Your help is needed to make these Community pages easier and more effective.

[Richard _001]

I want feedback about the functionality, technical stuff of this Community forum. I've had another tweak around the place today, reorganising the boards, but it needs more. 

So my questions are:

1. What do you like?
2. What's irritating and would like to fix or change?
3. What would you like to be able to do?

I'm bracing myself for a lot of constructive criticism, I know there is quite a lot that's ropey about how it works here, but it's time I stopped just pulling at the weeds and really dug out the roots and all and got it working better

For now a few tips:
You can change your PROFILE so:
1. The most recent postings appear at the top of a thread 
2. You automatically get an e-mail alert when someone replies to a thread you have started or contributed to.
3. You can link to pictures hosted elsewhere and upload small images here.

Thanks. I'll do my best. Any one with an IT head on their shoulders and a bit of time, do step forward too, I may need some help. Perhaps we need a board for technical enquiries, help and advice in the forum so those more experienced on here can help others in matters that are not just gardening related?

Thanks

Richard

 

[cannonsblazing]

The flowers that turn red when you have unread posts don't always turn red. That's about the only thing I can come up with.

[bulbil321]

Richard, you do a fantastic job running your site! The only thing that comes to mind is on the Regional Boards page the most resent posting is NOT the most resent posting to the forums. Go figure. I was trying to use this page to keep up the latest posts but after posting myself and not seeing it there, for days if ever, as the most resent post I've had to figure something out a bit more time consuming to get the same result. Little problem but I bet the fix is in the software where you can't get at it.   
bulbil321
http://socalguerrillagardening.org/

[bulbil321]

Richard,
I have a question - what do the stars under our names on our post represent? I thought they had something to do with our number posts but I have 3 and others with more posts have less stars. Just a little curious.
bulbil321
http://socalguerrillagardening.org/

[tampopo]

Richard,
I have a question - what do the stars under our names on our post represent? I thought they had something to do with our number posts but I have 3 and others with more posts have less stars. Just a little curious.

yeah, I've thought that myself for ages...

[tampopo]

You could combine Oakland/Alameda and start a separate page for Sacramento.


http://www.epodunk.com/cgi-bin/genInfo.php?locIndex=10615

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alameda_County,_California

What happened the map?

I find that the flowers DO change colour when you've read a post.

[Richard _001]

OK so I've taken some of your advice:
- Modified the Californian boards
- Checked out the odd star rating thing and discovered a glitch so I've made it simpler, we're all just one star people and there's no link with the number of posts you make, only admin differences.
- Had a look into the flowers changing colour - they are meant to depending on the freshness and hotness of the topic - and I think it is working

But I have a feeling this forum needs to be engineered better so that it's easier to post pictures, contact people, customise, see what's going on etc.

Any feedback or offers of IT help welcome. We can't loose the content that's here, but if there's a better simpler way of having this Community forum, I'm all ears.

Richard

[cannonsblazing]

The flowers have been working just fine for a while, it was probably just my computer. 

[tampopo]

I made a bit of an error.

I should have said San Jose instead of Sacramento. There are several posts from East San Jose and South San Jose, four in all.  None from Sacramento (state capital).  Wouldn't it be handier to keep the San Jose posts together?

[Joanne Lee]

How do we get our troop number?

[Joanne Lee]

It'll be great to be able to post pictures in our posts... like I was reading a thread, and Backyard in US, UK, Aus, and malaysia is very different. So if we could post pictures... better right?

Also some plants have very very different names in different parts of the world. Pictures could explain better than words...

[tampopo]

Joanne,

I use Photobucket. But you could also use something like Image shack. There must be dozens of photo hosting sites, like Flickr etc.

I'd be interested to see your locale

t.

Monty Don's, Around the World in 80 Gardens, programme 10, : 76 + 77
http://www.bbc.co.uk/gardening/tv_and_radio/aroundtheworld_index6.shtml#programme_ten

http://www.greenculturesg.com/
http://www.nparks.gov.sg/cms/

He visited Singapore and spoke to a chap who for all intents and purposes, guerrilla gardened the area outside his apartment. MD was amazed he got a monthly crop, instead of an annual crop in the UK. Here is the Amazon link to the accompanying book.

http://www.amazon.com/Around-World-Gardens-Monty-Don/dp/0297844504/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1248536027&sr=1-1

[liddlelur]

Hi Richard
I belong to an international group called freecycle.org which is a non-profit international charity dedicated to stopping good stuff going to landfill where everything offered or asked for is completely free. I've just posted information here on the site where members can get what they need to get guerilla gardening I'm not very techy but I can post on our moderators group for help for you. We have tons of IT wizzards who are always happy to help. So if you send me your questions and a contact email I'll post asking for help with making your community pages easier.
Regards
Liz

[gingeroof]

Richard,

Been having a gander around the forums and i have noticed quite a growing trend in the number of posts relating to food. Do you think it would be a good idea to look at a thread dedicated to GGing food? I am paticulary intrested in fruit and nut trees as i am currently studying for my MSc in arboricultre and urban forestry (refrencing your book quite a bit for a couple of papers and my head of dept has even bought a copy!) and it seems quite a few others do too!

Ruth

[Rebecca Jackson]

I'd love to have two particular things:  A calendar showing planned digs and the general location or a contact person.  If, while I'm out of town for a vacation, I could join in with a GG foray, that would be great.  I'd also love to have the troops on a clickable map, since many people in Connecticut are less than five miles from my home, and most of Massachusetts is far enough to require fueled transport.

Also, when I go to the boards, I'd love to be able to see immediately which boards have responses to things I've posted.  I know I can find that now if I poke through the boards, and I know I can have it sent to my email, but I don't respond immediately to those emails, so they disappear into the pile, and it takes forever to look through all the boards and see if something I've posted to has a response.

Thanks for all you do to make this site useful.  I connected with someone near me the first time I logged on, and that's really encouraging!

[Richard _001]

Hi Rebecca
All good suggestions, I wish I could grant them, but the  freeware used to run this forum is a bit clunky and there's not a lot I can change - I was perhaps a bit silly to suggest I could! Here's a tip, in case you hadn't tracked this improvement down. You can make the most recent posts in a board appear at the top, and not the bottom, by clicking on PROFILE at the top of the screen. Then click "Look and Layout Preferences" in the menu coloum on the left. There are various check boxes which you can tick to get messages coming to the top.

[Richard _001]

I got distracted last week and started uploading a load more avatars of flowers graphics I had on my computer. Perhaps it was all the talk about avatar the film, it made me think of the original meaning of the word. So if you want a picture on your profile postings go to PROFILE (button at the top of the page), then go to "Forum Profile Information" on the left hand side and then you can assign yourself any of the pics from the folders or upload your own. The new ones are in 'Plants Illustrated".

[diasthema]

Could the Reading board get folded into Berkshire?  Thanks.

[cannonsblazing]

As you may have noticed (who hasn't?) , there's a huge problem with spammers on the forum. Is there any way to verify new members before they get access to the forum? Verify by human, I mean, those letters you have to read in a box aren't doing much good, bots can read those. I remember some other forum using the same or similar template/model as this one, where you have to "apply" before getting access.

Sorting out spammers by looking at username is easy, I'd gladly help out!

Because I think that if you're a new forum member (real one), seeing more new spam messages than real messages kind of puts you off.

I love the forum. But it needs a proper spring cleaning!   

[Richard _001]

Totally agree, and I've got a couple of hard working volunteers weeding almost daily to remove the spammers. The problem as I see it is the technology this forum is based on. Despite upgrades and visual verification it still seems to let spammers sign up. I hadn't considered the idea of manually verifying people. That would take someone dedicated to administering applications, and me working out if this is possible with the technology here... unless Cannonsblazing, you're offering. Do you know about this kind of stuff?

[cannonsblazing]

I'm not an expert on technology, no. So I don't know how to actually make it possible.

I've replied also to Niloufer's PM, and like I said I'd be glad to help out as much as I can!

[tampopo]

moi aussi

[Niloufer]

Great to hear from Cannonsblazing and Tampopo.  Richard will be in touch tomorrow.  If you need any clarification then Buddleiabill and I are standing by.

Thanks

[cannonsblazing]

Any news?