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by Greg Downing on Mon Mar 18, 2013 8:15 pm
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Thanks all for the feedback. I'm trying to understand how displaying the number of views and comments (which we do display on the thumbnail pages) has any effect of whether or not someone is apt to comment. The notion that the new format makes one less apt to comment on an image in also confusing to me. I personally don't see the correlation - for the most part feedback on that issue has been quite the opposite.
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by SantaFeJoe on Mon Mar 18, 2013 9:49 pm
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[quote=""Greg Downing"] The notion that the new format makes one less apt to comment on an image in also confusing to me. I personally don't see the correlation - for the most part feedback on that issue has been quite the opposite."[/quote]
I don't understand the correlation either, but it's true for me as well. I guess it may be the fact that we were used to navigating the old format and the change threw some of us off.

Joe
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by Neilyb on Tue Mar 19, 2013 6:32 am
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Greg Downing wrote:Thanks all for the feedback. I'm trying to understand how displaying the number of views and comments (which we do display on the thumbnail pages) has any effect of whether or not someone is apt to comment. The notion that the new format makes one less apt to comment on an image in also confusing to me. I personally don't see the correlation - for the most part feedback on that issue has been quite the opposite.
I think what is meant is that you are more likely to help someone with no comments if you can see that they have no comments?
 

by Greg Downing on Tue Mar 19, 2013 8:38 am
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You can can see how many comments and views each post has when viewing thumbnails (and obviously when opening an image to look at it you can see the comments.) But we drew a fine line between a nice looking gallery and a lot of messy text like a forum has (which was one of the #1 complaints of the past) - I think most would agree that less is more when it comes to galleries and trying to mix in text and stats but we certainly can't please everyone :D

It might be possible that we can set it up so that it's a user preference and if you want to go back to the old forum style for images you can have that option...
Greg Downing
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by signgrap on Tue Mar 19, 2013 9:53 am
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Greg, just took another look at the galleries in light of the comments that you just responded to and here are a couple of observations.  I believe having the quick reply box directly under the original posters image somehow gives the impression that no one has responded for you need to scroll down in order to see the comments.  So at first glance it looks as if no one has commented.  I'm not suggesting that you should change it but just giving an observation as to why so many believe that the new format is giving the impression that very few people are replying.  IMO the new galleries look great and I very much like the ability to scroll through the images and open the ones that interest me the most.  And as some have observed change is difficult particularly if you have been on the forum for years, so it may take a while before everyone is comfortable with navigating and understanding the new format.

Every once in a while I've heard the suggestion that perhaps we should have a gallery that is specifically geared to learning.  Where people post to ask for help with what ever is giving them a problem in a particular image.  IMO a gallery such as this may help encouraged the newbie photographer to post images.  The galleries in general have such high quality images that I'm sure most new photographers are intimidated and very reluctant to post as they are inclined to believe that their images don't measure up.
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by Greg Downing on Tue Mar 19, 2013 10:02 am
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Hi Dick - totally agree on the learning gallery and we're going to do that!

FWIW the quick reply has always been there directly under the image, even in the old layout. Perhaps having larger images and the new layout makes it feel different. You're right change is hard but we had to modernize things :)
Greg Downing
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[url=http://www.gdphotography.com/]Visit my website for images, workshops and newsletters![/url]
 

by CactusD on Tue Mar 19, 2013 6:48 pm
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I think it also depends on which forum you happen to spend most time hanging around in. I've found a very happy home in the Macro forum of late - well run by two excellent moderators, and with a steady stream of regular contributors from all over the world. I have to say that I was less happy when posting in the Birds forum (which I haven't done in a while) - for me it felt a bit too hectic, and not particularly welcoming to the relatively inexperienced - the imbalance in numbers of posts per image there could often be a little embarrassing. I'm also increasingly fascinated by Landscapes, but the forum is maybe a bit intimidating (quality of the shots is usually breath-taking!) - I definitely think that people there should be encouraged to spend a little more time explaining their shots and talking through exif, technique, and processes etc. to encourage NSNers to break in to this awesome treasury of knowledge. I've learned a lot there (just in case I ever get into landscapes properly!!), but there are still plenty of times when I'd wished that the OP had given more away! I now know that macro work can be incredibly time-consuming and technical and I try to share what I have learned, yet I also know that Landscape photography is maybe even more demanding still. Hope this makes sense, and I hope I'm not treading on anyone's toes!
Loving the new site, btw. I'm with Greg in thinking that the change in presentation of images in the galleries hasn't affected my perception of any change in number or quality of comments.
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by Tom Reichner on Tue Mar 19, 2013 11:26 pm
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Greg Downing wrote:  I'm trying to understand how displaying the number of views and comments (which we do display on the thumbnail pages) has any effect of whether or not someone is apt to comment. The notion that the new format makes one less apt to comment on an image in also confusing to me. I personally don't see the correlation - for the most part feedback on that issue has been quite the opposite.
Greg,
On other forums, it always shows who made the last comment (as it still does here on NSN's other sections).  

Often times, when I see that someone I know just commented on an image, it compels me to click on the thread to see what they just said.  Then, I am sometimes compelled to reply to what the most recent commenter said.  It becomes less about seeing the image and more abut bantering back and forth with other forum users.  I guess that's the difference between a "Gallery Style" presentation and a "Forum Style" format.  

Obviously, you decided that you wanted a more formal Gallery Style format, rather than a more gossipy, opinionated Discussion Forum way of doing things.  That is the direction you chose.  There are advantages to the changes you made, but it does seem less likely to garner a lot of comments than the other way.  More emphasis is now put on the images themselves, which means that some of the emphasis has been taken away from the comments made about the images.  There is only so much emphasis - if you add emphasis to one thing (the images), you have then taken it away from something else (the comments).
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