Changes in the Community
On Wednesday, 22 Nov, the ability to comment in the "Suggest an Idea" category disappeared. Then it came back. Now it's gone again.
The instant closure on Suggest an Idea means we can't help someone who just needs a little help learning some nuances of the site.
At about the same time, the points Leader Board disappeared.
It would be nice to know why these changes were made and if the changes were intentional. A little communication would go a long way.
Thank you.
Answers
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I don't mind the loss of the Leader Board - I always felt it incentivised the wrong thing.
But instant closure on Suggest An Idea is perverse. If we can't comment, then we can't help - anyone.
I've seen suggestions where the suggestion is already possible - if perhaps a little obscure. Wouldn't it help the OP (and others with the same issue) to explain this?
I've seen suggestions which are downright impossible - are we to presume that we shouldn't point this out? (Especially if the techies can't be expected to know this)
And what about ideas that could do with a bit of a tweak? Such tweaks can surely only help the guys who (might) design and program it? Or does FS have access to all the knowledge that it needs? (Sorry if that comes over a bit sarcastic - but that's the essential issue).
Please remove that closure...
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And to add insult to injury, entries in Suggest An Idea appear to come up in Recent Discussions even though, as a statement of fact, there is no discussion of them. A lack of joined-up thought?
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'Suggest an Idea' is listed at the bottom of the page under "Quick Links"
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@K S D No one said anything about Suggest an Idea being missing. The ability to RESPOND to any post on Suggest an Idea is missing.
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"Suggest an Idea" has vanished from the main menu bar:
Is it being downgraded? Is it being done away with? Are they suggesting that ideas are to be put in a suitable topic under FamilySearch Help? Which means they will likely all end up under General Questions?
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There have been suggestions to do away with the suggestions section; I admit that the idea has its appeal, especially when there has been a spate of LDS-specific ones that I Really Don't Want To See. (They make me feel like I've unintentionally intruded on a private conversation.)
Doing away with our ability to respond to suggestions, however, is rather the opposite of "appealing". Or of "sensible".
I agree with Adrian that the leaderboard is no loss, but I disagree about it incentivizing anything much, since I have yet to find any action on my part that has any effect whatsoever on my "points" or "score".
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Yes, there have been discussions that Suggest an Idea might be done away with, but what we have now is a mess, IMHO. We can't even point someone to a better place to post for those MANY posts that don't belong in Suggest an Idea.
I agree that the disappearance of the leaderboard is no big deal; I simply commented that it disappeared about the same time, in case there was some connection.
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Complete and total speculation that is sure to be 100% wrong: It may be that turning off the ability to comment is part of initial work to migrate new posts to somewhere else in the Community and making old posts read only. It might be easier to migrate a single post than a post with a bunch of comments.
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Continued idle speculation: It does seem, however, that posting a notice under Suggest An Idea that people should post elsewhere and not letting people post at all would be more efficient than continuing to allow posts that then need to be moved. But then I have no idea what FamilySearch can actually do if they are using user configurable software written by a 3rd party or whatever this community actually is.
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As I said in my original post "A little communication would go a long way." With these changes coming just at the start of a long holiday weekend here in the US, one is left to wonder if these changes were implemented on purpose or if something went awry.
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Áine Ní Donnghaile ✭✭✭✭✭
On Wednesday, 22 Nov, the ability to comment in the "Suggest an Idea" category disappeared. Then it came back. Now it's gone again.
Sorry I misunderstood what you said. Suggestions and comments are still there for now.
Have a great day!
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Comment is not the same thing as Post. The box for Leave a Comment disappeared.
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Sorry again - it was there earlier today.
Have a nice night!
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@Stephanie V. Could we please get an update on the Suggest an Idea issue? Thanks.
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The ability to comment in Suggest an Idea has returned.
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Hi everyone. Thanks for your comments. There are some changes that are coming but they are being tested first. There were some engineering issues that occurred setting up the test but the ability to comment on Suggest an Idea is back working. I promise that I will update you when the changes are official.
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