# Stuck Threads.



## MB1 (Jan 27, 2004)

For the last few years I have made a practice of "Sticking" (this locks the thread to the top of the page) any and all photo threads with at least 4 images submitted in the Commuting/Touring Forum. After there have been no new replies for a day or two (or if the thread has been stuck for 4 or more days) I have "Un-Stuck" the thread and it falls into the regular que.

I felt that this rewarded posters that that went to the all the trouble of taking photos, processing them and uploading them into a thread. These threads are my favorite part of this forum and as a matter of fact my favorite part of this site.

I made no distinction of quality of content or image quality in sticking threads. Any thread with a bunch of images got stuck.

In addition there have been 2 threads perma-stuck in this forum; a "How to Post Photos" and a index of the years photo threads that Scot Gore maintained. In total there have been as many as 18 threads stuck at any one time.

Now I have been instructed by the site management to have no more than 6 "Stuck" threads at any one time (I believe this policy was not caused by anything that happened in the Commuting/Touring Forum). I am unsure how to carry on. If I or someone else decides which threads are worthy of being stuck how do the posters whose threads are not chosen feel? If threads are not stuck will folks post as many interesting threads?

Anyway, give me some feedback here folks. Should I just forget about sticking photo posts? Should I pick one every week? Should I just go on a 6-day drinking binge?

Help me out here.


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## tarwheel2 (Jul 7, 2005)

Personally, I think this forum has too many sticky threads. Although I appreciate the photo threads as much as anyone, all of the stickies has the effect of limiting discussion on topics such as commuting and touring. You frequently have to scroll down quite a bit to find current discussions.


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## gutfiddle (Apr 27, 2006)

I like beer, it makes me a jolly good fellow...

but srsly, use ur discretion MB1 you know which are 'worthy' of sticky status and if there are a bunch (over 6) at a given time u make the call which gets pruned, but you better not cut any of mine you sonnofa*****!


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## treebound (Oct 16, 2003)

Depending upon how much effort you want to put into this and how much extra work it would be, I will make a suggestion or three:

1. One sticky FAQ thread containing links to the How To Post A Picture thread, a clean link to the Scot Gore photo thread, and to other threads that would be good to have a clean link to ( like the parts source threads in the fixed section ).

2. Good photo essay threads, good being defined by you since you have the sticky key power  , can be stickied for a day to ensure they get seen. Then active posting will keep them floating at the top of the thread structure after that.

3. "Special" threads can be stickied for more than a day, such as the Arby exhibit thread.

Don't know if these comments help or not, hope they help a little. Apart from that, if you do go on a 6-day binge then bring the camera and takes lots of pics.


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## wooglin (Feb 22, 2002)

Not much help from me MB1. At times there are more threads stickied than I care for, but I think your policy of stickying all the photo threads makes sense. Given your directive from above, however, I think you're just going to have to suck it up and make the call on what gets stickied and what doesn't yourself. After all, they're giving you a raise, right?


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## Dave Hickey (Jan 27, 2002)

Limited stuck ride report threads is a shame in my opinion...ride reports are a threads that don't need multiple replies to enjoy... If they aren't stuck they will drop quickly to the bottom/next page...

I guess I've have to scroll down to view them now...just my 2 cents......


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## Thommy (Sep 23, 2003)

Ultimately you have to do what is fair and what you and the other moderators feel is best for the boards. I enjoy all the photos posted and I appreciate someone else doing all the hard work here. If I need to find something I either get lucky by scrolling or I'll use the "search" box. Thank you for asking for our opinions. And thanks to everyone for the great photos.


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## FatTireFred (Jan 31, 2005)

maybe some other notation to signify an outstanding report (little icon on the left?), but I agree that there were way too many stickies cluttering up the top 3/4 of the page


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## abiciriderback (Jun 8, 2005)

Personally I do not care if I get a sticky on my ride reports or not I just enjoy sharing the area I live and ride in. Guess I'm saying it won't make me feel any less worthy if I do not get a sticky. Like Dave said I'll just have to scroll down more to make sure I don't miss looking at any ride reports

Just my 2cents worth

Ray Still


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## gowencm (Mar 4, 2007)

Is there any chance we could get a second forum for ride reports from commuting/touring? I enjoy the content of both, and I agree that the photo reports are very likely to get squeezed out by normal discussion threads. 

On the other hand, I'm here practically daily anyway, so the one-day limited sticky would probably suit me fine. We could all pitch in to comment-bump worthy threads that sink to the bottom, too.

The photo reports are definitely my favorite part of this site. My post count will attest that I don't often have much to say, and I confess to mostly being a leech on other people's photo posts. But really, what better daydreaming fuel is there than following rides from your desk at work?


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## mohair_chair (Oct 3, 2002)

I think you have a good policy on sticky threads, and I don't think you should change it. What are they going to do, fire you? Seriously, how often do you end up with more than six sticky threads anyway? As a moderator, you are asked to make judgment calls, and I think that includes occasionally breaking the "rules."


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## blackhat (Jan 2, 2003)

mohair_chair said:


> I think you have a good policy on sticky threads, and I don't think you should change it. What are they going to do, fire you? Seriously, how often do you end up with more than six sticky threads anyway? As a moderator, you are asked to make judgment calls, and I think that includes occasionally breaking the "rules."


I agree with that entirely. ignore francois, you have/had a good system. stick with it (no pun intended).


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## Fixed (May 12, 2005)

*balance*

A little balance would be good. Recently, I counted 17 stickies at once. Had to scroll at least half way down the page to find current threads.

Also, some threads may merit as much attention, even if they don't have several photos. 

A few stickies are fine. Don't think people will get upset if they don't get the sticky treatment or if you remove the sticky to make room for new ones.


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## commutenow (Sep 26, 2004)

Do what you like because you take the time to do it.


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## Pablo (Jul 7, 2004)

Not to gripe, but I once posted a ride report on a ride I did with lots of photos that was not stickied for whatever reason. It must have slipped through the cracks. I was sort of bummed becasue a lot of people probably didn't have a chance to see it. I wondered what the point was. 

That said, I like your system.


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## Ridgetop (Mar 1, 2005)

I don't know MB1. All those stickies wasted .000001 seconds of my time to scroll down. Good grief, if one thing never bothered me on this forum was how many stickies there were. I love the pictures and the ride reports and love boring people with my own. I wish I could say ignore the powers that be but I don't want you to get yelled at or dismissed, or sent to internet purgatory or whatever they can do to you. I say use your best judgement and sticky the ones you want up there. I know mine will be at the top anyway ! 

And for anyone who's complained about the stickies or can't take .00000001 seconds of their day to scroll down. . . . .pppphhhhhhbbbbbbbbbbbbbbt!


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## Scot_Gore (Jan 25, 2002)

Pablo said:


> Not to gripe, but I once posted a ride report on a ride I did with lots of photos that was not stickied for whatever reason. It must have slipped through the cracks. I was sort of bummed becasue a lot of people probably didn't have a chance to see it. I wondered what the point was.
> 
> That said, I like your system.


It was an oversight. Like everyone MB1 and myself miss threads, they roll to page 2 between our visits and I at least seldom visit page two on this sub board.

Scot


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## Wonger (Oct 29, 2005)

*Keep Some Stickies*

MB1, please use your editorial judgment (certainly the best-qualified among us) to keep a few stickies available. I find them very helpful.


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## Scot_Gore (Jan 25, 2002)

I had not heard the new "policy", I saw that nothing was stickied and avoided putting them back and figured something was up. 

To meet the boss halfway I would suggest we propose a time rule for C/T. As an example, all photo posts with a first post age <= 3 days old and if it goes over 6 posts, so be it, time will heal the wound.

My suggestion.

Scot


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## Scot_Gore (Jan 25, 2002)

More thoughts:
1) I don't think the photo post instructions need to stay stickied here since they are anchored on the right side bar.

2) With all the time I have into the Index post I would like to see it stay. If it drops off I would likely stop updating it since it gets no replies and no one would ever see it again.

Scot


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## jupiterrn (Sep 22, 2006)

A six day drinking binge is what I believe is called for.
Other than that I have to say I lurk in here quite often because I have not figured out how to resize photos to post. Teh Moreon gave me a site and I will be looking it up when I get back from vacation next week. I love to look at folks pictures but I feel if folks want to look they will find it. Yours are some of the ones I look forward to seeing in here on a regular basis. Yours and the folks lucky enough to be riding around Europe, the bastids (jealousy). Do what you think is fair but if folks want to look they will look if not, oh well.


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## Ridgetop (Mar 1, 2005)

If you use a Mac I can't help you, but if you use a PC go with picasa from Google. Works great to resize and do basic editing. About as simple as you could ask for.


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## Pablo (Jul 7, 2004)

Scot_Gore said:


> It was an oversight. Like everyone MB1 and myself miss threads, they roll to page 2 between our visits and I at least seldom visit page two on this sub board.
> 
> Scot


Several years of therapy have allowed me to accept it.  

No worries. You all do an amazing job.


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## tarwheel2 (Jul 7, 2005)

"And for anyone who's complained about the stickies or can't take .00000001 seconds of their day to scroll down. . . . .pppphhhhhhbbbbbbbbbbbbbbt!"

You could say the same thing about ride reports. Why not just scroll down the page to read them? My point was that there are a lot of threads related to commuting and touring that I feel get overlooked because they got topped by stickies with ride reports about someone tooling around their neighborhood. I also enjoy the ride reports, but I don't mind scrolling down the page to read them. Plus it's easy to identify the threads with photos attached.


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## jupiterrn (Sep 22, 2006)

Thanks I will try that.


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## bigbill (Feb 15, 2005)

This is a tough issue. I believe that I am doing my part by not carrying a camera on my commute anymore. I am not trying to sound condescending here, but what if you give "sticky priority" status to new posters to encourage them to post more. I have posted hundreds of pictures on this forum and the regulars are going to click on my posts anyway. Same goes for you, ridgetop, DrRoebuck, etc.


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## dumbaSS (Mar 18, 2007)

Actually I felt compelled to ask why there were so many stuck threads in this forum several times. But I never did in fear of being labeled the grouch that I am.

I believe in natural selection in forums for what it's worth, I mostly skipped right over the Stickies because there were so many.


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## gutfiddle (Apr 27, 2006)

jupiterrn said:


> Thanks I will try that.


there's a ton of image storing sites that u can upload ur pixxors to and embed them into poasts, i happen to use photobucket and it is super easy, flickr and shutterfly are a couple others.


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## Brick Tamland (Mar 31, 2006)

I like the stickies because then I know which ones are photo reports. If you embed photos, you don't get the camera icons, and chances are I'll skip it. 

So I vote for letting MB1 do it the way he has been doing it.


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## Chain (Dec 28, 2006)

I like the stickeys. My morning routine is to come to the commuting forum and check out all the pics posted from the previous day and evening. I enjoy seeing everyones travels and commutes while I have my morning caffiene. 

Stickeys make it easy to see everything that is new once a day. If not for the stickeys I would miss quite a bit.

MB1 - keep being stuck up. :thumbsup: I mean that in a nice way


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## JP (Feb 8, 2005)

So we are victims of our success. You see too many people are contributing too much good stuff! ;-)

Honestly, since MB does this for us all, I'm very happy with whatever he thinks is best. 

The worst thing would be to have someone (especially someone new) feel they were slighted.


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## oarsman (Nov 6, 2005)

I have mixed feelings about this. I really like the ride reports with photos: my favourite thing on RBR. I check nearly every day, so I will likely see the new reports. My concern about not using stickies is that photo threads are not necessarily the most "active". Unless you have a particular question, there is little to say other than "great shots" or "would love to go there". The ride reports would soon drop off the first page.

I say use your discretion, but don't be modest about it. The last thing I would want is for you to stop putting stickies on your own posts out of some misplaced sense of fairness.


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## RedRex (Oct 24, 2004)

Stickys absolutely suck. They restrict the amount of diversity displayed on the front page, whereas 50% of my view ends up being photo reports. 

Popular thread stay at the top due to activity, while unpopular threads fall. This is the way it should be, IMHO.

Stickys......suck. I never look at anything that says "sticky" on it. I immediately scroll down to the last one.


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## MB1 (Jan 27, 2004)

*Lol*



RedRex said:


> Stickys absolutely suck. .....Stickys......suck. I never look at anything that says "sticky" on it. I immediately scroll down to the last one.


You looked at this one!  

BTW just joshing with ya. :thumbsup:


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## RedRex (Oct 24, 2004)

*"I immediately scroll down to the last one."*


I think this thread was the "last" one today. 

Finally. :thumbsup:


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## ispoke (Feb 28, 2005)

gutfiddle said:


> ...but srsly, use ur discretion MB1 you know which are 'worthy' of sticky status and if there are a bunch (over 6) at a given time u make the call which gets pruned, but you better not cut any of mine you sonnofa*****!


I think posters who attempt to spell their words whole (even if dyslexic) should enjoy priority sticky status. No offense.

But seriously, I trust MB1's judgement if he needs to select what he considers the 'best' for a smaller sticky list. I don't mind scrolling since my trackball has a scroll wheel. Perhaps simple mousers have more risk of carpel tunnel...


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## Sledgehammer03 (Mar 7, 2006)

I like the MB1 way. I usually try to avoid the "which back pack", etc questions. YOu can pretty much rell who is goingto chime in, and what they will say. Phote report roolz :thumbsup:


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## 10ae1203 (Jan 14, 2007)

I'm a guest here, and don't pay anything to participate. Because of that, I suppose that the mgmt. can do as they please. Just the same, I like the idea pf preference going to the new peoples.


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## MB1 (Jan 27, 2004)

10ae1203 said:


> I'm a guest here, and don't pay anything to participate. Because of that, I suppose that the mgmt. can do as they please. Just the same, I like the idea pf preference going to the new peoples.


Post a report, I'll stick it! :thumbsup:


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## Fixed (May 12, 2005)

*"I'd stick it!"*



MB1 said:


> Post a report, I'll stick it! :thumbsup:


... amending phrase from the Lounge... ;-)


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## threesportsinone (Mar 27, 2007)

Is it possible to make "Ride Reports" separate from "Commuting and Touring"? 

Obviously there is enough interest in ride reports that you almost always have more than 6 stickies at a time (when was the last time you saw 6 new-ish threads in coaching?). There is also enough interest in commuting and touring advice as people are having a hard time getting to those threads with all the stickies.


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## rodar y rodar (Jul 20, 2007)

*Bummer.*

Honestly, when I initially stumbled into this forum, the first thing I thought was "WTF is the deal with three hundres stickies?" I agree that it makes photo posts easier to find. Not all of them have the little symbol next to them (this might be what Brick Tamland said- I`m not sure). When I realized how it worked and that they were only temporary stickies, I got to like it a lot. I have no idea who the management is or how things work but here`s my vote:

1. Submit a policy similar to how it works now, but maybe with a shorter time frame, and request permision to follow that policy even when the number of stickies goes above the limit.
2. If that doesn`t fly, skip stickifying ride reports across the board.

Never know, maybe it would turn out better without sticky posts. As much as I like the way it is, a surprising number don`t agree with me. They`re wrong, of course.


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## Kolossal (Feb 12, 2007)

Stick only your threads MB1, you take the best pics. 

I trust your judgment.


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## bigrider (Jun 27, 2002)

I like minimal stickys. I think three is a good number and think the mods make the decisions on their own what to stick. If there is a good ride report I always try to make a comment. This is for a couple of reasons. First, I want to let the poster know I appreciate the time they took to create the ride report. Second, if the post isn't stuck, my comment will bump it to the top. 


With that said, I think that ride reports don't get as many replies as other threads because they kind of stand on their own. There is no need to reply with advice or an opinion. Commuting and Touring ride reports are my favorite part of RBR.


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## Squidward (Dec 18, 2005)

threesportsinone said:


> Is it possible to make "Ride Reports" separate from "Commuting and Touring"?
> 
> Obviously there is enough interest in ride reports that you almost always have more than 6 stickies at a time (when was the last time you saw 6 new-ish threads in coaching?). There is also enough interest in commuting and touring advice as people are having a hard time getting to those threads with all the stickies.


How about a "Ride Reports" forum that people cannot create new posts for? Only the moderators can move threads into it but the ability to post replies to these threads is kept so that people can comment?


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## fasteddy07 (Jun 4, 2007)

I liked how things were. The reason I would hang out here first.
Only six?
You pick. I am down with that.


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## Velo Vol (Mar 9, 2005)

I'm not a commuter; the ride reports are the main reason I come here. My suggestions (in order of preference):

(1) Create a photo ride reports subforum.

(2) Continue the existing use of stickies.

(3) [If there is a hard sticky thread limit] select the best current threads (based on quality and geographic diversity) and pin those.


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## Chris H (Jul 7, 2005)

Well, I like the stickies. Mainly because that tells me where the pictures are and it gives me time to go back and read them later on busy days. Since I'm on a bike forums (and a sub sub forum at that), obviously I'm not in a rush to get things done so having to take a minute to scroll down to get to non picture threads is no big deal. This is the best time waster that exist IMO.

However, as someone who post pics frequently... it wouldn't bother me a bit if mine didn't get stickied. However I do love to look at pictures from others. A way to let me know a post has pics for those who embed (like me) would be a plus.


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## weltyed (Feb 6, 2004)

i like it when photo posts get stickied. it makes me feel as if it wont get lost. sometimes we go to a lot of trouble posting the things.

(btw, thanks for all you do, MB)


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## DrRoebuck (May 10, 2004)

Kolossal said:


> Stick only your threads MB1, you take the best pics.
> 
> I trust your judgment.


Kiss-ass. :wink:


Anyway, stickies should stay. As others have said, it's nice to differentiate between photo posts (the nut of this entire site) and regular commuting/touring posts. The scrolling doesn't bother me. I mean, it's scrolling. It's not like I have to turn on a different computer and stand near a window in order to see the non-photo posts.

Why don't you post a poll and show the results to the powers that be? Whatever we vote for wins. IME they can be pretty flexible dudes.

P.S.
For those who don't like the scrolling, might I humbly suggest one of these:


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## majura (Apr 21, 2007)

I mainly come to RBR for the Ride Report threads. These posts are an integral part of this board and the community that exists here. I thoroughly enjoy seeing what other people like me are doing and where they're going. I love the ability to view the threads and not having to post and simply enjoy them. (Much unlike the Passion board on MTBR where a good thread will be replaced by a million "what bike/fork/brakes should I buy?" threads). 

I really appreciate your posts and the work you do for this board. Having those ride reports stickied is a great way to run the board IMO. Anyway, everyone has the ability to scroll quickly: a) scroll wheel on mouse b) scrolling on trackpad and if the poor sods have neither c) use the space bar! 

If the powers above *must* limit you to only having 6 stickies than here's what I think should happen...

1) The 'How To' and 'RBR Photo Posts' should be linked at the top of the page like a few threads are on the 29er forum at MTBR Like the _29er Photo Thread_ and _Lurkers share the wealth_ threads. Hence freeing up 2 of 6 Stickied threads.

2) Instead of choosing who's photo threads are most valuable, sticky the 6 most recent posts. I'm not disinclined to you choosing which posts should be stickied, but it just might adversely affect some people. Otherwise I'd rather that you were left to choose the 6 best posts.


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## KeeponTrekkin (Aug 29, 2002)

*Yes to Stickies....*

Photo Ride Reports are what it's all about on this forum.

Having a sticky on a report gives the less frequent visitor a chance to see them.

I'd hate to miss a good ride report because a number of threads got started on the best tires, wheels, bike, backpack, cyclocomputer, shoes, pedals, lights, etc. for commuting...

PS, ride reports with food should get extra points in the sticky allocation process.


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## JohnnyTooBad (Apr 5, 2004)

Set it up like EmptyBeer (MTBR), where they have a "Passion" forum for all the ride reports and pics, and a Commuter forum. Call 'em whatever you want. But as a commuter, I read both the ride reports and the commuter threads, and a) they are very different and warrant separate forums, and b) I don't like that a lot of the commuter stuff gets pushed off the 1st page because of a dozen or more stuck ride reports.


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## DrRoebuck (May 10, 2004)

DrRoebuck said:


> Why don't you post a poll and show the results to the powers that be? Whatever we vote for wins. IME they can be pretty flexible dudes.


I'm bumping this because it's such a good idea, but it was the last post on previous page so it'd get lost for sure. :thumbsup: 

My two problems with MB1 having to choose the best 6 stickies are 1) That's gonna end up offending some people down the line, and 2) That creates more work for him.


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## FlynG (Aug 23, 2006)

MB1, I like the stickies. I am net nannied out of RBR most days at work. So having a stickie for a few days allows me to look at them quickly without scrolling through pages looking for new ones.

If we are limited to 6. I trust your skillz to pick the ones to show by skill, composition, or just gotta see this even if it was a phone pix.


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## endure26 (Jan 27, 2005)

I guess I have more to worry about than stuck threads. Makes no difference to me. However, from what I've seen...cream naturally rises to the top and the majority of photo threads qualify [also seems the same applies to some threads that cause social or political issue/humor].


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## phil. (Aug 3, 2004)

MB1 - I like the stickies and the way you've been doing things. My thought is that if the ride report threads with pics aren't going to be stickied any longer, it would be nice if there was some sort of flag the posters could select when posting a ride report with pics. It would be doubly nice if the forum users could sort by that flag, making it easy to find ride reports with photo's if that's what they were looking for.

Oh, another thought: Have the powers-that-be create a new thread view option (how you select threaded/hybrid/etc...) called "MB1 View", where you flag threads you want stickied for the MB1 view only. Users who like the current system and just select the MB1 view and not have to deal with any change and you can keep doing what you are doing.

Yes, I know that none of my options will probably happen :-(


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