Is anyone interested in me setting up a private Links SQL only users forum? It is much easier to do and maintain now.

Let me know what you think..

Cheers,

Alex

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Gossamer Threads Inc.

I vote yes!

Two reasons.

1) The Links SQL discussion is for people to decide to buy.

2) The private forum would be for people who have bought, and then there would be less problem making code available.

It would also make it more obvious who had bought the program, and who hadn't. (I wonder how many of those there are?). Anyway, you could flip their access to the forum when you send them the password for the download area.

I know this may be a sore point, since I'm sure public discussion may have helped some people to purchase the program, but it also limits what can be posted about the program.

There is pro and con for both, but I think that keeping the support board open makes no real sense since the help offered is of no value unless you have the program. If you have the program, you should have access to the forum. The down side is prospective purchasers don't see all the support, but the up side is the people who have bought can get forum support for things that couldn't be done in the open (maybe?).

With a private forum, code changes to the internals of the Links libraries could be posted without a problem (since everyone there has a copy -- or should) There wouldn't be a problem as to what was ok to post and what wasn't.

FWIW -- if you go this route, I would really enforce the roles of the forums --
ie: Links Discussion -- what links can and can't do for people looking to buy
and Links Support -- help with how to do it.

I don't see the need to set up a 3rd private forum, since there will then be a really grey area as to what gets posted where, and it's easy to make a mistake.

I also don't see a code-only private forum, since much of the code/solutions are done in the message bodies, over several messages, and not in stand alone posts. The mods go into the resource area.


But, it's up to you -- really, Alex, how you see the use of the private area. Going private won't affect the registered users, but it may have effects on GT in terms of the visibility of support -- although, as I mentioned above, it may increase the level of support that is available in the forum to registered users since it wouldn't violate the license to post code to this sort of area.

yes...

make it like the Links SQL Modifications

so the people that get a copy illegally can't figure out how to fix it up.. hehe

btw alex.. great makeover.. i stared at your index page's flash for about 3 minutes.. :) great logo.. great design.. the flash logo is like a hypnotizing thing.. hehe



Jerry Su
email@jerrysu.com
http://www.jerrysu.com/

I'm mildly against the idea of a private forum, even though I do own a license.

I think it can fairly be argued either way, but one logistical thought -- how would forum search/faq indexing work? Would it ignore the private forums or would it know to include them for people with access? There is often so much grey area between the most appropriate place to post and whether or not to respond to a thread or start a new one, that I'd be very surprised if info that is pertinent to everyone does not unintentionally get shut off in a private forum.

Dan

In reply to Dan's message as well as everyone elses. I'm sure that wwwthreads allows read only as an option. So as linkssql owners we would get to post, but people looking for an idea of how good the program is :), can still look at our posts.

Dan,

I think my first post to the forum was that I'm going to re-do the FAQ area once the new version comes out.

Rather than index the threads, I'm going to just deal with the best of the best, and the real FAQ type items, which is what I wanted to do in the first place -- create a place the new user could find all the stuff other new users had wanted to know.

Why? Have you tried the new search features <G> They are better than I could do on the FAQ and without all the redundant work! (That's the whole point of an FAQ <G>).

As for a private forum, it does work both ways. But, depending on how you (the royal you) want to use it, it makes sense to make it private, or not ;)

My feeling, though, is that there are probably a lot of people getting support on Links SQL that never got a license. Also, there are things that could be talked about in the private area -- such as collaborations to upgrade/alter sections of the code to do specific jobs -- that couldn't be done in the public areas.

And, just to reiterate a major point -- there is _nothing_ in the private board that would apply to anyone that is not a registered user of Links SQL and who didn't have access to the support board, so searches/public/private wouldn't make a difference.

I think the real issue is whether the public board does more for GT's image than it would do as a private board in support of registered users.

This is a hard call.

Did you see the Buy Links SQL flash by every 50th frame?

Cheers,

Alex

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Gossamer Threads Inc.

I also vote yes.

should be more convenient to share mods, or discuss new improvements!

chreers

lepo


Lepo - lepo@comune.carpi.mo.it

What´s happen? Do you censor threads you wont readers have to see? I have posted yesterday my comments to this theme and now i cant find my entree????
Robert

Hi Robert,

No, nothing was intentionally removed! Try:

http://www.gossamer-threads.com/...=25&Old=allposts

Is your post not in this list? If so let me know, last thing I want is messages disappearing!

Cheers,

Alex

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Gossamer Threads Inc.