Suggestion: Rename NYC forum to "NYC & New Jersey" or "NYC Area"
Aug 25, 2011, 8:01 pm
#76
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SkiAdcock, I concur! (about your name proposals)
I was actually thinking about the Megalopolis during the thread! We should make a single forum for whole Northeast Megalopolis.
Don't joke...I'm supposed to fly on Sunday! (EWR-TLV)
The NYC area stopped being "great" the minute the Dodgers left. (The Giants going to San Francisco just emphasized that fact.)
Therefore, call it the "New York Metropolitan Area".
(Incidentally, back in the late 60's and early 70's, the academic "in" crowd liked to talk about the "Megapolis" -- which stretched from Boston to Washington. I think we can safely discard that one.)
Therefore, call it the "New York Metropolitan Area".
(Incidentally, back in the late 60's and early 70's, the academic "in" crowd liked to talk about the "Megapolis" -- which stretched from Boston to Washington. I think we can safely discard that one.)
Don't joke...I'm supposed to fly on Sunday! (EWR-TLV)
Aug 27, 2011, 10:35 am
#77
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Let me say this again: the current title of New York City forum is not broken. Do not "fix" it.
Changing the descriptive subtitle to the forum is another story.
I am sure I am not the only frequent and regular contributor to the forum who resents what we perceive as an intrusion into our forum, especially from those of you from thousands of miles away who never post anything there. What's your "skin in the game" other than meddling?
Consider our wishes. I will not be posting to a "New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Pennsylvania Forum." (Include Vermont and maybe we can talk.)
I could ask for a Brooklyn Forum, given the proliferation of guidebooks devoted solely to my home borough, but I think this thread is becoming sillier every day.
New York City Forum with a descriptive subtitle. Enough already!
Changing the descriptive subtitle to the forum is another story.
I am sure I am not the only frequent and regular contributor to the forum who resents what we perceive as an intrusion into our forum, especially from those of you from thousands of miles away who never post anything there. What's your "skin in the game" other than meddling?
Consider our wishes. I will not be posting to a "New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Pennsylvania Forum." (Include Vermont and maybe we can talk.)
I could ask for a Brooklyn Forum, given the proliferation of guidebooks devoted solely to my home borough, but I think this thread is becoming sillier every day.
New York City Forum with a descriptive subtitle. Enough already!
Aug 27, 2011, 10:45 am
#78
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We want to accomplish two objectives:
1. Define the area to be covered.
2. Accurately describe this area to newbies.
There may be some disagreement on (1), leading to arguments on (2). So let's discuss that.
It seems to me that the consensus on (1) is NYC and suburbs within commuting distance. Does anyone disagree on that?
1. Define the area to be covered.
2. Accurately describe this area to newbies.
There may be some disagreement on (1), leading to arguments on (2). So let's discuss that.
It seems to me that the consensus on (1) is NYC and suburbs within commuting distance. Does anyone disagree on that?
Aug 27, 2011, 2:23 pm
#79
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OK... you're going to shoot me about this... but define commuting distance 
I know people who commute to NYC daily from Philly. Seriously. The train ride isn't that long.
I know people who commute to NYC daily from Philly. Seriously. The train ride isn't that long.
Aug 27, 2011, 2:36 pm
#80
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Aug 27, 2011, 6:46 pm
#81
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Aug 28, 2011, 11:08 pm
#82
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We want to accomplish two objectives:
1. Define the area to be covered.
2. Accurately describe this area to newbies.
There may be some disagreement on (1), leading to arguments on (2). So let's discuss that.
It seems to me that the consensus on (1) is NYC and suburbs within commuting distance. Does anyone disagree on that?
1. Define the area to be covered.
2. Accurately describe this area to newbies.
There may be some disagreement on (1), leading to arguments on (2). So let's discuss that.
It seems to me that the consensus on (1) is NYC and suburbs within commuting distance. Does anyone disagree on that?
As others have suggested, commuting distance is an ill-defined metric. Lots of people commute from New Haven (72 miles), northeastern PA (70+ miles), and a few even from Montauk (120 miles). Should Hartford, CT be on topic (117 miles)? And Philadelphia is only 95 miles...
Aug 29, 2011, 8:31 am
#83
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I know that FT tries very hard to keep forums regionally correct, however, I'm thinking that in this case, we might try to rearrange the regions 
Instead of a NYC forum, how about a NY, NJ & CT forum? That would leave no question as to where topics about those states would belong. A line in the Mid Atlantic and New England forum descriptions could direct people there.
The reason I say this is that most people can answer questions about all 3 areas. I looked at the other forums, and it's basically the same people responding to questions.
Instead of a NYC forum, how about a NY, NJ & CT forum? That would leave no question as to where topics about those states would belong. A line in the Mid Atlantic and New England forum descriptions could direct people there.
The reason I say this is that most people can answer questions about all 3 areas. I looked at the other forums, and it's basically the same people responding to questions.
Aug 29, 2011, 8:49 am
#84
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That is insane.
Normal people live in Bucks County, PA, about 30 minutes north of Philly and get on the train either in Trenton or at Princeton Junction.
(I never did it on a daily basis, but for several years seemed to make that trip at least twice a week.)
Normal people live in Bucks County, PA, about 30 minutes north of Philly and get on the train either in Trenton or at Princeton Junction.
(I never did it on a daily basis, but for several years seemed to make that trip at least twice a week.)
Aug 29, 2011, 1:14 pm
#85
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Instead of a NYC forum, how about a NY, NJ & CT forum? That would leave no question as to where topics about those states would belong. A line in the Mid Atlantic and New England forum descriptions could direct people there.
The reason I say this is that most people can answer questions about all 3 areas. I looked at the other forums, and it's basically the same people responding to questions.
But seriously...
Aug 29, 2011, 2:17 pm
#86
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Aug 30, 2011, 10:28 am
#87
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I will make one additional point in favor of retaining the name New York City forum and simply changing the description/subtitle, as nerd, Analise, and Landing Gear have all suggested upthread.
The vast majority of tourists, i.e.: those who are looking to ask questions in the NYC Forum on FlyerTalk, are visiting NYC proper (indeed, most don't even realize that NYC is anything beyond Manhattan
).
Here are some hard statistics on current threads in the NYC Forum (my settings are 25 threads per page, and as a moderator, I see some additional threads that have been removed):
Changing the name of the forum to address a 'problem' that relates to at most 5% of the threads in the forum (and I would guess <1% of the posts), seems unnecessary, IMHO. In addition, changing the name of the forum to something other than New York City would remove or detract from the special status that that specific name carries. Further, all other sub-forums in the US section are named for specific cities (Los Angeles, San Francisco, Orlando, Washington, Chicago, Las Vegas), and it seems obvious that the metro areas are included.
Perhaps a better solution to consider is to change the name or description of the Mid-Atlantic Forum to something that better differentiates it from NYC, but more clearly includes some of the areas that dhammer53 has mentioned upthread.
The vast majority of tourists, i.e.: those who are looking to ask questions in the NYC Forum on FlyerTalk, are visiting NYC proper (indeed, most don't even realize that NYC is anything beyond Manhattan
). Here are some hard statistics on current threads in the NYC Forum (my settings are 25 threads per page, and as a moderator, I see some additional threads that have been removed):
Page 1) Currently, every single thread is about Manhattan or NYC transit/airports.
Page 2) Most threads again about the five boroughs or NYC transit/airports. Two threads about driving directions in the NYC area; one thread about water parks near NYC; one thread moved to Mid-Atlantic because the OP was asking for advice from ITH locals (FYI, ITH is a 4-hour drive from NYC*); one thread on NY driver licenses that remained in NYC because the OP was asking for advice from NYC locals.
Page 3) Most threads again about the five boroughs or NYC transit/airports. One thread about planning a roadtrip from NYC; one thread about getting from JFK to Eastern PA, which really turned out to be about NYC transit.
Page 4) Most threads again about Manhattan or NYC transit/airports. One thread about transportation from NYC to Albany; one thread about Niagara Falls that was moved to Mid-Atlantic (FYI, Niagara Falls is a 7-hour drive from NYC*).
Page 5) Most threads again about NYC transit/airports. One thread about ideas for daytrips from NYC.
*If you can fly a commercial airline there from NYC, I don't think it should be considered part of NYC!
Page 2) Most threads again about the five boroughs or NYC transit/airports. Two threads about driving directions in the NYC area; one thread about water parks near NYC; one thread moved to Mid-Atlantic because the OP was asking for advice from ITH locals (FYI, ITH is a 4-hour drive from NYC*); one thread on NY driver licenses that remained in NYC because the OP was asking for advice from NYC locals.
Page 3) Most threads again about the five boroughs or NYC transit/airports. One thread about planning a roadtrip from NYC; one thread about getting from JFK to Eastern PA, which really turned out to be about NYC transit.
Page 4) Most threads again about Manhattan or NYC transit/airports. One thread about transportation from NYC to Albany; one thread about Niagara Falls that was moved to Mid-Atlantic (FYI, Niagara Falls is a 7-hour drive from NYC*).
Page 5) Most threads again about NYC transit/airports. One thread about ideas for daytrips from NYC.
*If you can fly a commercial airline there from NYC, I don't think it should be considered part of NYC!
Perhaps a better solution to consider is to change the name or description of the Mid-Atlantic Forum to something that better differentiates it from NYC, but more clearly includes some of the areas that dhammer53 has mentioned upthread.
Aug 30, 2011, 8:04 pm
#88
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Very precise, but not very accurate. Including South Jersey, Atlantic City and the Philly suburbs doesn't make much sense. Neither does including upstate NY.
I disagree.
I'm not willing to prescribe a specific radius, but I agree in principle.
How do you deal with Cherry Hill, NJ, which is in NJ but should really be included in discussion associated with Philly more than NYC.
I'm more and more inclined to not change the title of the forum and to trust the judgment of the moderator to know what is related to the NYC area and what is not. Just tweak the description and move on.
I'm more and more inclined to not change the title of the forum and to trust the judgment of the moderator to know what is related to the NYC area and what is not. Just tweak the description and move on.
Sep 5, 2011, 3:40 pm
#89
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I'm leaning towards dstan's thoughts above - as they make the most amount of sense to me.
I don't think the title needs to be changed, but the description can be updated, IMHO (as the mod of that forum & others suggest). And as it seems that the TB doesn't really write or make recommendations about descriptions, my thought it is to leave it in the hands of the FT administration.
I don't think the title needs to be changed, but the description can be updated, IMHO (as the mod of that forum & others suggest). And as it seems that the TB doesn't really write or make recommendations about descriptions, my thought it is to leave it in the hands of the FT administration.
Sep 5, 2011, 9:28 pm
#90
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I'm leaning towards dstan's thoughts above - as they make the most amount of sense to me.
I don't think the title needs to be changed, but the description can be updated, IMHO (as the mod of that forum & others suggest). And as it seems that the TB doesn't really write or make recommendations about descriptions, my thought it is to leave it in the hands of the FT administration.
I don't think the title needs to be changed, but the description can be updated, IMHO (as the mod of that forum & others suggest). And as it seems that the TB doesn't really write or make recommendations about descriptions, my thought it is to leave it in the hands of the FT administration.