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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 35 to 59 of 194. Go back in thread:
Posted by Dr. Bob on November 21, 2007, at 8:06:23
In reply to Re: opening boards and closing boards, posted by Dinah on November 19, 2007, at 11:24:41
> No formula for deciding when a small board should be closed. Maybe keep track of posts complaining that the small boards get too little traffic and they'd rather post on Social or Psychology? Or just peruse the activity level and then start separate threads for each low volume board asking for feedback about closing them?
>
> Not everything has to be a formula. Any number of things shouldn't be, IMO.I agree, but a formula can be a starting point. Here's each board and how many weeks ago its most recent thread was started:
2000 26
Faith 6
Parents 5
Books 4
Eating 3
Health 1
Work 1
Grief 1
Writing 1
Relationships 1
Students 1
Substance Use 1
Newbies 1
Withdrawal 0
Self-Esteem 0
Alternative 0
Medication 0
Psychology 0
Administration 0
Social 0
Politics 0So a month without any new threads would mean closing 2000, Faith, and Parents. I might consider 2000 and Faith to be exceptions and just close Parents?
Bob
Posted by Phillipa on November 21, 2007, at 8:08:28
In reply to Re: shutting down boards, posted by Dr. Bob on November 10, 2007, at 18:11:58
Dr. Bob couldn't eating, health, be combined? And self-esteem is really a part of psychology to me as my therispist and I discuss these thing. Agree general would be great. Phillipa
Posted by Dinah on November 21, 2007, at 8:43:15
In reply to Re: closing boards, posted by Dr. Bob on November 21, 2007, at 8:06:23
Dr. Bob - You started that post on work, didn't you? By redirecting it from another board?
Surely that shouldn't count.
Dinah
Posted by Dinah on November 21, 2007, at 8:56:36
In reply to Re: closing boards, posted by Dr. Bob on November 21, 2007, at 8:06:23
I also don't really agree with the criteria.
One post a month seems excessive, since you have us trained to use the boards by topic, and some people do that even though they'd rather post somewhere where there is more traffic.
I'd suggest four per month as a bare minimum. That's one per week.
Either that or an announcement that redirects will no longer be made to the less active boards, so people are free to post on that board or on Social.
And as for Newbies.... Since it's a board specifically designed to help newcomers feel welcome and helped, does it make sense to judge it by the number of new threads? Responses sounds like a better criterion. How about at least four new threads that generate more response than a welcome and a suggestion that they post on a more active board?
Posted by Dinah on November 21, 2007, at 9:31:37
In reply to Re: closing boards » Dr. Bob, posted by Dinah on November 21, 2007, at 8:43:15
> Dr. Bob - You started that post on work, didn't you? By redirecting it from another board?
>
> Surely that shouldn't count.
>
> DinahNever mind. I saw you didn't include that one. :)
Posted by Muffled on November 21, 2007, at 10:54:55
In reply to Re: closing boards, posted by Dr. Bob on November 21, 2007, at 8:06:23
I can see closing faith inasmuch as it seems to end up causing probs.
I think faith stuff can, and has been talked about on psychology. Very carefully of course. And with much thot to others sensitivities. Cuz everyones faith is their own.
So eg. a person can ask for 'prayers', and that can take many forms, it can be prayers in the Christian sense, or healing 'energy' sent the way of the person, or prayers in other religious ways, it can be just holding the person in your thots/heart.
As far as theological discussions...well..they need to be very sensitively done. And could occur on eg. social or psychology etc, depending on the 'why' of the dicussion.
My thots..
M
Posted by Muffled on November 21, 2007, at 11:02:55
In reply to Re: closing boards, posted by Dinah on November 21, 2007, at 9:31:37
Also, as far a trying to have certain discussions on certain boards...well, as a poster that is difficult and time consuming cuz you have to keep switching boards to check on stuff. Plus, if you kinda have a 'home' board, then you get to know certain posters and they in turn get to know you, and that is HUGE, but so much is 'understood' in the communications when you know each other some. There is more trust and understanding on so many levels.
I do goto meds for med questions.
I sometimes goto social for purely social type posts.
Sometimes writing is useful just to spew some of the badness outta me.
And of course admin to see wassup with the running of babble etc.
Those are boards I use most.
So long windedly I am saying that the boards can hold 'broader' topics if you *word* it right!!!!!!!!
I can talk bout my kids on pych or social quite easily.
I can talk carefully bout religion on those same boards.
These are my thots.
Not very clear, sorry.
M
Posted by Dr. Bob on November 22, 2007, at 15:17:01
In reply to Re: closing boards » Dr. Bob, posted by Dinah on November 21, 2007, at 8:56:36
> I also don't really agree with the criteria.
>
> One post a month seems excessive, since you have us trained to use the boards by topic, and some people do that even though they'd rather post somewhere where there is more traffic.
>
> I'd suggest four per month as a bare minimum. That's one per week.OK, here's each board and the number of new threads (not new posts) on it during 4 weeks (10/24 through 11/20):
2000 0
Parents 0
Faith 0
Books 1
Eating 2
Grief 2
Politics 2
Relationships 4
Newbies 5
Writing 6
Self-Esteem 7
Students 7
Work 7
Substance Use 10
Withdrawal 13
Health 14
Administration 21
Alternative 26
Social 73
Psychology 124
Medication 308So a minimum of 1/week would mean closing 2000, Parents, Faith, Books, Eating, Grief, and Politics. I might consider 2000, Faith, and Politics to be exceptions and just close Parents, Books, Eating, and Grief?
Bob
Posted by Muffled on November 22, 2007, at 15:28:40
In reply to Re: closing boards, posted by Dr. Bob on November 22, 2007, at 15:17:01
I wonder if eating board would get more use if it was made to be more specific to the needs of eating disordered people as opposed to just...eating...?
Maybe not.
Faith and politics as exceptions.....why? Is it a desire to have these problematic topics to have their own place to keep it off the other boards? Just wondering.
I'm not sure exactly why keep 2000 board open if its not being used at all? Can these people not 'meet' on social, where their posts are more likely to be seen anyways????
So I can see parents , books, and grief being able to be absorbed by other boards, but eating....I dunno.
These are my exalted thots if anyone gives a flying f*ck what I got to say...
Ha.
M
Posted by MidnightBlue on November 26, 2007, at 0:27:21
In reply to Re: emotional support, posted by Dr. Bob on October 17, 2007, at 0:31:32
> > Maybe some boards could be joined as "emotional support". I've noticed some posts on "medication" are not about medication... it's more about people trying to reach out.
>
> When I revised the layout recently I actually took out a line about that:
>
> > > If what you want to do is support someone more than discuss an issue, just post to whichever board they posted to.
>
> See:
>
> http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/admin/20070817/msgs/785641.html
>
> BobDr. Bob,
Does this mean if you primarily want to be supportive you should not post to someone on a board unless it is the social board?MB
Posted by MidnightBlue on November 26, 2007, at 0:31:56
In reply to Re: closing boards, posted by Dr. Bob on November 21, 2007, at 8:06:23
I would think it might be a good idea to combine books and writing, medications and withdrawal, and parents and relationships.
MB
Posted by Dr. Bob on November 27, 2007, at 20:19:49
In reply to Re: emotional support » Dr. Bob, posted by MidnightBlue on November 26, 2007, at 0:27:21
> Does this mean if you primarily want to be supportive you should not post to someone on a board unless it is the social board?
No, I took out that line, but I still want people to support each other!
Bob
Posted by karen_kay on December 7, 2007, at 15:51:56
In reply to opening boards and closing boards, posted by Dr. Bob on October 10, 2007, at 1:43:52
check it out yourself mister bob! no need to close what's getting plenty of traffic, right?
yours truly,
kk
Posted by Dr. Bob on December 8, 2007, at 15:39:44
In reply to self esteem board is BOOMING!, posted by karen_kay on December 7, 2007, at 15:51:56
> check it out yourself mister bob!
Good work!
> no need to close what's getting plenty of traffic, right?
Right, thanks for keeping it going,
Bob
Posted by Kath on January 11, 2008, at 16:51:11
In reply to Re: opening boards and closing boards » Dr. Bob, posted by Dinah on October 10, 2007, at 9:39:52
This below seems like a good idea:
> I think a new board for those interested in complex neurotransmitter discussions is a great idea. I think someone suggested it a while back. I'm glad you're open to it.
>
> What were you thinking of in terms of criteria? It's clear that grief, relationships, work, parents, newbies, and probably a few others are not getting much traffic. A lot of people prefer to post on social where there is more chance that someone would see it and reply anyway.I find I just don't have time to check all the boards I'd like to, so having some incorporated would let me skim through more easily.
Thanks, Kath
Posted by Kath on January 11, 2008, at 17:03:27
In reply to Re: opening boards and closing boards, posted by Jamal Spelling on October 10, 2007, at 15:25:28
I tend to agree with the below as to the meds part of your idea:
> Having different boards for beginner and advanced medication issues is a bit like seating children separately at dinner. How are the rest of us supposed to get smart if we are not allowed to interact with the smart people? You're gonna have a dumbed-down board for laypeople and eventually babblers will just stop posting there because the quality of the posts will be so stupid. Besides, there are maybe five posters here who are "advanced" in their knowledge of psychopharmacology. And where exactly do you draw the line between elementary and advanced psychopharmacology? If I post a question on the board "Medication for dummies" and the content is deemed too advanced, will it get redirected to the other board? Or if I post a message on the board "Medication for smart people" and the content is deemed to be too basic, will it get redirected to the dummies board?
>
> No I say, NO!
>
> Jamal Spelling
> A concerned Psycho-Babble patriot
Posted by Kath on January 11, 2008, at 17:14:18
In reply to Re: emotional support, posted by Dr. Bob on October 17, 2007, at 0:31:32
Does it mean that we AREN'T supposed to write a post just to support a person in, say, the meds board?
Kath
> > Maybe some boards could be joined as "emotional support". I've noticed some posts on "medication" are not about medication... it's more about people trying to reach out.
>
> When I revised the layout recently I actually took out a line about that:
>
> > > If what you want to do is support someone more than discuss an issue, just post to whichever board they posted to.
>
> See:
>
> http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/admin/20070817/msgs/785641.html
>
> Bob
Posted by Dr. Bob on January 14, 2008, at 13:31:10
In reply to Re: emotional support » Dr. Bob, posted by Kath on January 11, 2008, at 17:14:18
> I tend to agree with the below as to the meds part of your idea:
>
> > Having different boards for beginner and advanced medication issues is a bit like seating children separately at dinner. How are the rest of us supposed to get smart if we are not allowed to interact with the smart people? You're gonna have a dumbed-down board for laypeople and eventually babblers will just stop posting there because the quality of the posts will be so stupid. Besides, there are maybe five posters here who are "advanced" in their knowledge of psychopharmacology. And where exactly do you draw the line between elementary and advanced psychopharmacology? If I post a question on the board "Medication for dummies" and the content is deemed too advanced, will it get redirected to the other board? Or if I post a message on the board "Medication for smart people" and the content is deemed to be too basic, will it get redirected to the dummies board?I'd want anyone who wanted to learn more about more advanced topics to feel comfortable asking questions. It wouldn't be limited to "experts". Posts might be redirected one way or the other, but that would be based on the topics, not the posters. It wouldn't be civil to refer to anyone as "children" or "stupid" or "dummies".
I agree, where to draw the line would be a question. We'd need to discuss that, and it would probably evolve over time.
> Does it mean that we AREN'T supposed to write a post just to support a person in, say, the meds board?
No, I still want people to support each other.
Bob
Posted by Dr. Bob on January 14, 2008, at 13:31:14
In reply to Re: closing boards, posted by Dr. Bob on November 22, 2007, at 15:17:01
> here's each board and the number of new threads (not new posts) on it during 4 weeks
On second thought, I think posts makes more sense than threads, since a lot of posts on a few threads is still activity. Here's each board and the number of new posts on it during the last 12 weeks of 2007:
Parents 6
2000 12
Books 16
Newbies 23
Grief 28
Relationships 40
Faith 52
Students 54
Politics 55
Eating 68
Work 81
Writing 99
Health 105
Self-Esteem 107
Substance Use 145
Withdrawal 206
Alternative 526
Administration 601
Social 1608
Psychology 4107
Medication 7578A minimum of a post every other day would be 45 in 90 days, so that would mean closing Parents, Books, Grief, and Relationships.
Bob
Posted by Dinah on January 14, 2008, at 16:18:17
In reply to Re: closing boards, posted by Dr. Bob on January 14, 2008, at 13:31:14
And newbies. :)
I also don't think anyone on earth would mind recombining work with social.
Posted by muffled on January 14, 2008, at 17:32:36
In reply to Re: closing boards, posted by Dr. Bob on January 14, 2008, at 13:31:14
Why not closing newbies and 2000? as they not have enuf posts either?
Or are those people bettern me so get their own board?
M
Posted by Dr. Bob on January 14, 2008, at 21:50:37
In reply to Re: closing boards, posted by Dinah on January 14, 2008, at 16:18:17
> And newbies. :)
I'd rather improve Newbies than close it...
Bob
Posted by Dinah on January 14, 2008, at 23:43:16
In reply to Re: newbies, posted by Dr. Bob on January 14, 2008, at 21:50:37
I know. :)
Posted by Phillipa on January 14, 2008, at 23:49:20
In reply to Re: newbies » Dr. Bob, posted by Dinah on January 14, 2008, at 23:43:16
Could that be a board for med education and explanations of neurotransmitters those that are not treatment resistant as was implied on the main board. Then those on let's say maybe an SSRI could help other beginners hang in there? Just my own thought. Phillipa
Posted by Justherself54 on January 15, 2008, at 11:50:24
In reply to Re: newbies, posted by Dr. Bob on January 14, 2008, at 21:50:37
> > And newbies. :)
>
> I'd rather improve Newbies than close it...
>
> BobCould you have an "official greeter" in the newbies area to help welcome them and direct them to the boards that would be most suited to their questions? I think we may gain members that way as right now they may perceive no responses to their first post as uncaring and not return..
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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
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