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Post by Ranger on Jan 7, 2015 16:59:51 GMT
Hope that everybody had a wonderful Christmas! On a note somewhat related to the point I made before, I notice that whenever I come onto the website there are almost always several people viewing the different boards, at least according to the main page. I think that this number might be a little bit lower now that one has to register (going from low double digits down to single digits) but nonetheless there appears to be a substantial number of people who read these boards without contributing. My point is, I wonder if there is a way for the admins to check the statistics on this proboards site to see whether or not there has been a drop in the numbers taking the time to read since it became necessary to register, and indeed to see where these viewers are coming from so as to ascertain how people come across the boards. I know that it is often possible to view these statistics if one runs their own website; does proboards allow this? I still think that it would be good to find out if it's possible to allow viewing (as opposed to commenting) without registration (but I appreciate that the admins might have a lot on their plate at the moment!)
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Post by Ranger on Jan 7, 2015 17:11:53 GMT
For example, I notice that one of the difficulties raised was that of derogatory messages about named individuals in the Shoutbox. According to this page, it's possible to restrict the use of the Shoutbox to registered members only, or indeed to get rid of it altogether (perhaps not a bad idea since nobody really seems to use it, but that's not up to me) www.proboards.com/admin-guide/forum-settings/shoutboxThe restriction of requiring new members to be approved apparently prevents those who aren't registered from posting, so then having either restricted or disabled the shoutbox the forum could be opened again for viewing without registration? I hope that Hibernicus and any other admins don't mind me going on about this, I just think it would be important for attracting new members where possible.
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Post by assisi on Jan 9, 2015 22:13:31 GMT
For example, I notice that one of the difficulties raised was that of derogatory messages about named individuals in the Shoutbox. According to this page, it's possible to restrict the use of the Shoutbox to registered members only, or indeed to get rid of it altogether (perhaps not a bad idea since nobody really seems to use it, but that's not up to me) www.proboards.com/admin-guide/forum-settings/shoutboxThe restriction of requiring new members to be approved apparently prevents those who aren't registered from posting, so then having either restricted or disabled the shoutbox the forum could be opened again for viewing without registration? I hope that Hibernicus and any other admins don't mind me going on about this, I just think it would be important for attracting new members where possible. As a frequent reader, but only an occasional poster, I preferred the idea of viewing without logging in. I would think less people will view this site if they feel the need to register, which is a pity. Could the need to login be reversed, back to the original state, and the cause of he problem, the Shoutbox be closed?
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Post by hibernicus on Jan 11, 2015 0:21:33 GMT
As recent posters on this thread have surmised, I am extremely busy at present but I will deal with the question of registration and the shoutbox sometime in the next week. Thanks for all your contributions. In the meantime, if anyone else has views on this issue please post them to this thread.
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Post by hibernicus on Feb 5, 2015 23:25:48 GMT
I won't be posting for a few days because of a combination of work pressure and personal matters (nothing serious). When I get back I'll try to pick out a new saint for February and to deal with the shoutbox and reopening the forum. If anyone has strong opinions about whether they prefer this forum to revert to being "open" or to remain closed, can they please post their views on this thread as soon as possible?
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Post by maolsheachlann on Feb 6, 2015 0:09:43 GMT
Definitely open.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 6, 2015 12:12:14 GMT
I would say open, though perhaps put control on the Shoutbox or just remove it entirely.
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Post by shane on Feb 10, 2015 20:15:32 GMT
Can I please suggest making this forum open to non-members? It is a useful resource and deserves a broad audience.
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Post by hibernicus on Feb 13, 2015 20:49:46 GMT
As you can see, it has been reopened to non-members. I have not been able to close down the shoutbox, however; the tab to administer it just isn't where the Help linked to by Ranger says it should be. I'll just have to keep a close eye on it unless/until I work out some way to shut it down.
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Post by maolsheachlann on Mar 7, 2015 19:30:53 GMT
Why are there no women posting on this forum? How can we get some women contributors or encourage female lurkers to post? It's quite a striking absence, considering how many Catholic female bloggers there are. (Lots.) I think it would be better with more female perspectives-- complementarity of the sexes and all that.
I realise the humour of putting this under 'housekeeping', but it seemed to be the right thread.
Apologies if I am assuming any female contributor is male.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 11, 2015 11:57:55 GMT
You have a point, though I don't suppose there's a whole lot that can be done about it. Any attempt at trying to welcome in females would probably be seen as a bit desperate. I suppose you could wonder why the forum isn't more active number-wise in general. Either people don't know about the forums, or they just don't have time for them, or else just don't care to participate.
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Post by Ranger on Mar 15, 2015 17:35:09 GMT
I do think that perhaps what people are often looking for in a Catholic Board is satisfied by the boards at http://www.catholicanswers.com; I know of some Irish Catholics who post over there. It concerns topics that deal with the Church as a whole, although being English-speaking it has a heavy American slant. I think if people want answers to basic questions of faith, morals, apologetics, vocational discernment etc., they tend to go there as it's a big active board. I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing that they don't come here for those things; Catholic Answers can fulfil those needs just as well for Ireland as it can for the US and they have a full-time staff I believe of trained catechists who include religious. This leaves boards like this free to fulfil other purposes, which here I think means attempting to deal with specifically Irish questions in an intellectually rigorous way (I don't mean that in a big-headed kind of way, I mean that the topics, questions and solutions here are more academically inclined rather than purely devotional). However I'd agree it would be good to have other people involved, but I think that we are few enough as it is in Ireland. I've pointed these boards out to others who I think would be interested and able to contribute but often they don't seem to have the time to dedicate to a discussion.
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Post by maolsheachlann on Mar 15, 2015 20:38:21 GMT
Ranger no need to be modest, I do think you are intellectually rigorous.
I actually wonder if you are scaring people away with too much intellectual rigour; I've tried to balance this out in my own posts.
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Post by Ranger on Mar 15, 2015 21:04:29 GMT
The thing about you, Maolsheachlann, is that I can never tell if you're being serious or not (But don't put yourself down )
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Post by Young Ireland on Mar 16, 2015 17:55:56 GMT
I do think that perhaps what people are often looking for in a Catholic Board is satisfied by the boards at http://www.catholicanswers.com; I know of some Irish Catholics who post over there. It concerns topics that deal with the Church as a whole, although being English-speaking it has a heavy American slant. I think if people want answers to basic questions of faith, morals, apologetics, vocational discernment etc., they tend to go there as it's a big active board. I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing that they don't come here for those things; Catholic Answers can fulfil those needs just as well for Ireland as it can for the US and they have a full-time staff I believe of trained catechists who include religious. This leaves boards like this free to fulfil other purposes, which here I think means attempting to deal with specifically Irish questions in an intellectually rigorous way (I don't mean that in a big-headed kind of way, I mean that the topics, questions and solutions here are more academically inclined rather than purely devotional). However I'd agree it would be good to have other people involved, but I think that we are few enough as it is in Ireland. I've pointed these boards out to others who I think would be interested and able to contribute but often they don't seem to have the time to dedicate to a discussion. I broadly agree with Ranger's analysis. One thing I would suggest is to expand the number of boards in this forum, so that you might have one for prayer intentions, another for pro-life (with sub-forums for the different pro-life groups), another for general chat, etc. There is definitely room for a few more boards in both the Catholic and especially the Open Forums. If there is a greater choice of boards, people will probably be more likely to post more often. Another idea might be for Hibernicus to appoint somebody to look after the technical aspects of the board. In my own opinion, I think that men in general are more likely to post about politics and things like that, hence the emphasis on intellectual analysis on this board. There are drawbacks to expanding this board though: 1. The tight-knit community feeling will be lost to some extent as more people post and 2.The quality of posts will decrease, though people will be posting more often, as many have little time to devote to answers of length. That's what I think anyway.
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