If Not Here, Then Where? Basic vs Advanced

[DevonDiver]

I agree with you on this. In at least two of the posts Jax referenced, the OP made reference to wanting more advanced opinions. Even if it is a topic that many of us consider basic, is it wrong for us to tell them they can't seek more advanced input?

I didn't think that posting in the Basic forum meant having to 'dumb down' your reply?

Perhaps threads there a little less likely to go off-topic and/or not expand to the full breadth of technical debate, but there are certainly no limitations on response... if a question gets asked, it usually gets answered.

I don't think the forums should be judged by the nature of the responses (permitted?), but rather by the nature of the question posed.

Otherwise... you might have people 'reporting' posts for being too clever?!?


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[TSandM]

I think, really, we should combine Basic and Advanced and call it "General". The same people read the two forums (especially now that one can't exclude forums from search) and you get advanced answers in Basic, and basic questions in Advanced. Is there truly a purpose served by having two separate forums?

 

[DevonDiver]

The green zone... that's really the only difference.

 

[MauiScubaSteve]

Otherwise... you might have people 'reporting' posts for being too clever?!?

Personally I think that is the reason for at least half of my posts that have been reported.

 

[Jax]

I think, really, we should combine Basic and Advanced and call it "General". The same people read the two forums (especially now that one can't exclude forums from search) and you get advanced answers in Basic, and basic questions in Advanced. Is there truly a purpose served by having two separate forums?

How about instead of "Basic" and "Advanced", change it to "General Scuba" and "Tech-curious"?

 

[Cave Diver]

As has already been mentioned in the several previous threads on this same discussion, the forum names are not likely to go away, or be renamed. For a quick refresher, here is one of the many posts on the topic:

While not impossible to do, renaming forums has it's own problems. RSS feeds, bookmarks and SEOs all go out the window. Those are three tools that have made us incredibly successful, so I approach name changes with the same passion for reinventing the wheel. Unless we see a significant benefit for doing it, I am loathe to change names in some Quixotic attempt to reform the industry.

This is not intended to inhibit discussion about changing the name, but more an attempt to set the bar really high. Come up with a name and description that knocks my socks off. Rec-Tech and Tecreational have underwhelmed me so far. That being said, something along the lines of "Beyond the Basics" would be an accurate portrayal of scope of the forum.

FWIW, I completely agree with you about "Advanced". It's use as a descriptor of Scuba skills and knowledge is useless. I had a rather long discussion with the head of an agency about this very topic recently. I suggested that they should utilize, BOW, OW II and OW III as course names and do completely away with AOW. They could state that their OW II is equivalent to everyone else's AOW to avoid confusion. I have yet to meet a newly minted "AOW" diver that was truly advanced. Ironically, I have even met a few instructors that I would not consider advanced, except in ego and years.

No matter what you call a forum, or where you put it, you will still get a percentage of people who post things in the "wrong places", or those that object to where a post is placed, or where it subsequently gets moved to.

As NetDoc mentioned previously, if you think a post is in the wrong place, report it along with the forum you think it belongs in and the reason why. It will be reviewed by staff and we will decide the appropriate action from that point.

 

[Jax]

Which comes around full circle - if people cannot agree on what is "right" in a forum (i.e., the definition of Advanced), how would one say a post is in the wrong forum?

 

[Cave Diver]

Which comes around full circle - if people cannot agree on what is "right" in a forum (i.e., the definition of Advanced), how would one say a post is in the wrong forum?

Which brings us back around to the previous responses:

Some things are obvious... some less so. When a poster puts a specific thread in a specific forum, they do that for a reason. It might be ignorance, it might be they like the no flame rules of a particular forum. To each their own. If you feel a post is in the wrong forum, hit the button found a the bottom near the left of every post and tell us WHY you think it should be moved. A mod (or mods) will inspect the thread and determine if it should be moved. Quite often, they contact the OP to determine their reasoning and try to make them happy at the same time. No, they don't have the final say, but we try not to overly moderate things. However, unless someone ASKS for it to be moved, we will gladly leave it where it is.

In concept (and spirit) the difference should be very slight when it comes to the nature of permitted responses. A few people see the extra civility afforded the green areas as an undue restriction on their vitriol. They also often see any area that is "non green" as a license to be as harsh as they want to be.

Missing from this reality is "mutual respect". Our forum is built upon it and requires it: it's a part of our ToS. It is not suspended in the non green zones.

"Basic" and "Advanced" reflect the industry norm as to content. Obviously, there will always be some overlap between the two, and that's OK. We try to leave it up to the OP to determine where it should go.

To summarize:

1. We try to give users the freedom to post things where they wish.
2. The content in some of the forums have a degree of overlap
3. If something seems grossly out of place, report it and we'll investigate.
4. If it bears moving, we'll take care if it.

 

[Quero]

Which comes around full circle - if people cannot agree on what is "right" in a forum (i.e., the definition of Advanced), how would one say a post is in the wrong forum?

Jax, there is a cost/benefit ratio to consider. As has been noted above, regardless of the benefits in terms of "neatness" of renaming forums or merging two forums into one, the costs are too great in other ways.

To answer your question, when I'm considering the placement of a thread in a forum, I try to keep in mind the cost/benefit on a lower level. Without going into it deeply, consider just two possible questions that might be asked in regard to the cost/benefit of the placement of a particular thread in a particular forum:
1) Is the current placement doing the most to help the OP get replies to his/her post? If not, where can this thread go in order to garner a more satisfying number and quality of responses?
2) Is it hurting the forum for this thread to be here? If so, where can this thread go so that the OP and other users are able to express themselves without disrupting the forum (and therefore the board)?

 

[DevonDiver]

"Tech-curious"?

Does that mean people who only go tech diving secretly, when away from home on business trips, so their spouses don't know?