Breaking the Message Board into Categories?

Wejo

Having one mane page is what initially brought me from dyestat (when I was in high school) to this board. I like seeing the random posts and newest hot threads. Hell, I even come on here to get my news sometimes. I also really like the look of everything. KISS keep it simple stupid. I do not like the NZ run forum. Getting a better search function is needed but sometimes a thread starts one way and then takes a new direction. A thread bashing Alan Webb may turn out to contain some useful training information 20 posts down. I think keep one main page and don’t get too fancy with colors, avatars, or whatever else people want. The board will end up looking like rainbow sitting on Liberace’s piano. Also keeping the simpler interface is more inviting to older adults, who have a lot to offer when it comes to advice about training.

For archiving there could be a search that searches everything sort of like it is now and a refined search that you could search for threads that got categorized later on. Maybe adding a small tab at the bottom of the page with a few categories and allowing readers to vote on where it should go. Topics could be training, results, advice, injury, stories, general, non running, news and so on (I didn’t the subcategories out).

Hopefully you read this, I don’t post often but I am always on. I really like the layout and everything else.

My 2 cents:

Give each thread have a series of "tags" which can be used for filtering the main message board if desired. For example, if I were to start a thread about an Achilles tendinitis injury and possible cross-training ideas, the thread would have a "running" tag, an "injury" tag, a "tendinitis" tag, and a "cross training" tag, as well as any others that might be appropriate. This allows a thread to be under various categories simultaneously, keeps the main message board as is, and allows for the filtering of topics as needed. Some threads might not have any tags. You would have a pre-set list of tags, which could be as long/short and broad/specific as you wish (thus, wejo could adjust the number or scope of the categories by adding to or removing tags from the list). Then, you could allow anyone to add tags to a thread, or perhaps limit tagging capabilities to just registered users, or to posters on the given thread, or even just the OP. Only moderators could remove tags from a thread. You could start the list of tags based on suggestions, and then go from there.

pjb

P.S. If you apply categories of any kind, you should definitely have a "Predict my Time" category.

The downside to my suggestion is that, if you implemented it, all 50 trillion of the previous threads would start out without tags, so the search function would still be heavily employed for older threads, and allowing all users or all registered users to tag threads as they read them or add to them would move things along more quickly.

pjb

maybe you could leave up the existing board but then have different categories that still feed into the random board

I think the only categories anyone really agrees with is running and non-running. I second the idea.

I also like the idea of the other thread, having registered names, but don't make it like a lot of other forums that are all cluttered up with unnecessary pictures and other things like that.

running2win.com's forum is pretty good, as well as coolrunning.com, and runningforums.com looks good as well.

If it could be like those with only 2 categories and loosely registered names, that would probably work out well.

If I liked the format of other forums, I'd go there. LetsRun is different and that's why I like it. The reason why LetsRun is so popular with serious runners is because we realize that there is more to life than running. Yes, running is still a top priority (even #1 for some), but there are other important topics as well and it's good to discuss these with fellow runners. When you are running a long run with friends, what do you talk about? Eventually after a few years of running, the "running-related" topics get old. So you start discussing whatever pops into your head, no matter how random...kind of like letsrun.

leave it as it is.

except improve the search function.

if you have catagories, such as "high school running" and "training" etc. where do i put a post about training in high school? does that go in the training forum or the high school forum?

you dont have to be very smart to figure out waht the subject is about by reading the subject line.

I will also second and third what others have said in terms of visual presentation: please, no avatars, signatures, etc. Those things clutter the crap out of other forums.

wineturtle wrote:

A better search feature that deals with phrases,and poster specific as part of it ie malmo has a post about steeple water jumps that explains inside versus outside is impossible to find now but enter in the new search feature waterjump, steeple and in the author box malmo gets a reasonable number of posts to manually deal with.

wineturtle, was this the one you were looking for?

txRUNNERgirl wrote:

I agree. I have a somewhat short attention span, so I enjoy the random topics.

Ditto.

Breaking up the board will take the fun out of it. I probably won't come as often. The fact that posts about pirate/cat/gun girl can be side by side with a post about Henry Rono and another about buying a gun is the best part about LetsRun. It is unique and fun. Running and non-running categories will turn it into every other message board out there. It morph into a weird form of DyeStat. Or T&F. Which is not good. At all.

Who decides what is about running and what isn't? the430miler posts about running, but I wouldn't put his/its posts in the same category as the Henry Rono thread, so it's better to leave it the way it is.

DON'T CHANGE A THING...

The reason why this board is so much better than the others is because of the style of the message board.

I don't go to runnersworld, coolrunning, or dyestat because they have the topics options..

I like coming to a web page that has all the topics on one page and I can scan through what I want to read real quick rather than going back and forth between topic pages...

I can almost bet you will see a drop in the number of viewers of letsrun if you have different topics they have to click on.

The beauty behind this board is the fact that trolls can have their fun and real people can get a good laugh.

Oh and by the way a few years ago you did try the different topics thing and no one liked it.

I've been visiting this site since you created it and I’d be real sad to see anything change. There is a reason why this site is one of the most popular running sites on the Internet.

This guy has the right idea. Keep the character of letsrun by leaving it mostly unmoderated/all threads on one page/anon posting, etc, but also bring it out of the technological stone ages: Have a search that actually works, have thread rating system so the cream of the crop is easy to find, etc.And it probably wouldn't be that difficult to implement this!

This message board is free speech at its finest and is an example of the best of the internet. From training tips to world events you can find everything here.

That said, there is another important topic that needs urgent attention. Do you like monkeys?

Wejo,

I have been on letsrun since it's inception. your website is successul for one reason: the message board.

your message board is "world famous" for the following reasons:

1. simplicity- one board, no gimmicks, no pictures, no quotes, other BS etc.

2. accessibility- no registration, clicking through multiple screens to start reading, etc.

3. anonymity- people can say what they want behind who knows how many names without fear. sure, makes for some crap, but also alot of good information, advice, and entertainment.

4. the characters factors 1-3 attract.

these reasons are why your website is the most famous and notorious in running; why your website gets mentioned / plagiarized by national news media outlets; why EVERYONE in the running community, from hacks to top pros, reads the board, even if they don't admit it.

don't mess with the magic Wejo. Or put another way, keep dancing with the bitch that brung ya.

make drastic changes at your peril.

bill the wrangler wrote:

Gentlemen, Gentlemen, please let's just keep it civil.

Hahah no, seriously Wejo, this is one of the things that registering users might do.

I can't see all of this name calling 'jerkoff' and so on if it's where everyone can see who is who.

For all we know 'never underestimate me!' is Alan Webb, or even you, or maybe it's me and I'm replying to my own post, even though it's probably none of those.

Though I do think some would be a good idea, keep it simple.

I'm sorry, I just can't help myself. The stupidity on this board is, at times, terrifying. I contribute many relevant, insightful posts on these boards... but when people actually try to say that installing running and non-running sections here would ruin things... well it just baffles me.

Texrunnergrl, i think it would be quite easy to seperate running threads, and I'll give you a hint how to do it: any thread with a subject that has something to do with running goes into the "running related" section. Any thread that does not goes into the "non running related" section. Who creates the post is irrelevant. 430's posts are still running related, so they go into the "running" section. I realize you are young, but this concept is fairly basic. I think that after a few tries, most people will begin to grasp it...

never underestimate me! wrote: I contribute many relevant, insightful posts on these boards... but when people actually try to say that installing running and non-running sections here would ruin things... well it just baffles me.

It'd ruin things.

But I do want to change my vote just a little. There's one and only one separate category I'd like to see split out. Call it "resolutions".

It's for people to come back in a week, six months, couple years and post the rest of the story.

You know, you're on the subway to work, or sitting in an ice bath after a workout, and you wonder what happened with the guy's wife's running clothes that smelled like rotten fish? Or maybe the kid who vowed to run 200 miles weeks or whatever the hell. Did a runner ever hook up with a half-asian wiccan chick? Where'd the guy researching cheap places to live end up - did he buy a yurt somewhere in Tuva?

So many loose threads in our community soap opera! It's just like the thread "film ends but what happened next?"

i hate peeps wrote:

one for i love peeps and one for everyone else.

I don't know why this made me laugh as hard as it did...