Calling all Downsizer authors

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Calling all Downsizer authors

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What do you think of adding extra links at the end of articles to other forum topics

Sounds helpful go ahead

50%

[ 6 ]

Sounds helpful but need to check individually

25%

[ 3 ]

Sounds helpful but get the author to pick their own "related topics"

25%

[ 3 ]

Terrible idea, go back in your box

[ 0 ]

Total Votes : 12

Author

Message

Bugs

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 10744

Posted: Sun Jan 01, 06 9:23 am Post subject: Calling all Downsizer authors

A question for you - have come up with an idea, that it might be worth adding extra links to existing articles, to related topics on the forums before or since but which aren't necessarily about that article.

Articles should have a "click here to discuss this article" but this would be an extra link, kind of "further reading". Hopefully it would help new visitors explore a bit more in to the forums and even join in, and on the bright side it might mean a few more people read your article (or reread it!) if those new visitors mention it in the other threads.

If this doesn't make sense, scream, and I'll do an example with one of mine. My question is can you see any problem with this, do you feel it would detract from your own work, or distract people, or anything else wrong. Please do post up here, or if you prefer PM me.

Also while we're on the subject please remember that your articles are there to be added to and updated as you wish - if you've had new experiences since you wrote yours or would just like it tidied up please let me know

Mrs Fiddlesticks

Joined: 02 Nov 2004
Posts: 10460

Posted: Sun Jan 01, 06 12:29 pm Post subject:
sounds a good idea in practise, but how would it be implemented. E.g if someone wrote an article about breadmakers, at the moment there are quite a few threads about the subject and no doubt more would appear. It would in theory need regular checks to add any new discusions on the subject to the bottom of the article. But I can see that it would make a more complete directory of information.

Lozzie

Joined: 25 May 2005
Posts: 2595

Posted: Sun Jan 01, 06 1:24 pm Post subject:

Cross-referencing is always a good idea - I voted you to "go for it!", but I see that it is not necessarily that easy to implement in practice.

Perhaps in future we should ask authors of new articles, where possible, to include links to a single related forum thread at the end of their work. This could then be worked into a clickable link with something like "further discussion on this subject may be found HERE".

If that is not sufficient then you could have a little list of clickable links with the thread titles alongside. Or something. I am talking of fthe top of me head, here.

So, for the ol' supermarkets thingy, I would add links to the following threads (and this is where I desperately wish I could figure out how to do a search based entirely on the TITLE OF THE THREAD and not the entire body of the posts contained therein. Search for the word "Supermarkets" and you get nearly 300 matches, the first one on the list being the not-terribly-helpful Downsizer Confession Box thread

)

1) https://forum.downsizer.net/about7871.html&highlight=supermarkets

(Downsizer Local Shopping Week Challenge)

2) https://forum.downsizer.net/about8413.html&highlight=supermarkets

(Downsizer Local Shopping Week Challenge results)

3) https://forum.downsizer.net/about7986.html&highlight=supermarkets

(news of Nanny's Farmer's Markets article)

4) https://forum.downsizer.net/about7273.html&highlight=supermarkets

(Sucess at reducing supermarket usage)

5) https://forum.downsizer.net/about6631.html&highlight=supermarkets

(downsizing, supermarkets and local shops)

6) https://forum.downsizer.net/about5566.html&highlight=supermarkets

(supermarket Secrets)

I could go on and on and on and on providing associated links, actually.

How do we decide how many threads to provide links to? How do we decide WHICH threads to provide links to - or does that not REALLY matter, as long as it gets people navigating around the boards?

Bugs

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 10744

Posted: Sun Jan 01, 06 7:52 pm Post subject:

Cheers for the comments ladies.

I think this point sums it up:

Lozzie wrote:

How do we decide WHICH threads to provide links to - or does that not REALLY matter, as long as it gets people navigating around the boards?

We couldn't get it perfect (we'd wind up missing some good conversations, and including some that might be less than wholly relevant, particularly where a "good" question has gone astray). But if we were to give the links like this in the articles:

Quote:

Discuss this article on the forums here

Or if you would like to read further here are a few topics on the forums you might find interesting:
Supermarket Secrets

Downsizing, supermarkets and local shops

Don't forget to use the "Search" option on the forums to explore further, and please do feel free to join in and ask advice or give your opinion.

Lozzie

Joined: 25 May 2005
Posts: 2595

Posted: Tue Jan 03, 06 9:19 am Post subject:

On the other hand - (how many hands is that now??) - articles are endlessly edit-able, so nothing needs to be typeset in stone as it were. If I add links to my article and then subsequently a new and relevant topic begins on the boards, there is nothing to stop me or anyone else who is interested from editing my links, is there?

(Incidentally - how DO I edit my own article? When I navigate to it, I cannot see any way of changing it or adding to it ... it might look better with some pictures in it, for example, and I would change my bio to include my real name ... can anyone advise?)

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