Suggestion(s): Using the Elsmar Cove forums - Self Improvement Suggestions

[dinselong]

Hi to All Covers
Happy belated 10 yrs anniversary & Kudos to all the founding members and supporters.
My first search encounter for “Quality forum” on this web site did not impress me much. Personally, it’s visuals & graphics was most deceiving, as it hiding numerous gems inside. Only after a few more visits, did I began to realize its value and potential for those who selflessly seek to improve one another.
, can I invite all to crack our brain and know-how to make this noble site even better, if at all possible at this juncture.
May I start by making a few suggestions in line with normal organization model
1. Cove Vision: mission, objectives etc
2. Cove Leadership: Organization chart with national, regional & international roles for CEO, COO, CIO, CFO, Education, Membership, PR, Development, Charter etc
3. Cove Strategies: annual reports, review, promotion and awards for best of anything month/year etc
Lastly forgive me if I am a bit direct at this, as I am
1. possibly ignorant and behind by a few thousand steps/miles, as the above might probably already be in best order,
2. and not used to such open and constructive environment.
3. projecting questionable intentions and actions.
and Best Regards

[Marc]

We have discussed these things at length in several threads. For example, see Suggestions for Improvement - January 2006.

Part of the problem (most of it) is the site and forums is just me and unpaid moderators. It doesn't make much money so while your suggestions are along the line of those others have put forward, someone would have to come up with some serious venture capital.

I'm sorry the visuals and graphics appear 'deceiving' (although I'm not sure what you mean by this). Were the forum making a lot of $ I could hire a graphic artist and/or web designer to really shape things up.

Remember, this is just a little site. It is not a 'professional' site set up with profit in mind as, for example, the isixsigma site (at significant cost, I'm sure). Nor do I have people paying US$100 a year or more to be members, as is the case with the ASQ site. I'm not a business man. Just an old man trying to keep a web site online.

Considering the limitations, any suggestions you have will be considered and appreciated.

[suziwann]

Personally, it’s visuals & graphics was most deceiving, as it hiding numerous gems inside.

Does the above mean that although the layout and graphics of the site is very basic, the content is very good?

[dinselong]

Hi Marc,
for your frank reply. I hope I am in better position soon to contribute more. Nonetheless, as a small effort from my end, I am recommending about 20 colleagues in my own industry to check this site out. Hopefully they can help add some values to Oil & Gas Society and all Covers at large.

more suggestions
1. A button on this site to recommend others/friends directly
2. Capability to identify/sort/filter Member Sector Specific of any thread
3. Drive/push as requirement/incentive to recomend others such that it will grow much bigger and stronger faster and hopefully bring in needed revenue and even greater ideas and action for self improvement.
4. Vote/nominate appointment holders or volenteers to help run some show

Marc, you lead, we follow, we shall leave nothing less than a legacy.

Cheers

[ralphsulser]

Would we then have to be audited by a 3rd party to new ISO standard for forums and use thereof? Could we still just throw in our professional opinions without fear of nonconformances? Would we have to exclude puns and occasional chatter, or humor?

[Craig H.]

Dinselong,

Hi, and welcome!

As far as you suggestion about appointing folks to help out, Marc has several of us who have been hanging around here a while who he has asked to be Moderators. We are unpaid, and we help keep the site running as smoothly as we can.

As far as growth goes, it has been steadily increasing, as well as becoming more international in scope. Although I don't have any hard numbers to prove this, I think that all who have been around here for a while will agree.

So, dive right in, learn, and have fun.

[Marc]

dinselong

To be perfectly honest, I'd almost like to start another site from 'scratch. This site has evolved over the years and I'm not a programmer. I never envisioned what it has become. It has just sorta happened. In the beginning I learned some html and hard coded all the pages.

It was never intended as a business. It was something I did in hotel rooms back in the days where I was on the road and only got home 1 or 2 weekends a month. So - It is what it is. Something I keep going.

A complete site redesign and all that would be nice. But like I say, I'm not a professional 'web master' or coder any more than I am an 'astute businessman'. So - It would cost a lot. Last year the site brought in about US$26K gross. Not a lot of money is left after server and related expenses such as domain fees, software fees, consultant fees when I have server problems I can't solve, etc., etc. Not to mention the time I put in. It it wasn't for the Google Adsense revenue this site wouldn't be online (No - That is NOT an invitation to click ads just to get some revenue for the site - Doing so could get me banned from Google. But if you do see an ad that interests you now and again, by all means check it out.). Last month I think about 6 people donated ($ Contributors) - I found a few years ago that few people are willing to donate $ so that's not a significant income source.

I do think a good business person, with some money, could make a much more profitable site. And I'm always willing to listen to anyone interested. Over the years many people have contacted me and told me it's a 'gold mine', etc. They all wanted 'in' but no one wanted to invest the time or money.

As it is, I'm lucky because I have several income sources and am sorta semi-retired. BUT -- This site requires a lot of my time for maintenance alone, not to mention doing things like retitling threads (oh, how many people title threads such as "Help me!") so that they are picked up easily in searches and so that people scrolling through the forums can more easily see what a thread is about (and thus whether they're interested in reading it). Not to mention daily e-mails from people who have forgotten their passwords and do not use the link to reset their password. And those who have other problems and "How do I" questions. Summary: There's more behind the scenes than most people realize. A web site does not 'run its self' as many people tend to believe.

And none of that addresses daily and weekly server maintenance, including site and database backups, or responding to events like the reacting to the scraper that 'visited' today which was requesting almost 400 pages a minute.

If you haven't read through The Elsmar Cove Web Site, please take a minute and do so for some more details.

Everyone should thank the moderators for donating their time. I could never do this alone. And remember, the moderators donate their time - Moderators are NOT paid.

If you are interested in jumping in and helping out, see this thread: Are you interested in helping out as a Moderator? Moderator Requirements.

If you are interested in helping in the Wiki here, please see this thread: The Elsmar Cove Wiki Questions Discussion Thread and this thread: Elsmar Cove Quality Assurance BOK (Body of Knowledge) Wiki.

Yes - There are lots of 'hidden gems'. It does take some work. Searches. Looking through the Post Attachments listing. Reading through threads.

The Elsmar Cove may not be what it could be, but I do think it has a lot of valuable information and that there are one heck of a lot of people who help each other out.

[dinselong]

Dear Marc, Super/Moderators & Administrators,
I would like to moderate, pls let me know how.
My special interest are those matters related to Oil & Gas Sector where I think I could be most useful.
With this features such as identify/sort/filter of sector in any thread, moderator could minimise workload and also afford more prompt responses. I guess