... nah, I don't have the heart to mention it.

You are a positive influence on the forums, Paul - always looking out for others.

Respect!

Hi blondguy,

Thank you for bringing this to the top of the forum lists, however the maintenance took place last night.

Thank you very much for being a support for community and preparing other users for the possibility of the forum being offline.

thankyou tranzcrybe for understanding :-)

Paul

Hi Sophie,

I often see a new post, and by the time I have thought about a reply and go back to it, it has been moved, and it's very difficult to find out where it has gone - sometimes I have to give up. These are first posts from new people here and they seem to get hidden away very fast under one of the sub-headings here.

Is there some way to move them off New Posts less fast, or how can we know where the post has been moved to? Is there some way of assisting those of us who are trying to respond to newcomers & find we have lost their post? Thanks!

Hi Hanna3,

Thanks for raising this issue. We hadn't considered how difficult it is for users to find a post once it has been moved to another forum. We can't think of any permanent solution at the moment but will be sure to raise this with the development team. 

For the moment, you're welcome to email us at modsupport@beyondblue.org.au and we will likely be able to direct you to the post. 

Thanks again Hanna :) 

Hi Hanna3, if you like I can assist with your issue of losing posts or threads.

When you discover a thread you want to participate in, use your web browser to bookmark that page and add the bookmark to a folder called "beyond blue bookmarks" or similar. Then with each new thread, just click onto favourites and send it to the appropriate folder.

Another way is to recall the time/date you first looked at the thread, and open up your web browser history and locate that time in your chronologically ordered history. It'll show up there certainly, unless u actively tell the browser to not save browsing history.

Feel free to ask questions or google the process on youtubes for your particular browser.

good luck have fun = glhf dng.

Thanks Sophie I've had to search for ages sometimes to find them again and often they have still not been noticed. I don't like to see first posters here be left too long without at least a greeting as it can take a lot of courage to post on BB.

It would be great if some way of tracing them could be worked out!

Thanks for responding!

I think it would be helpful if we could delete our own posts. Last night I made a silly error and felt very embarrassed by it - it would have helped if I could have deleted this post and written it again.

Dear Added~

If it is something you consider important you can always report your post using the REPORT POST red link and write to the moderators explaining the problem and ask them to delete it, if they agree (they are pretty accommodating) it will go.

Hope this helps

Croix

Hello Added, agree with Croix, that's the best way to delete your comment.

Geoff.

Thanks Croix, I will remember this for any future mistakes!!! But I do wonder why we can't delete our own posts? Do you know why this options is not available?

Dear Added~

There are many times I have wanted to change a post I've just written and maybe when we have a new system that could be included.

Croix

Hi Croix and Added

Just popping in to let you know there is another thread dedicated to the forum upgrade. My understanding is that if you want something included in the upgrade you post in the Forums changes - updates thread! I'm not really sure what this thread is about any more.

Also not sure that anybody is taking suggestions from here and including them in the other thread, if you know what I mean.

However, having said that, we haven't heard from anybody in over a month (there were going to be weekly updates) on the Forum Upgrade thread so not sure that it's still active or what's happening with it either.

If Sophie's around maybe she can explain it??

Dear Summer Rose~

I do know all suggestions on these two threads and elswhere are noted (as has been the editing suggestion).
There is no need to be concerned these matters will not be considered, Beyond Blue is putting a lot of genuine effort into a revised platform.

HTH

Croix

Hello Croix

Thank you for your assurances.

My point is this …

When people make a suggestion or raise a concern they want to know that they’ve been heard and that the time they spent raising the issue was worth it. They also want to know if action is going to be taken or why not.

Imagine raising a concern of importance to you with any other business/organisation and not receiving even an acknowledgment but being told a blanket expression of “your ideas matter” posted on a website is your response.

Now imagine that the same company is in the middle of a huge transformation that will affect you and you are assured regular hopefully weekly updates but they don’t materialise for close to two months—without an explanation as to why.

Change communication is a really important part of bringing people along with you on the journey. It helps reduce anxiety on what is usually a difficult journey for many stakeholders. It helps to build trust and engagement in the process.

bb usually does it really well. In this instance, as a community member who once felt invested and involved in the change process, I remain disappointed.

Kind thoughts to you

Hi everyone ☺

Before I continue I'd like to be very clear that I'm not targeting any particular members. I'm talking in general.

Often on the random times I come to this thread it seems there's a constant flow of negative feedback about the upgrades and "promised" changes.

I understand there are genuine legitimate complaints and reasons for people to be wanting improvements.
That'd go for everyone here including bb.

This is how I see the situation.

I have no doubt bb more than anyone would want here to be improved.
A better work space making their and our lives easier.

Most of us don't know what delays/reasons are happening behind the scenes right or wrong.

It'll happen and is from my understanding definately on it's way.
It'd be a mammoth task.
They can only do what they can do.

Covid for one example's impacted so many people in many varied ways which wouldn't only put enormous extra work load onto bb it also could & assuming has probably affected staff in some form.

As we all know this came on fast and unexpectedly which has created a marked increase in postings which in turn would have increased their work load to max that already I'd think's full on.

Imo and I know most agree here's an absolutely life saving in many cases and incredibly good safe place to be that does so much good for us here on the forums and Australia wide.

One of the strongest rules they enforce here's not to put pressure on members.
Maybe we could reciprocate.

Thank you for what you do bb and everyone including members for what you do supporting eachother and for just being here in this community.

⚘

Hi demonblaster

Agree with everything you said, 100 per cent.

My disappointment relates to what I perceive to be a lack of communication at a significant moment. People are engaged and wanting to help and make a contribution to enhancing our community. Real communication and partnership was emerging.

Messages to say, “We’re working through some complex challenges right now and we aim to get back to you with an update in a few weeks and/or months” or whatever the case may be are just respectful in the engagement process.

The silence leaves a void that gets filled with doubt, conjecture, etc.

Sorry if I upset you or anyone else with my post. I’m actually trying to support the process by pointing out how it could be tweaked to ensure bb doesn’t lose community engagement. I take your point though, I could have expressed the concern in a better way.

Kind thoughts to you

Thanks Summer for your reply ☺

No it wasn't you specifically it was aimed generally.

I do know how it can feel to not be answered. Might have been ? unintentional or maybe slipped her mind accidentally.

They'd be pretty flat out I'd say. Just going by what you mentioned in fairness you were initially replied too with a solid reason by the sounds.

Appreciating you communicating

Take care darl I'll no doubt catch you around the forums at times ☺

Hiyaz ☺

Some emails have a choice of 3 well worded responses.

There are times no matter how hard I try and no doubt others too it feels like... geez can't think now either. Yip like insincere but want the person to be aware they're been heard not ignored and/or they'll be back another time.

? Something like that system would be good.

Thanks ⚘

Hi Summer Rose

You have always spoken from the heart. The 'new' improvements were taken on board back in 2017-2018-2019

Then the brakes were applied unfortunately. Croix is correct when he mentioned that BB is putting a lot of effort into improvement of the forums

I'm not certain if it's 'genuine' though as there is no feedback provided in this or the other thread

Great post and thankyou!

My kindest always

Paul

The last feedback was at start of September on this thread. The last feedback on the update forum thread was 10 September. So there has been feedback.

Hi Everyone, thanks Summer Rose and others for your comments, and for a long time I've been on the forums and in all those years all we hear about and have heard, is that the forums will be upgraded and this was well before the COVID, but month after month nothing happens.

I appreciate all the work BB does, don't get me wrong, but we don't see any changes to the online forums, all we hear is that there are going to be updates, these have been set, that have long past, so I wonder whether this is going to happen as we draw close to another year very soon.

Could we possibly have a definite date, not in a few months time, that's been said far too often and has not happened.

Remember we all work hard providing help to others and just want some honesty.

Geoff.

I still see new people posting on BB and the initial post is moved to a sub-heading so fast I lose it before responding and I find some new posts sitting with no responses or welcome days later, because nobody knows they are there.

I don't know the solution to this problem but I draw people's attention to it. Can the people running BB take a look at this problem. It is not OK for new people to get no response for days. Thanks.

Dear Hanna3~

I have to say that there has been a marked decrease in posts that have not been answered reasonably promptly, and this is due to an increase in Community Champions and a new method by Moderators. That is not to say it might never happen, particularly if a new poster posts on the end of an existing thread, but overall the situation is better.

Should you find a post that has gone unanswered for an excessive time (and here I do not mean just a day or so) then by all means report it, or if you feel it is appropriate pop a response in yourself - it does not have to be long, though your posts are pretty spot-on and helpful.

(As there is a constant search of unanswered posts which are a day or so old they are normally picked up anyway)

In relation to the change of Section for a thread, yes they can be placed in a more appropriate place, often promptly. This as you would appreciate is to get potentially distressing matters out of the Welcome Area and at the same time, by placing the thread in a more appropriate Section increase the chances of the poster attracting attention and being replied to.

I'm not sure how to overcome this difficulty if you have not posted, perhaps simply making a note of the poster's name or thread name and searching for it. If you have in fact posted in a thread and it is moved your link should remain valid in your My Threads list.

I don't know if that helps at all, I hope so

Croix

Hi Croix,

Thanks for your reply mate! I didn't know extra effort was going on to try to ensure newcomers are responded to promptly. It bothers me to think of new people posting - which can be scary - and then not receiving a timely response, so what you've said is reassuring.

I am usually not where I can write down a note of the post and I often have limited time and energy to write a good response but I hadn't thought to report the post, so good idea and thank you!

I appreciate your help and many thanks Mr Croix!

Hello Croix, it's good there has been an increase in Community Champions but I'm having some difficulty seeing their replies and if a 'new method' has been employed, then how do you know and no one else.

Geoff.

Hi Hanna,

I suggested a while ago that first posts should be made 'sticky' (pinned). This keeps them 'current' until at least one person replies.

>> If postcount = 1

>> Then 'pinned'

>> Else 'unpinned'

Perhaps there are some rarely visited pinned threads that could be archived to make room for a special 'first posters' category in the relevant section and also at the top of 'New threads'?

Since many new CC's are psych students, a notification based on field specialty/interest might connect the relevant support in the first instance to just touch base. While mod support does trigger effectively a response, there is some predictability in the content which can come across as impersonal/contrived at times.

Dear Tranzcrybe~

I think you have seen part of the problem and come up with at least a part solution, and that's great. Please don't think I'm being critical by giving you a fuller response, just filling you in.

Flagging new threads where the poster's postcount=1 is certainly a most desirable feature.

In addition new threads where the poster's postcount>1 means the poster has said something (which may be highly significant) previously, and needs to be looked up before answering.

The really difficult one is picking up new posters who post in an existing thread, very easy to overlook.

I'm not sure about categorization new champs becuse they are undertaking a course of study. Champs are all volunteers, and like everyone else here have had difficulties to overcome in their lives

Flagging a certain sort of post to a particular Champ may cause undue stress and pressure. In my own case I go looking for some to answer and others to avoid. It would not work well if I felt a constant obligation to answer particular posts.

Croix

Hi Croix, it's important to reply to someone who has got back to you, because they have been able to assimilate with your comments.

If we don't reply back to them then they may disappear and not come back, because there may be a specific question they want to know, we can't leave them to wonder and not have any direction from someone who has been through the same experience.

I've been a volunteer here for 20 years and endeavour to answer anyone who comes back to me and if I do happen to miss their query or answer then I apologise, it's not my intention at all.

I certainly don't differentiate to whom I reply to, everyone is the same wanting help and as a volunteer that's what I signed up to 20 years ago.

Geoff.

If you dont change, you wont change, but Ill leave the details up to you! Although, I suggest you keep the name for a while. The more I think about it the more I like it! "Blue" is a colour that can mean many things. It is mostly an objective description. For example "that ball is blue" However, this is incorrect. The blue is a description from the observers point of view and if we use physics then the "blue" is a field that extends throughout the entire universe (if we had a powerful enough telescope) according to the inverse square rule. Ie, we all share each others depression.

Alternatively, we could think subjectively. Eg "im blue". However this denotes an infinitesimally small instant in time, which is as absurd as an incorrectly conceived "infinitely long" period without hope. What time is is a transition. It is never a single instance, for if it is, it disappears (the mathematics of absolute zero should here satisfy any scienticians). This brings me back to the name "beyond blue" it works! It supports a transition! Please keep it (until you can transition into a better one of course lol)