New Forum Boards

[darkdep]

All,

You will notice a little rework on the forum boards over the next few days.  In the interest of making information easier to find now that traffic is so high, I'll be implementing "child boards" for several popular topics. 

Child Boards are like Subcategories; There are already child boards for African Cichlids, Plants, and Ponds under the Freshwater Discussions board.

How do they work?
If you don't want to deal with the sub-boards, don't!  You can continue to post in the general "Freshwater Discussions" or "Saltwater Discussions" forums just fine.  However, if you are posting on a topic where a child board exists, I'd encourage you to post in there; it will ensure that those looking for posts on specific categories will have to sift through less of what they are not interested in.

Those using the "Show Unread" feature to read new messages will notice the child board name next to the thread list.

If you have any questions or suggestions on appropriate sub-boards, now is the time

[beowulf]

So cool especially that I now have an African tank!!  How long before the new classifieds are in place?

[Shrimpy]

I suggest "child boards" in saltwater labelled FOWLR, REEF, DIY and NANO TANKS.

[beowulf]

I suggest "child boards" in saltwater labelled FOWLR, REEF, DIY and NANO TANKS.

Those sound good especially the nano as so many people seem to be getting them of late.

[darkdep]

No ETA yet on the new classifieds; The new software requires a lot of CSS work.

[succinctfish]

Is there a way to not see the child boards, are they collapsible or whatever the proper term is? Or do they always appear no matter what?

[busdriver]

Is there a way to not see the child boards, are they collapsible or whatever the proper term is? Or do they always appear no matter what?

From what I can see, they aren't collapsible.

[PaleoFishGirl]

I'm sure we'll get used to them Don't fear change, people, embrace it!

[Adam]

It's a great idea for organizing the forum...but having 4 different forums for the SW section that receives hardly 5 new topics a day seems a bit of overkill. 

Adam

[succinctfish]

I'm sure we'll get used to them Don't fear change, people, embrace it!

I personally don't care for the clutter, and the further division of the site.  I think we had enough forums, and if there is a way to have the child forums collapsible, it would be nice to be able to have that as an option.

[darkdep]

It's a bit of a work in progress; all your comments are being absorbed

[kennyman]

It's a great idea for organizing the forum...but having 4 different forums for the SW section that receives hardly 5 new topics a day seems a bit of overkill. 

Adam

I feel similar to Adam. I would go so far as to say that the childboards are not such a great idea in the SW forum at all.

On a related note. When I open a forum all I see now is stickies and child boards. It looks blah. Can we please prune the stickies?

[darkdep]

The stickies are being pruned along with a review of the forum rules, yes.

[mdugly]

Just a thought...  pruning for sake of real estate may not be best approach.
Might consider creating 1 sticky post, that is like a an index, or list of links to the (currently sticky) threads.

-mike

[Sue]

I like succint's idea of boards being collapsed so we don't all have to view it when we don't have time, and I like the decision to post in regular or specialized forums being left up to the the posters. 
The classified section with child boards, might be a really good idea.

[Laura]

Much as I appreciate the hard work on the forum, I've gotta give a thumbs-down to the sub-boards.  I find divided up boards more stagnant as the posts are broken up over various locations.  Also, I don't learn as much - I don't keep africans, so I wouldn't necessarily go to an african board, but I do flip through the new posts in the general freshwater and as a result, know more than I used to.
I like the simplicity of the previous format (but I really do appreciate the work!)

[darkdep]

There hasn't been much positive feedback on the child boards; therefore as of tonight they have been turfed.

However, I do feel there are some benefits at this time to some more focused forums given our content and that we are over 100,000 posts. 

I've put us back to a "flat" forum board listing, as this seems to be what most people prefer.  I have removed all the child boards that were not getting any interest, but have kept a few as they were either starting to be utilized or I felt the category would benefit from some specialization/focus.

New Forums:

- African Cichlids:  We have a large community of African keepers here.  Topics related to this large fish family should be put here.
- Plants:  Again, we have some very specialized plant keepers here and a lot of people learning.  All plant topics belong here.
- Ponds:  Although not yet being utilized, I would like to see all past and future Pond content in here.
- Saltwater Nano Setups:  A very common setup around here, I've decided a dedicated forum for Nanos was in order.
- Equipment / DIY:  As frequently requested, a forum dedicated to aquarium equipment and DIY designs.

This should be the last forum board adjustment for some time.  Please keep your comments rolling in.  Your thoughts help shape the site

[groan]

looks good apw!

i didnt mind the child boards (minority i guess) as it kept the main page clean but i can get used to anything pretty fast.

thanks for the specialization boards. they will be used well.

[PaleoFishGirl]

looks good apw!

i didnt mind the child boards (minority i guess) as it kept the main page clean but i can get used to anything pretty fast.

thanks for the specialization boards. they will be used well.

I agree 100% with groan, couldn't say it any better so I'll just quote him

[Shrimpy]

I agree 100% with groan, couldn't say it any better so I'll just quote him

Ditto.