Banjo Hangout - Improvements and Suggestions Forum Feed

dumb question: how to reply to messages?

eric@banjohangout.org — Mon, 20 May 2013 08:10:33 CST

Sorry I know this is probably dumb. But I've been getting messages on banjohangout that get sent to my email address. How do I reply? I couldn't figure it out.

Thanks in advance

L

Page views tab

eric@banjohangout.org — Sun, 19 May 2013 08:33:11 CST

Hi Eric

We are many persons uploading tabs, is there a possibility to know how much persons are looking to our tabs (like page views in classified) ?

That would be interesting to know

Thanks a lot

Patrick

BHO Facebook

eric@banjohangout.org — Fri, 17 May 2013 17:24:04 CST

Just got the e-mail about BHO's presence on Facebook.

I would hope that there are no plans in the foreseeable future to scrap this forum format for Facebook.

Believe it or not, I am not now, nor do I ever intend, to become a Facebook member; and, I'm off-put by businesses and organizations that simply assume I am -- especially those that have no other interest-holder pathway of interaction. I have no problem with those who enjoy the level of interaction Facebook affords, and I can certainly understand why businesses find it economical, but I am convinced that there is a sacrifice of privacy inherent in Facebook that is unrivaled and somewhat frightening. (Yes, I do realize that anyone who has an internet presence has yielded a measure of privacy, and perhaps the concept is more about "relative privacy.") For the record, I do not "tweet" nor "follow" others' tweets; I eschew most forms of "social media" except this forum. [Although, Google tricked me into their "+1" thing . . . :-(]

BHO as it stands, offers all the interaction I want or need, and I sincerely hope there are plans to maintain the robust community interaction we now have. I don't post often, but I read regularly, and often ask questions off line.

Ken

The next two online banjo contests--what should they be?

eric@banjohangout.org — Tue, 14 May 2013 16:51:01 CST

I just posted this notice about scheduling our first two online banjo contests. I would like to decide on what the contests will be for August and September as well. Any ideas?

I'm thinking I'd like to do a couple contests for beginners--maybe a Scruggs-style contest for August, and a clawhammer contest for September. Any idea what the song should be (if we want to restrict it to a particular song at all), how to determine a beginner, etc?

Let me know what you think!

Question - should we allow comments on classified ads?

eric@banjohangout.org — Wed, 8 May 2013 11:49:31 CST

For a few years now we've used the "Swap Shop" forum as a place for buyers and sellers to discuss specific listings in the classifieds section. I'm wondering if there's a better way to do this, though. It's rather clunky to post a classified ad, then post a forum topic, then copy and paste that topic URL into your classified ad, then bounce between the two...

What if we just allowed people to post comments directly on classified ads, essentially moving the forum discussion into the ad itself? There are several options as to how it would work, but the big idea is "move the discussion to the ad itself."

Options for how it could work:

Allow anyone to comment and subscribe to comments
Like #1, except the ad owner could delete comments (like blog commenting works)
Other options as well, but we'll stick with the two above for now unless folks have radically different ideas...

So, what do you think?

It would be nice if the Wanted to buy had its own listing

eric@banjohangout.org — Sun, 5 May 2013 18:47:43 CST

This would be a great improvement. Often while scanning the ads I come across way to many WTB ads mixed in with the sale ads. In my opinion this would greatly improve the forum.

Retain comments and likes if a tune is updated.

eric@banjohangout.org — Fri, 3 May 2013 18:07:54 CST

Hello,

I would like it if I had the option of keeping the comments and likes acquired by one of my uploads, if I replace the mp3 file. Currenty, the comments are always deleted and the play count is always reset to zero if the music file is replaced.

Sometimes I will make a recording, and then later I will tweak it a little after listening to it (for example, I might adjust the reverb a little, or add a bit of compression, etc.)

It would be nice if there was a checkbox to allow the comments and play count to be kept, or a button to just update the file vs. deleting the file.

Thanks,

-- Frank

Manual sort of music

eric@banjohangout.org — Fri, 3 May 2013 17:59:19 CST

I would like to have the ability to manually arrange the order of appearance of tunes that I upload to my account. For example put my latest tune at the top, or group recordings by style or personnel, etc.

Currently, my music is always sorted alphabetically, and I get around this by changing the title such that it starts with a number, e.g. "1. Nashville Blues" followed by "2. The Dead March" etc.

I assume this sort of defeats the purpose of an alphabetical search by people searching or browsing through through the tunes that start with a certain letter, like "N" for Nashville Blues.

I thought this might by something that some other folks might find useful too.

Thanks,

-- Frank

Experience levels

eric@banjohangout.org — Thu, 2 May 2013 18:59:43 CST

I would suggest adding an experience level between "novice" and "purty good". I'm better than a novice, but I'm not "purty good", at least not yet. I'd classify myself as an intermediate player. I think there is too wide a gap between these two categories in terms of playing ability.

Just my two cents. Thanks for a great site.

Group - Blog Entry - Submit Button

eric@banjohangout.org — Thu, 2 May 2013 04:20:05 CST

Hi Eric

I have just had a flush of emails after posting a comment in the Stelling Group Blog. On checking I see there is no option to turn these off . In fact posting a new entry automatically subscribes you to receiving emails. Surely this is something that needs fixing.

Subbed threads on homepage

eric@banjohangout.org — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 06:35:37 CST

Is there an easy way to see what threads one is subscribed to, from the member home page? If not, I'd love a feed for that.

Sarah

Stop hiding posts...

eric@banjohangout.org — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 20:14:44 CST

I'd like to make a recommendation that when a person misbehaves that those particular posts be visible. It's nice to know the type of behavior that gets threads locked. It's also nice to see folks for who they are instead of them falling under the protection of having their post hidden.

It's happened time and again, and the only one that actually benefits from having the posts hidden or deleted is the offending poster.

In other words someone can be very rude; attack other members, and be a regular jerk and then have their actions stricken from the record.

Yeah, I realize some posts may, indeed, need to be deleted, but for the most part I say leave 'em. Lock the account and point to the offending posts.

Provide a scammer warning when members post classified?

eric@banjohangout.org — Sat, 27 Apr 2013 16:18:25 CST

Some idiot attempted to pull the old western union / paypal scam on me, in response to a banjo I have for sale.

It took about three emails before I figured it out.

My suggestion: When someone posts a for sale ad, display a prominent warning: "If a potential buyer mentions Western Union, it's a scam."

There really is no legitimate reason to use Western Union for any type of transaction.

I would like to see a dedicated tab for local jams

eric@banjohangout.org — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 14:52:18 CST

It seems as if I am always running into someone who is asking about where to jam or are traveling looking for a place to jam on vacation.

I think it would be nice if there were a dedicated tab where folks could post open local jams or get together's.

I feel lucky that I am able to attend about 12-14 jams a month with in a half hour of home and thanks to BHO, I have met some other local folks, but they did not even know there were places to go.

Playlist macro

eric@banjohangout.org — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 13:20:19 CST

Maybe this is already possible and I haven't figured it out; if so, just point me in the right direction!

I like to build immersion playlists where I listen to the same track played by as many people as possible, for use when I am trying to get an intuitive ear-grasp of the song that I am learning. It would be great if there were a way to create an automatic playlist from the tune search, that one could save to one's jukebox. For instance, if I could put in the parameters Lost Indian, more than 3 likes, clawhammer, and then automatically save a list of all the titles that come up without having to add them individually, I'd be one happy customer.

Sarah

Classified Photos Suggestions

eric@banjohangout.org — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 13:15:44 CST

Picture speaks a thousand words, and not only if it's a good one. I've seen some great and some really not so great examples of photographs posted with the classified adds here. Some are the source of delight and some of frustration.

I was wondering if it might be useful to offer some guidelines for classified photos, which could be especially helpful to the buyers when the instrument is not new or mint (and even then).

I'll give it a first try:

Suggested photos:
   Whole Instrument:
       front,
       back,
       one side view
   Details:
       peghead front (including the nut and first 1-2 frets),
       peghead back,
       (fifth string peg if there),
       fingerboard (with strings pulled aside to show the fret wear),
       inlay detail,
       neck back,
       side view of neck and pot joint,
       tailpiece,
       tailpiece bracket,
       head front,
       open head back, with dowel stick in focus, slanted to show the tone ring
       builder signature, label or serial number
       detail close-up of any ding, flaw, discoloration, rust, etc..
       case
   Resonator Banjos only:
       disassembled resonator inside,
       resonator outside (back),

Would suggest a minimum of 6-9 pics. More is definitely better.

Good:
   large photos,
   well lit environment (daylight, neutral diffused light, NOT using flash),
   photo in focus,
   many details,
   no shadows,
   flaws/imperfections clearly shown

Not so good:
   focus is on the carpet behind the banjo
   shaken, blurry photo
   not enough light - too dark or grainy photo
   too small pictures
   strong shadows (outside photos taken on a sunny mid-day)
   light reflections of the instrument (flash will do that)
   parts of instrument not shown at all

Ask yourself what kind of pictures would you like to see if you were buying an instrument online.
Then try to make them look close to that. If perplexed, ask for help. Kids these days are amazing...

Style would improve searches

eric@banjohangout.org — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 06:11:35 CST

In using the BHO search, it would help if a person's style was included. It would vastly narrow down the number of players showing up. City and town locations would help also, as members try to find players who live near them (many members do not list their towns).

Banjo Hangout Players Union Tshirts Size Chart

eric@banjohangout.org — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 13:08:35 CST

Since t-shirts can vary in dimensions from manufacturer to manufacturer, it would be helpful to have a size chart that relates to the current BHO tshirts. Or a link to the manufacturer's size chart.

LEFT HANDED INSTRUMENTS IN CLASSIFIED ADS

eric@banjohangout.org — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 09:42:54 CST

I am a left handed player of banjo and guitar. Currently I have an Enoch lefty Tradesman for sale in the classified ads. I doubt left handed players even know it's there. After all its not searchable so they couldn't find it even if they were looking. I tried searching left handed banjos for sale and no current listing were shown.

The classified ads should have a section for left hand instruments.

Please consider it. Thank you.

Make MP3 URLs more descriptive

eric@banjohangout.org — Sat, 6 Apr 2013 20:34:46 CST

I've requested this before, but it was ignored. And it's SUCH a simple fix.

If someone posts a link to an MP3 in G+ or Facebook, the TITLE tag is always: Banjo Hangout Jukebox. That's what's displayed by G+ and Facebook. My request: Just put the tune name (and maybe even the user) in the title tag. For example: Soldier's Joy, posted by JoeUser (from Banjo Hangout Jukebox).

I think it would take about 5 minutes to fix this.

Show More Brands

eric@banjohangout.org — Wed, 3 Apr 2013 13:09:46 CST

I've asked this before including emails to Eric, but no answer that I know of. Why aren't all brands of banjos listed in one place rather than have that irksome "Show Other Brands" that hides some of them. For example, I recently listed a Cedar Mountain (as did someone else) and it is buried where it is difficult to find. It took me a long time before I even discovered this area. There is enough room in the column for all of them.

Fred

6 String Banjos

eric@banjohangout.org — Mon, 1 Apr 2013 17:35:03 CST

I think most people think of 6 string banjos as just a guitar player's easy way to play the banjo...same chords, hand positions, strums, etc.

I don't play a 6 string banjo, but have learned enough that the above is really an uneducated guess and does a disservice to the instrument. Played well, it is a cool instrument with a distinctive and unique sound.

For example, great early jazz players play 6 string banjos with a style unique to and for the 6 string banjo, and not simply carryover from guitar playing. It is also not the same as other 4 string banjos played in jazz. It is really a separate instrument, with a role and sound that is different from 5 or 4 string banjos, and certainly guitars.

However, the Hangout doesn't have the phrase "6 string banjo" listed on the Forums page--and it should--so everyone knows where to look and post for how to play this instrument the best, and learn about it. (I'm not suggesting that there should be a separate Forum category for "6 string banjos," just list the phrase on the Forums page in the description of the most appropriate category, I'd say "Playing Advice: All Other Styles", so that reading down, it's clear where the comments are to be entered.

Rockyjo

Suggestion: auto-subscribe to threads you start

eric@banjohangout.org — Sat, 30 Mar 2013 16:26:18 CST

Subject says it. Apparently (and I could be wrong) one is not automatically subscribed to threads one starts. It would be nice if that were the case. Again, I'm just used to that being the default and I keep forgetting to subscribe to a thread I start--I'll get over it if it can't be automated.

Date Sensitive Member Searches

eric@banjohangout.org — Fri, 29 Mar 2013 21:48:21 CST

I'm hoping to get to New Zealand in the next year for a visit. I lived there in 1983 but haven't been back since 1986. So I decided to go do a member search and see if I might known anyone, or maybe make so new friends that I could visit and jam with while I am there.

Problem is that many of the members show in my query results last logged on to the Hangout years ago. I would be nice to be able to show members whose last logon was within the last XX days or months.

New "Top Seller" and Other Designations for Classifieds

eric@banjohangout.org — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 16:43:49 CST

If you're browsing the classified ads you may notice a new icon we have added that looks like this:

Clicking the icon takes you to a description of what a "Top Seller" is. Basically, there are three requirements which must be met. The system automatically updates the "Top Seller" list based on these requirements:

Overall feedback score of at least +10
No negative reviews in the past 12 months
At least 5 positive ratings from sales or trades in the past 12 months

Our goal here is to facilitate transactions in the classifieds system where both parties are happy in the end.

One way to do that is to encourage members to qualify for "Top Seller" status by posting more ads and keeping their "customers" happy. Another way is to encourage members to work with those sellers who have established a good track record. The new "Top Seller" designation will help do both of these things.

We're mulling over the idea of adding a few other designations, such as "Top Buyer" for members with a lot of good ratings from sellers, "Veteran Member" for long-time members, and "New Member" for someone who has joined within the last week or so. Thoughts?

(I initially posted this as a blog entry at http://www.banjohangout.org/myhangout/blog.asp?ID=1&blogid=29505, then realized this would be better suited to a forum topic. So I've moved it over here to encourage discussion).

"Next" buttons & colors...

eric@banjohangout.org — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 13:45:47 CST

Here's a couple suggestion for the website:

1. Put the "next" buttons on the person's home page (under Photos, etc.) so you can click from one photo to the next w/o having to go back to the home page to click on the next phots

2. Have all the forums put a different color on the topic after you've come back from them. They way it is now, I can't tell if I've already been to that topic. (I know I'm getting old but sometimes I go to a topic twice, not realizing that I've already been there.

You (Eric) do a great job overall with the site(s)! Keep it up, man!

Subscription to threads rather than entire forums?

eric@banjohangout.org — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 17:21:35 CST

I'm a new BHO member and for the most part I'm extremely impressed by and enjoying the site.

My questions is whether there is any way to subscribe to individual threads within a forum? I'm kind of used to this from other forums on the web. As it is I get a ton of emails when I subscribe to a forum.

I may be missing something and, in any case, it's not a big deal. TIA for any info.

How about re-coding to allow direct url links to videos?

eric@banjohangout.org — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 09:22:48 CST

I just noticed that, in any user's video page, it always lands at the most recent video (in the URL) then if you click to other videos, that's all done with javascript swapping out things...

What that means is, there is no way to copy and paste a link to a user's specific video. Only the first video has the unique URL.

You CAN do that when it's still in the "newest" list, as each video has a unique URL from that page.

But once the video falls off that list, the only place to find it is on the user's page, and if the video is not the first on the list, there is no way to copy and email a link, because the URL is always the first video only, no matter how many videos the user has uploaded.

That's kind of goofy. Can that be changed?

Wonderful!!!

eric@banjohangout.org — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 21:13:46 CST

Just noticed, the Canadian provinces are now included in 'member search' - thanks Eric!

How about a jam forum

eric@banjohangout.org — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 12:23:24 CST

Any interest in having JAM oriented forum?

Slap ourselves on the back

eric@banjohangout.org — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 08:57:59 CST

As a member of several different types of forums, I have to say this is the most welcoming. On other forums, an intro thread from a new member gets few views and maybe 2 or 3 replies of welcome. On BHO, an intro always seems to get double digits in the welcome. Congrats to Eric, the moderators and the good hearted membership we have here.

.wav file sharing for tune projects with other members

eric@banjohangout.org — Sat, 16 Mar 2013 23:38:37 CST

I've been thinking of an idea to upload .wav files of tracks onto space provided by Banjo Hangout.. everyone would have the option to upload, to a space on their homepage. Then others could download these tracks, import them into their recording software, and add other instruments or what not, and then post the cumulative mp3 song in Sound Off. Or if one person wants to record multiple .wav tracks and share them with someone who is willing to mix them, you could do this too. Just an idea.

BHO Banjo Contest

eric@banjohangout.org — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 00:57:32 CST

When reading about the other suggestion about BHO Award, I got the idea that why not have a banjo contest on BHO:

During a period, for example one week, the competitors can add a video in the archive. It should be a new video, not earlier published.
There may be several classes, for examples as the forums in BHO (Bluegrass/Scruggs, Old-Time/clawhammer, 4-string and Other)
There may be a jury to choose the winner, or the BHO members can vote for the winner.
It can be a free contest where you can play anything you want, or there may be a special subjects for the choice of tune, for example "Who plays the best version of Arkansaw Traveler (or any other tune)" or tunes associated with cars and so on.
We may put a restriction that professional players are not allowed to participate, or there are special contests or classes for them.
Hopefully the sponsors can contribute to some prizes or the honor is the prize.

Posting with qoutes

eric@banjohangout.org — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 09:16:31 CST

Is there any way that when someone clicks on the "reply with quote" tab, the cursor can automatically show up below the quote, where it should be? It's confusing when people don't know how to work with this. I see their comments, in small font, inside the quote they're commenting on.

It would be nice if everyone was aware enough to fix this themselves, but it seems like if the cursor just showed up below, and outside of the quoted text, this problem would go away.

It's really confusing when you look at a post, and it looks like they just posted someone elses quote as their post...but when you look closer, you see that their comments are in there with the quote...so then you need to go back and find the post they're quoting to see which is the original and which is their comments.

Maybe it's just something that's going to happen with people who aren't really paying attention...

BHO Awards

eric@banjohangout.org — Sun, 10 Mar 2013 09:43:53 CST

Maybe there should be awards for best personal playing posts of the year. Who would judge this? How would it be done? I have no idea! But it might be fun.

BHO's "Lesson" Page

eric@banjohangout.org — Thu, 7 Mar 2013 07:35:12 CST

Some of the more experienced BHO members have tried to post complete banjo lessons in the forums: instructional text, tab examples, audio files. One example that comes immediately to mind is Dave Magram's superb Bluegrass Banjo Backup Basic Workshop. But the forums are not where these lessons belong. In the forums, the lessons get cluttered up with often tangential discussion. And in the forums, these lessons ultimately get archived and lost to those who are unaware of them. [Fortunately, a BHO member created an entirely separate webpage cataloguing John Boulding's great "Lick of the Week" series, or these might be very hard to find, too.]

But the BHO "Lessons" page is just a link to other banjo lessons elsewhere on the web. If you want to "submit a lesson," it must have a URL.

There should be some way for members to post lessons as lessons. If a related discussion of the lesson is appropriate, there can also be a forum topic about the lesson (perhaps linked to the lesson). And if this discussion, gives the lesson poster reason to amplify or modify any part of the lesson, there would be no time limit for such edits.

Posting lessons in the forums isn't sensible, but it appears to be the only current option.

"Sticky" Threads

eric@banjohangout.org — Thu, 7 Mar 2013 06:56:41 CST

Shouldn't "sticky" threads be reserved only for topics that either recur over and over again or get unduly heavy traffic? However, I see "sticky" threads which get little traffic (18 replies in a year), while others are used more as notices (posted and then immediately locked). And it doesn't look as if anyone ever un-sticks a "sticky" thread once it ceases to get attention.

Meanwhile, two or three times a month someone starts a new Scruggs thread on finger planting, producing the identical discussion as before (including the identical list of famous one-finger planters) -- as well as repeated cries of "why don't you do a topic search before you post?"

My suggestion is that moderators keep an eye out for "stickies" that can be discontinued, as well as topics which would save a lot of retyping if they were made a "sticky."

Ukelele hangout?

eric@banjohangout.org — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 08:16:23 CST

There has been an explosion in the popularity of this instrument in the last 5-10 years. Just check out some of the stuff on YT - people are playing absolutely everything. I would love to see a meeting place in the Hangout format, I think there is a real need.

Find your posts?

eric@banjohangout.org — Sat, 23 Feb 2013 08:15:06 CST

Are you able to search the forums for all the posts you have participated in to make it easier?

Banjo Humor

eric@banjohangout.org — Sat, 23 Feb 2013 08:13:24 CST

Unless I missed it do we have a page or topic on banjo jokes where we can all participate and have a laugh?

Smart phone app?

eric@banjohangout.org — Mon, 18 Feb 2013 11:11:34 CST

A smart phone app that keeps you logged in? I have an iphone and I have created a button bookmark for the website, but an official app might be nice.

free form search

eric@banjohangout.org — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 06:31:21 CST

how difficult would a free form search in ALL the classifieds, regular/parts and other.....that way a person can search for just a, "bridge", "tailpiece" or "tone ring", with out weeding through all the post and classifieds. just being able to narrow a search to find things easier and quicker....keeping it simple to search.....

Improving our editing on the homepage

eric@banjohangout.org — Wed, 13 Feb 2013 08:50:05 CST

I decided to remove a bunch of my sound files today and what a tedious task that was, doinf them one at a time. Is there a way to streamline the process, by maybe having a whole view of our sound files at once in a 'deletion menu"? It would be great to be able to see each song/file on one page with the ability to see/select multiple songs at once (by a click check) and then delete them in mass, with one click. Just a thought.......

Archiving the "Tune of the Week" Posts

eric@banjohangout.org — Sat, 2 Feb 2013 09:24:38 CST

Is there a way that these could not be archived like the others so people can back through them and add their versions of songs? Learning a tune a week is just too much for those with a real life; but if they were not archived, people could go back and add to past TOTW topics as songs are learned.

Blues as a genre for video posts

eric@banjohangout.org — Fri, 28 Dec 2012 08:14:47 CST

Why isn't this an option? It should be! It's kind of a big part of American music and I do see folks posting videos. Not to mention I just did one myself & was a little annoyed it wasn't available as a choice.

Chat Room

eric@banjohangout.org — Sat, 15 Dec 2012 04:59:59 CST

My computer showed nine in chat room last night and said full. Is nine the capacity or was something wrong with my computer?

Stuart