Hi, everyone. Some of you already know about that site. I just found out about it today. There’s a thread on that site suggesting a merger of this board with that one - http://foodtalkcentral.com/t/can-we-offer-hungry-onion-a-chance-to-join-us/365 - but I haven’t seen a similar thread on this site. I don’t know how it would work logistically, but it makes some sense to me, as Hungry Onion and FTC use the same software and both sites are based on a core moderation and membership by current or former Chowhound members. There might be side issues, though. For example, some people on this site don’t want to tolerate four-letter words, whereas a couple of posters on that site like to use them.
Anyway, I thought it would make sense to put this talk out in the open and see what people are thinking. I have no clear preference between the two new sites.
I think the positives of merging would outweigh the negatives, so I support it.
What I wonder about is how much of a hassle it would be for the leaders of the two sites. Decision-making must be a pretty simple and streamlined process at each site now, and I don’t know how well the people involved know each other and how that would impact the merged site.
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Harters
(John Hartley - a culinary patriot eating & cooking in Northwest England)
9
This is a tricky one – not least as both boards are only days old – but I have a feeling that there is safety in numbers. I have little doubt that the discussion board format has life in it yet but it is very much in decline. I’ve seen a number of boards, food and non-food, close under the pressure from other outlets whether it be the likes of personal blogs, Twitter, Facebook or, even, TripAdvisor restaurant reviews. For example, the eGullet UK board used to have a small but very active contributor base – almost exclusively fellow Britons who posted about restaurants all over the country. But, one by one, they disappeared and now there’s only been literally a handful of posts this year. Chowhound ignored an opportunity, back in the CNET days, to expand and establish a real presence in English speaking food communities outside of North America – effectively that would have been to treat the relevant international boards as something of stand-alone entities still within the family – a sort of first cousin relationship, rather than treating those boards as simply places where Americans asked other Americans where to eat in Dublin. But we are where we are.
Seems to me that “the situation” post Chowhound revamp is still settling down and it will be a few weeks before things become clear. CH may realise the disaster they have created for themselves and go back to a simpler more user-friendly format with community building moderating policies. It may be that other boards are created along the lines of this one and FTC. It may be that eGullet sees a revival of its fortunes and it forms the protection of the “safety in numbers”. It may be that HO and FTC do merge or stay separate. But, what I suggest is that there is no need to rush into things be way of a merger unless the respective site owners feel that there is nothing to be lost by it. It is, of course, their decision – as always, we play on a site by the owner’s rules or choose not to play (which is exactly how we come to be having this discussion).
I was a moderator at eGullet for a while while Steven Shaw, may he rest in peace, was running it. I haven’t spent much time on eGullet in years. How light-handed is their moderation lately?
Harters
(John Hartley - a culinary patriot eating & cooking in Northwest England)
11
The UK/Ireland board was moderated with a light touch. It seemed they were more concerned about merging new threads into old threads, rather than separating people who wanted to resolve their dispute in the pub car park, so to speak.
Isn’t it kind of up to the site owners? They may have different styles and goals. I’m all for letting it shake out and letting folks vote with their clicks.
To me they’re two not-so-different websites traveling in parallel universes. Both FTC and HO are drawing members who have left Chowhound, some voluntarily, some not. I don’t really see major distinctions between the two so I don’t see any reason why they can’t become one.
“Isn’t it kind of up to the site owners? They may have different styles and goals. I’m all for letting it shake out and letting folks vote with their clicks.”
StoneSoup – help me understand the “different styles and goals.” Four-letter words notwithstanding, I see much more in common than I do differences.
