About off-topic threads

This forum is the only semi-effective mechanism for communicating with other users, since most people seem to ignore comments. However, it's been seeing more and more off-topic threads recently. This wastes time for people who check new threads in the forum, and might make people stop checking. Let's evaluate our needs based on the nature of this site:

Things we need:
- A way for informing and contacting users about issues related to the site.

Things we don't need:
- Another place to talk about Halo 3.

Therefore, I propose that this forum be reserved for site-related talk, and that off-topic threads be deleted.

Agreed. There aren't many right now so I'm not very worried, but as more people start posting it could become a problem.

Question:

By "issues related to the site" in "Things we need:" from LaC's post would that include discussion related to images that have become more advanced to be inducted in the comments section requiring more access to the discussion of the image?

Or should the forum be geared toward the strict use of site management and questions regarding site issues and regulations?

I also agree witht his measure.
Also a basic PM system might help lowering the off-topic load, like "Which is your ICQ number" and stuff like that

I don't know if I entirely agree. While the forum should mainly be used for talking about the site and issues regarding it, I think the danbooru environment encourages new users to communicate frivolously in the forums.

The way the privilege system works, one can only be privileged once one is known and trusted in the danbooru community. Probably the best way to do that is to post a good amount of good content, but that can be difficult for an average member who usually cannot know whether or not their post is a duplicate. Thus, it would be in their best interest to communicate in the forums, but it would be difficult to discuss matters pertaining to the site when they are still new to it. Then what do they have to discuss other than pointless topics?

It seems to me like talking purely relevant topics ostracizes those who want to take part in the community but don't have a means and also gives them a lot of opportunities to ask ignorant, over-asked questions that I personally find far more annoying than topics about Halo or whatever.

In any case, I think the best solution would to make sub-forums, but I don't know whether or not this site is capable of that as it stands.

So yeah, those're my thoughts.

ddrussianinja said: Then what do they have to discuss other than pointless topics?

Who says they have to discuss anything at all? You get known by posting images, not by posting in Russian in some random thread that has nothing to do with the site.

And it's not like allowing off topic threads has exactly eliminated the "GIMMIE INVITE" threads either.

What about making new threads only by moderators and privileged, and members only reply?

Although it might be a bit drastic but... that would end in some way with the "Invite meee" threads

Shuugo said: What about making new threads only by moderators and privileged, and members only reply? Although it might be a bit drastic but... that would end in some way with the "Invite meee" threads

While they're annoying they can be locked easily enough, so I'm not saying members can't create threads. In some ways, they might need the forums the most, since they're bound to have questions.

I agree with ddrussianinja. Perhaps in the future, when the forum topics get more diverse and greater in quantity, maybe a search cue may be added. This would possibly help reduce the number of multiple threads discussing the same topic. As well as help users find discussions pertaining to questions that may have already been addressed, and help users find forum threads that they were in discussion with, allowing for quicker responses. (Also it may possibly help reduce the amount of topics requesting an invite, which I personally find annoying.)

Just a suggestion for future application.

But the question still stands: What, in more detail, should be considered as forum topic related to the issues regarding the site?

Could topics include discussions involving anime, manga/doujin, artist, and/or other images, or should we strictly limit topics to site management, questions, and regulations?

nthnrmos said: Could topics include discussions involving anime, manga/doujin, artist, and/or other images, or should we strictly limit topics to site management, questions, and regulations?

Discussion of tagging and uploading, sourcing artists or shows or characters, updates to the site, explanation of downtime etc, questions about accounts, suggestions for doing things better, etc.

I understand that threads will *drift* off topic sometimes. That's inevitable and understandable. But that's different from starting a thread completely off topic.

I guess the feeling is just that there are a million places you can talk anime in a more general sense, but these forums are meant to be a way to communicate with the site's users about the site itself.

jxh2154 said:
Discussion of tagging and uploading, sourcing artists or shows or characters, updates to the site, explanation of downtime etc, questions about accounts, suggestions for doing things better, etc.

I understand that threads will *drift* off topic sometimes. That's inevitable and understandable. But that's different from starting a thread completely off topic.

I guess the feeling is just that there are a million places you can talk anime in a more general sense, but these forums are meant to be a way to communicate with the site's users about the site itself.

Thank you, this really clears up the issue over what should be discussed in forum and what shouldn't. And helps gear me, and hopefully others, toward placing more productive comments and responses. I am sure that I wasn't the only one with this concern.

nthnrmos said: Thank you, this really clears up the issue over what should be discussed in forum and what shouldn't.

Keep in mind this is just my take on it/my interpretation of site policy so far. Albert is the owner and he makes the rules, and it's possible he sees it differently.

This is going off topic already, but I can't help it.

ddrussianinja said:
Probably the best way to do that is to post a good amount of good content, but that can be difficult for an average member who usually cannot know whether or not their post is a duplicate.

I don't understand this. Both the uploader and danbooruup will tell you if you've uploaded a dupe; whether you're a regular or a privileged member has no bearing on this, nor does the rating as far as I know.

The only thing you can't do as a regular member is checking beforehand whether an unsafe images is already present, but tagging, uploading and receiving the dupe message doesn't take much longer than checking the source or going through the related tags.

The only real issue you have are differently sized variations of unsafe images, since those you really can't check up on.

But having the ability to upload and check:

- every safe image
- unsafe images from artist' websites

should be enough leeway for making good contributions, easily filling up the daily quota of 16 uploads -- not to mention all the other ways to contribute, most of which you can do freely, without limitations.

Maybe sub-forums would work, one for site discussions and another for anything else?

This is bullshit.
If people don't discuss in forums, whats the point in having forums at all? So they can post issues on Danbooru? Just contact an admin or a moderator for that. New to site and don't know what to do? Theres a wiki section that can help people with stuff. Hell, you can even make a separate page for all newcomers.

Forums are meant to discuss something like interests and stuff. If posting a thread about what anime do you like (Well, just keeping it in one thread) is useless topic, therefore locked, I don't see any point in having a forum.

crisisx said: I don't see any point in having a forum.

Just because you don't get it doesn't mean there's no point.

jxh2154 said:
Just because you don't get it doesn't mean there's no point.

Then explain the point to me please.

crisisx said:
Then explain the point to me please.

lol, didn't everyone just do that in all of the previous posts in this thread.

crisisx said: Then explain the point to me please.

Reading the thread would be a good start, and would tell you everything you need to know.

At any rate, it's still Albert's call. My preference is subforum at most, but preferably none at all, so that I don't have to keep checking the forum every times it indicates new posts just to see things that have nothing to do with Danbooru. I'd like any subforum to be something a user could set on ignore so alerts only come on posts for site-related topics.

niefong said:
lol, didn't everyone just do that in all of the previous posts in this thread.

...And clearly like I said there are better places for that other than forums. Obviously a forum need a moderator for random spamming, but I don't see a point being in the forums when all the talk is about how to fix this, how do I.... etc. when there is a wiki which should be put into more use by people.