A suggestion re cloth nappy posts v. all other natural parenting posts

[twiggy56]

Argh!!

Yes but its not fair to tell the regular posters to post about 'other' topics to satisfy the interests of browsers....that would be like someone asking the other person in a conversation to talk about something they are interested in?!

IMO its not upto other people to bring up discussions about topics that other people want to talk about, thats upto the person it interests?

If you separated off the 'other' topics would be quieter (im not saying dead, just quieter and slower) and im saying this from the objective evidence on the board- the current popularity of the other topics is an indication of their demand.

 

[colsy]

Argh!!

Yes but its not fair to tell the regular posters to post about 'other' topics to satisfy the interests of browsers....that would be like someone asking the other person in a conversation to talk about something they are interested in?!

IMO its not upto other people to bring up discussions about topics that other people want to talk about, thats upto the person it interests?

If you separated off the 'other' topics would be quieter (im not saying dead, just quieter and slower) and im saying this from the objective evidence on the board- the current popularity of the other topics is an indication of their demand.

So let's not MOVE the nappies, let's simply rename it 'NP - Nappies' and then create an entirely new forum called 'NP - other'. And I truly believe that one of the reason's why there is so much less chat about the other aspects is because some people just take a peek and think 'oh, it's all nappies, I'm not interested therefore I'll go away'. This is what I think almost EVERY time I look in the NP forum. You know, I check in here two or three times a week, hoping for a good old chinwag, but all I see are post after post about nappies.

I so didn't intend my original post to lead into a slanging match or of me defending my opinion or of other people having to defend theirs. I am simply stating a fact - that some people (maybe many people for all I know) don't bother posting in the NP forum because they think it's nappies and nothing else. So those people are losing out on all the info that is there, but equally the people who do use the NP forum are losing out on all the positive things those new people could bring.

 

[twiggy56]

Argh!!

Yes but its not fair to tell the regular posters to post about 'other' topics to satisfy the interests of browsers....that would be like someone asking the other person in a conversation to talk about something they are interested in?!

IMO its not upto other people to bring up discussions about topics that other people want to talk about, thats upto the person it interests?

If you separated off the 'other' topics would be quieter (im not saying dead, just quieter and slower) and im saying this from the objective evidence on the board- the current popularity of the other topics is an indication of their demand.

So let's not MOVE the nappies, let's simply rename it 'NP - Nappies' and then create an entirely new forum called 'NP - other'. And I truly believe that one of the reason's why there is so much less chat about the other aspects is because some people just take a peek and think 'oh, it's all nappies, I'm not interested therefore I'll go away'. This is what I think almost EVERY time I look in the NP forum. You know, I check in here two or three times a week, hoping for a good old chinwag, but all I see are post after post about nappies.

I so didn't intend my original post to lead into a slanging match or of me defending my opinion or of other people having to defend theirs. I am simply stating a fact - that some people (maybe many people for all I know) don't bother posting in the NP forum because they think it's nappies and nothing else. So those people are losing out on all the info that is there, but equally the people who do use the NP forum are losing out on all the positive things those new people could bring.

Then why would you not start a thread about what you wish to discuss? Why look in to wait for someone else to bring the topic up? THIS is what I dont understand...if you come to the section and are actively looking then why not just put up a thread so you can discuss with like-minded NP'ers what you want to talk about?

You are saying its all nappies but yet you arent really practising what you preach by not posting about the topics either?

and in regards to the 'slanging match'....why would you think this? This thread is a discussion thread, meaning there may be two different views (which makes for a well rounded discussion IMO) and I mean to only say my views and try to understand the others'.

It is meant in a friendly manner, and I am only asking you these questions as you have approached the thread and the subject and therefore I would imagine are willing to discuss them

 

[Dream.A.Dream]

I'm afraid I agree with Twiggy, why look for threads on things you want to come up? why not just post a simple "What are your views on "x"?" to get things going yourself?

IMO, all this thread has succeeded in doing is making anyone who has a nappy question worry about posting. I typed and deleted my dad proof one 3 times before I decided to post it xx

 

[colsy]

Then why would you not start a thread about what you wish to discuss? Why look in to wait for someone else to bring the topic up? THIS is what I dont understand...if you come to the section and are actively looking then why not just put up a thread so you can discuss with like-minded NP'ers what you want to talk about?

Cos I'm one of the sorts of people who doesn't very often start threads on a forum but loves joining in when I see something that interests me Oh, and re the slanging match, I didn't mean that I'd taken offence at anything you'd said I was just saying I didn't write the original question to start an argument ... so I hope that this doesn't end in an argument (I realise it hasn't yet).

 

[twiggy56]

It certainly isnt an arguement, a discussion with two sides trying to come to an understanding of the OP's question.

I understand that you may prefer not to start threads yourself but then it is not fair to expect it from others either if you see what I mean? That is my point pretty much.

Oh and katy- we will always welcome your questions, pleeeease feel free to ask away, you will not be judged because you are asking about nappies

 

[Pops]

I have read all of this thread now and have to say, I agree with Twiggy and Katy. It is unfair to say all there is in here is nappy threads but that you won't start any about other topics. I understand that you prefer to join in rather than start topics but if everyone did that, there wouldn't be much of a forum at all and I don't see how breaking up the sections will help in that respect.

I am not a Mum yet so can not comment or help people with things but I have found this very helpful for the cloth information and for the babywearing info. I won't be co-sleeping so don't read or post about it and I will go to the Breastfeeding forum for help with that so I am unsure what else I could post about in here for now. I am also very mindful of asking too many questions or appearing to post for the sake of it but having never done any of this before, I'd rather ask than get it wrong!

As with all the other secions of BnB, I look for the things that interst me or that I can help with and if I don't see anything, I make a post and hope that people reply!

xxx

 

[colsy]

Maybe we could do a poll to see the fors and againsts? That way, we (including Mrs gobby ne!) can stop talking about it once we get an answer and get on with talking about NP stuff instead. Anybody know how to do a poll? I'm happy to sort it, but I don't know how to. Any pointers?

 

[Tiff]

You started this thread hun!

Tbh I find it a bit unfair to be critical about something when you admit you aren't going to actually post.

Out of total curiosity, why don't you like starting threads if you have a question about something, or looking for info? Most of the ladies on here love to help, I can't fathom what is daunting about it?

Not trying to be mean or whatever, just genuinely curious.

 

[Kaites]

As a fellow October Bumpkin, I usually make a point of reading Colsy's threads and fwiw, she does actually post a fair number of threads on non-nappy issues in this forum. I can understand her frustration that perhaps some of the non-nappy related threads get lost in the sea of nappy-related ones and that was her motivation for seeing if others felt the same way. I don't think it was her intention to stir up some kind of "anti-nappy thread" storm- just to see if there might be interest in having a nappy-dedicated area since there are so many posts related to them

 

[Lu28]

Look it comes down to this - not aimed at any one person in particular but if you want to see more NP topics being posted in this section, stop whining and get posting. It's no excuse that someone doesn't usually start topics but you can't complain about something when you have no intention of doing anything about it. I start threads about things that interest me, I don't browse to see if an aspect of parenting seems lacking on a board and try to think up of something I can post to 'remedy' the gap.

 

[Rachel_C]

While I agree to some extent that if you want to talk about other stuff, you should make a thread about it, I think that's good in theory but how many people really practice it? It's all very well to say that people can and should do that, but how many people come to this section, look at the things people are already talking about and then assume that nobody is interested in anything other than cloth nappies? I think it is off-putting, both to people who come here regularly and to those who pop in occasionally.

As has been said, Colsy does post about other topics but usually only gets a few replies. One reason for that may be that people just aren't interested in things other than cloth but I believe that the posts just get lost. After a few replies, there are so many other posts about nappies that they slip down the board into oblivion! While you could argue that that's the way all forums work, I do think that something can and should be done about it, whether that's admin creating a sub-forum for nappies or members just showing a little common sense and posting in existing threads rather than starting new ones for every new nappy pin they order. If this happened in another forum, I think something would be done/recommended. I would imagine that that is how a lot of the sections on the forum have come about.

As somebody who has been here a while, I now find this section quite hard to browse - I find it difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff so to speak. Looking for a post of actual substance is sometimes like looking for a needle in a haystack. It's nice that people want to say what they've just ordered or received in the post or designed on the Weenotions site, but those posts sometimes seem to take up 90% of the first page. Is that really necessary? As somebody who has been here a while, I know there are posts with real content somewhere yet I find it hard to locate them... what chance does somebody who doesn't know they're there have? If this situation continues, I think we're at risk of making natural parenting look like even more of a 'club' than it already does and alienating people who may pop in for a look and who otherwise may have read something interesting or gained something from what they read.

 

[colsy]

As a fellow October Bumpkin, I usually make a point of reading Colsy's threads and fwiw, she does actually post a fair number of threads on non-nappy issues in this forum. I can understand her frustration that perhaps some of the non-nappy related threads get lost in the sea of nappy-related ones and that was her motivation for seeing if others felt the same way. I don't think it was her intention to stir up some kind of "anti-nappy thread" storm- just to see if there might be interest in having a nappy-dedicated area since there are so many posts related to them

Thankyou, Kaites, for putting into better words what I meant. Thanks also for pointing out that I DO post in the natural parenting forum, it's just that my posts often get a bit lost and so I don't find I get very many responses to them.

Goodness, I really had no idea that my innocent proposal would cause such a storm. I guess it just means we all have very strong feelings about the forum, which is not a bad thing at all. Apologies if I haven't responded to other bits that I was meant to - I just haven't read all the posts yet.

 

[colsy]

Look it comes down to this - not aimed at any one person in particular but if you want to see more NP topics being posted in this section, stop whining and get posting. It's no excuse that someone doesn't usually start topics but you can't complain about something when you have no intention of doing anything about it. I start threads about things that interest me, I don't browse to see if an aspect of parenting seems lacking on a board and try to think up of something I can post to 'remedy' the gap.

I do start threads, but they get lost in the nappy sea. Over the past couple of weeks, I've posted questions in NP on eco-friendly sippy cups, playpens, and some sleep issues. I think there were a couple of other things too, but I can't remember them right now. But the number of responses I've had to these is small compared with the number of responses I get when I post in other parts of BnB, and I think this is because my posts in NP get submerged by the nappy threads and disappear into the ether.

 

[colsy]

Rachel C, thankyou for backing me up so eloquently

 

[Lu28]

Colsy, I wasn't aiming that at you personally, just that there have been a few people on this thread saying there aren't enough posts about other types of NP issues and it drives me nuts when people complain about it yet don't post

I honestly think this could be solved by people just exercising a little common sense when it comes to nappy threads. Alot of us get excited about new fluff, it arriving, getting a Weenotions dispatch notice etc etc but there's no need to start a new thread about it when there's other stickies etc designed exactly for that so maybe an announcement to state that so everyone knows where they are?

I really do think it'd be a shame for nappies to be completely segregated because certainly in the past alot of people started being interested in nappies and then started learning about other issues as threads appeared on the forum and it'd be nice if this could still be possible. But it would mean people calming down on the 'look at my fluff' type threads.

 

[Lu28]

PS Colsy, sorry if I upset you, that wasn't my intention at all

 

[colsy]

PS Colsy, sorry if I upset you, that wasn't my intention at all

You didn't, so don't worry about it Your idea of keeping the forum as is but 'calming down' on the nappy front is a good one

 

[Dream.A.Dream]

I do agree with that. I only posted one of those type of threads and haven't done it since because I kinda see where you're coming from. The only thing is sometimes it can be nice to have others who share your enthusiasm, since my OH, mum and RL friends look at me like I'm insane for even using cloth iygwim? xx

 

[littlestar]

I do agree with that. I only posted one of those type of threads and haven't done it since because I kinda see where you're coming from. The only thing is sometimes it can be nice to have others who share your enthusiasm, since my OH, mum and RL friends look at me like I'm insane for even using cloth iygwim? xx

i get that too honey!

i have noticed since the sticky went up the number of repeated questions have reduced. :thumbsup: