Fiddle Hangout - Improvements and Suggestions Forum Feed

Location on posts

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Wed, 8 Feb 2012 07:56:32 CST

I've been enjoying this site for a couple of years now, have learned much, and hopefully been able to help a few others along the way. I've never made a suggestion for the website yet, but I do have one. Would it be possible, or practical, to have a more precise location listed on each post, rather than just the country as it is now? Like maybe a city or state? (Maybe even a real first name, but that's another subject) I just might make it more meaningful when talking to people. I know we can already get that information by clicking elsewhere on the site, but this might make it a lot easier. Just a suggestion. Any comments?

Changes NOT Welcome ...

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Tue, 7 Feb 2012 08:22:59 CST

What has become of the "South Plains College" thread? I know it's been locked, but why does the thread not show up AT ALL under the "Playing Advice" category? Was this intentional?

The changes that have occurred in this forum, over the last year, have all seemed negative to me. Numerous complaints about the new "improved" functionality have all been ignored. This forum has been useful to me (and to MANY others), but it is less so, now.

Topic moved from Playing Advice forum - wormbower

On Moderators, hidden posts, topics gone awry

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Mon, 6 Feb 2012 17:30:41 CST

Today, in a topic that has now been locked, a member posted the following:

-------------------------------------

OK - I've held off until now (which was probably wise) but I have to say:

TO THE MODERATORS (Whom I'm also tempted to refer to as Moe, Curly and Larry, although I won't - I don't think Shemp was in on this):

What in THE WORLD has happened to this thread? I looked in a few times last night and saw different names listed in the "last post" column, but when I clicked on the thread those posts were not there. What happened to the very thoughtful and honest post by Topcat (Good on ya, Topcat!) and the dramatic departure of the OP, riding in her swanboat? It was gone before I could wish her "Aloha." There were others too, and they are still listed on their respective homepages, so I know I wasn't hallucinating.

I thought this thread should have been locked long ago, and tried to nudge it in that direction, but if you're going to let it run its course (a foolish idea IMHO), you should do so without monkeying with it. As it was it made perfect dramatic sense - character was revealed, and the loose ends of the plot were tied up. Now it reads like Oliver Twist with some of the installments missing.

In the past, if a moderator needed to delete a post, or part of one, it was so indicated. I think you should continue to do this, and also you all should get together with Eric and see if you can all get on the same page for your actions.

Just my $.02 of course.

-------------------------------------

First, an explanation and an apology. After a series of inappropriate posts, several moderators, including myself, posted admonitions to discuss the topic with civility. It didn't take long before the topic devolved again. A long string of posts responded to the new inappropriate posts, while some members disregarded the nonsense and attempted to revive the original topic of discussion. The situation moved fast, and I was notified, while I happened to be working on a work-related writing project that had a hard deadline of today. I HID (but did not delete) the inappropriate posts and the posts responding to them in an attempt to defuse the tension that was developing and get the thread back to the original valuable conversation. I apologize for not indicating that I had hidden posts. When I occasionally edit posts, I always try to leave a note of explanation. It's not as easy to leave a note on a post that's been hidden, but I should have explained my action in a new post, and will endeavor to do that in the future.

As for the comments on the moderators' handling of the thread, I can assure you that there was an extensive and very thoughtful conversation behind the scenes (most of what moderators do is behind the scenes) all day yesterday (Superbowl Sunday) and today (a work day, for me, at least). Moderators hear it when they don't lock a topic someone thinks should be locked. They hear it louder when they lock a topic someone thinks shouldn't have been locked. I tend to err on the side of lighthandedness. I see the FHO forums as a place to exchange ideas, even if the discussion sometimes gets a little hot. We have a nice set of rules and guidelines (worth reviewing), and I try to let them guide my moderating.

In my short time with the new moderators, I think they are doing a terrific job and are all very thoughtful, caring, and dedicated members of the FHO. You may not realize that moderators receive NOTHING (not even a T-shirt) for their services. We also have real lives, just like everyone else here, and may not be able to tend to issues on the spot. I don't think it is fair (or very nice) to call the moderators names like Moe, Curly, and Larry.

Paul

help with music file

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 09:44:59 CST

I posted some music files today... It's my first attempt. I made a mistake in the 'genre' selection.. Is there a way to edit the information about the tune? LEE

all versions of a tune on the Hangout

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 13:26:36 CST

Is there a way to hear all version currently posted on the hangout... for example Soldiers Joy, is there a place where all of those who have posted are listed? Maybe I'm just not Hangout savvy enough.. LEE

Points mean..............prizes?

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 18:29:29 CST

Whilst trawling other folks posts on my homepage I stumbled across a thread talking about something or other (I can't remember what now) a post was made about the ranking system on FHO and how folks will post just to up their stars. I hadn't even noticed them until then. I noticed that I am now no longer a private in the FHO army and have been promoted.

In real terms what do these ranks mean if anything?

Am I only posting this to up my own rank?

If I get 3 stars will coins fall out of my disk drive?

Feel free to join in.

I had an idea...uh-oh, that can only be bad!

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 06:46:58 CST

Hey whoevers in charge of this wonderful site...I had this idea for fidde hangout. I hear talk and usually am drooling over posts about people getting out to festivals, contests, jams, etc....I'm always stuck and I would think I'm not the only obe stuck alone playing all the time. So what about a virtual festival-style fidde contest? Like pick a tune or obe of a handful f similar tunes to work on... By a certain date, people make a video, or mp3 if a video wouldn't be possible...evetubodys the judges and the take votes on the 1st, 2nd, 3rd places...nothing serious or cut-throat...just a good time, a chance to feel like we are playing in a real festival, an excuse to find mre time to practice...some good times...it's probably a bad idea for some reason r another that I'm not bright enoug to notice. , I.e., nobody to work at organizing it, etc., r something line that...but just kinda dreaming about what might be kinda fun if it could ever be done. That is all...mre coffee and yes I have some time for fiddling this morning, so I gotta get back before some crashes my own little festival here in my living room!!!

Experience Level Options

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 19:18:58 CST

I was just wondering if it would be possible to have one more experience level to choose from? At the 3 year mark for me. I am a little better than "novice"(most of the time at least), but not really what I would consider "purty good". So how about something in between the two, say maybe. "fair to middlin" (to stick with the "purty good" theme).

Just a thought, I would love to change my experience level from novice, but can't honestly move to purty good yet.

Thanks for giving it some consideration.

Multiple hangout posts

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 16:37:53 CST

Another brainstorm has struck me... I am on both the FiddleHangout and the BanjoHangout. Often I cut and paste an item and make the same post in both hangouts. Is it possible to offer an option that allows one to post an item to both hangouts if the subject matter is not specific to either the fiddle or the banjo ( or other instruments)? LEE

"like" button

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 14:58:39 CST

Often, when seeing something that I like on the hangout I almost instinctively want to push a "like" button ( but there isn't one) , such as is available on Facebook...Has anyone else ever tried to do that or is it just me? LEE

Who Moderates the Moderators?

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 14:43:53 CST

You can't "lock-out" a moderator, 'cause they have a key to get back in.

Looking to bring on 4 new moderators. Are you one of 'em?

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Sat, 26 Nov 2011 10:10:50 CST

Hi Folks,

I want to bring on 4 new moderators in the next month or so, to help out poor longsuffering Paul Mulhrad (wormbower) who has been acting as lone moderator for over a year now. (Lucky for him, you folks generally behave, so it's not a huge job!)

To be a moderator, you need to be familiar with the FHO site, and you should be logging on fairly regularly (at least a couple times a week, if not much more often). There is no specific time requirement to be a moderator.

What Does a Mod Do?
Moderators mostly respond to reported posts. They may also work with posts before they're reported, if they come across them while using the site and realize something needs to be done. What do moderators do in the forums? They typically move posts to the correct forum, hide posts that break the rules, and lock members who are misbehaving. Basically, the moderator's job is to keep the forum running smoothly, within the parameters set by the sitewide rules.

If you have any questions or comments, or want to recommend someone as a moderator, feel free to post below. If you'd like to be a moderator, post below, or send me a PM. Thanks!

who's the mod. for the classifieds?

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Thu, 3 Nov 2011 18:24:35 CST

i'm a bit worried about a recent classified ad here that i responded to several times, then today received a fairly ugly reply telling me that he'd sent me more than one email, and "enough is enough". how do i check to see if my email address, etc. as posted works properly? i know that i've never had any problems before-

michael ford

Fiddle Hangout Moderators??

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Thu, 3 Nov 2011 16:33:08 CST

I am a member on several forums, and a moderator on one. I have noticed that there is usually a section that says 'meet the moderators' or something to that effect. That lets you know who's in charge and keeping the forum a nice place to hang out. For the most part everyone is nice here, but I have noticed a few different discussions in the past month or so that have turned into downright personal arguments, and there was no moderator who stepped in to stop it.

So what I'm wondering is, is there any moderators here? If so, who are they, can we get to know them or are they on here anonymously?

Thanks!

Fiddle camps and workshops

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Sat, 8 Oct 2011 08:54:25 CST

Hi. A suggestion would be to have a permanent place for posting fiddle camps, workshops, festivals in all fiddle genres on this site with some restrictions.

The name of the festival/workshop etc...the Place (state and city/town), Dates and the contact information/website to go to for more information . No long discussions about how you liked the camp or not. Just a place to post so that FHO members could check it out and know about up and coming events.

With so many new members and new players...it would be a great spot to help them along and of course continue the mission statement of FHO...a great place to hangout. Maybe it could be a spot like the "groups" and if you belong to that group you get an update. Thanks for FHO!

Diane

Jukebox Playlist suggestion

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Mon, 27 Jun 2011 09:29:41 CST

It would be great if I could set an order for my playlists the way I can for my friends. Right now I think it's ordered by the person who posted the sound file, so it plays big blocks of the fiddlers I like all at once. I'd like to mix it up a bit more. Thanks for your consideration on this.

No longer can read posts on Blackberry

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Thu, 5 May 2011 18:53:13 CST

Hello Eric:

Since the changeover to the enhanced HTML forum code, I find that I can no longer read posts on my Blackberry 8830 "World Edition" smartphone, even when I'm certain that I'm accessing through the mobile version.

All of my settings are the same on my Blackberry. But whenever I try to read a post, I now get a message "HTTP Error 413: Request Entity Too Large". Previously, I would only get this message when viewing certain Wikipedia pages. But now I get it every time that I try to read a post on FHO.

Could this be due to the enhanced HTML upgrade? Or just coincidence?

Frank

RSS feed DOA?

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 14:23:02 CST

The RSS feed has not updated for a couple of days. Is everyone asleep, eating candy, looking for eggs? Is this just my problem?

Can't use spell check

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Thu, 7 Apr 2011 19:59:54 CST

This forums new editor somehow takes over my mouses menu so that when my computer highlights a word that's misspelled I can't right click it and select the correct spelling. all I get is cut, copy and past and the menu looks like part of the editor. this forcing me to have to write my posts in a word editor and then place the cursor in the message box, then select past from my menu bar at the top to post. I'm not a good speller or typer.

it's really annoying. can we opt out of the forums editor to go back to the old one?

Practice Section!

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 16:47:02 CST

OK, here's my latest idea. Along the lines of the "Learn To Play" tab to the left of the screen, why not have an entry that allows the member to choose their playing level (permanently or for that day) and the amount of time they have right then to practice, and then get an exercise from the archive. It could be something like "Run the A chord arpeggios up as far as you can a few times and then map out one that is higher", or "Play the Bb scale 22 times with the chord tones on the down-bow. Even it out by including the flat 7th." And so forth..... We could all write simple "Grab Bag" exercises at various levels.

Tying different Hangout memberships together

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Thu, 3 Mar 2011 07:45:19 CST

I know this is tricky and may not be possible. But it would be so nice! Things I can see happening if this could be done. Post classified ad on one hangout and have it automatically show in "other instruments" on the other hangouts. Have classified ad sale feedbacks cumulative for all hangouts. Right now I've got one feedback on FHO and one on MHO. Post calendar events on either one or all hangouts. Invite members of other hangouts to certain groups that are more general instrument-wise in nature.

Collectors Forum? Does it exist here?

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 17:00:52 CST

Hi, I've been looking for a forum to discuss instruments. I have not found one yeet. I collect. But I'm new to the hobby. I'd like to discuss what fiddles I have and find out more about them. I'd like to find out more about fiddles in general. Can anyone tell me where such a forum is, if it exists here? Thanks

Cross-post events to Multiple Hangout sites

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 12:13:09 CST

It would be nice if there was some way to post an event and have the option to post it to multiple Hangouts. Many festivals, concerts, contests, etc., would be of interest to more than just fiddlers, but it takes a lot of effort to post them on each site. Thanks! Judy

15 minutes to edit forum posts? WHY???

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 13:26:31 CST

Asks the woman who spots typos and grammar issues an hour later . . . I just saw the notice flash about this upon submitting a forum thread reply. What is the reason for this??

Video Categories for Canadian Fiddling?

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 08:15:28 CST

I just added a video of Matilda Murdoch from New Brunswick playing her tune, Loggieville Two Step. I was surprised that there are no video categories for the various types of Canadian Fiddling! Since Matilda is from New Brunswick she's closest to the Cape Breton style of play, which isn't available as a choice. A couple others that come to mind, since I KNOW they come up in discussion on the forum: Newfoundland Style Quebecois Style Metis Style Ottawa Valley or Pembroke Valley Style I personally think that Canadian fiddling styles, which are rich and varied, should be broken out more, so it's easier to distinguish what the differences are between them.

Separate place for games

eric@fiddlehangout.com — Sat, 1 Jan 2011 06:38:50 CST

I have noticed that here on the FHO the "Other" topics forum is dominated by games of one sort or another. This is not the case on the BHO or the MHO where the "Other" has a number of interesting threads, some related to music and some not, but on those sites the games are kept to their own page. I can see that some FHO members only do games and I think other topics could be encouraged if the games had their own Topic page.