New MB Community Site

[Guybrush]

Most of us are not completely satisfied with our (lack of) administration. So, how would you feel in if some members / moderators open an alternative community site with a blog style front page for stuff like album reviews and a forum?

Before you answer, feel free to reflect on these possible pros and cons :

• Possible Pros
  • We can manage our (new) site closer to how we like - in a way that promotes the community rather than a way which makes cash
    • Power over the design
    • Front page in blog layout which makes album reviews, articles and so on indexed and more visible (with cross-posting to forum so that any blog post is two-way synced to a forum thread, blog post comments turn into forum posts and vice versa)
    • Free webmail for members on the domain (f.ex tore@newdomain.com)
    • Potential for hosting member blogs (f.ex tore.newdomain.com)
    • "Secret" forums that you need a certain post count to get into where we could share stuff we don't want to share with anyone but the community (members pictures, birthdays, links)

• Possible Cons
  • It can damage/kill the MB Community
    • Some members see the new site as a betrayal to this one and the community and refuse to partake in it
    • If split into two smaller communities, one or both may die because they don't have enough activity to be sustainable
    • Should everyone make the move, the new site's relative invisibility compared to the old leads to a low income of new members which in turn could lead to a slow death of the entire community. The site would have to build momentum before it becomes visible and gets influx of new members and it may not live long enough.
  • We'd mostly have to start fresh with threads and posts

We are not doing this now. It's simply an idea some of us have entertained and we're well aware of the dangers of doing this. Whether the idea is awful or brilliant depends to a very large degree on how the majority of the MB community feels about it. F.ex if only half the members here support the idea, it's a horrible idea. If 100% support the idea, then it's brilliant! The poll requires you to ignore others though and just vote how you would feel based on you and yourself.

I expect this thread may generate some drama, but if it does, I will interpret that as a sign of health and that people care Still, just be aware that currently, this hypothetical new site is pure imagination and none of us would want to do something which has a significant risk of damaging our community.

So, how do you feel about it?

[Guybrush]

How I feel about it completely depends on the rest of the community actually. But, if I got my wish, I'd definetly like a new site with a better layout and more control. MB is us, not this domain or this particular blue on black vbulletin theme. If we'd have it better on a different site, then I see that as a win situation.

So, my basic position is highly positive towards this idea.

[Scarlett O'Hara]

Originally Posted by tore

How I feel about it completely depends on the rest of the community actually. But, if I got my wish, I'd definetly like a new site with a better layout and more control. MB is us, not this domain or this particular blue on black vbulletin theme. If we'd have it better on a different site, then I see that as a win situation.

So, my basic position is highly positive towards this idea.

This. To be honest I'm surprised it hasn't come up earlier. I think it would be a fantastic idea, a place where everyone can belong to and feel apart of. Particularly when it comes to giving ideas for what you'd all want the forums to look like etc. That being that we have the people on board.

Brilliant.

[Dr.Seussicide]

The major problem I have with this is this: When you run a google search on simply "music forum" MB is, I believe, the 2nd top requested search. Now, if we move to a new site, we'd lose this wouldn't we? I don't get how that will help expand our community.

[crash_override]

It's a good idea in theory, like communism, but it just isn't practical. I vote nay, but my word has never meant too much so do what you will.

[Guybrush]

Originally Posted by Dr.Seussicide

The major problem I have with this is this: When you run a google search on simply "music forum" MB is, I believe, the 2nd top requested search. Now, if we move to a new site, we'd lose this wouldn't we? I don't get how that will help expand our community.

This is definetly a concern and also one I've covered in the first post. A new site would require participation, basically people to fill it with content, so that it starts generating backlinks and so on and eventually appears visibly in a google search. Only at that point should one expect it to get new members in a way which is sustainable.

To be fair, there is stuff we could do to help somewhat. Perhaps we could put some cash together to run a google ad and we can of course promote the site ourselves on facebook and so on.

[s_k]

It's always hard to know in advance if these things work.
And to be completely honest, I think this forum works 'too well' for the members.
For the mods it's ****ing frustrating, but the difference will not be as noticeable amongst members. The forum is fast, stable, everything there is works like a charm.

I set up a forum in december 2006. There was a bunch of taperecorder enthusiasts on an audio forum that wasn't about tape recorders in particular. Altough I definitely had an advantage on the other forum (friendlier moderation, focus on tapedecks etc.) there were some die hard tapedeck-heads who didn't get there before half 2007. Some people are rather certain they're feeling miserable than risk feeling happy. So you will really have to do something with the new forum that actually makes it BETTER than the old forum.

Apart from that, I wonder what the admins will think of this topic. I advise you to backup the main page and get the mailadresses of the core members of this forum, in case your ass gets kicked or, worse, in case they decide to shut down this forum.

Anyway, I'm in.

Edit: About what Dr. Seussicide says; Yes, could be. But is it neccesary for the new forum to be music forum #1 rightaway?
It might actually be nice to start of with a close group of people. Stuff will get bigger eventually. And you don't have to have thousands of members to have an active forum. My own forum has like... 200 members of which 70 are active on a daily basis (we've had more subscriptions but I delete everyone who doesn't post). It's just as busy as this forum is . When I'm not there for a day, I have 4 pages of new postings to read .

[Guybrush]

Originally Posted by s_k

Apart from that, I wonder what the admins will think of this topic. I advise you to backup the main page and get the mailadresses of the core members of this forum, in case your ass gets kicked or, worse, in case they decide to shut down this forum.

If they see it, they certainly won't like it and will probably think of it as mutiny. I'm all for honesty and transparency, so I don't want to hide my feelings regarding this from them. I like to believe that knocking me down from my position as a mod and/or banning me from the site would only have a negative impact on the site as a whole and hope that they would see that too. But you never know, there's definetly a risk, but sometimes they're worth taking.

I've no doubt a new site could be made better. This is just a forum and will only ever stay a forum. We don't generate much income so our issues are low on admin's to-do list, yet the site has worth because of it's high google ranking. So, we're kinda stuck with this and although it does work for what it's worth, it would be nice if the site could develop more.

[Burning Down]

I'm all for a new site, and I would still like to be a part of the MB community.

Tore, you mentioned a private forum/section of sorts, and I was wondering if it could or would be an invite-only type of thing. For example, I post on an REM fan forum where threads that deal with more private matters such as sex, health, pics of your city/town, etc, are located in a section that is invite-only. The administrator usually just accepts requests to be able to view that section, but you need to have 200 posts or something like that before you can request to join that section.

A pro to this approach is that newer, unknown members won't see more sensitive topics and members' personal issues until they have interacted more on the main boards with senior members. Also, that section remains spam-free. (Unfortunately it does not deter trolling ). Cons to having an invite-only forum are that it could potentially create elitism in the community (especially in one as large as MB), and favouritism between the admin(s) and mods, and certain members.

[Guybrush]

Originally Posted by Burning Down

Tore, you mentioned a private forum/section of sorts, and I was wondering if it could or would be an invite-only type of thing.

It could be whatever we decide I guess There's no problem making it so that it's available for people above a certain post count, but it could also be invite only if we wish.