The FastDay Forum

[Moogie]

I think we've all noticed it's been a bit quiet here lately (even in my relative absence I've been able to see that!). I guess it's not a popular time of year for newbies to start (most people seem to start in the autumn or just after the winter holidays). It's difficult at this time of year for a lot of folks with kids off school, going away on holiday etc... but it's a shame to see this place so slow.

I don't think it's down to the FD changeover, I know we went through the same sort of thing last summer. I gather a lot of you are using the Google hangout instead/more than the forum - it's great folks are enjoying chatting in real time, but I must admit I do still love using a forum, where conversations are preserved for posterity and ease of searching. I wonder what the newbies think turning up to find this place a bit quiet? Many of them need and like the encouragement of a busy forum!

So, what can we do to get this place buzzing again? Well in recent weeks I've been chatting a lot with the rest of the team about ways to encourage more people to sign up as well as ways of keeping folks coming back for more - so rest assured that even when I've not had enough time to be here myself, I've been helping to work on ways to bring new life to the community! More on that as and when things are ready, I don't want to be making promises that I can't fulfil as quickly as I would like.

Anyway, in the meanwhile I thought it might be fun to get some ideas from you all for another community event here at the forum. In the new year we had our community awards ceremony which I think a lot of us enjoyed. I'm sure we'll do another for the next anniversary too! But, what can we do for fun here? It's summer and the sporty season so maybe we can have some kind of "forumwealth games" or a game of "forumball"?! Bear in mind I have no idea what these are or how they would work! Can we invent something fun and forum-based (and more importantly, community-based) together? What about an adopt-a-newbie week? Everyone could take a new member under their wing and support them specifically through their first week of fasting and their first week around the forum! Sort of like the buddies tent, but with a regular/longer term member and a new member?

Let's have your ideas - what fun can we have here together?

[Tracieknits]

I know the slow pageload has been a problem for me. It's still a painfully slow refresh rate. I definitely means I post less. And with my thryoid impacting my cognitive function, personally I get distracted way too easily!!

I also hang out on a travel forum, and it's really slow lately as well. I wonder if depressing world events have anything to do with it?

Hi moogie,
When I lok on the home page, I have to scroll through 6 stickies to get to 10 live threads. Also, this is the only forum where my tablet cursor doesn't work correctly. If I move it back through text, I cannot then move the cursor to the end of the text to continue. So I have to hit the back button and exit. I see I have written lok instead of look, but now cannot go back to correct it, then come back to this sentence. Most odd. It doesn't happen anywhere else, as I said!

Hi Moogie. I know you have alot in the works but if we can get the chatroom on the real estate of the site itself asap, I think that will be an immediate win as it almost feels like it is two separate things and there is always someone around on the chatroom. One site I am on also has a functionality alongside the chatroom where you can ping someone if you can see they are on line so you can have a private 'hangout' with them too. This will keep traffic on the site and active.

I have had problems with slow loading and same problems as @pennyforthem with the tablet. Can't use the smilies on the tablet without it loading the yellow toolbar which is a bit annoying. I'd certainly swap the announcements and active topics around (yes we are a lazy bunch!). Whilst I have your attention, will also put my wish for more the blogs to be prominent. I find them as equally as motivational and informative as the threads.

I will happily adopt a newbie.

Thanks for asking!

Totally endorse Karen's thoughts re the chatroom. The sooner the better
( ouch! Hate that yellow banner! )

I am on Gransnet, one of the best organised, laid out, functional forums around.

Thanks Moogie. I agree with Karen and co. Bleughhhh yellow banner. Pages been loading too slowly. I still love it here but I'm not sure that I have much to add now that I am maintaining at target and have said it all before. I don't have much of a chance to get here very quickly and am always beaten to it when anyone asks a question. We have so many knowledgeable members now that there are always fast replies. We have the chatterbox, monthly maintaining, planking and decluttering threads to name but a few. I think a rejig is in order too to get things moving. How about something like 'time hop'? that brings old posts back up to the top. I think valuable threads may be getting lost in the popularity of the forum.

I am happy to adopt a newbie if anyone wants me

I agree about the blogs. And what is this chat room?

Hi @sallyo. It's a google hangout set up as a trial to see if a chatroom would work. It's so great to be able to communicate live with fasting colleagues and it has certainly proved there is a place for it on this forum. I'm not on it at the moment as I have taken a step back from the site as I have alot going on personally right now but if you ask @carieoates I'm sure she will help you join in.

...I don't think it's down to the FD changeover,...

I would have to politely disagree with this. I do most of my forum reading and posting on my iPhone, and it's just impossible for me with the new site. Even on my desktop, I struggle to read it unless I enlarge the print.

Anyway, I'm sure it's not the entire reason that it's quiet, but I don't think it can be ignored…

But please don't take that to mean I don't appreciate all the hard work you all do to keep this place up and going!

As for suggestions… I am wondering if it is worth having a gallery of before and after pictures. I've noticed on a few of the other diet/health sites I visit, before/after pictures are more prominent than here (for example, https://www.facebook.com/TheEveryOtherDayDiet). The last time I went to the thread on here, most of the pictures weren't even loading on my computer. If it's new members you are hoping for, this can be really inspirational.

I too had no idea what the chatroom is - though I had read vague references to it. It seemed to be some sort of exclusive club to me that only a select few were invited to. Sorry but there you go. I have to say I think a lot of the quietness on the forum IS down to the change - I have persevered with the site because I find the posts useful and motivating, but it is a lot harder work to get anywhere these days.

We all know what alot of useful information and support there is on this website.
However in this day and age appearances count! If a new (to me) site doesn't do what I expect it to do quickly and easily, I move on.
I agree with @MaryAnn about the font size reading on a PC. I don't like having to enlarge the screen, something I don't do on other sites, and I wondered if it is to do with the font having a serif, or the grey background? I'm fine on the BBC site?
Maybe moving on from the website is the natural way of things? In the past I was in a social club for about eight years, and twice the 'main' group moved away from the club, staying friends with each other, causing the club to flounder a little until the newer ones took over, and became the new 'main' group. Only to eventually do the same thing! But I suppose age played more of a role in that than it does here. So maybe integrate the hang-out!

Hi folks
I can't offer an explanation for why the forum is quiet, but I think to much is being made of the group of us who use the Hangout. There are only 22of us so far and I think we all post here as well. It is not an exclusive group but most of us have been to one of the meet ups so have a personal connection as well.
The forum has given us a group of real as well as virtual friends, I don't think any more meet up are planned at the moment as the summer holidays make dates impossible, but next time you see one arranged give it a go OR go ahead and try and arrange one yourself.
But if you do don't forget to keep posting here as well.

With all that happened these past few months I have way less time to come here as I have to take care of 2 homes, etc, however I tried to log in on my phone (a Samsung Galaxy) and I just can't. I can, sometimes, see the topics without login in but I can't log in at all. I didn't have that problem with the forum before all the changes. There is the yellow banner which goes everywhere but never shows the possibility to log in.

Sometimes I even can't go on the page at all as it's written that there is an issue I can't even translate but it's a technical issue and an issue I don't have with other websites.

Really, if I could log in from my phone, I would be able to come more often.Until then, I can only come every few days as I still have my PC dying and I am home less often.

And I agree with the idea of the chatroom, it would be great

[carieoates]

Morning all. I'm here and on my big family holiday. Just wanted to say that the new forum isn't as user friendly as it was, sorry. With my iPhone, it in believable tedious to post anything. But also and more importantly if the "hang out" was part of the forum it wouldn't be quiet at all.
But as I say I'm on holiday so see you next week.