Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

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Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by Peculiar_Investor »

In light of the some of the recent discussions about the role of Around the Watercooler forum, the management team decided to make some changes in the ...and Your Life area. You might have already noticed some of these.

Community Centre is a consolidation of existing topic areas. The focus is non financial topics: autos; computers; entertainment; gatherings; hobbies; sports and travel. The Plugged In and DIYers at Home and Abroad forums were merged together to create this forum. Behind the scenes a number of non controversial Watercooler topics such as the "Beer in *" topics will also move to Community Centre.

Around the Watercooler has become an opt-in forum, with tightened mandate. This forum is for discussion of Politics, religion, controversial events, rants and gossip. The purpose is to contain the 'potentially controversial' topics in Watercooler. The forum itself remains visible to registered users, but they won't be able to automatically enter the forum. To be able to read topics and post in this forum you must opt-in and select membership in the Watercooler please group. The forum description includes instructions on how to opt-in.

Now Hear This! has moved under '... and Your Life', which should simplify the forum structure and place more emphasis on the financial discussions.

We're a financial education forum first and foremost and we offer registered members the additional benefit of the ...and Your Life forums. We hope that by making these changes, we will emphasize the financial role of FWF, while still providing a place for those FWF'ers who enjoy debating politics and other controversial topics. Those discussions will just be walled off and sound-proofed a bit better.
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Re: Changes '... and Your Life' forums

Post by Shakespeare »

Move humour threads out of WC, please.
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Re: Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by Peculiar_Investor »

That one and some others are now done. The door to Watercooler isn't locked quite yet, but will be happening very soon.
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Re: Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by kcowan »

Keep up the good work! Appreciated.
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Re: Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by Shakespeare »

Back to a previous forum design.
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Re: Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by AltaRed »

Shakespeare wrote:Back to a previous forum design.
If so, sometimes recycle is good. Whatever best fits the trend.
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Re: Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by Peculiar_Investor »

We've now flipped some bits and Around the Watercooler remains visible to registered users, but they won't be able to automatically enter the forum.

To be able to read topics and post in the Around the Watercooler forum you must opt-in and select membership in the Watercooler please group.
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Re: Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by Bylo Selhi »

Thank you! :thumbsup:
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Re: Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by Shakespeare »

Might actually mean I can reduce my Ignore list....
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Re: Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by pmj »

I thought that having "Announcements" in a separate panel at the top was better - in particular the immediate draw to "Introduce Yourself". Probably no need for any discussion there - comments such as this should remain where they now are.
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Re: Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by like_to_retire »

This all seems confusing to me. I remember back in my workplace, when you worked on a project for a long time it all seemed so darned obvious, and I was always surprised when other groups were so confused.

Anyway, I use to be able to view everything on the forum. After over ten years as a member, I don't understand why privileges are being taken away? Have I done something wrong?

The confusing User Control Panel says: "By default you will be placed in a specific group, this is your default group.".
What is my default group - I have no idea. Is it the same as someone who signed up today?

This group defines how you may appear to other users, for example your username coloration, avatar, rank, etc. Depending on whether the administrator allows it you may be allowed to change your default group.
I simply have no idea what this means.

You may also be placed in or allowed to join other groups.
Huh - what other groups, and who decides?

Some groups may give you additional permissions to view content or increase your capabilities in other areas.
I'm speechless?

Memberships vs Non-Memberships? Honestly, I just don't get it.
Can someone just make my account the way it use to be. I want to see everything and be able to participate in all forums. I'm a big boy. I don't need to have something removed from my sensitive eyes. If I don't like it, I won't read it.

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Re: Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by AltaRed »

LTR, the only thing you need to do is to 'opt-in' for the new reduced Watercooler forum. Nothing else changes. The rest of the stuff is forum software boilerplate and is indeed confusing.

You could say Management is distancing themselves a bit more from the worst of the crap that Watercooler was offering and each member has to make a conscious decision to be part of it, i.e. a desire for the opportunity to be offended. Kind of like deciding whether to be a participant in mud wrestling :wink:
Last edited by AltaRed on 25 Jan 2016 18:45, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by Shakespeare »

Suggest renaming WC to "Water Closet".
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Re: Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by Peculiar_Investor »

like_to_retire wrote:This all seems confusing to me.
It wasn't intended to be. The explanation in the first post was supposed to explain it all, but clearly didn't.
like_to_retire wrote: Have I done something wrong?
No. From the first post in the topic,
Peculiar_Investor wrote:We hope that by making these changes, we will emphasize the financial role of FWF, while still providing a place for those FWF'ers who enjoy debating politics and other controversial topics. Those discussions will just be walled off and sound-proofed a bit better.
like_to_retire wrote:The confusing User Control Panel says:
As AltaRed posted
AltaRed wrote:The rest of the stuff is forum software boilerplate and is indeed confusing.
like_to_retire wrote:Can someone just make my account the way it use to be.
You can. Hopefully a picture is worth a thousand words (click for big)
UCP - Groups.PNG
As a general explanation, for any group of the groups indicated as NON-MEMBERSHIPS, click the radio button beside it, then hit the Submit button.
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Re: Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by pmj »

I also thought it was way too confusing. For example, what are "MEMBERSHIPS" and NON-MEMBERSHIPS"? A member (of something) has a membership - but not many people would describe a "non-member" as having a "non-membership". And what is a "Special Group"?

I decided that the intent was probably what AltaRed described, even though it didn't clearly say that, and I took a stab in the dark that, even though (yesterday) I could read WaterCooler, maybe soon I wouldn't be able to - so I clicked that radio button, and it didn't seem to do any harm, so I ignored the rest of it.

How about "Click here if you want to participate in WaterCooler discussions"?
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Re: Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by Jo Anne »

I was quite pissed off the other day when I couldn't get in to watercooler, and also couldn't figure out the "opt in" process. I do not like the way this is working. WeYou are going to annoy a lot of members with this unexplained and un-called for censorship.
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Re: Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by eezee »

Before these changes you were able to :

1) omit the Watercooler from your view
2) just not open any thread
3) ignore posters

so what was achieved with these changes ?
Somebody missed the part of " If it ain't broke don't fix it"

added : P.I. you're an engineer, right ? Shoulda have listened to Scott Adams :rofl:
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Re: Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by longinvest »

I, for one, welcome the change. I like to be able to see that there are new posts in the jokes thread without having to see political debate threads in my "new posts" view.

I also think that it is a good idea to keep the controversial stuff out of the view of search engines. We want our forum to publicly reflect its best attributes and to look as the reference financial forum for Canadians.

My thanks to the management for the change.
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Re: Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by like_to_retire »

longinvest wrote:I also think that it is a good idea to keep the controversial stuff out of the view of search engines.
Seems like a good idea at first blush, but then I think there are lots of people who like to discuss politics and you may attract them to the site through a political subject search. Then they may well peruse the rest of the site to see what it's like, and they may stay for the finance?

I understand we have trouble attracting new members, so regardless how you attract them?

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Re: Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by Peculiar_Investor »

We appreciate the member feedback on this change, both good and bad, as it provides a learning opportunity for us.

FWIW, Around the Watercooler has never been visible to guests or search engines. It's 'bonus' content for registering and becoming a member.
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Re: Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by kcowan »

I like the fact that useful non-financial information is now searchable on google. A definite improvement.

I think some of the wording changes suggested would help new members navigate the choppy waters of the internet.
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Re: Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by Shakespeare »

Engineerspeak should be avoided in instructions. "Join the Watercooler group" is clearer than "opt in".
Politics, religion, world events, rants and gossip. To be able to read topics and post in this forum you must Join the Watercooler group.
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Re: Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by pmj »

Shakespeare wrote:Engineerspeak should be avoided in instructions.
:thumbsup: As an engineer, I absolutely agree :oops:.
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Re: Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by Peculiar_Investor »

Who said the engineer provided the wording? Couldn't it have been our resident lawyer? :lol:
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Re: Changes to the '... and Your Life' forums

Post by Shakespeare »

That's why lawyers should not write laboratory procedures. :wink:
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