Changing Diary / MGoBoard classification
Regarding some recent diary posts that were excellent posts, but would've been more appropriate on the board, and some good board posts that might've gone over as a Diary, I was wondering if there is any precedent for moving posts from one to the other.
Just as we now have add points / remove points buttons, perhaps we could have a "Vote to Move" button, or something similar, wherein if it were selected enough times, a post could be moved, if possible automatically, instead of taxing Brian further, to the other section (up to Diaries or down to MGoBoard).
How would others feel about this? I don't think it could be used viciously to attack diaries or posts people didn't like, but rather just content control. I'm not sure, though.
I searched mgoblog for the distinction between a diary and the board, and the only thing I found was this:
"A diary is your own personal section of mgoblog, to post in as you like."
So why are people getting slammed for posting personal observations as they like in the diary?
My understanding is that the diary is for OT stuff like the Disco Demolition post, and that the board is for discussion topics. It all seems to blur together at one point, anyway.
If "we" are going to belittle posts for being in the "wrong" place on the board, maybe there could be some kind of official statement of what actually belongs where. This, of course, could come from Brian or it could come from a consensus of posters.
Right now, though, it seems to me that people are imposing their own interpretations of the "standards" without those standards actually being agreed upon by a consensus or stated by Brian.
My "vote" would be to stick to Brian's definition of diaries and have people "post whatever they like," while coming to some sort of consensus about what is appropriate for the board. That way, people who are "strictly business" and want their UM football unadulterated would know that the board will be appropriate for them, while those who think it is great when people relate personal anecdotes and experiences have an outlet in the diaries.
Please note, your comment "belittle" is not appreciated, because you do not READ.
As I said, there have been a number of EXCELLENT posts in both the diaries and the board that seem to fit in the other better. There is no belittling going on whatsoever.
It simply seems to me (and many others, it seems) that given the fact that diaries can be responded to, which is a good thing, if we don't organize posts in some way, then we simply have two boards. Nothing is different between them.
I've always understood diaries as a higher level feature than the forum topics, hence the 200-word minimum.
The idea, as mentioned earlier, is to have a place where readers can contribute material approaching the interest level of that posted by Brian in the main page.
Picture diaries as the feature-length articles of a magazine, as opposed to the Forums being a cross between the letters section and the news blurbs.
That's the consensus opinion, to my understanding, encapsulated in Brian's "kind of official statement of what actually belongs where:"
"This is your own personal section of MGoBlog, to post in as you like. There is a minimum of 200 words on a diary entry. If you're posting links to stories, you should do that on the message board. This is for your own original content. Note: smack talk is strongly discouraged."It's kind of vague, I agree. I think it's vague so as not to discourage writing. I can remember several intensely personal diaries by other readers, my all-time favorite being one of an overseas M fan struggling to repair videotapes in the Ukraine. Functionally, however, they are there for readers to contribute full-length blog entries that fit the same standards that Brian uses for his posts on the main page. Think about it: would you rather have a section of stuff you're not interested in, or a Premium section of long reads that you find intensely interesting? Think of things like jg2112's "A statistical response to BlueSeoul's critique of Martavious Odoms," or, more selfishly, my own Michigan Uniform Tournament. These kinds of posts take a lot of time and effort, and are published for the benefit of every MgoBlog reader. We wouldn't take the time to do them if they would just get lost in the MGoBoard.
Agree 100%. That's why I suggested a premium space where Brian could bump up "keepers" such as your uniform posts. That looks unlikely, so the Diary, in some form, has to serve. But when OT - Great House Hunters Episode!!! bumps off a post that has a ton of great Michigan content, then that's unfortunate.
It seems to me like the main difference between a diary post and a board post is length. That's why there is a 200-word minimum on diaries. Any post that has to have filler added to it in order to be over 200 words should be a board post. Anything over 500 words should probably be a diary.
When you post a diary you get more horizontal screen space so a longer post is more readable.
Hopefully the reason why diaries will be longer posts is that they have thought out reasoning/examples/anecdotes/interviews. Then the diary will be a good one whether it is talking about Michigan football stats or disco demolition night.
I guess I'll give you that.
Mind you, there's nothing wrong with discussing that Disco night. It was a cool sports history bit. And I certainly never meant to imply otherwise.
There is also this when you post a diary:
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This is your own personal section of MGoBlog, to post in as you like. There is a minimum of 200 words on a diary entry. If you're posting links to stories, you should do that on the message board. This is for your own original content. Note: smack talk is strongly discouraged.
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"own original content" should be bolded, probably. I've also just added a WYSIWYG editor to the diaries to help people format them attractively. (People see this, right?)
The diaries are for things like the post that got bumped Friday, primarily, and stuff like the uniform regional Misopognon is running now: your own writing and research. The message board is for talking about whatever, relaying news, and so forth and so on. All OT stuff should go there.
The editor does show up for me.
This sounds fine. Keep the Diaries limited to original content related to college athletics and/or Michigan.
The points limit might cause some problems (as we've seen recently). Perhaps lower the points limit to 10 in order to create a new thread on MGoBoard and institute a points limit of 20 to post a diary?
That would be good.
Also, along the lines of your point, OT should not have a place in the Diaries.
OT - Shirley Temple Movies
OT - Question on Corn Snakes
OT - Hindu Sculpture in the 9th Century
OT - Name Your Favorite Looney Toons Character!
Doesn't matter how many words, it should be related to the University of Michigan.
The problem is not an organization fetish, but that worthy material have a more permanent home, both for visitors who don't check the site daily and for maintaining an interesting dialogue. Tracker or no tracker, if something rolls off the front page, it is going to die a premature death. When OT nonsense pushes good material into oblivion, that's unfortunate and what we are all discussing.
Like I am qualified to comment.
The comment above was supposed to be in response to Tater's post.
I've updated the diary description text in an effort to get things in the right places.
Perfect. Very clear. Thanks.