And how do groups help to archive this?
If you build groups for admins and groups for coders, then there will be less dialog between these two member-groups. And less dialog leads to less sharing.
No not at all. You c an have sectors that focus on design, on tweaking, on more serious coding or mods, on installation suppport - and each focuses interest and coordinates resources and contacts.
Certainly some visitors to one sector might not visit others but they'd probably skip individual posts or threads if everything was jumbled together. But if different interest areas are separated into groups it's easier to find what interests YOU.
I really don´t get what you mean...
A frontpage? Every forum has it´s frontpage, it´s the index or a portal.
You're not looking at what I'm saying carefully. Of course a forum has its own front presentation. But that's just a list opf threads with at most a strip along the top.
Why not have a Page - as XF offers - which can display pictures diagrams etc - not only for information but to make that area ATTRACTIVE and WELCOMING.
Plus who's who in this sector and a bit about them, and what the sector is about in a few paragraphs. Possible specific do's don'ts/ tips and guidance. Like the frontpage of a website.
Plus recent threads, favourite threads, sticked threads.
Plus a gallery if this is relevant. Maybe links to key users blogs.
Plus signup to this group and - prominently ENTER link to the group forum.
I mentioned Yahoo because this is exactly what you can do on Yahoo and it's helpful and pleasant.
If youre sections are so complicated, that you need pictures and diagrams etc. to describe the topic you´re doing something wrong.
Don't be rude. If you don't understand, ask questions and I'll answer. But jumping in saying I'm doing something wrong when it's the kind of thing I've done for over a decade very successfully is plain silly.
The closest to your example i experienced are the special regulations for a subforum to sell and buy equipment. We did this by simply posting a thread (and keep it sticky) in wich we explain how to do it right.
yes that's a limited kind of example but it doesn't NEED a Page. It could use one but not strictly necessary.
but perhaps for a sub-sector about a certain game having rules laid out on a page
or having any lists of key data relevant to a sector
but apart from practicalities this "front page" is about making the area attractive, magnetic, sticky, stylish - all things that draw people back. Image you could say.
This is also done in most boards i use without any groups.
Just a forum (in most cases with some subforums) for offtopic and thats it.
Well I want to do something less basic, more interesting, more community minded, more HUMAN, more elegant. I agree for purely basic information exchange it's not necessary. Though lists of key data or definitions of keywords might be. Key sites.
But for connecting PEOPLE in their complex ways of connecting, that's different. I thin k it's the difference between having a lookup info resource and building a community of people.
Handling these with groups is not encouraging new members to post in this section.
But it IS. Anything that makes the area more atractive more fun to use, makes you feel enriched/ stylish because you beloing to it - belonging bei8ng a deep magnetically primitive human trait - this all encourages exploring and posting.
