I received some more nice notes today from Lurkers and Newbies who will be posting here soon.
I hope the other folks here will join me in welcoming the new faces/posters this year.
With more people participating, we will ALL have more images to enjoy seeing on the forum.
Also, stay tuned...I have some ideas where more folks can enjoy participating here in some fun threads where there is not the pressure to be critiqued.
IF you are a newbie or lurker, don't hesitate to send me a PM. Tell me what you think would make for a better experience for YOU on the forum. Or tell me what keeps you from participating. Your thoughts are appreciated and may help to make this a better place.
One thing though..I am a little behind on followup to the PMs I receive. So, please don't expect an immediate reply. I will reply as soon as I can.
I recently spent some time looking over another forum (another site). It had many problems with the harshness of the comments and unfriendly atmosphere.
I think a friendly environment makes for a better learning environment with better communication and openness.
NateO wrote:
I am looking forward to posting some pictures once I get my DSLR. I currently only have a P&S.
Also, I would like to say that this is a pretty cool thing you are doing for the community Steady.
Howdy Nate,
Don't hesitate to post.
I have seen MANY beautiful and inspiring photos made with a P&S.
So, don't let a lack of a DSLR inhibit you (or anyone else reading this).
IF you do decide to post a picture made with a P&S, simply tell the forum in the introduction remarks to your picture. That will help others understand how you used the gear (whatever camera it was) and that way you won't get mistaken comments about using a different lens or such.
Good luck and light to you!
And...thanks for posting the kind words comment here too.
I received another nice note from a Newbie to FM. I have withheld the name, but here is a verbatim quote from the note. I think it is good for the forum to understand that many folks are somewhat intimidated to post here for various reasons. This is not the first note like this I have received that mentioned reluctance to post here on FM.
I hope we "Old Timers" can make them feel welcome here and encourage ALL to post here.
Here's the recent note:
"Steady, Very interesting post you've made here. I checked out the Tips pages and found them very informative. I've been lurking for a while and enjoying the posts and images. It seems, however, like most forums, there are those that have a holier than thou attitude (just my observation) which make it difficult for beginners to start posting. It's nice to see you trying to make it easier on the beginners. I'm just getting into digital photography, with no ambitions of being a pro but would like to see improvement in what I do. This post of yours is what encouraged me to register on the forum. Maybe I'll even post in the near future. Thanks for what you're doing. --Name Witheld to Protect Newbie Privacy "
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My Simple Suggestion: Do what YOU can to help new members here have a better experience on the forum. That leads to more people posting, more photos for ALL to see, and more fun for everyone.
My Suggestion to Anyone: If you don't like a post (such as this one), just skip it and help someone else with some constructive comments on their posts. Or start one yourself that adds something positive to the forum.
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This post is working to bring more people out from being lurkers to being posters and contributors here.
I continue to get notes (like the one posted a few comments above) from folks who tell me they will be posting soon based on the encouragement they received in this post.
I think it is a good thing to present a friendly atmosphere here and will continue to do my part to help others feel welcome to post what they want to share.
Please be aware Mr. Steady, I'm not attacking you on a personal level. I've ALWAY said you are no doubt a great guy, this is not in dispute. I just think that if the powers at be wanted this to be a sticky they would have made it so. Instead, you are forcing it to be a sticky by constently bumping it. YOUR post is SO valuable to newbies that you and a few others insist on bringing it to the top. Have you petitioned the mods to create a sticky for what you are trying to communicate in this post? I would never grumble over a sticky, but forcing your thoughts to the top all the time seems a bit much.
However, I do appreciate some of you contributions and believe you to be an *asset to this forum community.
*By no means does this mean I agree with ALL of your ramblings and over the top neutrality.
Brad Alexander wrote:
Please be aware Mr. Steady, I'm not attacking you on a personal level. I've ALWAY said you are no doubt a great guy, this is not in dispute. I just think that if the powers at be wanted this to be a sticky they would have made it so. Instead, you are forcing it to be a sticky by constently bumping it. YOUR post is SO valuable to newbies that you and a few others insist on bringing it to the top. Have you petitioned the mods to create a sticky for what you are trying to communicate in this post? I would never grumble over a sticky, but forcing your thoughts to the top all the time seems a bit much.
However, I do appreciate some of you contributions and believe you to be an *asset to this forum community.
*By no means does this mean I agree with ALL of your ramblings and over the top neutrality. ...Show more →
I don't expect anyone to agree with me.
But enough evidently do agree that this "Welcome to Newbies" thread is a good idea. Both people who have been active here a long time and....more importantly, those newbies and lurkers who have written to me via PM to express their thanks for the thread. I haven't posted many of those comments as I did not think them necessary at the time and I had other pressing issues. But, there have been many who written that they thought this post was valuable and useful and helpful to THEM.
This particular forum has very minimal moderation. So it is up to us as a group to try to do what we can to make this a nice place. This is just my contribution to that effort.
I started this after watching this forum devolve or decline during the early fall of 2009. At that time, there were several acrimonious threads going with hostility rampant. Several people were banned. There was even a post asking for a new moderator and questions of whether there was enough moderation on this forum. Several people actually wrote me that they were sick of the atmosphere here and that they were dropping out (for a while or for good). You would be surprised by their names as they were very prominent and popular "regulars."
So, this is my way of trying to encourage more people to join in the right way and have fun while here. If you read my #1 Tip you will better understand my POV.
Also, I continue to get PMs each day (including this morning) asking some of the same basic questions. So the reasoning I wrote up above in the original post is still valid.
I hope that helps you see my POV and better understand why this "Stickyless" forum has this post keep popping up.
