MovieChat Forums > General Discussion > Making a pledge to help improve this boa...

Making a pledge to help improve this board

posted 8 years ago by Moviefan225 (259)
58 replies | jump to latest

I love this board, and I think we all agree that all other sub-forums in this site (including the individual movie and celebrity boards, and all other forums in the main board aside from General Discussion) need more posts. I was wondering if those who want to promote this board would make a pledge to make a certain number of posts on all boards except this one, for at any interval you feel comfortable with.

My pledge is:

"I pledge to make at least two posts on any non-General Discussion form, at least one of which will be a new thread, for the next 30 days"

Of course, these pledges are not binding. No one is going to check if you followed these pledges or not. You could feel free to make a commitment for any interval (daily, b-weekly, weekly, monthly) for any span of time that you feel comfortable with. You could also make a pledge to promote this site on social media or whatever other platform.

Such a pledge would just be meant to guide you in the right direction, and of course need not be strictly enforced by you. If you do fulfill your pledge (or come close) do post here if you want!

[–] LeiaOfLothlorien (1980) 8 years ago

This is a great idea!

I pledge to post at least two comments and one thread everyday, as long as I have something somewhat meaningful to say.

Also, it seems like the boards that aren't movies, shows, people, or General Discussion need the most help. Such as the Games Boards, Genre Boards, Shop Talk, etc.

[–] Moviefan225 (259) 8 years ago

"Also, it seems like the boards that aren't movies, shows, people, or General Discussion need the most help. Such as the Games Boards, Genre Boards, Shop Talk, etc."

Yeah I agree. I meant all non GD boards including those ones too!

[–] LeiaOfLothlorien (1980) 8 years ago

I thought so; just pointing it out in case other people didn't realize. c;

[–] Catbookss (13664) 8 years ago

Yeah, great idea! I can do this. I've already been making an effort to do it and have done most days.

[–] lennonforever (2453) 8 years ago

I will and do, at the soap boards and horror.

[–] Wilson (879) 8 years ago

Sorry dude, a pledge is only as good as your word and I don't know you.

I get where you may be coming from but this is a new message board and we have to ear trust here.

[–] Moviefan225 (259) 8 years ago

I don't understand? I am not asking you to take a pledge for me or anyone else. I am suggesting that people take a pledge for themselves, simply as a guiding principle or reminder to encourage themselves to keep posting. As stated in my original post, because you are taking a pledge for yourself, no one is going to check whether you fulfilled it or not. I was just suggesting that people make a personal agreement with themselves to help improve this board. The reason I suggested people post their pledge here (and you don't have to) is just set things in stone for oneself. As I said, no one is (and should) check whether you are fulfilling your pledge or not. That is each individual's personal business.

[–] Wilson (879) 8 years ago

I do that as often as I can.

I was always a reader, never a writer, but then the big day came and me and many others were left without anyone to read from. It was quite bewildering. I hope this place gets back up to what IMDB used to be and that I can settle back into that role that I enjoyed. I think a great many people liked to read and say nothing. I am trying my best to spark interests which will make it all work the way it used to once people start coming here again.

I just made a bunch of Charlie Chan posts, that's cinematic history!

[–] Moviefan225 (259) 8 years ago

Awesome!! I am trying my best too!

[–] [deleted] 8 years ago

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[–] Wilson (879) 8 years ago

I think you have me pegged for a certain other person. I'm impressed if that is the case :)

[–] [deleted] 8 years ago

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[–] Wilson (879) 8 years ago

Aw shucks, I thought you thought I was Harry there for a moment - that would have been a big compliment (Someone else complimented me on painting batman6 into a corner, I didn't know how to respond and so didn't but it felt great!).

[–] [deleted] 8 years ago

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[–] Wilson (879) 8 years ago

I don't believe it either. He'll be back and so will the rest of that crew. I do like the fact that people might think I could be him though. I feel a little bit special, and more willing to take part (And use proper grammar), because of him and He_Cant. Sometimes the weirdest things make the oddest changes in our life, you know?

If you don't that's ok, it has for me though. My shift patterns are always changing and I thought it was a bad thing, but now I see it as a good thing. This weekend I get a whole 5 days with my kids. That wouldn't have happened before. Weird, I know, but I am so happy to make film a part of their lives that my supervisor understood. I think we all get films in our own way. That's not meant to be an important thing to say, just that I think we all know we need some time with our own and with what we like doing.

[–] [deleted] 8 years ago

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[–] Wilson (879) 8 years ago

My type of movies and the type which is appropriate for them differs greatly. I often wonder when is a good time to put them into a genre or style which is appropriate for their age and if doing so is a thing which is worthwhile. Gives me no end of worries.

[–] [deleted] 8 years ago

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[–] Sentient Meat (1509) 8 years ago

It's a good idea... also people should try to respond to others' posts even when there might not be something profound to say. I think people get most discouraged when they say something and get no answer.

[–] LeiaOfLothlorien (1980) 8 years ago

That's good point, although sometimes there really isn't much to say. I mean, I do have a lot of posts unanswered and it is a bit saddening, but I'm not going to leave because of it.

[–] Sentient Meat (1509) 8 years ago

On a new board you are unlikely to have more than a small percentage of reponses unless you only target very active people or topics. Most people are not used to this, so they will quickly get discouraged and go elsewhere. The way people should look at this is as a learning experience... even if this board fails they will have learned valuable lessons on how to start their own board or blog... and if it doesn't, then they have a nice new place to discuss movies and tv.

[–] LeiaOfLothlorien (1980) 8 years ago

Good point. I haven't been on a forum this spread out before, but it makes sense that it'll take time to get people to respond.

[–] [deleted] 8 years ago

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[–] LeiaOfLothlorien (1980) 8 years ago

Yay us! 😎😉🎉

It is a good idea to get as many boards moving as possible. I've tried a few times, but unfortunately haven't been very successful so far... 😬

[–] [deleted] 8 years ago

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[–] Sentient Meat (1509) 8 years ago

I'd approach it like you would a journal or diary... even a message in a bottle. Just put it out there expecting nothing and eventually... even many months from now, people may answer back.

[–] Moviefan225 (259) 8 years ago

Bingo!

[–] [deleted] 8 years ago

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[–] Sentient Meat (1509) 8 years ago

Before sites like Facebook, Reddit, Twitter, Snapchat and Instagram... message boards were super active... but general social media has killed most of the specialized forum traffic. Already other than a few boards with their own devoted fans, imdb had become a ghost town compared to its past and imdb had killed a lot of discussions on older movies by constantly purging old posts. If people take a realistic approach and consistently comment on stuff they watch, this can be rebuilt. It is also crucial however, that the forum owner doesn't purge old posts or he will head down the same road that imdb did.

[–] LeiaOfLothlorien (1980) 8 years ago

I don't think Jim is the kind of person to destroy old posts. He mentioned something about not repeating IMDb's mistakes if I remember correctly.

[–] Moviefan225 (259) 8 years ago

Yeah exactly!! The IMDb boards had slowed down in the past two years. Some of my threads used to take off, and some of them would not get a single response, ever. So in a way, I am used to not getting immediate responses. I also hope that the old threads are not purged here. IF the boards become extremely popular some day, then one might have to keep purging some threads from time to time. An extremely large number of threads slow down the board. But I hope it will not be done in the reckless manner that it was done on IMDb.

[–] Sentient Meat (1509) 8 years ago

If Netflix can host millions of streams simultaneously I'd think that even a few million text posts shouldn't be too difficult to preserve. One day they'll look back on historical sites and rue the day that they purged so many of them.

[–] LeiaOfLothlorien (1980) 8 years ago

Mm. I guess. But my patience isn't quite at that point yet. XD
A few days, perhaps a week or two, but a month is pushing it.
I'll try to be more patient, though. It just isn't one of my strongsuits.

[–] Sentient Meat (1509) 8 years ago

That's why I said to just act like it's a diary... if you really are in the mood to talk you can simply go to an active or trending topic... but it would take years to build up the smaller boards. This is why most people go to a Twitter hashtag or Facebook... way more people at any given time.

[–] LeiaOfLothlorien (1980) 8 years ago

Yeah, I get it. I'm just saying that isn't how I have been seeing it, and it'll take time to get accustomed to that method of thought. Boards are supposed to be communities, not monologues. I have an actual journal to talk to myself in.
I will try it your way and see how it goes.
I don't have social media, though, and don't plan to.

[–] Apis (1624) 8 years ago

The problem with posting on a quiet movie board is that you are practically forced to write a review of some sort (even if it's a short one). Writing "I liked it" on some old classic movie board isn't gonna be enough and looks kinda foolish. Also, writing "Did anyone else like it as much as I did?" or something like that looks awkward.

[–] Moviefan225 (259) 8 years ago

I don't think "Did anyone else like it as I did?" is an awkward thread. Well, even if it is, I used to lots of posts like this on the old IMDb boards getting lots of responses. I guess that there is that there will be inevitably someone who loves the movie, and will respond that post just to share their excitement, and someone will eventually also share the reasons they liked the movie to spark more conversation. It may not be a thought-provoking start, but it can get people talking and eventually become an interesting thread. I agree that a post like "I like it" will not work, but any post that can provide someone scope to agree or disagree with will be helpful in the long run I think.

[–] Apis (1624) 8 years ago

Writing "Did anyone else like it?" works if you saw the movie recently and can continue the conversation is case someone replies. Dazed (whose post I answered) was talking about quiet boards. They are quiet for a reason - not many people have seen those movies lately. If they did see the movie, it was ages ago and can only reply with a generic "yes I liked it" or something like that. I think that kind of conversation looks awkward.

[–] LeiaOfLothlorien (1980) 8 years ago

I think the point is to think of some interesting point to discuss, or something along those lines. Even just "What's your favorite ____?" Where the blank could be scene, quote, character, song, etc.

[–] Apis (1624) 8 years ago

I thought we were talking about quiet boards and not just any board. I'll give you an example. I recently saw a movie Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941). Suppose I go to that board and write "What's your favorite scene from the movie?" I seriously doubt there are many people here who saw that movie. Out of those few people who saw it, how many saw that movie recently enough to be able to comment about it? I doubt there's any. That's why any post there will remain unanswered for a long time. Therefore, I think it's better to write a small review instead.

[–] LeiaOfLothlorien (1980) 8 years ago

Good point. I was just thinking about possible ways to get people to respond.

I mean, if someone just writes a review, that's great and all, but I can't see all that many people responding to it.

[–] Apis (1624) 8 years ago

Actually, for a few days now, I've been meaning to write something on a board of one of my favorite movies called The swimmer (1968), as a tribute of sort. But even I haven't seen it in a long time. Even though I love that movie I don't remember enough details to debate it with anyone. So, I thought to write something brief and maybe ad a part of review by Ebert or somebody... I really don't know how to approach this problem. But I can guarantee that nobody will answer that post any time soon.

[–] HollyGoLightly2013 (331) 8 years ago

I think that is a great idea! Will do! Also somebody posted this on another message board on here, and I thought I would pass the info. along. This would be a great place to post about movie chat.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/imdbmessageboardsclosing/

[–] MissMargoChanning (6630) 8 years ago

I come everyday and make a few posts on at least one board.
This site must succeed! LOL!

[–] MovieManCin2 (26342) 8 years ago

I agree. I pledge to:

Come here every day (I do already.)
Start a new thread each day.
Respond to as many posts as I have time for.
Spread the news about this board to all my email friends.
Always be polite to others and respect their opinion.

MoviemanCin2

😎🤔

[–] lennonforever (2453) 8 years ago

me too!!

[–] MovieManCin2 (26342) 8 years ago

Excellent! We'll get there eventually.

😎🤔

[–] MissMargoChanning (6630) 8 years ago

"Come here every day (I do already.)
Start a new thread each day.
Respond to as many posts as I have time for.
Spread the news about this board to all my email friends.
Always be polite to others and respect their opinion. "

DITTO! 😎🤔

[–] Strannger (2007) 8 years ago

Yes captain

[–] MovieManCin2 (26342) 8 years ago

Excellent! And well said.

😎🤔

[–] CoriSCapnSkip (2169) 8 years ago

Perhaps people posting on movie and actor boards could either post in this thread or we can start a special thread for people to let everyone know on which subjects they commented. Then anyone interested in that subject could go see the new comments and add their own, instead of just hit and miss.

[–] Moviefan225 (259) 8 years ago

That would be a great idea, but I imagine that it might be very difficult to navigate such a list if it were in the form of a board thread. I keep watching the traffic on the individual boards all day, and I would roughly estimate the number of posts on the individual boards (right now) to be around 300 a day (or maybe slightly more). Of these, even if a 100 people were to mention their posts daily in a thread, I imagine such a thread would be very difficult to navigate after 10 days. It would be nice if this could be done in some other way, but it might be tough.

[–] CoriSCapnSkip (2169) 8 years ago

At the top of the main message boards page is a trending banner, but only 15 subjects are visible in it at a time.

[–] Moviefan225 (259) 8 years ago

Yeah, that number needs to be increased substantially and I recall seeing a discussion about this in a thread on this very board a couple of weeks back. It may not have caught Jim's attention though, because suggestions have been coming to him left and right. What do the others here think?