My editor's gene has been roused. Among the gizmos on the "Post" page is one allowing lengthy posts to be broken and continued on the next "page." It is two pieces of paper ripped zig-zag in half right between the moji button and the allignment button.
I can't prove this, but having to scroll down through a lengthy post every time you go back to that post to read the comments discourages readership.
It also allows more posts to remain on the landing page before they roll off.
ReplyDeleteGood point.
DeleteBtw, since I just started visiting this group: how insular are we? I could let my Facebook friends know that I'm blogging over here once in a while, but do we want new visitors? I'm really happy to jump right into the conversation with my old friends over here, but it seems like a relative handful are carrying the blogging and commenting load right now.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking just for myself (which should be obvious) I'd welcome more blog/chatters.
ReplyDeleteY'all are opening on a beautiful mountain scene, but I am opening on a menu of current and past posts. I hope I have learned to insert the break after saying enough to indicate where I'm going. But, since I don't see what you see when I come here, when/if I sin, please call it to my attention.
Openness and insularity both have their virtues.
ReplyDeleteSome insularity (parochialism) is necessary in order to create community, i.e. a framework for conversations.
A major part of the framework consists of the bloggers and commenters. We all have our styles both as bloggers and commenters.
My preferred style is to do one post a week and one comment a post as kind of a civic duty both to contribute and to acknowledge others contributions.
Like tom I open to the posting page rather than the mountains. The posting page is in a tab on my browser so if I refresh it I can detect changes in comments.
Having more commenters is generally a good thing as long as the comments are civil. The more commenter conversation the better.
Bloggers are more complex since blogging style varies more. If everyone would adopt my style of one and only one more substantial verbal post a week we would need more bloggers who would post once a week.
However many of the posts are simply links to an article with some introductory comments to start the conversation. People who have this posting style could easily post several times a week or even daily.
Crystal has included video, and music in her posts. I have included my own photography in mine. While all this offers a great possibility of enrichment, it also represents challenges. For example when I post a series of photographs, it takes a long time to scroll to the comments section.
Introducing new bloggers often means bringing them up to speed on their blogging skills (e.g. insert jump break).
I think this community would want to exercise great care in extending blogging privileges to someone, especially if they're not already well-known to us.
DeleteI don't really know if there are lurkers out there beyond us. I do think there is a wider world out there that would find this content enjoyable and thought-provoking. And a lot of people would find it infuriating. I'd hate to see, for example, some culture warriors come in here and start yelling at Crystal, or anyone else, in the comments for being liberal. I find that sort of thing really tiresome and unedifying.
Am I right in thinking our quiet and capable leader (David) lets people in on request? Or perhaps sometimes not. That is, we have the luxury of a gatekeeper.
ReplyDeleteAmong the issues that brought down dotCommonweal were trolls as well as regulars who weren't up to linear, rational posts and repartee (I will not name names). The New York Times "comments" are vetted (by gatekeepers) for good reason. It doesn't take much or many to skew discussions toward the absurd. Even here, there are examples now and again.
Opening up a blog to the world is a good way to destroy it.
I am not interested in "growing" the blog's readership. At the risk of sounding clubby, it was designed to keep a relatively congenial and compatible group together when Commonweal closed the blog.
ReplyDeleteIf people are looking for an interesting Catholic group, Commonweal is trying to build live discussion groups and a newsletter for The Young. Or they can start their own.
My opinion only.
I do know that my wife found us, when I mentioned that I had started posting here. Whether David had to let her in, or she simply Googled "NewGathering" and there we were, I am not sure.
ReplyDeleteI don't think she can post here unless David baptizes here. Could be mistaken.
DeleteI call this site "Commonweal in exile," so no one can find it.
I know the word "post" can be a little ambiguous. I wouldn't expect that any stranger can just wander in off the cyerstreets and be a contributor. Can they comment? Or are commenters subject to gatekeeper approbation?
DeleteThere isn't anyone in particular I have in mind to start commenting here; just wondering what the rules of the road are at present.
I don't mind if other peoples' friends and acquaintances show up here. I just don't want mine to. Particularly anybody from our parish. Which is why I post under my maiden name. I don't want people giving my husband a bad time because I sometimes voice a less than orthodox opinion. I don't think anyone would, but you never know.
DeleteOh oh, Jim, now you have to watch what you say.
ReplyDeleteTom, yep, just like when we're watching the news together.
ReplyDeleteWhen I first started my own blog, I belonged to a kind of network of religious bloggers and there were very many more people visiting and commenting. Sometimes there would be people who got in terrible fights in the comments section and of course there would be offensive comments and also spam. If that happens here, I suppose David, since this is his blog, will have to decide if he's going to delete comments or block people. Not fun making those decisions.
ReplyDeletePS - I would "insert jump" if that option was available in the HTML venue that I use, but it's not.
DeleteIf I understand Blogger correctly, there are various levels of allowed commenting, i.e. you can be open to comments from anyone that happens on the site, or comments from people willing to give their emails, to comments from only approved people, to "no comments allowed."
ReplyDeleteThe problem about allowing many people to comment is that someone has to monitor it. If I remember correctly on the old Commonweal blog that was the poster. They could remove undesired comments. I don't know if blogger has that capability.
I don't think we want to increase David's responsibilities. He has already provided us with a good platform. I think any "reforms" needed can be attended to by good conversations and mutual goodwill among us.
I am not on the roster of posters, but I can jump in and say anything I want. People could also come on here and post as Anonymous. I get some of those on my cancer blog, and I don't delete them (unless they're yammering about cannabis oil or something) because some people don't want to "come out" as having cancer. Comments are moderated, so I usually do pop them an e-mail to make sure they're legit.
Delete