Find Ancestors

Please see the top of page 2 for the latest!!

And now see bottom of page 4 for today's news, 9/11/10: the "drop down" is here.



Those who have read Jonesey's post, about not posting and running, and other similar posts here will have seen my comments about the problems caused by the set-up of these boards.

I had responded to the request for suggestions in the pinned how-to-use post at the top of TTF by pointing out these problems and proposing solutions. I'd had no response.

After reading Jonesey's thread, I emailed "theteam" again with the same suggestions. And I've had a reply.

Below is a copy of my email, with the response from a person at GR.

But here's the big news. The sale of GR seems to have gone through -- the email reply comes from brightsolid -- the parent company of FindMyPast, which now seems to be the parent company of GenesReunited.

A new regime. One that answers its email, and seems to have some appreciation for the contribution we "helpers" make to its business! I say: GenesReunited is dead, long live GenesReunited!

The correspondence:

_______________________________________________________

From me:

I am writing to reiterate the comment I made when the "How to use the Trying to Find board" pinned post first appeared on the TTF board (and then was added to other boards).

The pinned post has had no -- NO -- effect on the use of the boards by new users.

(I posted an informal survey a few weeks ago asking new users whether they had read that post. Not one new user replied to the question.)

The reason for this is that no -- 99% of no -- new users ever see, let alone read, that post.

And the reason for this is the practice by the site management of sending emails to users directing them to view their SURNAME BOARDS.

That is exactly what new users do. One indication of this is how, usually late at night, at least a couple of users will come along and start replying to 5-year-old posts on their surname boards -- that being all there is on them.

The "How to use" post IS NOT VISIBLE to users viewing surname boards.

The pinned post is having NO effect in terms of the quality of posts (users who do not give adequate information), the civility of posts (users who do not approach other members with polite requests and do not express any thanks for help) or other undesirable user conduct (failing to wait for replies, failing to find and read replies, failing to acknowledge replies).

The frustration level among the paying users who provide the "help" service that your website thrives on is enormous. This is plain from the constant (and constantly "nudged") posts, usually to be found on the first page of the TTF board, with headings like

PLEASE DONT POST THE SAME PERSON/FAMILY TWICE
DON'T POST IT AND DISAPPEAR
BEFORE REPLYING - CHECK THE DATE IT WAS POSTED
PLEASE - THE MAGIC WORD!!

The frustration of many members is often met by lecturing from others, and pointless bickering ensues.

Of course, those helpful threads are no more read by new users than is your "How to use" post -- since NEW USERS NEVER SEE THEM, trapped as they are in their "surname boards" -- with that obscure suggestion "To list the entire trying to find board again click here" up at the top, which means absolutely nothing to them.

There is only one good way to inform new users of the rules (e.g. no multiple posting) and proper practices (giving adequate information, waiting for replies, finding and reading replies, acknowledging replies in threads):

Incorporate the guidance offered in the "How to use" into the page users see when they click "Add Topic" on any of the help boards. Users should have to scroll through the instructions before reaching the message composition box. There is no guarantee they will read them, but at least no one could claim not to have seen or been able to find them, then.

This IS how things are done on other internet discussion forums. There IS NO reason why it could and should not be done that way here.

This is the ONLY way that users are going to get a clue about how the boards work, and how to use them. And the only way you will stop the constant carping on the boards about the behaviour of new users, and the site management's blithe disregard of the problems.

Please. Please show some effective consideration for the paying users of the site.
_______________________________________________________

REPLY:

Thank you very much for your email – It is most helpful. I will endeavour to act upon as many of your suggestions as possible. It is a very good idea to show posting guidance when people want to ‘add topic’, we are very aware that there are a number of volunteer helpers on the site doing an amazing job and we want to make this as easy as possible for those helpers.

_______________________________________________________


Next, I'll be having a word about personal security / privacy at this site. ;)

OOOerrrhh Janey!

What a 'turn around' !

We can all 'live in hope' ??

Dea x

Well done Janey. Let us hope that they are true to their word and actually do something positive.

Just out of interest this is what Brightsolid say about Genes Reunited on the Brightsolid website:

"Genes Reunited is the UK’s leading family history brand with 10 million members and over 650 million names listed. A key strength is its strong membership community driven by members keen to help each other trace their ancestry. Increasingly aspects of social networking and genealogy are naturally overlapping and the Group is ideally placed to drive these developments. Genes is funded through subscriptions and pay-per-view."

Well, credit where it's due, well done Katie at brightsolid!

I did take the opportunity to enquire about whether we might hope for html capacity on the boards ... given how many new users don't have a clue what to do with non-clickable links, just for example. So I'm living in hope. ;)

Anybody else with suggestions, do use that email address in the "how to use" post. Not all at once now, though!

Ten out of ten Janey !
I' ll watch the Site a bit more closer.

Well done JC. I may even be out of a job soon........;)) Cx

A nudge up for regulars to have a look and add if you like -- I'll pass the link on to my new contact.

Cynthia, for any who haven't met her (are there any??), regularly sends PMs to people who have had replies in their threads but haven't returned within a day or so, to let them know how to find, read and reply to the information and questions posted for them. The rest of us -- helpers and helpees both -- are most grateful for that. But gosh, wouldn't it be nice if Cynthia had less to do here, and more time to devote to her beloved dusting?

{smirk}

good work Janey - brilliant!!!

Brilliant, Janey (perhaps you should go into politics next!).

It's a very good step forward, and just has to help new users as well as the helpers.

Ha, Anne-Marie, I've been in politics! Still am, as a worker bee at elections, but was a few times as the would-be elected. Imagine running for Labour (old Labour, that is) in the safest Tory seat in England, and you'll get an idea of what I was up against as an NDP candidate in the safest Liberal seat (with the historically largest winning margin) in Canada. ;) But as we said here at the time -- hey, I got my deposit back! (Getting 15% of the vote in a riding earned the party public funding, and I got well over that, for the first time in our history there.)

Just a sucker for lost causes, moi. But sometimes, if you try hard enough, you get there in the end!

Brilliant Janey. Let's hope they are true to their word

Well, I'm a lost cause so maybe there's hope for me.


Must get back to my dusting :P

Good news JC.

Totally off topic...but reading your last post Janey, I had this vision of you taking on a safe Tory seat over here in the next election...and it has tickled me mightily...I would pay good money to witness that ;)

great news Janey


I missed this thread earlier today!



sylvia

n

UPDATE - BREAKING NEWS! ;)


After the debacle on the "History" board yesterday -- someone posted about 15 threads all about related people, after obviously reading only their "surname board" which gave no clue to how the boards work (i.e. there were no posts there with replies, even) or ever seeing a "how to" post -- I wrote again to my new BFF at the new site management. Pleading for there to be instructions put in front of people's faces when they click to "Add Topic" -- start a new thread.

And the reply came today:

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I am delighted to tell you that a new drop down will appear with
instructions when adding a topic on the ‘Trying to find’ and
‘Surname’ board.

As you can imagine we have a long list of projects that we are
working on, so even with quick developments such as a drop down,
we still have to add it to the list of priorities, and this is why it has
not been possible for us to make this happen any faster.

This improvement should be live on the site by next Monday 8th
November – Possibly earlier if I can make it happen faster.

I hope this will solve some of the issues the volunteer helpers are
experiencing with new members.

Kind regards,

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Can you believe it??

A drop-down, hmm, not sure how that will work, but hopefully it will mean it can't be missed!

I await this revelation with open arms Janey !!

Looks good.

Dea x

Wonder if people will find the "drop down"easier to find than the big shiny purple reply button at the top of their post after they have posted.?

But still very good news and well done you Janey.
Always said you had a way with words,words and more words..:)

At least it looks like a 'step forward'

There will still be loads of people who do not understand the instructions but, perhaps, it will make life easier.

At the very least, it looks as if the 'new' management is making an effort!!

Dea x