[IDEA] New forum structure

[Prez]

As it stands, our forum structure is a bit disorganized at the moment. I ask you now to please look at the current site forum structure, as taken from the archive:

 

* Servers

o Zombie Murder ™ Servers

+ Escape Server {64.34.210.97:27015}

+ Zombie Hell {72.26.196.164:27015}

o Steam Gamers ™ Servers

+ Fuck Noobs {72.26.196.163:27015}

+ Surf Server {64.34.210.96:27015}

+ Deathrun Server {72.26.196.165:27015}

+ Prison Break Mutiny {64.34.210.99:27015}

+ MiniGames Funtastic {64.34.210.98:27015}

+ Variety BHOP/TRIKZ {72.26.196.162:27015}

+ GMOD - Traitors {72.26.196.166:27015}

* Support Bucket

o Admin Complaints

o Player Complaints

o Appeal Ban

o Rules Discussion

o Map Suggestions/Removals

+ Added

+ Rejected

+ Removed

o Server Suggestions

* Community

o Announcements

o Competitive Gaming Division

o Community Events

+ Competitions

+ Birthday Forum

o Introduce Yourself

o Membership Requests

o Questions?

o Applied Proposals

o Classifieds

+ Selling

+ Wanted

+ Deals

* Gaming Discussion

o Gaming Previews/Reviews

o FPS - First Person Shooter

o RTS - Real Time Strategy

o RPG - Role Play Games

+ World of Warcraft

+ Runescape

* General

o Off Topic

o News

o Politics

o Arts & Craft

+ Photoshop Friday

+ Signatures, Sprays and Avatars Requests

o Tech Talk

o Forum Mods

o Sports

+ USA

+ Europe/International

* Multimedia

o Movies

o Music

o Anime

o TV Shows

o Comics/Books

* Modding Section

o Modding Discussion

o Tutorials and Instructions

o Works In Progress

o New Map Reviews

o Final Release Section

 

Total: 60 forums

 

It's a good step from our previous, which was somewhere near 80 I believe. Although this is the case, I think we can scale down.

 

Servers section:

 

Not really much we can change here. Although we could really just merge the two sections of ZombieMurder Servers and SteamGamers servers together. I realize that the ZM forum gives the oldies some nostalgia, but I think it's time to merge them together, because as one whole community, all of our servers are now part of SteamGamers.

 

Support Bucket:

 

Again, not really much we can do here. Some things, though, would be to remove the "Rules Discussion" forum, and merge that with the Questions forum in the next section; either that, or create a locked forum at the top of the forums entitled "Forum/Server Rules and Regulations", which just contains all of the rules. If people wish to discuss the rules, I believe the one Questions forum would have room for it.

 

Also, server suggestions should be revamped. I think that a form should be created for a server suggestion, and it is then displayed in the forum, kind of like a map request. People may vote on the suggestion. If this comes into effect, an option would be to just let them vote, and not post; I'm saying this because a lot of flaming could ensue, etc. If not, give them the posting rights. As for complaints and appeals, nothing really to change. And lastly, for map suggestions, it all seems good.

 

Community:

 

Alright, community. Announcements, questions, everything else. As for announcements, it may be key to do a few things to this forum. One thing is to move admin application results to its own forum or something, so people can have those differently, and look at them all in a collective, rather than mixing these with other important announcements. Secondly, I think that very important announcements that are posted should, rather than being posted in this section, be posted as a forum-wide announcement, as to garner attention from the OTF lurkers and the like. This would be just for the ones that are of dire need to read.

 

Alright, next. Competitive Gaming Division. Well, SGSL is apparently going to be starting, so I guess we can leave it. If not, we can just hide the forum until a use for it comes to light. That's all we need to say about that one.

 

Next, we have Community Events. Oh boy, let's see now. We've got BWGT info in here, birthdays, competitions, and more. Great! Maybe we can get a bit more organized. One option is to have forms made for each one, but it would just clutter the forms page. I think a good option would be to have a sticky in this section dedicated to BWGTs, so we actually have these bi-weekly. Only the maker may post in this thread (if possible), to post dates and posts for upcoming BWGTs. The community calendar will also be used for this. As for birthdays, I think it's being done very well, so no issues here. For competitions, it's not being used much, so I'm not really sure what we should do with it. Possibly just scrap it? That's it for community events.

 

Okay, so... Introduce Yourself is good, Membership Requests is also good, no issues here... ah, the Questions forum! Many things to say about this. Let's start with this. It's really, and I mean reeeeally disorganized. Let's see what we can do about that. Here's one idea I thought of: Completely scrap the thread thing for this section, and create an interactive question form that filters search terms, and matches the question to appropriate threads, or even better, make it sort of like a FAQ system, where it tries to find the best ones. If not, it'll redirect them to a contact form, whereas it will be PM'd to the higher ups for further clarification. Not sure if this would work, but it's a thought. That one suggestion really cancels out any of my other queries, so that's good. Moving on!

 

Applied Proposals is obviously fine, seeing as it just shows what the CAs have applied. No problems here.

 

Lastly in this section is the Classifieds. So what IS this section, exactly? It's basically where users sell their stuff to other users in hopes of getting, well, moolah. We've got 3 subforums here: Selling, Wanted, and Deals. Personally, I would get rid of the deals section, and make a sticky thread solely for that purpose. It would group them all together, whilst also keeping the user informed. This thread would not be open for comments, however, but just for deals. As for selling and wanted, I think it's running okay at the moment. Could be better if someone were to approve the threads before they appear, so people don't make a million threads. That pretty much covers it in my opinion. Overall, the Community section is doing alright at the moment, but there could be some tweaks and stuff done to it to make it top-notch.

 

Gaming Discussion:

 

Oh look, gaming discussion! This is where we get to discuss all of our fave games and stuff, right? Yeah! Ok, so let's see. They're split up into RTS, FPS, and RPG. Ok, cool, that's a plus. And we also have game reviews and previews, that's also a plus. Oh, look, also in RPG they have forums for WoW and Runescape. I'm guessing they're popular, so that can be considered a plus! Any bad things here though? Hmm, let's see... I honestly can't really see anything bad with this section. Not too many subforums, good organization for different types of games, and a section for reviews. I like it! Some people may have their issues, and they're free to post them, but as far as I can see, I don't really see anything wrong with this section. Nice!

 

I'll skip General, and leave it for last.

 

Multimedia:

 

Okay, multimedia. Movies, music, anime, TV Shows, and Comics/Books. I think all of the sections are good, and they don't have any subforums. Well organized and split for each different type of "multimedia". Some things that could be good adds would be, for the TV and Movie sections, a "What to Watch for" sticky, which has information on great new movies/shows coming out, finales for shows, etc. Would be great for users that want something to watch. For books, you could have the same thing, if you want. It would work the same way. For anime, I don't have anything to say about it because I've never been in that forum. Looks like it is running smoothly though, so I'll keep it at that. Alright, so overall, maybe some stickies for the threads to lessen the clutter; that's about it.

 

Modding Section:

 

Yay, my favorite section, modding! All about maps, some photoshop and design stuff, and tutorials! First off, we don't need five forums in my opinion. The "New Map Reviews" forum isn't really needed, because not many people feel the need to review the maps in there. Most people really just review it in the thread themselves, which I think is a good idea so the map creator can just look there and read their comments. The WIPs section is fine. I use it a bit, and so do many other people. I also really like the WIP layout paul has made. Well done! As for tutorials, many people, including myself, use it for help if we're stuck on something for mapping, or any other thing of the sort. For modding discussion, it's used a lot, for people to give ideas for maps, collaborations, you name it. This is the most important section. Lastly, we have the final releases section. I've seen that it's hardly used at all! Mappers have to use this to release their maps! If it were used more, it would be a great asset for our community to showcase our potential. Also, seeing as it isn't used much, we might as well put it as a subforum for the WIP section, so people can just click when they're inside the WIP section to submit their final map. Overall, not really much to change for most of the Modding Section. I'd say just take out the New Map Reviews forum, and get mappers to put their maps in the Final Releases Section! Also, move the Final Releases Section inside the WIP section!

 

Last, but CERTAINLY not least, the General Section.

 

Cream of the SG crop right here folks! We've got our OTF, the News section, the Politics section, Arts & Crafts (featuring PSF and requests), Tech Talk, Forum Mods, and Sports (USA & International). Let's start with sports.

 

The sports section is used by many people, and recently is has been used for the FIFA competition. To be honest, all seems kind of fine in there, but most users don't even glimpse at it because it's at the bottom of the pile. Maybe move it up a little, to get some more posting in? Just a thought. Other than that, there isn't really anything I can say about this; looks pretty good, but not great.

 

Next comes Forum Mods. I see no point in having this section. Why? Because it's the same as server suggestions really, although it's for forum suggestions, and it's at the bottom. Although you can discuss stuff there, not much is discussed. The threads at the bottom of the page are from August 2009! What I propose is that we merge this with the Server Suggestions section to make a "SteamGamers Suggestions" forum. It will house both forum and server suggestions. The way we can differentiate is to have a tag for forum, and a tag for server. They can still be rejected, but they will just be moved to the appropriate section, rather than the tag being changed. So remove this, and merge with Server Suggestions.

 

Next we have tech talk. Alright, computers, hardware, software, graphics cards, you name it. Tink is one of the almighty rulers of this section, along with others, and it looks like he's gotten it under control. Great on you. Looks organized, questions are being solved, things about hardware are being discussed. Good enough for me!

 

As for the Arts & Crafts section, if any moderators of that forum would like to comment on the status of it, be my guest. It's not my area, so I won't go into any detail on it, seeing as I have no clue as to what goes on in there.

 

Now, politics! This is really the serious forum in SG. They don't like trolls are OTF'ers in there, so watch your step. I frequent the Politics section a bit, and all seems good, save the few cases where spamming trolls, or people who have no idea what they're talking about waltz in and muck the place up. Other than that, the section is good. One thing I think would be great to have would be a Debates forum within the Politics section. This can be for anything, from Space and Time, Government, anything (within limits and rules, obviously). I think it would be a great asset to our site, and it will allow everyone to voice their opinion about the issues. This forum would have the same rules as the politics forum, again, so no spamming or trolling should come about. It would be a nice addition, but it would have to be monitored to prevent flame wars.

 

Now, the news section! News is good. Good articles are posted, no spam, no nothing. Good job, nothing to say here!

 

Lastly, and certainly least, the OTF, or Off-Topic Section. All I can say is ugh. Honestly, you can't change anything in there. I'm not going to rant, so I'll finish it at this: Don't mess with OTF.

 

Alright, so I think I covered just about everything... all of the forums, at least. Let's put our NEW forum set-up here:

 

 

* Servers

+ Fuck Noobs {72.26.196.163:27015}

+ Surf Server {64.34.210.96:27015}

+ Deathrun Server {72.26.196.165:27015}

+ Prison Break Mutiny {64.34.210.99:27015}

+ MiniGames Funtastic {64.34.210.98:27015}

+ Variety BHOP/TRIKZ {72.26.196.162:27015}

+ GMOD - Traitors {72.26.196.166:27015}

+ Escape Server {64.34.210.97:27015}

+ Zombie Hell {72.26.196.164:27015}

* Support Bucket

o Admin Complaints

o Player Complaints

o Appeal Ban

o Rules Discussion

o Map Suggestions/Removals

+ Added

+ Rejected

+ Removed

o SteamGamers Suggestions

* Community

o Announcements

o Community Events

+ Competitions

+ Birthday Forum

o Introduce Yourself

o Membership Requests

o Questions?

o Applied Proposals

o Classifieds

+ Selling

+ Wanted

* Gaming Discussion

o Gaming Previews/Reviews

o FPS - First Person Shooter

o RTS - Real Time Strategy

o RPG - Role Play Games

+ World of Warcraft

+ Runescape

* General

o Off Topic

o News

o Politics

+ Debates

o Arts & Craft

+ Photoshop Friday

+ Signatures, Sprays and Avatars Requests

o Tech Talk

o Sports

+ USA

+ Europe/International

* Multimedia

o Movies

o Music

o Anime

o TV Shows

o Comics/Books

* Modding Section

o Modding Discussion

o Tutorials and Instructions

o Works In Progress

+ Final Release Section

 

Total: 57 forums

 

I realize it may not seem like much, but the changes that can come about to our forums can really change and define our community as a whole. These are just some of MY ideas, and I don't mean to start a flame war about them. These are just what I could see as good changes, and not what I expect or absolutely need to be changed. If you guys have any comments, or your own suggestions, feel free to post them here.

 

~Artimus

[Metal]

 

 

* Servers

+ Fuck Noobs {72.26.196.163:27015}

+ Surf Server {64.34.210.96:27015}

+ Deathrun Server {72.26.196.165:27015}

+ Prison Break Mutiny {64.34.210.99:27015}

+ MiniGames Funtastic {64.34.210.98:27015}

+ Variety BHOP/TRIKZ {72.26.196.162:27015}

+ GMOD - Traitors {72.26.196.166:27015}

+ Escape Server {64.34.210.97:27015}

+ Zombie Hell {72.26.196.164:27015}

* Support Bucket

o Admin Complaints

o Player Complaints

o Appeal Ban

o Rules Discussion

o Map Suggestions/Removals

+ Added

+ Rejected

+ Removed

o SteamGamers Suggestions

* Community

o Announcements

o Community Events

+ Competitions

+ Birthday Forum

o Introduce Yourself

o Membership Requests

o Questions?

o Applied Proposals

o Classifieds

+ Selling

+ Wanted

* Gaming Discussion

o Gaming Previews/Reviews

o FPS - First Person Shooter

o RTS - Real Time Strategy

o RPG - Role Play Games

+ World of Warcraft

+ Runescape

* General

o Off Topic

o News

o Politics

+ Debates

o Arts & Craft

+ Photoshop Friday

+ Signatures, Sprays and Avatars Requests

o Tech Talk

o Sports

+ USA

+ Europe/International

* Multimedia

o Movies

o Music

o

FullMetals Anime basement

o TV Shows

o Comics/Books

* Modding Section

o Modding Discussion

o Tutorials and Instructions

o Works In Progress

+ Final Release Section

 

Total: 57 forums

 

Every helpful, hopefully this will happen.

 

Also i just edited the list for you.

[iNorris]

Don't all politics threads turn into debates?

 

Nonetheless, these changes would be much appreciated. Consolidation is always a good way no make navigation generally easier.

[Metal]

Also would this effect the thing down below.

[Lucas15]

I think it would be pretty good. I just find it irritating how there are the 2 sevrer sections, for Zombie servers and for other sevrers. IDK why, but ya. So do this

[Toxin]

*inb4grieferssay'omfgismellnewao'*

 

Nice recommendations.