Feedback on Old and New Forum and Facebook

[gordon higginbotham]

Dick,
I totally agree with your comments. I think there are several issues here.
1. There is no doubt that the Facebook page is bringing the TOC to a wilder audience and is generating a flow of new information to the club both of which are good. But there are some real problems with the information. Questions I ask are: a) How long will the information be available? b) Can and how do you search for information? c) Is the information within the control of the TOC?
2. How can the information on the TOC Facebook page be transferred to the forum so that it is preserved and searchable?
3. Can the Forum be set up so there is a button that members can use so their post is automatically sent to TOC Facebook page?
4. How can members better support the New Forum? For example why cannot all members be automatically set up with access to the New Forum?
5. It is not good that the new website and New Forum need multiple log-ins to access all parts and that the access to the New Forum is not immediately obvious to everybody rather than the skilled. Surely this should be relatively simple to achieve and not take weeks to do so.
6. I wonder whether the search function on the new website is sufficiently user friendly. I suspect that this is a common problem on many websites ands there is probably a need for some creative thinking here.
7. If members do not access the forum to see what is going on then I think this will be a serious problem for the future. I say thank you to the STD for their forum - they have more experts who contribute to solving members problems and are quick to post helpful content. Should this become my default source of help?
8. Why does the TOC Forum page take so long to load compared to the TOC Forum page - after all they are both using the same software - vBulletin?
9. I think it is vital that the information on the old forum is added to the New Forum which I believe is possible.
10. I am very thankful for all the work that Glyn and Guy are doing. They have on several occasions been exceptionally helpful to me on getting things working for me and providing advice.


Dick, I am taking the liberty of copying your original post into the New Forum along with this reply - I hope you don't mind.

Dick's post on old forum: "A more accomplished social media manipulator showed me the TOC Facebook page. There were lots of interesting articles on there which I would have thought would be better placed on the website for reference purposes. Is Facebook now the preferred TOC communication mechanism and superceeds the forum? I don't do Facebook or 'Witter' . Since I've looked at Facebook everyone across most Continents wants to be my friend, very flattering but most of them appear to have devious intent or want to marry me. Why can't we just use a simple forum that old coggers like me can just about manage. Mutter, mutter, Dick."

[jameswheildon]

It only took me about five years to get my head around the old forum and now I am struggling to come to terms with the new one. I agree with Gordon in that the face book page has detracted from the forum. Many members are using facebook rather than the new forum, consequently the forum traffic has been reduced from very little to almost nothing. There are very many posts on facebook that are interesting, useful and relevant which in my opinion should be on the forum. However there are also reams of inconsequential and time wasting rubbish . I have no intention of becoming a regular facebook user.

[Guy Gregory]

New TOC Forum - facts and where we are at:
The old software software was no longer supported and the TOC committee took the decision that we should develop a new forum using VBulletin software (the same platform as used by the STD Forum)
This followed the club's introduction of the new website which contains many of the features of the old forum, e.g. photographs, archive items etc. Rather than duplicate these items, the new forum has been developed as a "Technical Forum" mainly intended for members to exchange views/opinions on technical issues.It has taken a great deal of effort to achieve this but of course, constructive criticism/ideas are very much welcomed. The decision was taken to simplify the new forum to facilitate easy navigation
However there are some misconceptions:

• User login - this cannot be achieved automatically. Currently, as a member requests a login, we will set this up. Once logged in for the first time, it is very easy to get your computer/laptop etc to remember your login details and thus, instantaneous entry to the forum. If someone wants to manually input 300+ member details to give every member a login, please step forward!
• You don't have to login to the club website first - paste https://www.talbotportal.com/forum/ into your browser and off you go!
• Facebook - there is now a link on the forum that will take you straight to the TOC Facebook page - you don't even have to have Facebook membership. Quite rightly, we as a club have absolutely no control over the platform an individual chooses to post photographs or information. Forums are still an extremely useful tool for communication but social media platforms are increasingly used, especially by younger members and are an invaluable source of information and photographs from non TOC members. These photographs are loaded on to the club website in any case.
• The STD Forum's success is in part due to the technical expertise that is offered to member's questions. This is an area that we need to develop and I believe that we are more than capable of emulating their success. It's up to us the members to make a success of it
• Transfer of the old TOC Forum data - We have looked into this and currently believe there is a very great risk of passing over data/software codes etc to a third party with inherent dangers to the security of our data on both old and new forums. However, we will continue to review this situation

Website
Login to the club website - once logged in click on the Talbot Portal which will take you to the Member Directory, Members' cars, Car database and My account - just one login! (again, once you've logged in for the first time, you can set your computer etc to remember your login details


Success of the website and forum is up to club members!

[gordon higginbotham]

Guy,




Thanks for your post. It raises further questions for me!

1. Am I to understand that using https://www.talbotportal.com/forum/ will take you to the new forum directly even if you are not already logged in and “remembered”? If so why do you need the user login?
2. Facebook - where are the Facebook photos located and how do I search for them? You say that they are all there but I haven’t found them! Will I be able to find the comments associated with a photograph and if so how?
3. When will the “Members Area” have a button labelled “New Forum” added rather than buried under the “Technical” Button and the existing “Forum” button relabelled “Old Forum”?
4. Can we have an answer as to why the New Forum is so much slower to load compared to the STD Forum when they both use vBulletin?
5. Can you please message me on exactly what would be involved if I was to volunteer to load the 300 plus details so I can estimate how much time would be involved?
6. Should a club official(s) be tasked with co-ordinating a response to members technical queries to ensure that they get some sort of answer rather than being left in a perpetual state of hope or dejection when there is no response?
7. I understand the logic that has been applied to the development of the new website and simplification of the new forum by containing significant material from the old forum within the new website and that this allows simplification of the New Forum. Obviously populating the New Forum with all the information from the old forum should not be necessary. When you compare the ‘old’, the ‘new’ and the new website what information has been lost in that it is neither in the new website or the new forum? I assume that between you and Glyn there is a record which would be great to examine. Or do I need to carry out a major detailed research to identify what has been lost at the moment?

[Guy Gregory]

Gordon. Am at Prescott but will reply early next week

[Guy Gregory]

https://www.talbotportal.com/forum/ will take you straight to the new forum. If you do not have a login you are able to view the forum but unable to reply to posts
Facebook - you will find the Facebook link at the bottom of the forum page, click on the FB link and you will be taken to the TOC Facebook page where you can view all posts/ photos.
Website link to the new forum - Glyn will be doing this - meeting web developers this week
I don't find the TOC forum slow to load and no different to the STD Forum in speed
Loading all members - email to follow
Designated club official to respond to technical queries - this is being worked on
Lost information - old to new forum / website. It's not lost, when time is available it will be loaded

[gordon higginbotham]

Guy, thanks for posting the Facebook page link. I've put this in my Favourites toolbar giving me direct access to the TOC page.

1. Have found photos/posts but there is no search function other than by scrolling which underlines why the information should be within the new forum.
2. I have just discovered (!) that when you view a post, in the grey coloured box on the left that contains poster’s name, there is a “f share” button. Please can we have an explanation of how to use this so that it posts your reply the TOC Facebook page as opposed to any other facebook page? I suggest that with clear step by step instructions this could mean that people can post on the New Forum and very simply post their comment and photos also on the TOC Facebook page. Even better, why not build this function into the “Post Reply” button of the forum? If so then this would achieve the dual purpose of automatic posting on the TOC facebook page by using the New Forum. Thus this would provide the long term record independent of facebook and be fully searchable via the new forum in-built search facility.
3. Great to hear that the website link to the new forum is now imminent.
4. Interesting that you find there is no difference in loading speed between New forum and STD forum. Have you tested this on different browsers and PC and Mac? I find the New forum to be slower on both Mac and iPhone.
5. Have received your email and will reply to you.
6. Designated club official - great to hear it is being worked on.
7. Lost information - old to new forum / website - is there anyway members can help in this?

[dick campbell]

Why not combine the STD and TOC forums......most of us are members of both clubs.

[Guy Gregory]

Facebook - of course we have no control and neither should we of members/people who prefer to post on FB. We have the link for easy access to FB but other than scrolling down the TOC FB page, there is no way I know of to search FB content
I have yet to use the FB share button and as yet, don't know how this works - to be added to the to do list!
I use my PC and laptop to access the forum and have no problems at all with loading speed
"Lost information" - this is on Glyn's to do list but it should be remembered that we are volunteers and have other things to do!
Combining STD and TOC forums - apart from replacing the defunct software of the old forum, the whole idea of the new TOC forum was to simplify it and make it a technical forum and therefore, easy to navigate and find Talbot matters. The STD Forum has different purposes - it contains many items that we now hold on our website - e.g. photo collections, chassis ledgers, etc, etc.

[gordon higginbotham]

Guy's comment on speed of loading of the New Forum compared to the STD forum is interesting as I use a MacBook Pro and Safari as browser. I took the trouble to contact vBulletin on this issue and attach the correspondence which is revealing:

vBulletin.pdf

[gordon higginbotham]

Guy, Could we please have some response to this last post re vBuletin.pdf and loading speed?

[Guy Gregory]

Hi Gordon. Glyn is looking into the possibility of the latest version of vbulletin but he's extremely busy at the moment
cheers
Guy

[gordon higginbotham]

Thanks Guy

[gordon higginbotham]

What is going on with the new website? My normal login details now no longer mats the TOC records!!

[gordon higginbotham]

The old Forum appears to have been removed and is not found on Web Server at staging.talbotownersclub.co.uk.!! ?How do we access the past information that is not on the website?