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Post by Ovi on May 18, 2009 0:30:38 GMT
And how exactly will you get people from deviant art? Back in 2006 it would've been possible since the design side of the forum was much more active than other sides, but at the current state, your idea is futile. offer a staff position for something like graphic discussion. somebody will accept. if you have even one great designer it will help activity. right now, no active member is good at art. (that i can think of) I don't think this is the correct direction to head towards. Handing out staff positions doesn't seem like a very good idea. Building the community back as a whole should be the focus. Also, please stop being so damn pessimistic, everyone. SSD is faring much better than 99% of design board. It just needs a little push. Btw, the general board thing was a joke. Sheesh...
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Post by jongos on May 18, 2009 0:41:55 GMT
offer a staff position for something like graphic discussion. somebody will accept. if you have even one great designer it will help activity. right now, no active member is good at art. (that i can think of) I don't think this is the correct direction to head towards. Handing out staff positions doesn't seem like a very good idea. Building the community back as a whole should be the focus. Also, please stop being so damn pessimistic, everyone. SSD is faring much better than 99% of design board. It just needs a little push. Btw, the general board thing was a joke. Sheesh... isn't electing staff member just handing out staff positions? and i agree you need to build it back, but you need a solid structure, having a good artist sounds like a good idea for an art community. it reminds me of my old forum (haha) we tried to have a coding section with no coder, it doesn't work.
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Post by Admin on May 18, 2009 0:48:59 GMT
umm. d.Safe is good at art. Josh is good at art. Car is good at art. there are still members around that are good at art and design.
I've talked things over with the head staff. There are a lot of changes going to be made, and you'll see them soon. and yes, some of them will be staff changes.
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Post by jongos on May 18, 2009 0:51:46 GMT
mm. d.Safe is good at art. = true
Josh is good at art. = i haven't seen him come out with any art in years.
Car is good at art. = not active member.
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Post by Ovi on May 18, 2009 1:48:21 GMT
isn't electing staff member just handing out staff positions? No, it's not. and i agree you need to build it back, but you need a solid structure, having a good artist sounds like a good idea for an art community. it reminds me of my old forum (haha) we tried to have a coding section with no coder, it doesn't work. Graphic Discussion doesn't need a Moderator. Hell I would do away with the whole board if it was me. It serves no significant purpose. I've never seen ANY graphic forum that has a reasonably active graphic discussion board. -- Don't mean to argue with you Jongos, you're one of my favorite people around here. But I think you are suggesting the wrong thing here. A good artist will spark interest in the forums no matter if s/he is a staff or not.
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Post by Admin on May 18, 2009 4:50:34 GMT
Josh hasn't posted it here, but he's regularly updated his deviantART and even helped with v7.
Car has been posting a lot in the last couple of weeks.
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Post by Josh on May 18, 2009 4:57:05 GMT
Jongos, hit me up on MSN (check the contact thread or my profile) and I'll show you what I've been doing lately. Including the abandoned Studio Zero v3 which I got some reeeeeally good comments about and is one of my favorite projects I have done to this day.
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Post by comicIDIOT on May 18, 2009 5:55:59 GMT
Photography is art! Saknika & I rule in that category ; D Can't wait to see the changes! I have a feeling they'll be for the better. Is it possible to release some teasers! I'm dying to find out now /faint. Haha
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Post by danielazarc on May 18, 2009 8:50:23 GMT
I think a lot of what we have is great. We just have a huge space to fill and not many people to do it. We need activity, and for that I think we need a wide-spread advertising campaign. I think at the moment it's been a little bit here and there, but nothing really driving new people to take a look, and if anything we might be catering to the wrong audiences. We really need to get out there and look at the art communities who need a unique, active and stylish place to hang out. This place is great and unique for what it's worth, but it's just not getting very much attention.
Let's look at the inactive boards and remove them or combine them with other boards to allow a broader range of topics. Initiate more monthly activities and contests to keep people interested, and that requires activity on the staff's part -- literary, photography, graphical, etc. Perhaps look over the staff team itself and see who isn't very active, who might do well if promoted, etc. -- we need a strong core to make any of this work.
And it's moderately well-known how I feel about the forum skin, but that's probably one of those things that won't change anyway.
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Post by ŋєт™ on May 18, 2009 17:04:29 GMT
SSD is not and will not abandon the art aspect of the site. Rest assured that all members will be happy with the changes that are coming.
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Post by now uc it on May 18, 2009 17:55:30 GMT
I think it's important to remember that SSD has always been an art and design community... for young artists. Even in its hayday, it had very few talented artists. And factually, if you trace back to when our art group was alive and producing the most art, people were already saying it was going downhill. Frankly, I think you have to focus on getting your discussions up and running - focus on making sure people are tied into the community and bringing new members in as well- before you can focus on developing your art scene. Active members participate in the graphics board. Good artists will not come to SSD to do so. You offer a service that thousands of other boards offer - a practice arena, filling graphic requests- and frankly, there are still hundreds of other boards at least that have a more prestigious name. People want to be the big fish at depthCore, not at SSD. And please don't take that as just a mean, negative comment because you all know that I love SSD. But you need to be realistic. We were big on PB, but PB itself is still a niche. Now, we're not even funneling the new owners who PBS used to redirect straight towards us. So focusing on art is great and it's an activity that will keep people involved, but remember that SSD's role in graphic design is generally cultivating an interest and inspiring people to attempt things for the first time. Your most successful activities have always been things that gave everyone the tools to attempt something from the start (e.g. "here are three stock images. Blend them.")- not creating a full-blown website design or a huge image that most people are uncomfortable creating. I'd say making Chillout more fun and referring more people, doing activities that make people feel like they got their name out there and immediately fit in/felt popular, are the only ways you're going to get new members or get people to participate. And ultimately, hate it though you may, TalkPark and other spammy forums know how to channel that people like to just bullshit. It would not be SSD if you went too far down that path, but hated or not- learn from what they are successful at. They have a community who knows each other and loves to talk to each other. Being loose on the reins, letting people make silly threads, and getting over feeling like people should come to SSD/not that SSD needs to come to them is something that will get members to become part of the community. --- And Tos, were what you said true, you wouldn't be back here either.
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Post by artos on May 18, 2009 19:54:51 GMT
Oh, here we go again. It seems now that you are no better.
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Post by danielazarc on May 18, 2009 21:34:16 GMT
And ultimately, hate it though you may, TalkPark and other spammy forums know how to channel that people like to just bullshit. It would not be SSD if you went too far down that path, but hated or not- learn from what they are successful at. They have a community who knows each other and loves to talk to each other. Being loose on the reins, letting people make silly threads, and getting over feeling like people should come to SSD/not that SSD needs to come to them is something that will get members to become part of the community. I can respect that, though we have to look at what you're trying to create here. If we take a route like that, we might gain some community but lose some of the things that made SSD special to begin with. The pros and cons definitely need to be weighed. While I can appreciate that thought, in fact I re-did my own forum similarly just recently, I think SSD is too different and appeals to a much different audience. On the subject of TalkPark and similar places specifically, I think that SSD appeals to those with an IQ of over six, which means the majority of those members probably wouldn't do very well here. So while looking at a different style of community is something positive we could look in to, I think it should be done carefully.
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Post by Psionic on May 19, 2009 2:10:09 GMT
I feel that my activity, which could be called sporadic at best, reflects a large portion of the community. This has always been the case - people would join just to gain access to the resources or join and forget. However, I feel like the majority of people in that "classification" has greatly increased. My reasons are mostly academic and job-related, but I feel that the argument about members being either part of the "inner circle" or not at all is still relevant. It seems that many of the threads and discussions that are posted are between the same people and are hard for other members to jump into. Having dropped out of the "circle," I can understand how hard it is to enter from the outside. While this could also be called an excuse, I think it's a real problem. Some of the rules and boards seem too specific for people to casually jump in and out.
For example, many of the art boards seemed more exclusive than inclusive. I hardly ever dabble in the arts anymore, so I feel that it's hard for people who don't partake in such things to feel like they can contribute. On the other hand, that's why boards like the literature one, and especially the film one, are important. You don't have to be an expert in those fields to post there. Nor are most topics related to "How do I do this?" or "What's the best way to make a..?" Boards should be specific, but also casual. They should have a defined topic, but also have an atmosphere like Chillout. I know the Film board hasn't been the biggest success, but I think it's a step in the right direction. A growing pain, if you will.
The biggest issue is member involvement. In the current state of things, there's very little of it. The contests have good premises, but they often go on too long or fizzle out due to a lack of interest. Like noted earlier, prizes don't have to have a monetary value - custom titles work well. I think contests should have shorter durations, so that way more occur. If members see a constant flow of contest results in addition to new contests, it will appear that the activity has increased. People will be more inclined to join if they see successful contests have occurred with a fair turnout.
Long story short, you need to attract people to not only come here, but want to keep coming back. Loosen up a little, be a bit more casual. While there is a place for specific, narrow topics, that shouldn't define a board. It's better to have a larger appeal, that way you get both broad and specific topics. Also, don't let your emotions get the best of you. Simply striking down those who disagree with you will make it seem like members can't approach you or say what they truly feel. Like UC said, sometimes it's best for people to get stuff off their chest, then they can cool down while both parties examine the points made.
Change can't happen if you smother the other argument.
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Post by danielazarc on May 19, 2009 3:22:35 GMT
Regarding the activity and resources bit, I have another suggestion. Instead of opening resource to members immediately upon registration, would it be more effective to open it at, say, ten to fifteen posts? By then people would have interacted it a bit, and who knows, they might like what they see and come back for more than just the resources. Though on the flip side it might keep people from registering if they know about the restriction. Thoughts?
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Post by Josh on May 19, 2009 3:42:40 GMT
Regarding the activity and resources bit, I have another suggestion. Instead of opening resource to members immediately upon registration, would it be more effective to open it at, say, ten to fifteen posts? By then people would have interacted it a bit, and who knows, they might like what they see and come back for more than just the resources. Though on the flip side it might keep people from registering if they know about the restriction. Thoughts? In the past, that has generally deterred people from signing up at all. Also stopped people from recommending us from others. We tried it a few times before. It didn't work out very well. And Ryan... I'll read that mammoth post later when I have a higher attention span. lol
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Post by Ovi on May 20, 2009 0:51:27 GMT
Get Criminal Mastermind and The Baron and let them have a podcast. Just ask them to tone down the accent and be sober for a while.
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Post by Josh on May 20, 2009 1:29:18 GMT
I think that would take a way from the overall effect. lol
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Post by now uc it on May 23, 2009 4:57:58 GMT
And ultimately, hate it though you may, TalkPark and other spammy forums know how to channel that people like to just bullshit. It would not be SSD if you went too far down that path, but hated or not- learn from what they are successful at. They have a community who knows each other and loves to talk to each other. Being loose on the reins, letting people make silly threads, and getting over feeling like people should come to SSD/not that SSD needs to come to them is something that will get members to become part of the community. I can respect that, though we have to look at what you're trying to create here. If we take a route like that, we might gain some community but lose some of the things that made SSD special to begin with. The pros and cons definitely need to be weighed. While I can appreciate that thought, in fact I re-did my own forum similarly just recently, I think SSD is too different and appeals to a much different audience. On the subject of TalkPark and similar places specifically, I think that SSD appeals to those with an IQ of over six, which means the majority of those members probably wouldn't do very well here. So while looking at a different style of community is something positive we could look in to, I think it should be done carefully. I appreciate what you're saying, and I felt that way initially - that because I have been so close to the heart of SSD and genuinely feel that our forum has had a lot of innovation in the services it offers designers, I didn't think it made sense to change it. But it's not working really well or we wouldn't have this thread, would we? I just think that SSD has to decide whether to be what it wants to be or what the members want it to be. Members might be drawn in by wanting to become better at art. They may be inspired to pick up a craft they did not initially. Those are great. But there is a problem when Chillout doesn't immediately make you want to post. This is something many people have noticed and complained about. As the Cheers theme song goes, everyone wants to go "where everybody knows your name." Being more lenient, focusing on strengthening the community by being more social... those are things that will make people want to return.
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Post by artos on May 23, 2009 21:14:51 GMT
If only there were some way that you could do those things yourself. If only there were some way you could implement these things instead of dumping them off on others at leisure.
Oh well.
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