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Save Geeks
We all know that Geeks is slowly being forgotten and is now getting to the state where it is almost not worth keeping up, I have been one of only two people on line a few times. I think that we as a community need to save this fantastic website and bring it back to how it used to be. Has anyone got any suggestions on how this can be done as I think that it would be a great shame to see such a brilliant site ending.
Views: 5
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by jamesjimmy23 on -
I think it needs a relaunch. New look, new features, something that makes it more compelling. Chris should possibly even do a video about it just giving it a little time in the spotlight.
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Permalink Reply by James Harding on -
Facebook page possibly? maybe showing some of the questions posted, might draw some people in. Im a fairly new member so Geeks must be attracting some new users
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Permalink Reply by Tyler Brown on -
I think the biggest thing is: Chris is the head honcho and the biggest decision maker on how the site looks and laid out.
And from what I've noticed is he'll tend to go from one project to another. He created Geeks, and it was an amazing, fast paced, community for about a year. Then it just started to..... sink into inactivity.
Right now it seems his main focus is lockergnome.net and featuring questions on there, etc.
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Permalink Reply by George Burgess on -
Yes I agree.
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Permalink Reply by jamesjimmy23 on
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I think it would be great if there could be an integration between the two websites.
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Permalink Reply by Gavin Roskamp on -
Exactly. I kinda prefer Geeks over lockergnome.net though, since you can have more real conversations and better formed questions and what not on here than you can on lockergnome.net.
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Permalink Reply by LADYTECH on -
The word has been put out there by many of us GEEKS. Now it's just a sit an wait if anything gets done about it.
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Permalink Reply by JS on -
Am I the only one not to see a point in Lockergnome.net? I mean, it is a good site, but, it appears to have no real purpose.
This site was brilliant when it came out. Imagine! A social network for Geeks!
The design of this site is great... For 2005. But we live in 2010, and for this site to survive it needs to be user friendly. Don't get me wrong, I have no trouble navigating it, but I also don't like navigating it. While I enjoy writing HTML, keep in mind, not everyone does. The forum system here is awful. Absolutely terrible.
And you can't fault NING for this, because take for example, THIS NING network. It looks and feels amazing, and while it does share a few of Geeks's faults (e.g. the forum system), it outdoes it in everything else.
This site needs to be rebuilt. If not by Chris and Kat, then by us, members.
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Permalink Reply by Kat on -
Do you happen to know someone who is a kickass Ning designer / developer who is willing to do the work - actually seeing it through to completion - and not charge an arm and leg? That's the problem we're having, folks. People either want an outrageous amount of money, they aren't very good (which would give us worse than what we have) or they aren't willing to do the actual WORK.
Chris and I are neither one designers, and are limited by what Ning gives us.
I think blaming the site problems on the design is flawed. That's not the issue here. I'm being told that there are a few problems with specific members causing issues and running people off. How can I do anything about that if y'all don't TELL me about it? You know where my Inbox here is, and you know how to email me. :) I want to know when someone is causing you that many problems. I'd definitely rather ban a rude member than lose a good one.
Another problem, obviously, is that not many people are posting good content. Have we run out of things to say? Are we losing interest and moving on to new sites? I want to hear from YOU guys - our members. What do we need to do to breathe more life into this joint? :)
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Permalink Reply by Gavin Roskamp on
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I'm definitely agreeing with Kat here.
I have just followed the flow from one site to another, but I tend to sink my feet in each one for a while and visit them periodically. As I've said before, I'm more of a ghost on this site, because I mainly just go through the newsletter Kat sends out and I find articles that interest me. Most of the good ones are either from lockergnome.com or here. The Q&A is awesome, and has helped me, but if there's news to be shared or fun topics to be discussed, they should happen here. This site is a lot more powerful than lockergnome.net.
To say it simply, we just need to start posting more on here and it will gain popularity again.
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Permalink Reply by JS on
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Yes, I agree, there is also a member issue here, although I am having trouble pinpointing it. And there is an issue of a lack of good content. I'm not denying that.
The lack of good content is a key factor here. And it also is, arguably, the most difficult one to resolve. Ever since Windows 7 came out there have been no Mac vs PC wars - Mac users have agreed that Windows 7 is rather good. But is this all that made this site great? Bunch of fanboys fighting? Correct me if I am wrong, but I think it was something else. I think it was people who share a passion for something, coming together, discussing, debating different issues.
The member issue is also something we should draw our attention to. Except, who is the "troublemaker" here? And is (s)he worth getting rid of?
But besides those, there is the issue of unattractiveness, and the lack of easy navigation. An unattractive site is like a rude member - it drives people away, or the least doesn't bring more people in. And you don't need to hire and expensive designer, the most you need to do is change a few, rather minor details - e.g. the background - it is cool, but it doesn't... fit. Oh, and bright blue links are definitely not pretty. And the menu font needs changing - it looks completely different, and rather ugly on Linux (Ubuntu w/ Firefox at least).
And maybe it is Ning which is the root of the design issue. Ning was an amazing platform... until it wasn't anymore. They appear to not have updated it at all since... well, since they moved to the paid-only system. And the basic layout of all Ning networks is outdated. Should we move off Ning? And would we be able to?
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Permalink Reply by Jorge on -
Ever since Windows 7 came out, Mac fans had nothing to rip on and the Mac vs. PC threads died soon after. Thus, making this site rather stale.
Even when I'm not active on Geeks, I come back just to see if the threads are any good, and if they are, I login and participate. But I've taken a liking to fresh air and face to face interaction again. Go Utes!
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