Home » Forum » Bug Report and Feature Requests

Forum: Bug Report and Feature Requests

The Blog feature.

joyR 🚫

When you open the "new entry" window and the box pops up to allow a new entry too be created, at the bottom there is a note as follows;

Please no donation or money requests in blogs. Otherwise your blog entries may be hidden from the home page. If you post more than 3 blog entries in 24 hours, your entries will be automatically blocked from the site's home page.

Would it be possible to add a note to the effect that if the entry is posing a question, then the writer should seriously consider making use of this forum..?

Whilst rhetorical questions in blogs are common, it seems increasingly popular for blogs to contain questions that invite replies, a practise that seems both pointless and somewhat self defeating in a blog, but entirely appropriate for a forum.

Who knows? It might actually breathe a little fresh air into the forum, not to mention attract a few more active members.

Replies: awnlee jawking Ernest Bywater Switch Blayde Ernest Bywater REP

awnlee jawking 🚫

@joyR

Would it be possible to add a note to the effect that if the entry is posing a question, then the writer should seriously consider making use of this forum..?

IMO that depends on the nature of the question. If it's help with story detail, posting the question on the forum will most likely attract replies from the usual half-dozen suspects before veering off topic. On the other hand, my posting questions in blogs has resulted in very variable response rates, from a lone reply (from a non-usual suspect) to around thirty.

AJ

Ernest Bywater 🚫

@joyR

Would it be possible to add a note to the effect that if the entry is posing a question, then the writer should seriously consider making use of this forum..?

More appropriately would be to have the mail turned on for the author so that people reading the blog can answer the question. There are few who have elicited responses to blogs, but their site mail is turned off.

Switch Blayde 🚫

@joyR

it seems increasingly popular for blogs to contain questions that invite replies, a practise that seems both pointless and somewhat self defeating in a blog

I thought people can reply to a blog entry.

Replies: joyR

joyR 🚫

@Switch Blayde

I thought people can reply to a blog entry.

You don't blog often, but you post here regularly.

Why do you not post your questions in your blog instead of here?

Replies: Switch Blayde

Switch Blayde 🚫

@joyR

Why do you not post your questions in your blog instead of here?

Different topics/emphasis.

I post here to talk about stuff in general. I'm not a blogger, but I would blog about me or my stories. I use my Yahoo group for blogging and pretty much only to notify my followers that I've posted something.

Ernest Bywater 🚫

@joyR

Would it be possible to add a note to the effect that if the entry is posing a question, then the writer should seriously consider making use of this forum..?

Different audiences. Many readers will read the blog of an author but not go to the forum at all, while some are the reverse.

Replies: Dinsdale

Dinsdale 🚫

@Ernest Bywater

Different audiences. Many readers will read the blog of an author but not go to the forum at all, while some are the reverse.

THE BLOG ENTRIES ARE SHOWN ON THE MAIN PAGE SO PUTTING STUFF THERE SHOULD THEORETICALLY MEAN EVERYONE SEES IT.
And as EB says, a lot of people don't look here.

Replies: joyR REP

joyR 🚫

@Dinsdale

THE BLOG ENTRIES ARE SHOWN ON THE MAIN PAGE SO PUTTING STUFF THERE SHOULD THEORETICALLY MEAN EVERYONE SEES IT.

Is there really a need to shout?

Replies: Dinsdale

Dinsdale 🚫

@joyR

Is there really a need to shout?

(I was away for a bit and missed this)

Blogging on the main page is shouting.

Replies: joyR

joyR 🚫
Updated:

@Dinsdale

Blogging on the main page is shouting.

(Almost) All blog posts appear on the main page...

The 'shouting' referred to the use of caps for (almost) the entire post.

REP 🚫

@Dinsdale

SO PUTTING STUFF THERE SHOULD THEORETICALLY MEAN EVERYONE SEES IT.

In theory yes, but many people don't bother to read the Stream. The rate at which new items appear can also mean that the item is only displayed for a minute or two. If you don't see it before it scrolls down and don't review the stream you will miss it.

Remus2 🚫

I can't speak for others, but for me, it's a rare event to comment back on questions from blogs. My preference is a forum such as this.
Others obviously feel differently.

I do blog elsewhere, but never ask questions rhetorical or otherwise there. To me, a blog is not an appropriate platform for a question answer session.

richardshagrin 🚫

There doesn't seem to be much difference between a for'um and an against'um.

Replies: Remus2 joyR awnlee jawking

Remus2 🚫

@richardshagrin

for'um and an against'um.

Nice.

joyR 🚫
Updated:

@richardshagrin

There doesn't seem to be much difference between a for'um and an against'um.

Perhaps the difference is in response? Posting here requires a certain ability to ignore insults, egos and those who would argue the size of a 4x2 if you hit them with it.

A post to this forum almost invariably results not in 'thread-drift' but simply dissolves into arguments that are totally off topic.

So, either there is active moderation, or the regulars take a long hard look at exactly how welcoming they are, how tolerant of new posters they are, and act accordingly.

Obviously there are those who simply don't care, or perhaps enjoy maintaining a tight circle of sparring partners, or simply will not consider any point of view that contradicts their own.

The why's and wherefores really don't matter. Either something changes or people will continue to avoid posting at all, or as has happened, post once, get set upon, and never post again.

SOL is a wonderful place for writers and readers, sadly this forum is not.

awnlee jawking 🚫

@richardshagrin

There doesn't seem to be much difference between a for'um and an against'um.

Unfortunately both options seem to persuade most readers to keep st'um :(

AJ

REP 🚫

@joyR

As Awnlee said, it depends on the question and why you posted it in your blog.

Posting the question in the Forum may not be appropriate. For example, I like to be responsive to my readers so I post questions in my blog, which is read by some of my readers. I wouldn't post those questions in the Forum for I really don't want responses from people who don't read my stories.

In regard to Ernest comment about turning on story comments, he previously said he doesn't read them or respond to them. How is he to get his question out to those who are commenting on the story if he doesn't post a comment in the story comment section and how is he to get an answer if he isn't reading the story comments?

joyR 🚫
Updated:

So now we have a blog post about the author's stories, replied to by another author in their blog...

Are we doing an 'Orange is the new Black' thing..?

Is it really either acceptable or desirable for blog posts to be used instead of the forum..?

Perhaps I should have blogged this in the first place..?

Replies: REP

REP 🚫
Updated:

@joyR

Is it really either acceptable or desirable for blog posts to be used instead of the forum..?

Who are you interested in having read your content - authors or your readers?

The majority of SOL readers, do not visit and post in the Forum. The readers of an author's Blog will often reply with a comment. Only a Forum post or Blog response will let you know if you reached your intended audience.

One addition that Lazeez could make to Blog entries would be to add a counter for how many readers have read each Blog comment. Wouldn't help with past comments, but it would be nice to know for the future.

Replies: Ernest Bywater anim8ed

Ernest Bywater 🚫

@REP

One addition that Lazeez could make to Blog entries would be to add a counter for how many readers have read each Blog comment.

For many years the Author Stats page in the Author Account Manager has a line entry showing the Blog Access Count - the third line in the block at the top of the story stats page. If you note that number before you post a blog entry and then check it later you will know how many people read that blog entry.

Route to find it is: Home Page >> Authors/Editors >> Story Stats

Replies: REP

REP 🚫
Updated:

@Ernest Bywater

You will know how many people accessed your blog since you last checked that counter. It is unlikely that many people made multiple accesses. You won't know what they read, although reading your most recent post is most likely. If they find the post topic to be a turnoff, they may not have read the post.

anim8ed 🚫

@REP

One addition that Lazeez could make to Blog entries...

Rather than adding to the long list of things Lazeez 'could' do, If the author closed the blog entry with an actionable request the author might have a better idea of how many interested readers they have.

Example: Please send a comment letting me know where you stand on this topic.

Replies: richardshagrin

richardshagrin 🚫

@anim8ed

Please send a comment letting me know where you stand on this topic.

Martin Luther is quoted as saying "Here I stand, I can do no other." On the other hand, at my age, I mostly sit, or lay down. I can do no other.

Standing on topics sounds uncomfortable. When I do stand, mostly I stand on a floor.

Forum: Bug Report and Feature Requests

The Blog feature.

WARNING! ADULT CONTENT...