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Magpie
Immortal
May 14 2014, 3:21pm
Post #1 of 13
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I love talking movies
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but sometimes, I feel we have too many separate threads about upcoming movies.
At the moment, on Off Topic, we have separate threads for:
Interstellar
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
Godzilla
Godzilla and Days of the Future Past
We also had someone post about a current tv show as a new thread instead of in the 'whatcha watching' movie/tv thread. At the time, last weeks was still on the front page. That thread has since fallen to page two and a new one has been posted.
These are all separate topics but this isn't the first time I've felt that having so many separate threads about very similar topics (upcoming movies) kind of dominates Off Topic. Like I said, I love movies and talking about them but I also like balance in topics.
I don't know that this is an 'issue'. I don't know if there's a solution. But I thought I'd at least put it out there as something I've noticed. And even though the most recent thread is about Godzilla and other movie, I wonder if it couldn't be in the other Godzilla thread.
LOTR soundtrack website ~ magpie avatar gallery
TORn History Mathom-house ~ Torn Image Posting Guide
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entmaiden
Forum Admin
/ Moderator
May 14 2014, 7:30pm
Post #2 of 13
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is asking for comments about movies, TV, etc. that people have already seen, while some of the other threads are about anticipating upcoming movies. There is a difference in those topics, although I locked the newest Godzilla post and asked to continue the discussion in the existing thread.
This is the time of year for big summer movies, so it's natural to have some excitement about what's coming to the theaters, especially when a familiar actor like Andy Serkis is taking a leading role, like the new Planet of the Apes movie. One of our own staff, Demosthenes, recently was part of a Wall Street Journal article comparing Smaug to Godzilla, so it's not surprising that people want to talk about that movie.
I think the best way to overcome too many similar topics is to post about a new topic. While we do want to keep the same topics in the same thread, there's no need to read the other posts if the subject doesn't capture your interest.
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entmaiden
Forum Admin
/ Moderator
May 14 2014, 11:06pm
Post #4 of 13
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what people are interested in. Not everyone will have the same interests, though. I encourage people to talk and post about what interests them, and skip those threads that don't.
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sevilodorf
Tol Eressea
May 15 2014, 12:43am
Post #5 of 13
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My two cents and you are free to ignore it is that since last weeks thread was so close to the bottom and would almost immediately go to page two this weeks thread should have been started on Monday. Then I suspect that the once upon a time thread would not have been started. Surely there's enough flex in the rules about one thread per topic to allow for such cases.
Would a weekly what are you looking forward to seeing thread be a possibility?
Fourth Age Adventures at the Inn of the Burping Troll http://burpingtroll.com
Home of TheOneRing.net Best FanFic stories of 2005 and 2006 "The Last Grey Ship" and "Ashes, East Wind, Hope That Rises" by Erin Rua
(Found in Mathoms, LOTR Tales Untold)
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entmaiden
Forum Admin
/ Moderator
May 15 2014, 1:12am
Post #7 of 13
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the difficulty of managing the topics, especially in the Off Topic forum. There's a wide variety of interests here, and trying to confine them to weekly over-arching topics might be over-managing the conversations. We have some great weekly posts for what people are currently watching, and reading and listening to (although that's not always weekly), and they are very active.
We'll watch the activity, as we always do, and if we see recurring themes that might merit weekly posts, maybe someone will volunteer to make a weekly post. The Godzilla movie is creating a lot of buzz, but it opens this week (in the US) so the anticipation will decrease.
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entmaiden
Forum Admin
/ Moderator
May 15 2014, 1:18am
Post #8 of 13
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I've read your message several times
[In reply to]
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and what I take away is that you see a lot of conversations about movies and TV shows in Off Topic, and wish for more diversity. The solution is to start conversations about topics you're interested in, and ignore the ones that aren't interesting to you. If you see there's direct duplication, we welcome your vigilance in pointing the duplicates out to us. We all have different likes and dislikes, and in a community this diverse, there are times when the conversation goes in a direction that isn't interesting to some members but is intensely interesting to others.
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Magpie
Immortal
May 15 2014, 1:26am
Post #9 of 13
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I was only hoping to maybe discuss how to consolidate ideas into larger discussions
[In reply to]
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I am not going to fuss about whether people always post in the right threads or in some perceived right way.
I am always hoping for larger dialogs. When a thread gets posted with such strict parameters that one very similar to it must be started as a new thread... then another... then another... it seems like we could be having a larger conversation in a more dynamic way - discussing lots of elements in one place rather than smaller elements in lots of places.
I also think some people don't read any thread on the board before positing their own. I am always working out how to get people to want to feel like part of a community - where they want to see what people on the boards are already talking about and jumping in when a conversation has already started. And when it isn't taking place, start one. I don't want to shut down anything. I want to find a way to bring ideas and people together into larger communities and dialog.
As for staring a new thread on Monday... I was told in the past that I could absolutely not start a new thread if one was already on page 1. That wasn't an option for me. The OUAT time thread was started when last week's thread was still quite high on the page. I just don't think that person knew the thread was there and that's why I responded to them to invite them in the future to 'look for it'.
I also have a lot of thoughts about conversation dynamics in general on the web, but instead of opening up a dialog about it, I'm coming across as critical.
So, I'm content to drop it.
LOTR soundtrack website ~ magpie avatar gallery
TORn History Mathom-house ~ Torn Image Posting Guide
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dernwyn
Forum Admin
/ Moderator
May 15 2014, 1:49am
Post #11 of 13
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I do know what you're talking about, because I've been watching these threads pop up which seem like they should actually come under the What Have You been Watching thread, and debating whether to let them be, or lock them and request that the originator post in the existing thread!
It was reminding me of the time there were about six threads on Richard Armitage on Off-Topic, each one on a different item.
To consolidate, or not consolidate - that is the question!
We have started being more lenient over time, I think, so that when there's a new movie or TV show that's bound to create a lot of discussion, we've let it be its own thread. And this isn't a problem when the board is "slow".
So for now, I think it might be best to deal with things like movie openings and season finales on a case-by-case basis, letting it depend on interest (exuberance - did I spell that correctly?), and board "speed". Especially with high expectations for some of the summer fare!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"I desired dragons with a profound desire"
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entmaiden
Forum Admin
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May 15 2014, 1:51am
Post #12 of 13
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Some people like more organization,
[In reply to]
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and there are others who prefer conversations to be more organic. You might prefer larger dialogs, but not everyone wants to communicate that way. The TPTB set up the rules of the message boards to be somewhat flexible, and as admins we strive to allow conversations to flow freely while staying within the existing rules and not imposing our preferences on the community.
I can see that you feel strongly about how you want the conversations to flow, and that's great. If others communicate in a different way, that's OK too as long as both you and the others say within our rules. There is no one right way to manage a conversation and build a community. We all have something to contribute, and should feel free to contribute in our own way.
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Arannir
Valinor
May 15 2014, 3:08pm
Post #13 of 13
(136 views)
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... that my thread "Godzilla and .[..] X Men" was poorly named, this is why it sounded more like a Godzilla thread which it was not really ment to be. But perhaps instead of locking it a renaming would have worked better here ;) Just as a suggestion for the future.
“All good stories deserve embellishment."
Praise is subjective. And so is criticism.
"I am afraid it is only too likely to be true what you say about the critics and the public. I am dreading the publication for it will be impossible not to mind what is said. I have exposed my heart to be shot at."
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