Forum restructuring and the issue with Stickies

There are basically two ways that forums are used, for active/current discussions and as an archive of past discussions. The tension between these two forum uses describes the main problem that most forums encounter when they start to become very large or very old. I think there is a simple way we could improve the usefulness of the A&A forums here, in both dimensions, just by restructuring them a bit, and taking a somewhat different approach to “Stickies.” Here is my idea…

First, each forum should have a single introductory “sticky thread” that clearly describes what the forum is for, e.g. a description of the specific game or main subject for discussion in that particular forum.

Next, each of these forum should have it’s own sub-forum or child-forum called “Highlights.” This is where you put all the various archival threads that would otherwise have been made “Stickies.” Now these may or may not be currently active, but these are all the threads which are deemed useful/interesting enough to be highlighted for people newly arrived to that forum. This “Highlights” sub-forum should be limited in overall topics, no more than few pages, so that it can actually serve as a “highlights” archive, with quality browsing material, and not just a catch-all. Basically, its for your 5 star threads, and the ones that have staying power.

Once you set up this archival child forum, try to avoid stickies in the main forums, unless they are very critical. Instead keep archival stickies focused in the sub-forum, where they will be easier to browse. This frees up space in the main forums for actual discussions. Basically there should never be more stickies in a main forum than there are “normal topics” visible at a glance, because when the stickies take up more screen space than topics with “New Posts” on the first page that is a problem.

Forums will always be better for current active discussions than they are as an archive. But anyone who hangs around a forum long enough, and who has seen good posts come and go, will sometimes be struck by this strong desire to start Archiving stuff. Usually this means taking a thread and making it a “sticky”, but this ends up cluttering the screen space and pushing active discussions onto the second page. That’s why I suggest a “Highlights” sub forum for each main Forum, so these threads can have a place to call home, without taking up the whole first page of the main forum.

For very popular forums, consider a second sub-forum in addition to “Highlights” which can handle whatever other overflow might be needed. For example, a specific A&A game forum like Global 1940 might have its own “child” sub forum for House Rules, as suggested by IL and others. A forum like “Software” might have a sub forum for TripleA or whichever program most people are using.

In terms of structure, the most popular and active forums should be the ones near the top, whenever possible. A forum like this one we are currently in, should not be at the top.  :-D

“Website/Forum Discussion” is the type of forum best kept at the bottom of the Forum tree! Since most casual users don’t care what happens here, and won’t be following these discussions. The people who do care, will know where to find it, down at the very bottom.
:evil:

A forum like “News” should only exist if we have enough News to populate it with some regularity.

A forum like “Announcements” is redundant, if we already have a forum called News. Or if there really is a difference, then collapse the two forums into one, and call it “News and Announcements”

For the actual game forums, the section currently titled “Axis and Allies” each forum needs a consistent byline. Right now some of them have descriptions, some of them have release dates (Europe and Pacific 1940 still say “to be released” even though they’ve been out forever). I think the bylines for all these game forums should have the same format, providing a release date and a short description. For example the forum titled Axis and Allies Second Edition, should say “Classic” somewhere in the byline.

The forum titled “Player Help” if it’s going to exist, should be at the very top of this section rather than at the very bottom.

The forum titled “House Rules” should also have a descriptive byline. In my view it should only be for generic house rules. House rules that are specific to a particular map/game should go in the main forum or a sub forum for that game, for better organization and ease of reading.

The forum titled “Events” should be at the top of the forums tree. These are the sorts of things that should count as “News” so that we have enough news to justify a News forum in the first place ;)

The forums titled “Find other players” and “Play by Forum” should not be separated from the main “Axis and Allies” games section by other unrelated sections, but should instead follow immediately after it.

Likewise the “Play Miniatures” forum, should just be part of the Miniatures section.

OK that’s a lot of “shoulds” in one post, but I really think if some of this restructuring took place, the forums would be a lot more user friendly and simple to navigate. Right now the main forum tree could use some pruning, as just scrolling through all those forums can be a chore.

I would not say that popularity or activity needs to be the main consideration here, but I think there are definitely some instances of redundancy or ghost towns. The nice thing about having more sub forums, rather than more main forums, is that you can see the topic and new post updates from the main page, and its easier to browse through the information you’re interested in, without creating this first impression of a Byzantine maze.

I think the top forum should be one that Welcomes New Users, and deals with help type threads for people who are new to A&A.

Also one final point worth mentioning. I almost never go to the “Main Page.” My bookmark takes me straight here to the forums. It would probably be interesting to have a bit more interplay between the Main Page and the Forums. Perhaps the first Forum in the tree should just say “Home” and provide a direct link to the Main Page. I mean otherwise, I could go literally months without ever checking the main page  :-D

OK just some ideas, maybe some of them are helpful, maybe some not so much, but just wanted to share the thoughts. Thanks again for maintaining these forums. Its the best place discuss A&A anywhere online.