Markie

This all seems remarkably sensible to me, however, whether TB can do anything that is a moderation issue has yet to be seen.

Ancien Maestro

I agree Mega Threads is a moderation issue.. and as such the jurisdiction lies with the Moderators.. If they need some input perhaps, they can let TB know in what sort of form that would look like..

bhatnasx

Agreed. It certainly is a moderation issue, not a TB issue.

But, as there's no "ORP"-type forum to express concerns like this & have a discussion around them & there is, IMHO, a chance a thread like this would get closed in the Suggestions forum (and not as widely read there), this forum can serve as an outlet for things that may not be fully within our scope, but that may require attention for the good of FlyerTalk.

SkiAdcock

I do think this is a mod issue & not a TB issue. I'm glad that some mods are willing to consider the issue & look at their own forum (and in some cases even poll their forum members - yeah peter & markie!) re: the issue.

BTW - count me in the irritated re: mega-threads getting merged - well, at least w/ mods not actually reading the OP & just merging it into another thread because the title had a couple of words another megathread did. I started a thread today; had one reply 7 minutes after posting & right after that it got merged into a 2-page thread - which had to do w/ revenue travel & my question was award-related. When i questioned that, my comment was removed. So I did what any good FTer would do - I went away from FT to other sources to find my answer

Cheers.

kokonutz

!!!!!aaaaaarrrrrggggghhhhh!!!!!!

FT fail.

RichMSN

Exactly. Really, really sad.

Markie

You seem to have been given a mission then - if you choose to accept it

RichMSN

I'm not sure -- I expect some will use the "purview" word and claim they know what's best in "their" forum.

janetdoe

In the "Tricks" megathread, there is a lot of debate/gnashing of teeth about how we know when something is a "Deal" or if it should be merged into "Tricks". While I think this is probably a moderator decision, I think it would be useful to have a public discussion as to how we know when/if something is an 'error' or a 'trick'.

It's a serious problem, because it results in pages and pages of internal debate every time a thread gets merged, and most of this debate violates TOS because people are criticizing or praising moderator actions. It's driving me crazy. What is the proper FT method to initiate a discussion about 'what belongs' in a Megathread?

Ancien Maestro

You can PM the moderator..

Thread merging hasn't been a perfect science ..

kokonutz

If you take the time to skim this locked thread:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/talkb...-feedback.html

You will find that some moderators have implemented moderation feedback threads in the forums they moderate.

Ask the forum moderator to do the same. If they refuse, keep asking.

Canarsie

While it could certainly be improved, I would say that the Search function on FlyerTalk has worked rather well for me recently.I would argue that this is neither a moderation nor a TalkBoard issue.

It is a FlyerTalk member issue. Give the majority of FlyerTalk members in a particular forum what they want if it helps to enhance the user experience. If the majority of FlyerTalk members want threads to be merged into mega-threads, then let us grant that request. If the majority of FlyerTalk members want to leave things as they are, then we shall leave things well enough alone. FlyerTalk members should have the final say.

It is quite simple, really — at least, in my opinion and experience, anyway...That is correct.

In the Hilton HHonors forum, we have the following discussions open for FlyerTalk member feedback:

• UPDATE: Hilton Forum Thread Count Decreased by Greater Than 20%!
• Trip Reports and Reviews of Multiple Properties: Your Opinions are Requested
• The Merged Merged Threads Thread
• The Unofficial Hilton HHonors “Newbie” Questions and Comments Thread

When I first became moderator of the Hilton HHonors forum, the single most popular complaint by far by FlyerTalk members was the proliferation of threads discussing the same hotel property or location.

After spending weeks merging and consolidating threads, the number of threads in the Hilton HHonors forum was reduced by 20 percent, and the complaints subsided substantially. Most hotel properties in the Hilton HHonors forum have two threads: a general main thread whose title is the exact name of the hotel property for ease of searching, and a trip reports and reviews thread.

One policy we adopted due to FlyerTalk member feedback is to not merge threads right away. We now usually wait a couple of weeks, a month, or when the original request is answered before we merge many — if not most — threads which would have originally been merged immediately.

For extremely popular hotel properties, we attempt to have more than two different threads, as those separate discussions in and of themselves can be substantial.

I have personally proactively sought the opinions of FlyerTalk members who frequent the Hilton HHonors forum and many — if not most — seem to be happy with the current format. If and when that is no longer the case, we are prepared to follow the feedback we receive at any time, including splitting apart discussions to form separate threads, if necessary. All FlyerTalk members who frequent the Hilton HHonors forum need to do is simply let us know.

SkiAdcock

Speaking as a regular FTer, that's great in theory & when it happens. But there are some forums & mods that don't hew to that, and that IS a problem.

Note I say that in the generic sense to avoid getting tossed off of FT due to TOS violation, but it's true.

Cheers.

Markie

Well didn't you get elected to push the boundaries?

Ancien Maestro

Imagine FT members having free reign on FT enhancements. without supervision that is.

I think that feedback from members has always been part of the equation.. the question was who would be the correct party (TB or Moderators) to handle the feedback, and channel the proper solutions based on the feedback. As moderators are on the front line and handling the merging and organization of megathreads already, the decisions could be made by moderators to format threads as desired by FT members..