Our board??

[wideclyde]

I am concerned about the present and future of Sam's Forum.

We all know that we lost our board's leader last Fall, but we seem to have far less substantive topics discussed on our board in recent months.
Such a leader is tough/impossible to replace, but we (the current members) may be letting Sam's Forum slip into silence.

There are times that there are only one or two posts per day and this is the stretch run for a very special edition of our Boston Celtics.

What can we do about keeping our/Sam's board to stay vibrant?

[swish]

I am concerned about the present and future of Sam's Forum.

We all know that we lost our board's leader last Fall, but we seem to have far less substantive topics discussed on our board in recent months.
Such a leader is tough/impossible to replace, but we (the current members) may be letting Sam's Forum slip into silence.

There are times that there are only one or two posts per day and this is the stretch run for a very special edition of our Boston Celtics.

What can we do about keeping our/Sam's board to stay vibrant?

How about more discussions on subjects that tend to be of a controversial nature. It seems to me that issues that find the board members with widely divided opinions generate the most enthusiastic responses.

swish

[kdp59]

more outreach.

how?

I have no idea.

[tjmakz]

I am concerned about the present and future of Sam's Forum.

We all know that we lost our board's leader last Fall, but we seem to have far less substantive topics discussed on our board in recent months.
Such a leader is tough/impossible to replace, but we (the current members) may be letting Sam's Forum slip into silence.

There are times that there are only one or two posts per day and this is the stretch run for a very special edition of our Boston Celtics.

What can we do about keeping our/Sam's board to stay vibrant?

 How about more discussions on subjects that tend to be of a controversial nature. It seems to me that issues that find the board members with widely divided opinions generate the most enthusiastic responses.

 swish

There definitely were many more posts per day when the Celtics and the Lakers were very good teams.
Boston has been about 1 year ahead of the Lakers in the rebuilding process.
I'm sure we could discuss a controversial subject such as the Lakers vs. Celtics future. :-)

[dboss]

wideclyde

I would not be concerned.

Activity on the board may be up and down at times but there are still a lot of things to talk about that will be talked about . Even when the board is relatively quite there are still folks like me that will just read threads but may not necessarily respond.

This board will not slip into silence. We have a group of long time posters that go all the way back to the Boston Globe days.

dboss

dboss

[NYCelt]

Wide and others,

It's certainly a good and reassuring feeling to see board members concerned about the health and viability of the board.  Those of us that have spent time here over the years value the relationships we've built with our fellow fans and board members.

Posting volume is a topic that has been discussed often, dating back to the start of the forum.  We  have seen an ebb and flow to the number of messages over the years; administrators and moderators have held talks to try and brainstorm ways to keep conversations fresh, plentiful and substantive.

I would say that what's best for the long-term health of the forum continues to be creative input by board members; new topics, opinion polls and companion discussions.  Controversial ideas or topics have indeed often pushed activity higher, and that makes sense.  Those are the types of conversation that bring out new and deeper thoughts, so board members shouldn't shy away from expressing a unique opinion.

The other undeniable fact is that more members make for more activity.  Know a Celtic fan?  Invite them to join.  Fans of other teams that like to talk hoops and don't mind a little green tint?  They're welcome and valued too (right TJ?).

Your concern is both welcome and noted.  Have a thought on improving or adding to the forum?  Feel free to post your ideas, or, if you feel it's more appropriate, send a private message to one or more moderators.  Keep doing what you do, and this will continue to be the place to visit for Celtic fans!

Regards

[worcester]

Want a controversial topic? Here's one:

Is it true that Donald Trump instructed his stylist to give his hair the same color as an NBA ball?

[dboss]

Wydeclyde

I am in attendance at the board usually everyday....and multiple times...so there is no way this goes away.

We haves tons of stuff to discuss and listen to.

Dboss

[dboss]

Want a controversial topic? Here's one:

Is it true that Donald Trump instructed his stylist to give his hair the same color as an NBA ball?

W

I almost voted for him in the primary. I figure that him and Hillary should prove to be amazing theatre. I promise to secure an interview with both of them...they love basketball and I got questions to ask.

Dboss

[dbrown4]

Speaking of ways to boost posting, I know Sam was very close with some of the 60's Celtics. Do you think any of them would do a guest appearance on this site if asked?

Just a thought.

db

[cowens/oldschool]

Just a thought

We always have a great time on the Game On thread. The 2 bobs, Rosalie, kitronic, berlin and myself, its kind of like a party or going to the game together. I'd like to invite more members to join us, it's fun calling out the nuances of the game live as we see them. Sam was always a regular and miss his great insights. In close tight games can really feel Heckler stressing as the game winds down LOL Thank god for his sake.

[beat]

Just a thought

We always have a great time on the Game On thread. The 2 bobs, Rosalie, kitronic, berlin and myself, its kind of like a party or going to the game together. I'd like to invite more members to join us, it's fun calling out the nuances of the game live as we see them. Sam was always a regular and miss his great insights. In close tight games can really feel Heckler stressing as the game winds down LOL Thank god for his sake.

I always look at it after but find my typing skills and watching the game just don't mix well during the game.

beat

[bobheckler]

Just a thought

We always have a great time on the Game On thread. The 2 bobs, Rosalie, kitronic, berlin and myself, its kind of like a party or going to the game together. I'd like to invite more members to join us, it's fun calling out the nuances of the game live as we see them. Sam was always a regular and miss his great insights. In close tight games can really feel Heckler stressing as the game winds down LOL Thank god for his sake.

Cowens,

Yeah, I do.  The last couple my hands were actually shaking.  Silly.  Funny how emotions can be transmitted by electrons.

The Game On threads are the flip side of threads like this.  Here you can take your time, think about what you want to say, how you want to say it and provide whatever supporting evidence you have.  On the Game On threads it is more just reacting to what you see and isn't as analytical.  Both are fun.


Wide Clyde,

I have been wondering about this topic as well and, as has been mentioned by other mods, we have talked about it.  I have intentionally reduced my post-game synopsis because I felt like I was "sucking all the air" out of the subject.  By saying less I'm hoping that leaves things for others to jump into.  I'm happy to create threads for discussion, but I really, really, really appreciate it when others do it.  Not because it takes any of the load off of me but because it is pro-active involvement by them.  Original threads, draft analysis by kdp for example, are eagerly watched for.  I very rarely watch college sports, so I have NO idea about these draftees, so having someone who does is of great value to this board.  GYSO is our resident capologist and also creates all the Game On threads.  In other words, people who have a talent or interest in something contribute to the board by providing insights into their areas.  We have always had, in my admittedly highly-biased opinion, superior posters on this board.  Very knowledgeable, high BBIQ and sensible in their presentation of their thoughts.  This separates us from many, if not most, boards.  All we need is for these superior posters to be themselves and write what they think.  Would I love if some of the lurkers/guests that are always on the board reading our posts to join in?  Sure, but I don't know how to make them.  Right now, as I write this post, we have 3 registered members and 9 guests and it's often even more.


bob


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[bobc33]

more outreach.

how?

I have no idea.

One thing I frequently do on the Game On threads is to hit the Facebook "like" button at the top right of the thread and add a brief comment suggesting Celtics fans check it out.

I've also told many a friend about the Forum, though they tend to be casual fans as opposed to fanatics.

Regardless of the results I'll keep trying.

[kdp59]

I also find I cannot join in the game on threads due to my watching the games on my computer most times. also my lack of mutli-tasking skills doesn't help me out there.

I did try to use the chat feature some of the game days, but most here didn't seem interested or even know about it.

I will note I am an outsider here. I migrated over a couple years ago from the Boston.com board and most here have been long time member AND friends.

That is the thing that makes this place different from most sports boards. It also can make newer member feel like outsiders.

this should NOT change in any way from what it is, don't get me wrong.

but I am trying to explain some of my thoughts as I have made this place my go to spot to talk Celtics basketball.


another reason many newbies fail to join in the discussions, may be the fact that many here ARE so knowledgeable. I EXCLUDE myself in that as I most times, state the obvious.

I do thank Bob for thinking I have some draft knowledge , but I will repeat I simply STEAL stuff from the web for any draft stuff I post. There are many here that have MUCH more real knowledge about college players.

speaking from experience, it can be somewhat daunting to post items knowing that it may seem trivial to more knowledgeable Celtic fans here.

Of course I have never had a problem looking stupid so it never stops me! other may be less inclined...LOL.

Just trying to give my perspective as a newbie on the board.

[Shamrock1000]

Interesting. The other day, I was actually thinking that the board has done much better than I expected after losing Sam (Jesus that sucked....). However, I do see your point. I learned about this site from BDC - basically I was worn out from reading certain posters childish attacks on other posters. Maybe some of us could occasionally pop into BDC and, where appropriate, let posters there know our board exists. I say "where appropriate" because I don't want us to be accused of poaching. Perhaps others here with a better sense of message board etiquette can comment on whether or not this is a Kosher way to increase membership.

Another thought I had is that although comments per post may lag sometimes, the number of posts is actually quite high. The reason for this is that some people like myself and Bob H like to post interesting articles (God bless Bob H - I would say that more than anyone else, he had been responsible for keeping this board vibrant!). This is great, because I can get all my Celtics news in one place. However, what happens is that none-article posts quickly get pushed down and out of site site before they have really had a chance to breath and percolate. I don't know what the solution is, because I really love being able to log in here and get all my news, and I don't want that to change. One possibility is that we create a new category, say 'Celtics news', that could be the home of links/text of recent articles, and have a separate category for posts where folks express opinions/theories that invite comments/input from other members. One draw back I see immediately is that sometimes posts about articles do lead to interesting discussions. However, given the general intellect of our board, I think it would be possible to trust users to post articles that will lead to discussion separately from more run of the mill articles. Not sure if this is a good idea or not, since I can see other draw backs... Thoughts????

[Outside]

It's a great question, and I appreciate everyone's thoughtful responses.

Sam was the driving force for this board, in multiple ways. Besides the fact that it was his idea and he turned that thought into action, he set the ground rules and the tone for the board, he was the one who stepped in when things got heated or a poster strayed too far from conviviality, and he was the most prolific poster.

We discussed on occasion (as I'm sure he did with others) about what the post-Sam future of the board would be, but the fact is that you can't replace someone whose impact was woven into the fabric of the place. Although his imprint will always be here, like Red Auerbach's imprint on the Celtics, things will naturally have to find a different direction. It will take some time to discover how things will change, and I personally think it's too soon since Sam's passing to expect that new version of the board to emerge. I'm interested to see where it will be in a year or two.

[worcester]

My deepest thanks go out to those who keep this site going. It's such a pleasureful diversion from the more serious aspects of life.

[swish]

Perhaps it would add considerable interest and participation if there was a sort of index as to which BASKETBALL topics generate the most interest with each individual poster. Beyond the obvious day to day happenings of the Celtics are there any particular discussions that peak the interest of each individual board member ?. Knowing the special basketball interest of each individual poster just might lead to some interesting (especially when controversial) discussions.

For the record: My greatest interest centers around the changes that have taken place in the game of basketball since I first viewed the nba back in the late 1940's. ---- WHATS YOURS ?

swish

[bobheckler]

Interesting. The other day, I was actually thinking that the board has done much better than I expected after losing Sam (Jesus that sucked....). However, I do see your point. I learned about this site from BDC - basically I was worn out from reading certain posters childish attacks on other posters. Maybe some of us could occasionally pop into BDC and, where appropriate, let posters there know our board exists. I say "where appropriate" because I don't want us to be accused of poaching. Perhaps others here with a better sense of message board etiquette can comment on whether or not this is a Kosher way to increase membership.

Another thought I had is that although comments per post may lag sometimes, the number of posts is actually quite high. The reason for this is that some people like myself and Bob H  like to post interesting articles (God bless Bob H - I would say that more than anyone else, he had been responsible for keeping this board vibrant!). This is great, because I can get all my Celtics news in one place. However, what happens is that none-article posts quickly get pushed down and out of site site before they have really had a chance to breath and percolate. I don't know what the solution is, because I really love being able to log in here and get all my news, and I don't want that to change. One possibility is that we create a new category, say 'Celtics news', that could be the home of links/text of recent articles, and have a separate category for posts where folks express opinions/theories that invite comments/input from other members. One draw back I see immediately is that sometimes posts about articles do lead to interesting discussions. However, given the general intellect of our board, I think it would be possible to trust users to post articles that will lead to  discussion separately from more run of the mill articles. Not sure if this is a good idea or not, since I can see other draw backs... Thoughts????

shamrock,

You ask a good question about threads being pushed down. How would you prevent that? Technically, it's easy, all you do is type a '.' and hit enter and that's good enough to move the thread to the top of the board (people sometimes type 'bump'). In the bigger picture, though, how would one determine between threads are moving down because nobody feels they have anything to say on that topic and threads that are moving down just because it's a heavy news day (or people are starting threads with original thoughts) so there are many new threads being created that are pushing it down?


bob


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[kdp59]

one way may be for the mods to combine threads that are the same or similar.

not sure how much work that would be though.

[bobheckler]

one way may be for the mods to combine threads that are the same or similar.

not sure how much work that would be though.

kdp,

Single post threads are no big deal, we've done that before, but once there are numerous posts/thread then you have to copy-and-paste each post.

Sometimes I've just tacked a new article onto the end of an existing thread and other times I've started a new thread for it. For example, the follow up news on Jae Crowder's injury was just added to the thread announcing the injury. It's a judgement call as to how much overlay there is.


bob


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[bobheckler]

There is one point I'd like to make.

There are several differences between this board and just about every other board I have ever belonged to or visited.  Those differences include:

1.  Conviviality.  We do not allow differences of opinion, which are welcome, to become personal.  You can talk smack about players, but not board members.  Anybody who has ever been to the Boston dot Com board will understand this and appreciate it, unless you really, really, really like screaming at people and being screamed at back.

2.  We don't have sponsors or advertisers.  There is no commercial aspect to this board.  At one time, early on, we asked for a $10 annual dues but we discontinued that in the interest of encouraging well-thought out contributions by quality posters who either couldn't afford the dues or who had a philosophical antipathy to paying-for-playing.  You don't see advertising banners here, other than whatever the web hosting company might show you and that we have no control over.  This board exists solely for the use and enjoyment of its members.  It is not a money-maker like some.  QUITE THE OPPOSITE since there is ZERO revenue coming in.  It is not intended as a springboard for aspiring sports bloggers to gain visibility, experience or notoriety like some who have enticed people to become regular writers for them by promising them that opportunity for advancement in their desired futures.  If someone reads your posts and wants to offer you a job doing it professionally we are very happy for you.  We hope you will find the time to continue to join us here when you can, but that is not an underlying purpose of this board.  We are, in the end, amateurs.  Our board members include law enforcement (at least for a little while longer :-), successful entrepreneurs, doctors, scientists, retirees and a wide array of other careers.  Yes, we have a former sports journalist too, but he is not using this board to further that career (quite frankly, this would be a HUGE step backwards for him).

3.  Many of us have become friends off-line.  That is a big difference between this board and others.  Precisely because of point #1, we are willing to meet each other in person and be friendly about it.

In summation, this board is of us, by us and for us.  It exists, wilts or prospers, because of us.  Not the mods, but all of us.  Every single last one of us.  If you feel like we need more posting, then post more.  If you feel there is too much copy-and-pasting and not enough original thoughts and threads, then start one.  If everybody wrote one or two more posts per day the cumulative effect would be significant.


bob


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