*
Hello everyone. My name is David Kenney; I am the Manager of Internet
Operations here at The Taunton Press. I’ve been in my new position for
about a month now, and we have finally started to get a handle on our
current situation. We have arrived at a strategy for improving our
Discussion Boards, and I’d like to share it with you all.
This is not an excuse for the recent problems; we are simply trying to be
honest with you about the facts, what our plans will be in the future to
improve things, and what level of service you can expect from us in the
future.
Let me start by apologizing for the recent problems. We do hear
everything you have to say, and we are extremely grateful that you have
stuck with us for so long. The fact that you folks are the ones responsible
for the success of our products and the strength of the Taunton community
is not lost on us for one second.
Here’s our current problem: The vendor that hosts our Web site and
discussion boards and has provided all the maintenance and technical
support for the last three years has been bought out and is no longer in the
Web hosting business. We are now searching actively for a new hosting
company that can essentially pick up right where we’ve been dropped off.
On December 28, the discussion board message database became corrupt,
and as many of you are painfully aware, the boards were up and down
frequently over the next week. We are now back up, but unfortunately, the
posts from part of November and all of December have disappeared.
Because of the current level of support we are getting, these are unlikely to
return. (My apologies to the gentleman who, during that time, posted the
cure for male pattern baldness and other afflictions.)
So while I enjoyed reading your theories about the crash – a small Y2K
budget, a vast, deep-seated conspiracy to silence the voices of the brave
dedicated souls who frequent our boards – it was unfortunately just the
same technical problems that have been plaguing us for some time and for
which we now are currently unable to get adequate support.
Here’s what we’re doing to improve things:
A Dedicated Server
We will be moving the discussion boards to a server of their very own – to
a “discussion board farm” where all they do is run Web Crossings
Discussion Boards for other companies. This move will undoubtedly bring
a new level of performance and stability to the boards. Additionally,
removing the discussion boards from our web server will also increase the
performance and stability of our web site.
This separation will not affect the way you see our site and boards at all.
The boards will be down for a day while we move the content, and you
will need to update your bookmarks after that. (We’ll be back to let you
know when.)
Increased Staff
The New Media group will be hiring a new person to help deal with the
growing popularity of our boards and the technical and managerial issues
associated with that growth.
Better Moderation
The magazine groups will now be responsible for moderating their own
discussion boards. These new moderators will be making themselves
known on each of the boards over the coming weeks.
Support
Many of you who have been with us for a while have become used to a
level of service provided by a Web hosting company that gave us technical
support and fixes almost immediately. We also had a terrific moderator
who (often at the expense of his other duties) spent close to 75% his time
watching the boards, responding quickly to requests, and relaying
technical problems to our hosting vendor to get resolved.
I doubt that we can get back to that level of support. (Truthfully, I don’t
think we can afford to.) However, with the changes coming, we will
definitely see the level of support improve from where we’ve been
recently, but it will take some time as we go about implementing the
changes, and as the new moderators and support staff come up to speed.
We won’t be able to provide immediate responses to e-mail requests that
simulate a real-time dialog. Typical turn around time for e-mails is one to
two days.
So, here’s what you can expect from us in the future:
-more active participation from the moderators
-faster, more consistent acknowledgment of your requests
-better performance
-increased stability with fewer crashes
-more reliable technical support.
To finish up, our commitment is genuine, and I guarantee you’ll see
improvements in the coming months. All of us here at The Taunton Press
are extremely grateful and appreciative of the patience you have exhibited
and the loyalty you have shown. We will do our on going best to make
sure you have a well-supported, high-performance forum that is on a par
with the quality of the content that you folks post.
If anyone has any questions, I will try to follow up on any future postings,
but also please feel free to e-mail me at [email protected].
Additionally, I am always willing to communicate with folks through the
antiquated old telephone service. I can be reached at (800) 926-8776 x280.
Sincerely,
David
Replies
*
More helpful than moderation would be some editorial support to set aside FAQs based on the better archived threads -- casual users and newcomers would find this especially useful.
*David - A couple things -First - I have visited several discussion boards that had a "forum moderator" for any specific section of that board. My opinion was that virtually all of them turned into an "Ask Gerald" type of thing. Even when the moderator showed enough restraint to stay out of the discussion for awhile, invariably, they jump in, lay down the "facts", and that's the end of that discussion. If you guys are gonna have "forum moderators", make sure they do just that - moderate, but quietly. Or you will have nothing more than any of the rest of the lame boards on the web.Secondly - there seems to be more and more CAD topics coming up these days. I believe every business that expects to stay abreast of the industry will be using computers more and more. At least 1/2 of the regulars here are either in business now, or hope to be soon. I think there should be a section of the board dedicated to computers, like there is for business and tools.Thanks - Jim
*When you decide the dates the board will be down, would you please give us enough notice to book a room for a bit of a holiday with the wife. Thank you and best of luck.
*The new changes sound great...aside from the moderation. I agree with Jim that that seems to be the difference between this forum and all the rest. May I humbly suggest that this moderator be someone with a similar personality to Jim....The real thing would be nice? How about it Jim...Will you go for the career change? I'm sure we could donate a portion of the revenues from the woodshed tavern to cover his wages! L
*Sysop,
Joseph FuscoView Image"Whenever, therefore, people are deceived and form opinions wide of the truth, it is clear that the error has slid into their minds through the medium of certain resemblance's to that truth." Socrates
*Being computer illiterate, this whole thing still seems miraculous to me. Many thanks to Taunton and all y'all for making the forum possible.
*i "The fact that you folks are the ones responsible for the success of our products and the strength of the Taunton community is not lost on us for one second." i "We also had a terrific moderator who (often at the expense of his other duties) spent close to 75% his time watching the boards, responding quickly to requests, and relaying technical problems to our hosting vendor to get resolved. i I doubt that we can get back to that level of support. (Truthfully, I don't think we can afford to.) However, with the changes coming, we will definitely see the level of support improve from where we've been recently,. . . "Uh huh. . . -pm
*One thing that has been mentioned here a few times is an online chat, like AOL chat rooms; maybe for us, dedicated times would be okay, and of course the east-west time zones would be a little tricky. Just think about it.Good luck making a good thing better.Rich.
*I think I'm gonna have to agree with Patrick M on this one for now.
*I personally applaude your efforts, but I agree with everyone else regarding a moderator. I thought the board was fine as is. Now about that Breaktime get together this summer, is Tauton going to do the RIGHT thing and send a representitive? This is great press. Don't fail to recognize a good opportunity when you see it. And a computer for real time party postings during the event wouldn't hurt either. Must keep our missing comrades informed. How about a photographer? E-mail me if you need help organizing this. Bill Swales
*Send a representative????? Hell, they should be bankrolling it. Great Press indeed. .. this may be the first time anything like this has happened.We've all heard about i lonely heartsmeeting over the net and getting married, as well as stalkers etc...but when have a group like this been pulled together from around the world to get together for a party????If they have any marketing skills at all (and they seem to) the'll make serious hay out of this, all the networks will be there you can count on it. You guys are gonna make the news. . . count on it!!! And Taunton will quietly reap the rewards!!-pm
*PM, so which are you coming as? Lonely Heart or Stalker?What seems to be lost on you youngsters... is the old TAUNTON PRESS was largely reader-written.Taunton has editors to edit, photograph and obtain illustrations, but writers? No.The Discussion Boards followed the old, old format of FWW and FHB closer than the new magazines, and I dread, the new 'Boards. Check out some of the older Taunton compilations for the old magazine style... lots of Q&A.Hopefully, these spaces won't become a carefully crafted NewMedia site, very PC and slick; but rather be moderated to ensure the quality of participation... NO MORE DICKIEs. I agree with Andrew, a FAQ section with topical headings would be a blessing... one more post of:"Help, old Pine Floors" and I'm going to Tibet.Every three weeks... I swear it's the same people, only with different email addresses!(That You, PM?)
*If it's not broke don't fix it. Tauton has the bussiest and best discussion board on the internet in our field. Faster downloads will be great but please don't censor anything here.
*Well ya know I gotta get my two cents worth in ...Several years ago I was involved in an online AOL HOST chat room . This is the type of room where they had a professional from the field host a question and answer session. In all actuality, it really, really sucked. Not only did they have the host, but they had a "hidden" moderator/monitor. Every time someone said suck, or pee, or something silly, they had a cow about it. This, in my opinion ruined the whole concept. When we all get together, we use everyday language that we use at home, at work, just about wherever we go. Now I can see a whole string of really bad obscenity getting someone a little upset, but everyday colorful language is part of who most of the posters here are. Pee ain't a bad word in my book. One thing they did do though, that really helped a lot... they had VOLUNTEER hosts and monitors to keep up with the problems on the site. Whenever they had difficulties, or had technical problems, they had the volunteers monitoring and reporting directly to AOL staff. They also had the volunteers monitor the posts for pertinent content, and deleted stuff like DICKIE's posts. Here, they would have to be very careful because a lot of the folks here are colorful, and their posts add flavor and style to the site. To edit them would be a travesty. The best purpose of the monitor would be to get rid of double posts, keep out DICKIE, and warn people about technical problems the site is having.Also, about the article... Since most of the stuff in Fine Homebuilding is written by others, then sent in to the mag, why don't ALL of us attending the get together write up a really good article about the whole thing and have Taunton put it in their mag? With all of the posters that attend writing something, we'll need someone to put it all into perspective, and kinda make a good article out of all of it. I know that Taunton will proof it, rewrite it, and do their editing magic on it, but it would be an article written by essentially everyone there. We could even take a gazillion pictures, and have them submitted as well.Just a thought...I have been messing around on the internet for many years, and this is most definitely the best all around site there has ever been. It lets all of us, with like interests and careers, come together and talk about what we do, how we do it, and why sometimes we do it a little different. The amount of info being tossed around here is incredible. Please don't come in and change everything up on us. The Q and A forum would be a nice touch.Just my thoughts...James DuHamel
*Yeah, now James might be on the right track there. How about if you have a "Ask Gerald" section of the board. Anyone who wants a moderator's opinion, could ask their question there? You could even break it into sections and when a question is asked in an area, the resident guru could address the question. Good idea James.
*
Hello Everyone,
Thanks for the feedback.
Our idea of "moderator" really is the same exact as yours.
Currently, we get about 10,000 posts per week to all the boards, and New Media tries to look through as many as we can. Now with that "moderator" role being moved to each magazine group I think they'll be able to solve some of the easier technical problems and respond much more quickly and more thoroughly to your ideas - i.e. editorial support, archives, faq's, deleting double or blatantly inappropriate posts, etc.
New Media's role will then go back to what it should be - making sure that technically the systems are working as they should.
But, an "Ask Gerald" type who edits content and sucks the oxygen right out of the boards is definitely not what the moderator will do.
Thanks again.
David
*
Moderator to "edit"? No thanks...and glad to read you're not pursuing that.
Chat room? No thanks...besides, it seems I'm the only one up at 0300 EST, anyway.
Own server and increased bandwidth? Hala-frickin-luya!
A FAQ? Please, format one. That, in itself should help reduce the redundancy of posts, thus reducing requirements and strain on the server.
And, last but not least, from the fingertips of David "The Man" Kenney himself:
Gentlemen (and gurls), that, in itself, sounds like an offer to bankroll "Breaktimefest '00"! Pete, time to start tallying that expense report...
PS: Who the heck is "Gerald", and what are people asking him? Is that a Q&A feature of some other forum?
* Sysop,
Joseph FuscoView Image© 1999."It is better to be feared. . . Then loved!" Machiavelli
*Great to see that y'all are going to do something about the speed and reliability of the Boards. Compared to other sites I visit this one is painfully slow. It is also the only one that uses WebX, which from a user view I happen to like the best.Suggestions:Don't use the term "FAQ". This has become such a loser in most of the sites I visit that I no longer even read them. Instead use a more descriptiive term like maybe "Popular Topics", or "Useful How-To's Visit Here First". Maybe you get the idea of what I mean.DEFINITELY do not use Taunton staff to "moderate" or "edit" discussions. We have enough folks egos involved now without adding that of someone viewing things through the company's eyes. An expediter or problem resolver yes, an online authority figure, no. I know this is your board but the ideas on it should be those of the participants.No on-line chats. We are in several countries and time zones. Also, it is easy to get off-topic now, think what it would be like if a group of folks take umbrage with each other live.Put some thought into an index and search system for the archives. I suspect that some of the repetitive posts come from folks who are frustrated in trying to find an answer in the archives.
*I'll agree with Mongo and FredB that the "forum" approach is preferable to on-line chats. There's no schedule to meet, questions and answers are grouped by topic, and it's easy to re-visit a topic to follow the thread development.The idea of a FAQ section has merit... if another newbie jumps in with a "how much per square foot should a house cost?" inquiry, he/she can be tactfully referred to the FAQ section rather than be insulted in a new thread.I think we do a pretty good job among ourselves without a moderator.MHO's, Steve
*Stated yet again but differently, anyone at Taunton with enough knowledge to act as moderator has much better things to do with his/her time for the magazine and the trade. The forum is mostly self-policing, and as such is not perfect but beats the alternative (kind of like democracy). The profane and ad hominem are unfortunate but aren't going to hurt anyone so much that the site needs Big Brother censorship. There is more than enough real discussion here that the flame wars die away on their own -- unlike at the hot-air sites. I think most really do think twice about what they say, and how nice to be able to take back what you said for a precious 30 minutes (the WebX software IS excellent, & I bet it cost plenty).Death to Gerald!FAQs (so sweet by any other name) would reduce redundant posts sharply -- I think they come from people who don't even know how to search, or who, less charitably, lack initiative. As we used to reply in computer support to premature questions, RTFM ... Read The Manual!Mongo, I'm up at 300EST [800 zulu] pretty often, trying to burp a 3 y.o. Why don't you just give me a call? And what's your excuse for being up at that hour ... too many Slim Jims before bedtime?
*I participated in a "moderated" chat environment about business, in general, last year. The moderator (live one) steered the discussion, provided answers and welcomed everyone who signed on. And bogged down the discussion.When there were "guest speakers", it was read only. Questions could be asked but only in advance and had to be screened (approved).Then there was the robot moderator - Active all the time. I was actually booted right out of a discussion one time while we were talking about college degrees, grading, diplomas, et al. You just can't type out full words, such as, "summa cum laude". It's offensive to the robot. (Guess why).I quit after a short stay because most of the traffic consisted if "Hi!", "How are you?", "Wuzzup, dude!", as well as a lot of sniping at various posters and a complete inability to stay on any one topic for more than just a cursory look.This long winded post is just to underscore the sentiments of most others: Don't mess with a good thing. Keep your sticky fingers out of the pie. Use no hooks, no robots and especially no moderators. And, LISTEN to your subscribers, they do have better ideas.Comments? Ralph
*An "A" for artistic effort. :)
*While I definitely vote for a good FAQ, I would also like to see a better introduction to the board for "newbies". Nothing too long, but a mention that they might want to search the archives before posting a query. You also may want to make the "search" function a bit more obvious. You might also mention that there are other information and links sections on the Taunton site that they might want to check out and perhaps make some clickable links to them in the intro. In addition to a more informative introduction to Breaktime, perhaps you could rewrite the "Help" link so that it is a little more inviting and informative, more like a tutorial.
*Speaking of "new media" -- how 'bout an FHB CD-ROM??? compare JLC's, i love it
*FredL,
Joseph FuscoView Image"Whenever, therefore, people are deceived and form opinions wide of the truth, it is clear that the error has slid into their minds through the medium of certain resemblance's to that truth." Socrates
*I don't get it. Is this supposed to be making fun of Joe, or are you seriously trying to figure out what Joe is all about.Either way, I don't get it.James DuHamel
*David, Unlike the other naysayers, I am whole heartily in favor of a moderator. I think your idea has lots of merit. I would just hope you would hire a seasoned veteran of many houses, maybe someone (a carpenter) from the midwest, that has excellent typing skills (five or ten words a minute) and knows how to communicate without pissing off Joe or Fred.At this time, I would like to apply for the job of MODERATOR. I belive I am the best candidate for the job, because I am a seasoned veteran of many houses, someone (a carpenter) from the midwest, that has excellent typing skills (five or ten words per minute) and knows how to communicate without pissing off Joe or Fred.Since I already have the qualifications, You will be delighted to know that my financial needs are moderate. I charge by the post. A mere five cents per post that stays, and ten cents for posts that are deleted. Whats 15 cents among friends?!I'm willing to work long hours (15 minutes in each) and will actually put in at least a half day (it doesn't take all day to do a half day's work!)I'll be willing to start tomorrow, if it ever gets here.And as a bonus, I'll be available to do a little boogering on the Servers if they get stubborn. What size hammer should I bring? My smallest is a small ballpeen, and my largest is my 16# sledge, not counting my backhoe. I'll even bring my muffler chewing impact hammer just in case.Either way, when I show up for server service, you'll know I'm working hard on it (can anyone lend me a metal chomping bit for my sawzall?) Thank you for considering me for the position of MODERATOR.Blue
*Blue! you overly modest Backhoe-boogin' ole hippie-reprobate!You're hired. Send the bill to Patrick Mahoney. He'll be paying you in that Canadian monopoly money, but hey! You're inside for the winter.
*b Cultural NeanderthalYa spelled my name wrong ya frikken bozo!!-pm
*It makes no sense because Joe has edited his epigram. At the time it read "It is better to be feared ... then loved." The actual quote from The Prince is: "It is better to be feared than loved, if you cannot be both." Niccolo Machiavelli (1469-1527). The volume is a primer for despots, and earned Machiavelli his infamy.I won't speculate whether Fred's satire is witty, or whether Joe is a prince, feared or loved.Mark Twain:The secret source of humor itself is not joy, but sorrow. There is no humor in heaven.
*Ma-Honey, chill-out girlfriend. It was early, and my ADD was acting up.Be nice or I'll have Crate-boy set the dog on ya.
*View Image
*Gawd I luv it when you get all repentant/agressive like that. Biscotti?-pm
*
Hello everyone. My name is David Kenney; I am the Manager of Internet
Operations here at The Taunton Press. I've been in my new position for
about a month now, and we have finally started to get a handle on our
current situation. We have arrived at a strategy for improving our
Discussion Boards, and I'd like to share it with you all.
This is not an excuse for the recent problems; we are simply trying to be
honest with you about the facts, what our plans will be in the future to
improve things, and what level of service you can expect from us in the
future.
Let me start by apologizing for the recent problems. We do hear
everything you have to say, and we are extremely grateful that you have
stuck with us for so long. The fact that you folks are the ones responsible
for the success of our products and the strength of the Taunton community
is not lost on us for one second.
Here's our current problem: The vendor that hosts our Web site and
discussion boards and has provided all the maintenance and technical
support for the last three years has been bought out and is no longer in the
Web hosting business. We are now searching actively for a new hosting
company that can essentially pick up right where we've been dropped off.
On December 28, the discussion board message database became corrupt,
and as many of you are painfully aware, the boards were up and down
frequently over the next week. We are now back up, but unfortunately, the
posts from part of November and all of December have disappeared.
Because of the current level of support we are getting, these are unlikely to
return. (My apologies to the gentleman who, during that time, posted the
cure for male pattern baldness and other afflictions.)
So while I enjoyed reading your theories about the crash - a small Y2K
budget, a vast, deep-seated conspiracy to silence the voices of the brave
dedicated souls who frequent our boards - it was unfortunately just the
same technical problems that have been plaguing us for some time and for
which we now are currently unable to get adequate support.
Here's what we're doing to improve things:
A Dedicated Server
We will be moving the discussion boards to a server of their very own - to
a "discussion board farm" where all they do is run Web Crossings
Discussion Boards for other companies. This move will undoubtedly bring
a new level of performance and stability to the boards. Additionally,
removing the discussion boards from our web server will also increase the
performance and stability of our web site.
This separation will not affect the way you see our site and boards at all.
The boards will be down for a day while we move the content, and you
will need to update your bookmarks after that. (We'll be back to let you
know when.)
Increased Staff
The New Media group will be hiring a new person to help deal with the
growing popularity of our boards and the technical and managerial issues
associated with that growth.
Better Moderation
The magazine groups will now be responsible for moderating their own
discussion boards. These new moderators will be making themselves
known on each of the boards over the coming weeks.
Support
Many of you who have been with us for a while have become used to a
level of service provided by a Web hosting company that gave us technical
support and fixes almost immediately. We also had a terrific moderator
who (often at the expense of his other duties) spent close to 75% his time
watching the boards, responding quickly to requests, and relaying
technical problems to our hosting vendor to get resolved.
I doubt that we can get back to that level of support. (Truthfully, I don't
think we can afford to.) However, with the changes coming, we will
definitely see the level of support improve from where we've been
recently, but it will take some time as we go about implementing the
changes, and as the new moderators and support staff come up to speed.
We won't be able to provide immediate responses to e-mail requests that
simulate a real-time dialog. Typical turn around time for e-mails is one to
two days.
So, here's what you can expect from us in the future:
-more active participation from the moderators
-faster, more consistent acknowledgment of your requests
-better performance
-increased stability with fewer crashes
-more reliable technical support.
To finish up, our commitment is genuine, and I guarantee you'll see
improvements in the coming months. All of us here at The Taunton Press
are extremely grateful and appreciative of the patience you have exhibited
and the loyalty you have shown. We will do our on going best to make
sure you have a well-supported, high-performance forum that is on a par
with the quality of the content that you folks post.
If anyone has any questions, I will try to follow up on any future postings,
but also please feel free to e-mail me at [email protected].
Additionally, I am always willing to communicate with folks through the
antiquated old telephone service. I can be reached at (800) 926-8776 x280.
Sincerely,
David