December 8, 2013 - 11:13am
A Forum improvement suggestion - Regional section
Hello admin/everybody else
I've got a suggestion to slightly improve the forum experience, and sorry if this has been suggested and shot down before :)
How about a regional section where people from similar areas and backgrounds can share experiences, sources, links, contacts etc? I know this is a mainly US based forum, but since there's no UK equivalent (where I'm based), and the fact that this has grown into such a large and popular forum, why not have somewhere where people from specific regions can share specific regional information that would only benefit them?
You could even split the US into west/east/central/north/south?
Thoughts?
AK
Share
I like the idea, as long as the posts to the regional section are always visible on the home page. Part of the TFL experience is reading posts by people who live in places I've never been and use ingredients I didn't know existed. It's a great way to learn new things about the diverse world of baking. As long as a new "regional section" does not serve to divide the TFL community, I'm all for it.
The whole appeal of this site to me is that it is global. I am also UK-based, and I joined a UK Yahoo group when it was set up to promote the interests of a well-known bread campaigning group. I pulled out of that as I didn't enjoy the experience. TFL is great as it is; everyone is far more welcoming and generous. I really want to be part of a global group, so I'm against, sorry.
Andy
This site is so popular precisely BECAUSE it is global. Look at the list of participants Floyd shared with us last year. Marvelous! What a great way to connect with someone on the other side of the planet with a common interest.
http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/27841/anybody-have-list-all-countries-represented-tfl
I concur with ananda and yy that the beauty of this site is that it does bring participation from ALL over the globe and people with ALL kinds of experience. It is such a world view expander! I love being able to say I have a connection with a baker in England or a home baker in India,or Bhutan. How about the marvelous pictures of a breadbaker in Lesotho from PMcCool? Every time that baker makes a loaf she thinks the same thing I do-will my bread be good? Will my dough rise? Is my oven hot enough?
http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/23401/bread-lesotho-village
Currently, anyone can give a shout-out to people in a particular region and see what response they get. Just put it in the subject.Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. One of the first times I travelled to San Francisco I was able to get a nice list of places to visit (breadwise). Thorough Bakery was the BEST recommendation, by the way. It is on the list for my next trip.
So hang around for a while and see if you can make it work for you. Meet the neighbors!
But it would be nice if more people disclosed information about their country and background when they register.
Patsy
Patsy, that is the best suggestion going. I so wish people registering on TFL would take some time out to fill in details on their own page. The best possible outcome from this thread!
Andy
Maybe email could be sent to people that have not provided this info (not more than once per year) gently asking them to fill in some more info for the benefit of others.
wayne
I hesitate to suggest any more work for Floyd but obviously I'm going to!
If the majority of users provided personal details maybe an index with regional subsets would allow subgroups to share experiences.
Patsy
My location is now set at Salisbury, NC, USA for any who may be interested. I want to echo the sentiments of those who say they want to keep it global. I find it very interesting, and sometimes inspiring, to read about peoples' baking adventures in other parts of the world, in various climates, and with special, regionally specific, challenges and/or advantages! However, it would be cool to be able to peruse an index that shows where people are located and who is nearby.
Hi to those who have responded so far. To those objecting, I think you might have misunderstood me, I'm not asking this forum to fall under a Sykes-Picot style divide and conquer regime... on the contrary, I like this online forum because it's international...so all I'm suggesting is a place where someone from say Wales can ask someone else from Wales where ot buy welsh organic flour from...yes? or if someone from San diego wants to start a bakery with someone else from san diego, and wants to buy baking equipment from a san diego based wholeseller.. etc.
i'm not specifying a specific way of doing this, anyway to facilitate easier communcation with locals to your area.
Peace
AK
You can already do this using private messages if more TFL members can be persuaded to provide more information about themselves on their own page.
Best wishes
Andy