Site Historian and Reporters

[Kacey Green]

We should nominate a site historian to keep track of who's who, who does what etc. and any influencing factors that don't normaly get posted on the boards. Then we can have an election and such that would be kind of cool. To aid the historian we should have a reporter or two to do interviews of the members, and maybe even front page interviews of people important in the world of PDAs PPCs in particular.

Thoughts?
Nominations?

[Janak Parekh]

Interviews are a worthwhile idea, but unlike in social circles, a historian isn't all that useful. The site is the history. You can look up old articles on any subject with just a few keystrokes. We already do some retrospectives on the frontpage (like the birthday of the Pocket PC) where we link to older articles on this site.

In any case, I don't see this happening soon; we've got lots of great ideas planned for PPCT and the other Thoughts Media sites, and something like this would be way down the list of priorities.

--janak

[Kacey Green]

could we still nominate a pair of reporters? you know instead of reviewing software or hardware, they review people with a different template

[Janak Parekh]

could we still nominate a pair of reporters?
I'll pass the idea along to Jason, but as I said, because of a huge queue of things to do it probably won't happen soon. People come here first for the electronics themselves. While we always like to foster community, we'd have to put some thought into it to make it right. We've already got some neat community initiatives coming up first before we get to this.

--janak

[Kacey Green]

depending on when this occurs, I'll volenteer for it to be my project:
holding the nominations, conducting the vote, and passing the info to you guys, is there a way to make non guest vote, or track people trying to beat the sys (checking ip's)

[Janak Parekh]

depending on when this occurs, I'll volenteer for it to be my project
It's nice of you to offer, but quite frankly, this site is Jason's baby, and anything new really goes through him first and foremost. ;) He already has a full-time PHP developer to help him set up sophisticated ways of doing things like voting. If something like this happens, rest assured we'll make announcements, and you can try volunteering at that point based on the request.

--janak

[Kacey Green]

I was offering my time, if the scarcity was time. I'm not trying to take away anyone elses job. (Not here at the site anyway)

Edit: If this is considered and approved, if there is not time to do the choosing, I am volenteering to do so.
Edit 2: And then give the results to whom ever it concerns

[Pony99CA]

Interviews are a worthwhile idea, but unlike in social circles, a historian isn't all that useful. The site is the history. You can look up old articles on any subject with just a few keystrokes.
Yes, for the most part that's true. However, sometimes the Search function doesn't really work very well.

Also, there's no easy way to find historical member information (like the Top Ten Posters (http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=5614) for a given time). Granted, I suspect many people aren't really interested in that, but it does come up from time to time (we've got a thread going on about that now, in fact).

Another thing that might be interesting is an About page, like the one at pocketnow (http://pocketnow.com/aboutus.html). Sometimes people want to get more information about the people who work here.

Steve

[Kacey Green]

pony's got the idea

[Janak Parekh]

Yes, for the most part that's true. However, sometimes the Search function doesn't really work very well.
I know; we're already working on a new feature to fix it for the most important cases.

Also, there's no easy way to find historical member information (like the Top Ten Posters (http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=5614) for a given time). Granted, I suspect many people aren't really interested in that, but it does come up from time to time (we've got a thread going on about that now, in fact).
Perhaps. On the other hand, the top 10 posters are pretty much locked in at this point.

Another thing that might be interesting is an About page, like the one at pocketnow (http://pocketnow.com/aboutus.html).
We've already got one. (http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/about.php) Granted, you've got slicker pictures, but we decided to stay informal on that note for now.

--janak

[Pony99CA]

Another thing that might be interesting is an About page, like the one at pocketnow (http://pocketnow.com/aboutus.html).
We've already got one. (http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/about.php) Granted, you've got slicker pictures, but we decided to stay informal on that note for now.
Oh yeah, I thought there was one, but I coudn't find it. I forgot to check the little bar at the top; I only looked at the main navigation bar on the left. :oops:

Steve

[Kacey Green]

On the other hand, the top 10 posters are pretty much locked in at this point.
--janak
I'm coming up fast :lol: not that fast but I'm coming up. :D

[Janak Parekh]

I'm coming up fast :lol: not that fast but I'm coming up. :D
Honestly though, and I meant to say this in my previous post... it doesn't matter. :) People here are mostly judged on the quality of their posts, not their frequency. I go out of my way to make sure as many of my posts as possible are written because they're conveying something useful, not just for the sake of posting itself.

--janak

[Kacey Green]

I'm coming up fast :lol: not that fast but I'm coming up. :D
Honestly though, and I meant to say this in my previous post... it doesn't matter. :) People here are mostly judged on the quality of their posts, not their frequency. I go out of my way to make sure as many of my posts as possible are written because they're conveying something useful, not just for the sake of posting itself.

--janak

are you accusing me of posting for postings sake without regard to making as many meaningfull posts as possible, I think I've been doing pretty good, but if I'm wrong, guide me (tell me from time to time that my level of meaningful posts is dropping according to your observations)

Edit: i'm trying to model my self after the people who've had the greatest positive influence on me at this site. (you are one of them)

I need to work on the layout of my posts, they seem as if my brain threw up into the computer :pukeface2:

anyone else can critque also but it was aimed at janak

[Pony99CA]

I'm coming up fast :lol: not that fast but I'm coming up. :D
Honestly though, and I meant to say this in my previous post... it doesn't matter. :) People here are mostly judged on the quality of their posts, not their frequency. I go out of my way to make sure as many of my posts as possible are written because they're conveying something useful, not just for the sake of posting itself.

are you accusing me of posting for postings sake without regard to making as many meaningfull posts as possible[....]

No, he's not accusing you of that, which is why he said (emphasis mine):

Honestly though, and I meant to say this in my previous post... it doesn't matter.
He just happened to post that after your comment.

I think I've been doing pretty good, but if I'm wrong, guide me
OK, you do seem to have a lot of "Thank you", "Oops" and "OK" posts. For example, when Steve C. said to ask Jason about why a post of yours was deleted, you posted an "OK" post. Those really aren't necessary; be like Nike and "just do it". :-D

I know it's difficult learning the flow of the boards, and none of us are perfect (I have posts in the Hall of Flame & Shame to prove it. :lol:). It's often best to ask yourself if the post really adds anything to the thread (which is why most "Thank you" and "Me, too" posts are discouraged).

Steve

[Pony99CA]

I forgot to mention one thing. You might check out the "Pony's Posting Proverbs" thread (http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=11413) for suggestions about posting etiquette.

Steve

P.S. I would have just edited my last post, but I wanted to ensure a notification got sent for this to people who had already read that.

[Ed Hansberry]

Also, there's no easy way to find historical member information (like the Top Ten Posters (http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=5614) for a given time).
You mean http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/memberlist.php sorted by total posts in descending order isn't easy?

[c38b2]

Also, there's no easy way to find historical member information (like the Top Ten Posters (http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=5614) for a given time).
You mean http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/memberlist.php sorted by total posts in descending order isn't easy?
this (http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/memberlist.php?mode=topten&order=desc) link will take you directly there. 8)

[Janak Parekh]

Also, there's no easy way to find historical member information (like the Top Ten Posters (http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=5614) for a given time).
You mean http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/memberlist.php sorted by total posts in descending order isn't easy?
Steve's point is that the memberlist.php is dynamic -- whereas Andy's GIF is a "historical snapshot". It's unlikely to change so rapidly nowadays, though.

--janak

[Pony99CA]

Also, there's no easy way to find historical member information (like the Top Ten Posters (http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=5614) for a given time).
You mean http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/memberlist.php sorted by total posts in descending order isn't easy?
Steve's point is that the memberlist.php is dynamic -- whereas Andy's GIF is a "historical snapshot". It's unlikely to change so rapidly nowadays, though.

Correct, Janak. What Ed said is current information, and I specfically said historical information.

However, while the Top Ten may not change rapidly, it can change. I used to be #4, but dropped out of things Pocket PC for a while, and Steve C. and Kati passed me. Also, the lower ranks will probably change more rapidly; people might not all be interested in our posting history. :-D

Another use is finding out more detailed information about our posting history. For example, it might be kind of cool to get a report about when I reached each posting level, but there's no easy way to find that. If somebody mentioned a level in a post (like Crystal did when I became Pope), that can help narrow the possibilities, but that is the exception.

I realize that creating snapshots of the entire member list would be a lot of work, but if somebody is willing to do that work -- and if Jason is willing to allow that to be posted -- it might be interesting. I'm sure a program could be written to capture that data periodically, but is it worth the effort and storage?

Steve

[Janak Parekh]

I realize that creating snapshots of the entire member list would be a lot of work, but if somebody is willing to do that work -- and if Jason is willing to allow that to be posted -- it might be interesting. I'm sure a program could be written to capture that data periodically, but is it worth the effort and storage?
Neither way is worth the effort, actually. Since the server keeps track of every post, it should be straightforward to write SQL queries to keep track of the "top 10" for any desired time interval. That's a much cleaner and more flexible solution. One could even envision a line graph with individual line values, representing # of posts at time X, of the top X posters...

While it's not trivial, it's just about as much work as hiring someone who would then put the energy into snapshotting.

--janak

[Kati Compton]

While it's not trivial, it's just about as much work as hiring someone who would then put the energy into snapshotting.

And require a lot less storage.

[c38b2]

While it's not trivial, it's just about as much work as hiring someone who would then put the energy into snapshotting.
I thought about this, but writing queries like that would put some massive strain on the database. 8O

[Pony99CA]

I realize that creating snapshots of the entire member list would be a lot of work, but if somebody is willing to do that work -- and if Jason is willing to allow that to be posted -- it might be interesting. I'm sure a program could be written to capture that data periodically, but is it worth the effort and storage?
Neither way is worth the effort, actually. Since the server keeps track of every post, it should be straightforward to write SQL queries to keep track of the "top 10" for any desired time interval. That's a much cleaner and more flexible solution. One could even envision a line graph with individual line values, representing # of posts at time X, of the top X posters...

That would be interesting, both individually and site-wide.

While it's not trivial, it's just about as much work as hiring someone who would then put the energy into snapshotting.
Well, I hope you wouldn't have to "hire" someone. :-) Regardless of how it's done, I would think it would be a volunteer job.

Steve

[Kacey Green]

While it's not trivial, it's just about as much work as hiring someone who would then put the energy into snapshotting.

--janak

Like steve/pony , I always thought this was a volenteer site.

[Kati Compton]

Think of it as being hired, just for 0 pay but some good benefits.

Now, where is that PPCT 401K application... ;)

[Kacey Green]

tru'

[JA]

tru'

Yet another insightfull post. :roll: JA

[Kacey Green]

is he a troll?

i read his past posts page one and none of them are any more usefull than what he is complaining about.

Edit: I read all his posts and didn't see anything positve or helpful, and he sent me this PM before the orginal posting of this message.

* PM portion of message removed by Moderator SJC

[Janak Parekh]

I thought about this, but writing queries like that would put some massive strain on the database. 8O
Not really. We're talking approximately 200,000 records. I deal with databases larger than that all the time.

That said, we don't want it to be a completely dynamic query that runs every time someone checks the page. That would nuke the server.

--janak

p.s. As for JA: please, tone down and keep comments like that to PMs; you're derailing the thread even more. Kacey, as for "tru'", what's the point of making that post in the first place?

[Kacey Green]

@janak
Every time someone checks the stats page, or any page?

[c38b2]

@janak
Every time someone checks the stats page, or any page?
If it were truly dynamic then every time the stats page loads there would have to be queries for each user to determine how many posts they had within a timeframe, then sorted. Needless to say it would put lots of strain on the database to have it crawl the entire post database for each PPCT member (unless they had 0 posts to begin with) every time the page was loaded. 8O

Also, I, too, think that you should only post when you have something to offer. The one-liners don't particularly bother me but when you post this:
sorry to disappoint you steve, but I have never used GPS in a GPS thread bothers me. It's enough that you don't offer useful information or insight most of the time but you don't need to outright tell us that you have nothing to contribute to a thead. :roll:

[Kacey Green]

so doing it dynamicly via the data base would slow things down, but if only a couple of people are doing searches at a time, you could have it only do the work when they ask for it in particular. Search for #1 poster in a certain time frame.
What was Kacey's posts per day on May 10?
find all people who read jasons post on xxx ## yyyy

then someone really into numbers and stats, may decide to post on such things.

[c38b2]

What was Kacey's posts per day on May 10?
Your posts per day since April 20 is almost 17 (16.95!) 8O

[Kacey Green]

What was Kacey's posts per day on May 10?
Your posts per day since April 20 is almost 17 (16.95!) 8O

That's how the sys could work, and thanks for doing the research and math c38b2!

[Ed Hansberry]

is he a troll?

i read his past posts page one and none of them are any more usefull than what he is complaining about.

Edit: I read all his posts and didn't see anything positve or helpful, and he sent me this PM before the orginal posting of this message.

He always had(has) a point but ...

PM:
Inbox :: Message
From: JA

Not sure what is going on between you an JA, but it is 100% unacceptable to post private messages publicly. If you have a problem, forward it to the mods, don't post like this again. thanks!

[Janak Parekh]

so doing it dynamicly via the data base would slow things down, but if only a couple of people are doing searches at a time, you could have it only do the work when they ask for it in particular. Search for #1 poster in a certain time frame.
I don't think we want to expose that functionality -- it's easy to abuse, and can lead to a denial-of-service on the server. On a site of this scale, you cannot assume "a couple of people" are doing anything at any time...

--janak

[Kati Compton]

I realize that creating snapshots of the entire member list would be a lot of work, but if somebody is willing to do that work -- and if Jason is willing to allow that to be posted -- it might be interesting. I'm sure a program could be written to capture that data periodically, but is it worth the effort and storage?

What Janak is saying is that information does not *have* to be stored. It's all in the database. So, if this is something we were going to do, we'd ask Fabrizio pretty please to write a script/program to let us query the database. Something like "COUNT * IN posts WHERE user="Pony99CA" AND date <= January 1, 2003" so you could see your post level as of the start of 2003. Or if you want to know when you got to a certain level, select all posts from you and give the date of the Nth post, where the N is the # of posts for the level.

The data is all there, no need to save it off. It's most likely at least as easy to write a query engine as the snapshot-taker.

--edit: Umm... I thought the post I was replying to was more recent than it actually was. Sorry to :twak: a dead horse. I read the *first* page, but thought it was the last... Sigh.

[Kacey Green]

I have had a chance to look at the backend to this forum program (not ppct in particular but phpbb 2.0.8) and it would be unwise to expose the servers to this kind of load, it is to be done at all it would need to be done by the moderators, etc. so as not to place undue strain on the systems.

[Janak Parekh]

I have had a chance to look at the backend to this forum program (not ppct in particular but phpbb 2.0.8) and it would be unwise to expose the servers to this kind of load, it is to be done at all it would need to be done by the moderators, etc. so as not to place undue strain on the systems.
I know -- my point all along is that we wouldn't expose the ability to run such a query, but that we could rather run the query offline and graph the results. The workload for that would be manageable. The problem is getting the labor to set up the graphing -- it's just not a priority right now.

--janak

[Kacey Green]

why did it do a smiley? I didn't use a colon or if I did it was after the . 8

[Kati Compton]

why did it do a smiley? I didn't use a colon or if I did it was after the . 8
If you go back, you can "edit" your post and see what you typed that made it a 8).

In general, if you ever get an unintended smiley, that's the thing you should do (if you want to get rid of it).

So, what you had typed was 8 ) (but without the space). That's the smiley code for 8).

Now,

:nonono: