New threads--nourishing them

[greybeard]

I notice new threads with potential arrive and disappear through lack of participation.

There are several reasons for this.

Threads only stay on the "front" page till newer ones displace them.
Thus people who would be interested in the content may not even be aware of them.

If you have something of interest to say then you need to do more than just have an opening post.
Initially you probably have to post at least once a day and please thank all who took the trouble to comment or contribute---particularly those who have contrary opinions for they are the life blood of debate.

Not a good idea to have long opening posts.

Have a good look through previous existing threads--what you wish to say may have been well covered--then you can add to that thread or continue with a new one.

Sometimes great threads have slow beginnings then develop into long lasting places to post.
If you believe in your OP subject don’t give up on it too easily--nourish it, keep feeding new info/comments/videos into it.
You created it--therefore its your responsibility to keep it alive as long as you choose to.

Not my intention to maintain this thread but feel free to add to it.

Best wishes to new posters.

Chris

[DNA]

I agree with what you are saying Chris.


There are a lot of bad thread parents out there.
I've always been of the opinion that if you are not going to stick around and enter into a dialogue with people concerning the subject you posted, then you shouldn't have really posted it. I've never been a fan of folks who post an article and then never participate in the ensuing dialogue.
When folks do this, it makes me think they haven't even absorbed the information from the article or video they had just posted.
I've always looked at it like you should shepherd your threads so as they produce the most wool.

[greybeard]

Posted by DNA (here)
I agree with what you are saying Chris.


There are a lot of bad thread parents out there.
I've always been of the opinion that if you are not going to stick around and enter into a dialogue with people concerning the subject you posted, then you shouldn't have really posted it. I've never been a fan of folks who post an article and then never participate in the ensuing dialogue.
When folks do this, it makes me think they haven't even absorbed the information from the article or video they had just posted.
I've always looked at it like you should shepherd your threads so as they produce the most wool.

We are in agreement DNA
Its a question of respect too.

Chris

[zen deik]

Posted by DNA (here)
I agree with what you are saying Chris.


There are a lot of bad thread parents out there.
I've always been of the opinion that if you are not going to stick around and enter into a dialogue with people concerning the subject you posted, then you shouldn't have really posted it. I've never been a fan of folks who post an article and then never participate in the ensuing dialogue.
When folks do this, it makes me think they haven't even absorbed the information from the article or video they had just posted.
I've always looked at it like you should shepherd your threads so as they produce the most wool.

Some things make you go hmmm....

[Matt P]

Hmmm, indeed. It's the thread police. Perhaps some folks sometimes post news that doesn't necessarily require a discussion. No harm in that.

One thing I would LOVE to see, since I'm so busy and miss so much here and can't remember where good threads were (and then, poof, they're gone) is to not let them get pushed off the main page so fast. Maybe double or triple the new threads shown and have a link for the whole list of started threads so you can easily go back and find a thread. Kinda like (pardon the reference) Infowars, where at the bottom of the featured stories you can click on "featured stories archive" to view the entire list in the order it was posted.

Matt

[BlueHeron]

Posted by mpennery (here)

One thing I would LOVE to see, since I'm so busy and miss so much here and can't remember where good threads were (and then, poof, they're gone) is to not let them get pushed off the main page so fast. Maybe double or triple the new threads shown and have a link for the whole list of started threads so you can easily go back and find a thread ...

Matt

That's a really good idea. I'll second that, if its possible to alter the Forum that way.

[Bill Ryan]

Posted by mpennery (here)

get pushed off the main page so fast

That made me wonder: how are people usually searching for new posts??

I always go here. Nowhere else. The New Posts list goes back as long as you like.

[sunpaw]

I also use the 'New Posts' feature. This way I also see in which threads I posted.
If I consider writing something later: I bookmark the thread.

[zen deik]

Bookmarks work for me....

[seah]

All good points. I'm glad it's not just me that thinks presenting a contrary thought to a thread is a worthy contribution sometimes. If everyone is echoing the OP's point of view and/or offering thumbs up, there's little value, especially with the more controversial topics. My intention is never to disrupt but to get people to entertain other possible positions.

[shaberon]

It's the way of 98% of anything ever written online.

I love tabbed browsing; so I tab out a bunch of stuff and scan through. I try not to "necro" a discussion some people had and left behind. But I do think that some subjects are much more "permanent" than a discussion, so I used search to bump some things like the LENR devices and the Maxwell equations; they weren't being nourished, but didn't need a new thread.

There's also a lot of great stuff here that doesn't call for additions, like a lot of the Archaeology and Off-grid topics are amazing, but don't really require a response.

Overall, I agree, if you start a discussion-style thread and abandon it, that was kind of a waste. Argument is spiffy. I always loved Monty Python's shoe salesman routine which went something like:

An argument is an intellectual process designed to establish a proposition; contradiction is just the automatic gainsaying of anything the other person says.

This isn't an argument.

Yes it is.

You just contradicted me.

No I didn't.