I think it's more noticeable.

Ha-ha, it's probably my weird culture, but I think it's sorta, more polite if you announce you're leaving, instead of just leaving behind the boards unannounced, never to return. And yes, signatures could play the role of announcing your leave, but it seems much too indirect because sigs are little notes at the bottom of your post, or as Wiki puts it, "a block of text automatically appended at the bottom of an... forum post. This has the effect of "signing off" the message. It is common practice for a signature block to consist of one or more lines containing some brief information on the author of the message." I still support the whole Goodbye Forum, but beggers can't be choosers. I think I'm way too new to this Board to be doing this, lol >_> I'm still a newbie, one of 8,000+ members of OB. ＿|￣|○

But that's awesome that you are making an Introductory PM system. I think it'd really help out a lot. It might even attract a few more members to post more, ha-ha.

I hope nobody hates me for this thread. 八(＾Д＾*)

[Sandy]

You're being way too cautious with us, Konata! ;D We don't bite... well, maybe nibble a little some times, but I can see from these two posts that you're an excellent addition to the personal and varied member base of our online community.

So take it easy, you've got nothing to worry about. This is a section for Suggestions & Feedback, so of course you can post those things here.

Concerning introductions and goodbyes, it's customary that members can include them to other posts as a [B]side note[/B]. Like in the RPG section that I moderate, it's only good if people mention long vacations or other absences in the game thread or at the Underground.

Likewise, new members can sign into RPGs saying "Hi, I'm new here. I'd love to join this game, so here's my character: (etc.)"

I think you can see why creating whole new threads for something that can be said in one sentence is rather pointless, am I right? ;D

I hope you'll stick around, and even venture to the Adventure Square sometime! Cheers!

- Sandy

[James]

[color=#606060]Goodbye topics aren't spam. Sorry for the confusion, Konata; there's nothing in our rules forbidding either goodbye threads or introduction threads.

Having said that, we would encourage people to "say goodbye" using their signatures. It's a bit neater that way (and there's probably more chance of people seeing it, honestly).

As for your suggestion, it isn't without merit. OtakuBoards did have a Newbie Lounge (as has been stated) but it became horribly spammy. However, it wasn't regulated at all...I can't really remember if it even had a Moderator.

There is room to consider a specific place for introductions in the future, definitely. We'll see how it goes. Just because an idea didn't work one time doesn't mean it should always be avoided in the future!

Thanks again for your suggestion, Konata. Nobody should be afraid to submit ideas - I am always on the look out for them, when it comes to OB! Hope you enjoy your stay here.[/color] :catgirl:

[Japan]

[COLOR="DarkRed"]I do not want to have an introduction forum. The signiture is the best place for the hi's, bye's, and whatever. I've been to other forums and I purposely avoid them because they are littered with spam and take too much of my time to bother with it.[/COLOR]

[2010DigitalBoy]

[COLOR="DarkOrange"]I think an introductory section wouldn't be too bad. I know that I personally PM most of the new members who interest me (Konata included) just to help them feel welcome, or tell them how glad I am to see cool new people XD

As for goodbye threads... no one ever leaves OB. EVER!!!![/COLOR]

[Horendithas]

[COLOR="Indigo"]Personally I like the method of simply jumping right in with one's posts instead of a thread/section dedicated to hi I'm new here. You really get to know the person much better or rather quicker in my opinion. It's fairly easy to spot the new arrivals without an introduction thread or section of the boards. ;)

I like it since it's very open in that you're always welcome here and that you don't have to be introduced to feel welcome. Like Sandy said it's easy to start off your posts, with hi I'm new here and then immediately launch into your opinion on the current topic.

As for goodbyes? That one I just don't see the point. If I ever leave a place I simply note it in my signature as well as pming those who I consider my friends. I have no plans to leave this place, but should that happen down the road, that's exactly how I'd do it.

Also I've said it before but an introduction forum would be wasted on a high quality-posting site like this one. It would not guarantee that introduction threads wouldn't be posted. [[SIZE="1"]the spammy ones that is[/SIZE]] It would also run the risk of encouraging the attitude that one needs to create such threads or must post in them first to get approval from the other members in order to join the current topics being discussed.

What I find most endearing about this site is that you can join a discussion without the need to introduce yourself. As most introduction threads mainly consist of spamming, [[SIZE="1"]at least the ones I've seen at other forums have[/SIZE]] adding one would be like taking a step backwards for this place instead of improving it. The current atmosphere of anyone can step right in and feel welcome far outweighs the need for a greetings/goodbye section of the boards. [[SIZE="1"]in my opinion that is[/SIZE]] People will welcome you here when you arrive, and others will miss you whether you say goodbye or not when you leave.[/COLOR]

[Gavin]

[quote name='James'][color=#606060]Goodbye topics aren't spam. Sorry for the confusion, Konata; there's nothing in our rules forbidding either goodbye threads or introduction threads.[/color][/quote]

[SIZE="1"]Ah my bad, I was nearly sure introduction and goodbye threads get locked when they're created. [/SIZE]

[quote name='James'][color=#606060]As for your suggestion, it isn't without merit. OtakuBoards did have a Newbie Lounge (as has been stated) but it became horribly spammy. However, it wasn't regulated at all...I can't really remember if it even had a Moderator.

There is room to consider a specific place for introductions in the future, definitely. We'll see how it goes. Just because an idea didn't work one time doesn't mean it should always be avoided in the future![/color][/quote]

[SIZE="1"]That would be my feeling on the issue as well, OB has grown a lot since the Newbie Lounge was deleted and I think as a community we've definitely gotten to the stage where people could post in an Introduction Lounge without spamming. As well as that it would probably give new members a chance to get to know people in the community in an area where they're comfortable.[/SIZE]

[James]

[color=#606060]Well I think the thing is, in the past, Newbie Lounge really had no structure.

One thought that occurred to me is that people always like to do surveys and talk about themselves - what if a new introduction forum included a list of questions that new members could answer? (Stuff like favourite colour, favourite TV shows, top five songs, etc). This way they are creating some non-spammy introduction threads and we are all simultaneously learning a lot about our new members at a glance.

The added benefit would be that by answering these questions, new members would be creating points of discussion for their intro threads - if you liked the same band or style of music, for instance, it would give you something to comment on (rather than just "Hi and welcome!" type stuff).

Although some past ideas were not successful I think they have to be taken in context as well. Newbie Lounge was really just a place to dump intro threads of all kinds - there was nothing interesting or innovative about it.

If it were given some basic structure and turned into a kind of game...I think that could make a difference.[/color]

[Retribution]

[size=1]An intro forum wouldn't be too useful, to be honest. A new member registers, says "Hello" and we say "Welcome!". Nine times out of ten, nothing new or original will be brought by the new member. I could see it getting pretty repetitious.

As for "goodbye" threads, I don't think they merit a forum of their own.

But I do think introductory and farewell threads should be allowed in general. We could certainly make an exception for an original new member who enters with a bang, or a returning Oldie. Likewise, I think it'd be fine if we let people post their goodbyes if they intended on leaving for an indefinite [perhaps even permanent] period of time. I think this is especially important if the member is a significant part of our community. They shouldn't have to put it in their signature and fade away.

But really, I don't see the usefulness of a Newbie Lounge at this point in time, but I'm always open to hear new ideas.[/size]

[Konata]

[quote name='Retribution'][size=1]An intro forum wouldn't be too useful, to be honest. A new member registers, says "Hello" and we say "Welcome!". Nine times out of ten, nothing new or original will be brought by the new member. I could see it getting pretty repetitious.[/size][/QUOTE]

Well, generally introduction forums serve its purpose by making it feel like new members are welcome. Usually when people register, it just feels uncomfortable because they might feel a bit lost since no one knows who they are (unless they got referred here or something) and it just feels plain awkward "barging" into a thread with a "HAY GUYS I LIKE *anime* TOO" (Not literally, but you get the point). If there is a member introduction thread, it's a bit different in most cases. For some, it's a default place to go, second for others (Forum Rules = #1 priority =P). Plus, what about that 1/10 that does bring something new or original? It might even help raise the ratio up a bit ( ﾟ▽ﾟ)

Sorta like what James said, maybe setting rules or a survey would help an introduction thread? So the responses are more of a "Welcome, you like *-----------* too? Who's your favorite character?", "Hey, I like to do that too! Can we see some of your works?" or "You seem like the kind of person that would like to go to the X Forum/Thread/etc" rather than "welcome", "hey", and "hi". I think that if there is a structure, it might not end up in ruin. As Thomas Hobbes said, "This natural proclivity of men, to hurt each other"~ Er... my point is, without structure, it's bound to be chaotic~ That's my belief anyway (,,ﾟДﾟ)

Thank you everyone for clarifying things for me~

[Gavin]

[quote name='James'][color=#606060]One thought that occurred to me is that people always like to do surveys and talk about themselves - what if a new introduction forum included a list of questions that new members could answer? (Stuff like favourite colour, favourite TV shows, top five songs, etc). This way they are creating some non-spammy introduction threads and we are all simultaneously learning a lot about our new members at a glance.

The added benefit would be that by answering these questions, new members would be creating points of discussion for their intro threads - if you liked the same band or style of music, for instance, it would give you something to comment on (rather than just "Hi and welcome!" type stuff).

Although some past ideas were not successful I think they have to be taken in context as well. Newbie Lounge was really just a place to dump intro threads of all kinds - there was nothing interesting or innovative about it.

If it were given some basic structure and turned into a kind of game...I think that could make a difference.[/color][/QUOTE]

[SIZE="1"]That's fairly similar to what I was thinking myself, and it would probably cut down on the "[I]Hi !! I love Naruto, Sasuke is teh sex !![/I]" kind of threads.

Probably the other thing that we need to try and eliminate this time around if we do an Introduction Forum as opposed to Newbie Lounge, which screams all kinds of everything welcomed, is the in-jokes used by greeters. I wasn't aware that was part of what brought down the old forum until I read the Otakupedia article. [/SIZE]

[quote name='Retribution'][size=1]An intro forum wouldn't be too useful, to be honest. A new member registers, says "Hello" and we say "Welcome!". Nine times out of ten, nothing new or original will be brought by the new member. I could see it getting pretty repetitious.[/size][/QUOTE]

[SIZE="1"]I disagree Alex, I think that having the new Introduction Forum as James has suggested it, where new members fill out a kind of survey would definitely create more original posts than just "Hello I'm new here on Otaku[b]Boards[/b]."

After all Alex, we were all new here on OB at one stage and I think each of us has brought something new and original to the site, which is still the case today or so I'd imagine.[/SIZE]

[Konata]

[quote name='Gavin'][SIZE="1"]Probably the other thing that we need to try and eliminate this time around if we do an Introduction Forum as opposed to Newbie Lounge, which screams all kinds of everything welcomed, is the in-jokes used by greeters. I wasn't aware that was part of what brought down the old forum until I read the Otakupedia article. [/SIZE][/QUOTE]
I totally agree. Inside jokes might act as an opposite effect when welcoming members. Instead of making the newbies feel like they're welcome, they might get discouraged or assume that the inside jokes are part of the boards' daily vocabulary or something. And that won't be good, since they'll probably some to a conclusion that they wouldn't fit in. (,,ﾟДﾟ)


[QUOTE][SIZE="1"]After all Alex, we were all new here on OB at one stage and I think each of us has brought something new and original to the site, which is still the case today or so I'd imagine.[/SIZE][/QUOTE]

I could be wrong, but I think Retribution was referring to those people (the 9/10 fraction) who would introduce themselves, maybe post in one or two topics, and then leave. Since there's usually a lot of them, at any forum.

[Gavin]

[quote name='Konata']I could be wrong, but I think Retribution was referring to those people (the 9/10 fraction) who would introduce themselves, maybe post in one or two topics, and then leave. Since there's usually a lot of them, at any forum.[/QUOTE]

[SIZE="1"]Ah fair enough, I probably should have made that assumption myself. On a side note, I actually did a little investigation on how many registered accounts there are with zero posts attached and it's a staggering 1328 people, compared to the 30 people with post counts between 1 and 10.[/SIZE]

[Horendithas]

[COLOR="Indigo"][quote name='Gavin'][SIZE="1"]Ah fair enough, I probably should have made that assumption myself. On a side note, I actually did a little investigation on how many registered accounts there are with zero posts attached and it's a staggering 1328 people, compared to the 30 people with post counts between 1 and 10.[/SIZE][/QUOTE]Actually that's not entirely accurate. If someone joins and posts (I wuv sessy so much!) With a ton of smilies attached, deleting said post returns their count back to zero. The same goes with spam and porn bots. They did post at one time, but now that count is zero due to the spammy/offending posts being removed. So the number of people who post once or twice and leave is much higher than 30. [/COLOR]

[Gavin]

[quote name='indifference'][COLOR="Indigo"]Actually that's not entirely accurate. If someone joins and posts (I wuv sessy so much!) With a ton of smilies attached, deleting said post returns their count back to zero. The same goes with spam and porn bots. They did post at one time, but now that count is zero due to the spammy/offending posts being removed. So the number of people who post once or twice and leave is much higher than 30. [/COLOR][/QUOTE]

[SIZE="1"]I knew that already, I was just amazed there were so many empty accounts, as I can't imagine we've had that many spammy posters and porn bots, but maybe I'm wrong.[/SIZE]

[Horendithas]

[COLOR="Indigo"][quote name='Gavin'][SIZE="1"]I knew that already, I was just amazed there were so many empty accounts, as I can't imagine we've had that many spammy posters and porn bots, but maybe I'm wrong.[/SIZE][/QUOTE]You're wrong. ;) Things will most likely change due to the upgrade and better plug ins to deal with advertising/porn bots. But until the change I was easily removing several per week and that does not count the ones that other Category Mods or Admins removed. I suppose the reason it's hard to imagine is that usually we get to them pretty quickly. So they rarely lasted more than say an hour or two on the boards before they were dealt with. [/COLOR]

[Gavin]

[quote name='indifference'][COLOR="Indigo"]You're wrong. ;) Things will most likely change due to the upgrade and better plug ins to deal with advertising/porn bots. But until the change I was easily removing several per week and that does not count the ones that other Category Mods or Admins removed. I suppose the reason it's hard to imagine is that usually we get to them pretty quickly. So they rarely lasted more than say an hour or two on the boards before they were dealt with. [/COLOR][/QUOTE]

[SIZE="1"]Heh, so I'm wrong, there really is a first time for everything. Just kidding. :p

Seriously on the whole zero post count accounts, I remember a while back James deleted a bunch of them that had never been used and assumed it was just the same case again. [/SIZE]

[James]

[color=#606060]I think we can start looking at implementing some new elements for security on the current version of OB and part of that might tie into creating an introduction forum.

I think we can probably give it a try at some point soon. It will need more of a structure than we had before though. It'll also need a couple of very hands-on Moderators.[/color]

[Boo]

[size=1]To go on with James' earlier post in the thread. We could, at least for now, make a "Who Are You?" thread in the Otaku Lounge with a list (like mentioned before) where people could just say their hellos by answering questions describing themselves. Plus, older members also get to tell about themselves. Aaaand, we could implement the repeating threads like "how did you choose your username?" or "how did you wind up here?" in the same list. How convenient is [i]that[/i]?[/size]

[Gavin]

[quote name='James'][color=#606060]I think we can start looking at implementing some new elements for security on the current version of OB and part of that might tie into creating an introduction forum.

I think we can probably give it a try at some point soon. It will need more of a structure than we had before though. It'll also need a couple of very hands-on Moderators.[/color][/QUOTE]

[SIZE="1"]Well I'm very pleased at this news, and hopefully time will show that this was a good idea after all. Maybe after a while we could implement a sort of mentoring system where some older members volunteer to show new members around.[/SIZE]

[Kanji]

Here's something from the perspective of a guy who just recently joined. A guy who should be asleep but is instead wasting time posting on forums, that is. You'll have to excuse any erroneous sentences. :animesigh

While it was initially jarring to see a place devoid of a Newbie Lounge, I've actually come to appreciate this feature. Personally, I've never been one for introductions, and frankly the quality of introductory posts on other anime havens seem to reflect a similar predicament. It's almost like an unwritten requirement to accomodate newcomers with such a forum, but it seems the vast majority of people aren't sure how to use this privelege to evoke enlightening or worthwhile conversation. From the sound of the Newbie Lounge article on Otakupedia, I can only assume that it eventually devolved into a similar mess.

Should you guys decide to bring it back with revampment and some tender loving care, that would be great. I especially like Boo's idea of a catch-all thread that would allow newcomers and members alike to post interesting tidbits about themselves.

However, I personally found the atmosphere of the place welcoming, and the lack of a newbie haven doesn't seem to be a detriment. Indeed, I enjoyed getting thrown headfirst into the water instead of starting out with just getting my feet wet (so to speak). Newbies don't get the royal treatment here, but they're encouraged to jump right into the fray. In the long run, I think this is the best way to get to know the community. I did a little bit of lurking, and with that I've become more familiar with the community than any welcome would do. I suppose it seems a stretch to assume that everyone who stumbles upon the place will possess a similar attention span, though.