what do ppl think about opening up regional forums under "Places to Play"?

this suggestion came from the Philipines thread in "Places to Play". eg. BF can open up a Philipines forum and member who want to chat about Philipines specific badminton issues can go there.

similarly, we can have a forum for Canada, UK, Singapore and other places as we have many users from those regions as well.

the regions with less members can remain in the top level forum until more members join and creates more discussion.

the discussion is not limited to only locations to play, but local badminton happenings, etc.

perhaps the focus "Places to Play" forum can be slightly modified, so it can be just "Regional badminton forum", which includes discussion on places to play.

comments? suggestions?

I wished for this since the day I joined. And now you have made my wish come true.

I say "Go For It". Nike says "Just Do It". :D

That's an awesome suggestion, kwun! Go for it!

Regarding the granularity of the different regions, I suppose we're only gonna go to the national level, right? (To me, that is certainly sufficient - at least for now)

-Rick

i'm ambivalent about the idea...

on the one hand it would allow BF to grow, but on the other it would segrate a community that is not exactly big.

Originally posted by bigredlemon
i'm ambivalent about the idea...

on the one hand it would allow BF to grow, but on the other it would segrate a community that is not exactly big.

I tend to agree with BRL.

1. Ppl from "minority" region might feel to be "left out". To me, if there's not a "US forum", I will sure feel that way. Think about this, if blah blah region having ppl holding events, having fun, chitchat 2000 times a day, but I don't feel belong to anyone of them, don't even want to imagine about that.

2. Some good topics (deals, tactics, events, etc) could be discussed in a regional forum only. Therefore, most of the non-regional members won't easily get a chance to read and participate in discussion that thread.

3. BC/BF attracts such a lot of members, because everyone learn, share together as a family. If certain group have "more benefits" over the others, I don't think that's a good sign.

4. "Place to play" section does not have tons of posts as for "General" or "Equipment". Therefore, I don't think perform a "serach" (not necessary the "serach" button, dragging down the index for 1-2 pages is not that difficult) will be tons of work.

So, my vote is "NO". Sorry...

But then again what kwun said is correct - what would a person from Canada want to know about where to play in Indonesia unless they plan to play there? Filipinos would want to know where to play in the Philipines, not Thailand.

Segregation or not, to me is irrelevant. It would actually help to segregate about where to play.

After all, it's only Places to Play, not General Forum or Chit Chat. One way to help the minorities would be to split it to Continents->Region and using a <Country><Topic> format for thread names.

I'd vote for a YES.

This move will be a good way to organise the forum and reduce irrelevant readings... only if it's stringently moderated for subject matter (ie. places to play in a specific region). However, I also share BRL and LB's concerns about keeping to the intent and spirit of the forum.

What we have now is pretty special, but I think the move will help attract more members to the forum because it help players at a more immediate level... finding a place to play in their neighbourhood. My hope is that the move will not disrupt the communal spirit of the forum too much and that clique tendency will be minimal.

So, an optimistic YES vote for me.

Because if places to play was segrated into regions, then there would be a few main ones:

Vancouver area
Toronto area
California
malasyisa
Hk
etc etc


and each would get a post or two every few weeks. I.e. a dead forum. Plus, i don't mind reading about events from other areas as it happens. If you are only interested in your area, you can do a search. It's not exactly like Places to Play is being so flooded that we need to break it down.

Originally posted by bigredlemon
Because if places to play was segrated into regions, then there would be a few main ones:

Vancouver area
Toronto area
California
malasyisa
Hk
etc etc

Wonder why Singapore & Indonesia was left out since Malaysia and HK can be in the main ones. Btw, the correct spelling for Malaysia is
M A L A Y S I A. :p

Originally posted by wilfredlgf
what would a person from Canada want to know about where to play in Indonesia unless they plan to play there? Filipinos would want to know where to play in the Philipines, not Thailand.



The main reason to me, is not really the "place", is the "feeling".

For example, recent popular thread "Set 13 - 15 in Van". A lot of ppl who's not in Van also enjoyed the topic. Why? We feel happy to share the experience, and want to see how much fun a timly "gathering" could be.

Also the thread "Fun Tournament in Van" got a lot of my attention. Surely I won't go there. However, I think I learned something about how to organize a small tournament. With a college local tourny coming up (the host invited me to help), I am sure I will be greatly benefitted from this thread.

Imagine if u "hide" these threads just in "Van Forum" or "CAN Forum". Exactly as u said, if I am not living in that region, "why I want to check it out" and "how I know there's such an event"? Then, ppl from "minority" region might being felt to be left out. And it will be weired for me, have to "sneak into" other "region forum" to "steal some fun", just because I don't think "US East" will have its own forum.

Again, the "Place to play" section does not have tons of threads as other forums. Therefore, dragging down the index page and look for ur topic might not be a tough mission. Why putting on a risk to hurt "minority group"?

So far, I think besides me, members from "minority region" did not speak up yet. :( :eek:

Originally posted by Carbonexer
Wonder why Singapore & Indonesia was left out since Malaysia and HK can be in the main ones.

See the problem here?

It's very hard to satisfy everyone when we do a selection. A lot of ppl might just demand their own region to have a "regional forum", but if we have way too many (say 10+), then, exactly like BRL metioned, most of the forums won't get many posts, and "dead".

If we limited the # of sections, then, which region we select? Say region A seems have more posts, but region B (do have a lot of BFer, just read, but no frequent post) is not. Then, when new region B members register, what s/he will think? Errr... blah blah blah regions all have a "forum", only me don't have it... How sad that could be? I really don;t think that could be a "warm welcome" for such an issue.

My vote is for YES and NO. But actually what we can do is to segregate where to play in which country. For basic forum like equipments and general forum etc.. actually no need to do that.

LB and BRL, i see your concern but i think it's not that bad. You fear segregation but this area forums are meant to improve data organization and better flow in this BF.
You've said we can do searches but i'm still seeing my repetitive threads these days, ie not everyone like to do searches if they can help it. BF is growing, it is better to incorporate some traffic flow process now than when things get too messy. Having area forums is like having a diary of events for each region. I think having area forum would foster badminton activity growth locally, and overall, that is good for badminton worldwide because real growth is bottom (level) up. I highly doubt people would diverge into talking about tactic, equipment, techniques within their little regional forum. I'm sure the moderators will slap them around silly if they do that. ;)

I think it's a good idea. I believe that because BF has grown to the amount of members it has currently and will continue to grow, the idea of this sort of forum would benefit all of us. I do think that the people that might be "left out" should still have a place to play forum just to make the occasional post if they can't find the information they're looking for.

As long as it's apparent that it's a 'where to play in [region]', I dont see a problem with it. Imho, the segregated point is moot. I live in canada. I'd be lucky if I can find 2 people who have even heard of badminton (joking, but you get the point). Hearing people from other countries where badminton is in the top 3 or 5 popular sports already segregates 'us' from 'them'. However, I have no trouble reading the forums and sure, I envy some of you for having more interest, but it does not conflict with my asking for advice or offering advice. Just keep this forum to where to play, and not discussion, and you shouldn't have any problem. People shouldn't feel 'left out' because there is a thread regarding badminton in the Yukon anymore than they should if someone of the opposite gender posted a thread about wanting playing tips as a (fe)male. On the contrary, there should be an appropriate forum link to post under -- which I believe is what Kwun is suggesting.

how about setting it up such that when people make a new thread in "places to play" they must choose a region, however when browsing the forums clicking on
"places to play" will bring users to view all of the posts in all of the regions, however with a drop down menu or something similar on top to filter the forum based on a certain region, and if you really like, a cookie to remember their choice.

i think it'd be more work that way, :mad:

but it should also address most of the concerns people have with one form or another :p

Originally posted by BobbyGeneric
how about setting it up such that when people make a new thread in "places to play" they must choose a region, however when browsing the forums clicking on
"places to play" will bring users to view all of the posts in all of the regions, however with a drop down menu or something similar on top to filter the forum based on a certain region, and if you really like, a cookie to remember their choice.

i think it'd be more work that way, :mad:

but it should also address most of the concerns people have with one form or another :p
except, it's not doable with vB. :(

i think that regional forums are a great idea because it will make the places to play forum alot easier to use.

thanks all for the comments.

at this point, perhaps it is a bit pre-mature to split the "Places to Play" forum into regions. i think the fact that there isn't enough traffic and potential downside with segragation are the determining factors.

perhaps when we grow to much much larger, then we will revisit the issue again.

Originally posted by kwun

at this point, perhaps it is a bit pre-mature to split the "Places to Play" forum into regions. i think the fact that there isn't enough traffic and potential downside with segragation are the determining factors.

perhaps when we grow to much much larger, then we will revisit the issue again.

Kwun,

Sorry to be the one jumping out and shout at "NO". Personally, I agree with ur comments above. If we do manage to get much more members, and certain regions do have hundreds and hunderds of active members, I won't say any thing to against this idea. Overall, if there's a "need", we surely need to do something.

Just don't see the "necessary needs" as this moment, hope everyone can understand my concern.

Oh, noooo... don't hate me... plz... :D

after some thoughts. i am going to go with separating "Places to Play" into smaller regional forums.

the problem i have with one forum for all geographical region is that i find it very hard to look for information for one region. with regional forums, a new user who want to find new badminton friends will be able to look into his/her region directly. i think it will also promote communication between BF'ers and help to bring badminton players together.

i am still in the process of splitting, there will be more regions created. so stay tuned...

after some thoughts. i am going to go with separating "Places to Play" into smaller regional forums.

[snipped]

i am still in the process of splitting, there will be more regions created. so stay tuned...
Ouch... that's gonna be lots of work for you, kwun... But thank you for looking after our needs.

-Rick

after some thoughts. i am going to go with separating "Places to Play" into smaller regional forums.

the problem i have with one forum for all geographical region is that i find it very hard to look for information for one region. with regional forums, a new user who want to find new badminton friends will be able to look into his/her region directly. i think it will also promote communication between BF'ers and help to bring badminton players together.

i am still in the process of splitting, there will be more regions created. so stay tuned...
If we're talking about finding people with similar interest to play, then it is OK to have a separate forum for "Local Places to Play".

It may actually help if all posters will fill in their "Location" under "Profile" to help others identify where they are from and if necessary, PMs can be used to make arrangements for playing together and pursue other compatible interests. This disclosure may also help many other posters better understand why certain posters make certain statements, etc, so that replies and responses can be done in a more thoughtful manner . Perhaps kwun should make it compulsory for posters to complete their "Location" details.

Just like LB and BRL, I like this forum because it is worldwide in the sense that it is open to all and there is no segregation, no discrimination of age, gender, race, religion, beliefs, views, etc. So far, most posters are mindful of the fact that they should conduct themselves in the right spirit and within accepted behaviour.

My hope is that the main essence of this forum is not diluted and that posters can continue to freely exchange information, share views and engage in a healthy discourse on issues of interest to them. The greater the participation the better so that we can all learn and share with one another.

Please don't allow changes to segregate or divide us unnecessarily. :p

Loh, yes, it is strictly for finding / announcing local badminton information and for ppl who are close to each other geographically to have the chance to meet up and play.

all other discussions should still belong to the respective forums like General, Equipment, etc.

i think this arrangement is an ok one.





i think i have enough of moving threads around today. there maybe one or two more sub-forums that i'd like to create but i will leave that for tomorrow.

I would vote for the sub-division (but I see you've already started)

I would probably also vote for a sub-division of the equipment forum,
into Racquets,Shuttles,String,Shoes


benefits that I see are that searches would be better
downside is that threads often go off topic


The way I usually use BF is that day to day usage is all by using "Todays Posts" or "New Posts". If I want to search for something, I prefer to search in a specific forum, or I'll browse a forum if it's a recent thing that I remember.

I would say Yes because:

1. It's easier to see/search local things/events
2. It will also be very organized and easy for moderators
3. Don't think people will be separated; We still have BF general forums, equipemnt forums, chit-chats.....etc which are still open world-wide :)
It's just like CNN news have two departments: world and local news :D
4. As a computer scientist, I would recommend to do this changes asap because it will be harder to do this once the member amount is really large. Data structure is not an easy job :)

I would say Yes because:

1. It's easier to see/search local things/events
2. It will also be very organized and easy for moderators
3. Don't think people will be separated; We still have BF general forums, equipemnt forums, chit-chats.....etc which are still open world-wide :)
It's just like CNN news have two departments: world and local news :D
4. As a computer scientist, I would recommend to do this changes asap because it will be harder to do this once the member amount is really large. Data structure is not an easy job :)

I somehow don't feel comfortable with this idea since it'll cause this forum to divide in several factions. Biggest trouble will be for me... I belong to india and in my distant dreams, there will never be a group for it... :(
thing is that each post have a subject field which clearly indicate the content inside. And in case, it don't, then you can infact read a post or two and decide whether to follow it up or not. I suppose everybody does it so.
Probably division would not be of much help... probably i'm gonna miss a lot of posts that way... :(

I somehow don't feel comfortable with this idea since it'll cause this forum to divide in several factions. Biggest trouble will be for me... I belong to india and in my distant dreams, there will never be a group for it... :(



That was exactly what I was worried about when I posted my vote.

Ppl from "minority" regions might feel being left out. Say, I am from NY, which does not have too many BFers. Right now, all the threads are well opened to public, and I can feel free to read without thinking too much, therefore, I can share some fun from reading. However, once we have seperated region ones, it might look weired to click on a region (even though, it's just 1 step of click on a folder) not really belongs to me. Ok, ok... big mouth like me might still go in anyway, :D but some new comers might not feel comfortable.

However, I can understand Kwun's concern about searching, managing and moderating benefits. Therefore, I suggest we give a shot, and let BFers provide feedback. In most of ppl greatly benefited from the new features, that means good. However, if we get tons of complains, we can always go back to the original.

However, I can understand Kwun's concern about searching, managing and moderating benefits. Therefore, I suggest we give a shot, and let BFers provide feedback. In most of ppl greatly benefited from the new features, that means good. However, if we get tons of complains, we can always go back to the original.

i don't think the problem is that simple (i mean just searching n' managing)... bcoz if thats the case, there are many BFers who volunteer for this job and will certainly feel better... probably kwun can reveal it. :p

let's just see how it pans out. :)

Having tried the new regional forum, I would have to say I like the old "all-for-one" format better.

Maybe having LESS regions would be nice. Or have a mandate to have "Country" prepended to the subject line in this sub-forum.

-dave

I like the sectioning since I don't actually go to the actual main Forum section and look at the posts but rather uses New Posts to get a listing of new threads/replies.

By sectioning, I think we make it easier for folks to find out places to play for the regions that they are interested in.

but since there's so few posts, you'd only have one thread per a few weeks or months.

I think a better idea is to preface each title with something along the lines of
CanE - Tourney at xyz
UsaW - blaha
Phil
HK
Mal
etc
etc

and people can just do a search for CanE to have their area show up. Plus its interesting reading about other areas for ideas!

By sectioning into, say, for example, countries, I think it would be better for people, especially for minorities.

Why?

Imagine that, say, if you are from India, and Badminton isn't popular in your country. So, only 1 out of 1000 post here at BF is related to your interest.

What happens when you see all posts in one place?? You will think, man, where is India? Maybe no one here is for India, and so, you will give up on looking at posts (You guys need to know, not all people use search function, so we can not rely on it)

If we have a section for India, then, it would be really easy for people to see post in this country, and minorities will not be left out in this case. :)
(Even more, it's easier for them to post questions, and their threads will not be left out by other people (majority)'s posting all over it.

if you are from India, and Badminton isn't popular in your country. So, only 1 out of 1000 post here at BF is related to your interest.

it don't matter to me whether or not it's famous in india. i might be interested in other posts too.


You will think, man, where is India?

i can very well use our useful and effective 'search'.... thats what i've been doing all these days... and it was a pleasant experience... :)

basically i say that dividing into section is not going to solve any purpose... but if u want to have it, u can very well... :D