-
Yeah I do think it needs a bit of a overhaul, and as there's not much use of it at the moment it would be better sooner rather than later if it is to become something of a holding space for the future as things can't be moved around once created.
I think the issue is there aren't as many layers on Discord so it's difficult to get something as useful as it is here.
Potentially with fewer categories at the top level, that just cover an announcements section, rules section, new users section and then main 'forum' section. The first three can be quite static and only updated by admin/mods when needed then the main section will have Forum Channels set up to mirror the Sections available here on the Front page. Then users are able to create conversations at their will within those areas like they can here. That's the closest I think it could be at the moment without going into additional allowances by user within certain categories and stuff.I'd initially think that it could work something like this using examples of forums and threads on here -
New Members Category:
- Read Only Welcome Text Channel
- Read Only Info Text Channel
Announcements Category: - Mod Comment Only General Announcements/Updates Text Channel
Rules Category: - Mod Comment Only Rules Text Channel
Main Forum Category: - General Forum Channel (Created by mod/admin, but anything within this is now user made)
* Bicycle Tag Conversation
* Spotted...
* Is it time to start calling out bad cyclists?
* Ways Not to Lock Your Bike
* Doping
* etc. - Miscellaneous and Meaningless Forum Channel (Created by mod/admin, but anything within this is now user made)
* Star Wars Appreciation Spoilers Ahead
* Owning Your Own Home
* Films
* Wordle
* Musk is a cunt and Tesla are shit
* What are you Listening to?
* Video Games
* Etc. - Social Forum Channel (Created by mod/admin, but anything within this is now user made)
* North Drinks
* East Drinks
* West Drinks
* South East Drinks
* One off Events
* Etc. - Mechanics & Fixin' Forum Channel (Created by mod/admin, but anything within this is now user made)
* Transmission database - for all your crank / bb / bottom bracket questions
* Mechanics and Fixing Any Questions Answered
* Wheelbuilding / Wheel Building / Wheel build help
* Chain Waxing
* Etc. - Current Projects Forum Channel (Created by mod/admin, but anything within this is now user made)
* Disc Brakes are dead
* Etc. - Rides and Races Forum Channel (Created by mod/admin, but anything within this is now user made)
* The Rapha Festive 500
* Pro-cycling thread
* Ultracycling
* Audax Rides
* Etc. - Etc.
Cities and Places Category - City Request Text Thread (so people can ask a Mod/Admin to make a new forum channel for a place that doesn't have on yet)
- Manchester Forum Channel (users can then create what they want within using conversations)
- Newcastle Forum Channel (users can then create what they want within using conversations)
- Brighton Forum Channel (users can then create what they want within using conversations)
- Etc.
The New Members, Announcements and Rules could even be rolled into one Category like it is on here, with some Categories, Forum Channels (with Categories) and Text Channels (with Threads) open for testing and welcomes and stuff as well as the read only stuff.
The problem is, there are some sub-forums within these on LFGSS that we just can't replicate I don't think. 'Covid-19' exists within the Miscellaneous and Meaningless forum and the Classifieds has sub forums for 'Components and clothing' seperate to 'Complete Bikes and Frames & forks' for example. Another one is the 'Cities and Places' on LFGSS that has sub-forums for each place within that, as I've noted above, this would maybe need to be a seperate category, with mod created Forum Channels that then Users create the conversations in, I think that's how it is here.
- Read Only Welcome Text Channel
-
It's clear from various postings you don't like Discord - but do you have any alternative platform suggestions for LFGSS if the continuation plan for here doesn't work out?
You are reading a single comment by @itsbruce and its replies.
Click here to read the full conversation.
ric_a5
dubkev
@itsbruce
I notice that the Discord has been organised to look like the current forum layout, but the difference between the Discord categories/channels/threads structure (and privileges) mean that's a bit of an illusion.
On this site, creating forums and subforums require privileges, but anybody can create a thread. On Discord, mods have created categories to match the common top level forums, and below that there's an inconsistent mix of forum channels and ordinary channels. But all an ordinary Discord user can create is posts (within forum channels) or threads (within normal channels but not forum channels). The result is that there are are things on the Discord that look like the LFGSS layout but can only have been created by mods, where on LFGSS they were created by ordinary users. On here, the BTOB thread was created by an unprivileged user at the top level of the General forum area; couldn't do that on Discord so a mod must have created the existing channel. There's nowhere appropriate (or at least equivalent) for me to recreate the "Musk is a cunt" thread and I don't have the privileges to create such a space. "Musk is a cunt" doesn't need to be at top level, far from it, but right now my only option would be to make a thread in an ordinary channel and there are no appropriate ones.
I think some of the current layout needs a rethink, at least. It's getting very little use at the moment, but if it does then these will become issues. The Discord can't be organised the way the forum is - the basic rules are different - but that means the current layout needs changing.