Re: [GZG] Re: [LST] Mail list vs. Forums

["Jaime Tiampo" <fugugaipan@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

> Something else we may want to consider.  I think the mailing list is fine
> at its current volume of traffic.  But what if the number of posts and
> posters were to increase by an order of magnitude?  (Even some small
> gaming forums I've seen can get 100+ posts on a slow day.)  Would the
> mailing list still be manageable?  This list generally only has 2 or 3
> different threads going at one time - what if there were 20-30 different
> threads going on?  Would you find it harder to follow the discussions?
> I've never been on a list with that much traffic, so I don't know.

It's not manageable at all. I've been through it on both sides, on a forum
with 100s of posts a day and a list with over a 100. The list completely
bogs down for anyone not using a email client that sorts by topic. In fact
it's almost completely unsortable.

As far as I'm aware, the bulk of users these days use a web based email
clients that don't group. Even today, with the flood of discussion we're
having it's a pain to get through my inbox after I leave the office for
any period.

> I'm not saying that this is likely to happen whether we stay on a list or
> move to a forum.  I think we would all agree that having that much "new
> blood" involved in the game would be a great thing for GZG, and therefore
> for the rest of us. So if moving to a forum becomes a way to get more
> people involved in our little virtual community (I don't know it would be,
> I'm saying *if*), and conversely a forum becomes the only way to
> effectively manage that many people... is switching to a forum a price
> we're willing to pay?
>
> I know that's a lot of assumptions, and I can't swear to the validity of
> any of them; I'm just thinking out loud.  As I've said, I don't have a
> problem with either the list or the forum idea.  (Personally, I've never
> had any problems with yahoo groups either, but that's just me.)
>

Well to touch on bringing in more people:
1) The bulk of the gamers I know prefer forums over lists
2) The bulk of the gamers I know use webmail
3) The younger crowd don't like using something if it doesn't look pretty
enough
4) Not all forums are created equal, and users these days know that, so if
the forum isn't well designed it won't be used.

Jaime

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