I did a brief scan of the first two pages of off topic, and 15 to 20% of it was more or less something similar to what would be found in a blog. People talking about "i had a strange experience at work" or "i just got diagnosed with autism" etc.

The reason I think it really would be better in a blog/stories section is that it focuses those threads on individuals, so we really can get to k ow each other better. Plus it would clear up some of the off topic clutter, which is always a bonus.

People love talking about themselves. This is a good way to do it.

(May 11, 2018 at 11:04 am)CapnAwesome Wrote: I did a brief scan of the first two pages of off topic, and 15 to 20% of it was more or less something similar to what would be found in a blog. People talking about "i had a strange experience at work" or "i just got diagnosed with autism" etc.

The reason I think it really would be better in a blog/stories section is that it focuses those threads on individuals, so we really can get to k ow each other better. Plus it would clear up some of the off topic clutter, which is always a bonus.

People love talking about themselves. This is a good way to do it.

This is how I see it, too. Not trying to be difficult lol I understand the trepidation if a site has never offered something like this, but this is an example of how it can work. It's also kinda cool to look back and be like...wow, I've come a long way with ...whatever it might be that you were once struggling with. Like I would use a journal on AF, to share a variety of things...from the mundane to my newfound spiritual perspectives, that type of thing. And of course, content would be subject to the rules of the forum like any other subsection.

(May 11, 2018 at 10:43 am)CapnAwesome Wrote: I mean, video games has its own section.

Yes, but it didn't use to. People would use another subforum (probably sports, or off topic) for discussing gaming, and that's why we created the separate Gaming subforum. That's how we've done this for years, and it prevents us from creating new forums which don't see much content.

Quote:Honestly I think that is already happening, it's just in the 'what are you up to right now' thread. But the problem with that thread is that its too cluttered, and its hard to get a perspective on the
individuals, also there are tons of stories about day to day life and about a million threads of people bitching about work, which is more of less a blog/life stories. It's just all in the clutter of the off topic.

If you build it, they will come!

Again, the solution for this is to take the initiative and start individual blog threads, keep them updated, etc. When you can show that there are plenty of users who want to do this, we can then create the subforum and move the blog threads over.

I might try it, but I don't see numerous people starting blogs in the off topic section. It's different when you're sharing stuff about your life, that's just me. Maybe others would feel differently, it's worth seeing.

I don't understand why you have a problem starting blog threads in off topic but are fine if they are in a separate subforum.

Blog thread should be 1 per user right? Or were you going to create a new blog thread for every "blog post"?

(May 11, 2018 at 11:01 am)*Deidre* Wrote:

(May 11, 2018 at 10:37 am)Shell B Wrote: I’ve never seen blogs in a forum. Could you link to a forum that has them so I can get an idea of what functionality you’re talking about?

https://www.religiousforums.com/forums/journals.269/

That is the section designated for journals on the religious forums site. They have it placed under ''general'' which for AF, that would be equal to the ''off topic,'' but this gives you an idea of how they have a separate subforum for the journals/blogs.

Yeah, those aren't quite blogs, so really just a section of the forum for life/family/work is what you are looking for. People could start threads in that vein or call it a "journal" and regularly update said thread. We did mention having a family section a while back. I can't remember why we didn't, but I'm sure we could think about it again.

(May 11, 2018 at 11:14 am)Tiberius Wrote: I don't understand why you have a problem starting blog threads in off topic but are fine if they are in a separate subforum.

Blog thread should be 1 per user right? Or were you going to create a new blog thread for every "blog post"?

Good question.

No, one thread = one blog. And then it would be ongoing. I don't have a problem with it, just haven't ever seen journals or blogs in anything other than a separate section, so that's how I've seen it work. I don't personally understand the issue with creating a new subforum, and seeing what happens. Guess, we are just talking past each other at this point. lol

I don't know what else to say...it was just a suggestion. It's not a big deal, really.

---

(May 11, 2018 at 11:20 am)Shell B Wrote:

(May 11, 2018 at 11:01 am)*Deidre* Wrote: https://www.religiousforums.com/forums/journals.269/

That is the section designated for journals on the religious forums site. They have it placed under ''general'' which for AF, that would be equal to the ''off topic,'' but this gives you an idea of how they have a separate subforum for the journals/blogs.

Yeah, those aren't quite blogs, so really just a section of the forum for life/family/work is what you are looking for. People could start threads in that vein or call it a "journal" and regularly update said thread. We did mention having a family section a while back. I can't remember why we didn't, but I'm sure we could think about it again.

Yes, that's it totally! That's the idea...sorry, blog might be the wrong word. But, journals/diary/reflections/blogs...but the theme being exactly what you're saying here. That would be a more suitable section imo, than off topic, because off topic is sort of a catch all for everything. This would be more like lifestyle/family/personal matters - and then people could put blog/journals in there, and the subforum label could be a broader title...like you're saying here.

(May 11, 2018 at 11:14 am)Tiberius Wrote: I don't understand why you have a problem starting blog threads in off topic but are fine if they are in a separate subforum.

Blog thread should be 1 per user right? Or were you going to create a new blog thread for every "blog post"?

Well people are already basically blogging in the off topic section. Like I said it's probably 15-20% of what goes on there, blogs and stories, they just aren't called that. So there is tons of blogging going on on this site. Poke around off topic and consider how much of it is more or less blogging.

Yeah, one thread person is I assume how people would do it, like the 'ask a....' sub forum. Which people love.

Honestly I almost never start threads in off topic, because they get buried quickly and get lost in the clutter. I certainly wouldn't want to put the effort of writing up a fairly long story on a smart phone, only to have it get barely brushed over and buried quickly. That's why it's probably the worst place for something like sharing a personal story, even though people do that lots anyway. A separate subsection makes so much more sense, because you can go there to easily check on "Tiberius Blog" or "Diedre's blog" and see which ones have been updated by the fact they have risen to the top. Rather than subscribing to some off topic thread. It would be neat and organized, intimate and personal.

It would be so much better a format than the way personal stories are handled here now, which is randomly grouped in off topic, with butt jokes and cat memes.

(May 11, 2018 at 11:21 am)*Deidre* Wrote: I don't personally understand the issue with creating a new subforum, and seeing what happens.

I'd rather not have to create a subforum, and then at some point in the future delete it again because it's not used. That's the issue.

Every subforum we have, barring ones with restrictions (i.e. debate forum, area 69, etc.) are popular enough to merit their existence. A lot of them were created because the demand for them was high, and people had already produced a lot of threads that could be moved there.

So, if you really want this subforum, create your blog thread in Off Topic, save a bookmark link to it so you don't lose track, or subscribe to it, keep it updated, and encourage people to do the same. When you can show that these kind of threads are popular and numerous enough to merit a separate subforum, let me know.