[Feedback] - Your Gentlemen's Club

Otis Driftwood

Good evening gents and ladies.The forum has been going for over a year now and we have yet to have a feedback thread about the forum so now is as good a time as any to start one.

Tis simple really,the mod team are interested in what you all think of the forum in general.

What do you like/dislike?
What would you like to see more/less of?
Is there anything that grinds your gears?

etc

Any suggestions about the forum in general,how to make it better and what not should be posted.

Any and all feedback is appreciated and everything will be taken seriously and discussed.

So in the immortal words of Delia Smith,lets be avin you.

Smyth

I dislike the insecure teenage "does this girl like me?" threads. Along with the passive aggressive I hate women threads because I had a bad night in a club.

There are a lot of personal issue threads on the forum. Gets repetitive.

BrianD3

I find it frustrating that the forum can't be searched. I can't even search for my own posts.

From what I read this is because poster might be sensitive about old posts being dragged up. Yet search is enabled in other forums that might have sensitive issues such as Ladies Lounge, PI, Health Sciences etc.

Panthro

is there a "Know your Gentlemen" link?
If not, we should get one and sticky it, that way if I am having a bad day I can look at the lastest picture and think "well, at least I'm not that poor cnut!":)

Otis Driftwood

BrianD3 wrote: »

I find it frustrating that the forum can't be searched. I can't even search for my own posts.

From what I read this is because poster might be sensitive about old posts being dragged up. Yet search is enabled in other forums that might have sensitive issues such as Ladies Lounge, PI, Health Sciences etc.

Are you sure PI threads are searchable?Ive never tried searching there but was under the impression that it wasnt and was going to remain that way for obvious reasons.

BrianD3

I just did some searches there. Looks like PI is searchable when i'm logged in but not when I'm logged out. Whereas this forum is the opposite, searchable when logged out but not when logged in. So I have a way of searching this forum. But the searching arrangments may be something for you to look into.

Mackman

Smyth wrote: »

I dislike the insecure teenage "does this girl like me?" threads. Along with the passive aggressive I hate women threads because I had a bad night in a club.

There are a lot of personal issue threads on the forum. Gets repetitive.

+1, I dont mind giving my opinion as a man on issues, but sometimes i think there should be a sticky that gives general dating advice.


oh, and MOAR BEWBS!! :P

OldGoat

Beaten to the punch Ned. I was drafting something similar myself.

The Gentlemens Club - Redux?
The forum is now a bit over a year old. (20-08-2009 just to save ye the search). In that time it's gone through a raft of changes and a few mods* (yours truly included). It's been battered and beaten into the shape it is today. It's like the assgroove of Homers sofa. Is it time to look again at what the forum is now and what it was intended to be? Is it time to redraft the charter to reflect what the forum has become? One has to admit that the forum is not mens health and issues with a little bit of banter.
It is tLL for men - or AH-Lite if you will.

I would like to see the Health link severed from tGC as it simply does not cater for that need. Health issues tend to get lost amid a deluge of 'Help me score with a babe' threads. I'd rather see a new forum created (eventually) to run along the lines that tGC was originaly intended too but while tGC maintains the original charter and link to Mens Health no new forum is possible.

I'm not advocating change of policy or scope within tGC, we are long past that now but I think the charter should reflect the forum as it now stands, a 'Soc' forum rather then a 'Sci' forum.

*This is not a critique of the mods or the users just an observation of changes.

Bottle_of_Smoke

I really like the way the forum has worked out.

For a while I didn't like the direction but it seems to be more relaxed now. The atmosphere to me now seems to be one where jokey threads, serious debates as well as personal issues from a male perspective are all catered for.

Despite all this I haven't posted much here recently. What drives me mad is not being able to search your own posts. When I log onto boards I search my posts to see if anyone's replied or there's further discussion in the thread. I post on multiple forums so this makes things handy.

I see no reason anymore to not be able to search your tgc posts. Its a big public forum now I doubt anyone's saying anything here they wouldn't mind other people knowing. Also - we have the annoymous poster option.

If you agree post here http://boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056047522

Otis Driftwood

Any more thoughts/ideas out there?

mfceiling

What about a weekly sticky with something along the ideas of -

Favourite recipe
Good Restaurants
Decent barbers
Fashion tips, style etc
Decent bar for a pint or two


Just a thought............pretty good forum to be honest

Maguined

papagormo wrote: »

is there a "Know your Gentlemen" link?
If not, we should get one and sticky it, that way if I am having a bad day I can look at the lastest picture and think "well, at least I'm not that poor cnut!":)

This, though i would call it "know your clubbers" and instantly enforce the no pic no post rules that other forums all adopted sooner or later.

Bottle_of_Smoke

Maguined wrote: »

This, though i would call it "know your clubbers" and instantly enforce the no pic no post rules that other forums all adopted sooner or later.

You can just click new thread, call it that, then put a photo of yourself in it.

Rubik.

Threads seeking medical advice are routinely closed, and rightly so. But it is never explained to the OPs that while medical advice is a complete no no, asking other posters to share their experience of a condition isn't. Maybe, when appropriate, the OP could be given the option of rephrasing the original question.

Dord

I think getting rid of the "Mens Issues" redirect in the SCI menu would help reduce the number of medical advice threads.

Rubik.

Thats true, but that rasies the question - is this still the forum to discuss mens health issues in, or should that now be left to the long term illness forum?

5live

Rubik. wrote: »

Thats true, but that rasies the question - is this still the forum to discuss mens health issues in, or should that now be left to the long term illness forum?

I assume the LTI forum caters to illness that effects both sexes eg arthritis diabetes etc while circumcision and PMT would be part of the the gentlemans club and ladies lounge. Just my opinion, mind

tbh

Rubik. wrote: »

Threads seeking medical advice are routinely closed, and rightly so. But it is never explained to the OPs that while medical advice is a complete no no, asking other posters to share their experience of a condition isn't. Maybe, when appropriate, the OP could be given the option of rephrasing the original question.

Fair point, well made - noted. from my experience in LTI I think it is important to have "My experience with.." threads.

5live wrote: »

I assume the LTI forum caters to illness that effects both sexes eg arthritis diabetes etc while circumcision and PMT would be part of the the gentlemans club and ladies lounge. Just my opinion, mind

Yeah that'd be fair enough. The medicaly type stuff we'd expect to see (I mean expect from experience, not expect from users if you know what I mean) would things like the circ thread, which was closed in PI and doesn't really suit LTI.

Search should be activated today, btw.

Maguined

Bottle_of_Smoke wrote: »

You can just click new thread, call it that, then put a photo of yourself in it.

True that though I would prefer if it the mods made an official one so they can make the thread specific no pic no post rules in effect from the get go so it doesnt turn into one post of pics and several posts of chat like happened to every other "know your ..." threads before the mods brought in those rules.

tbh

your wish, etc

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056072310

Handsome Bob

Smyth wrote: »

I dislike the insecure teenage "does this girl like me?" threads. Along with the passive aggressive I hate women threads because I had a bad night in a club.

There are a lot of personal issue threads on the forum. Gets repetitive.

I don't think they are any where near as frequent as they were originally.

Anyway, I think the forum is great, it's very welcoming and opening. Plus, there's no pack mentality present in this forum (from my observation anyway) so it really is a good place to discuss something in a relaxed manner.

Galvasean

No complaints here. That's a sign the forum is in good nick, I'm a moany buzzer.

I do like that macho posturing comments ("man the f#ck up!" / "don't be such a girly man") are kept at bay. It's refreshing being able to have a serious discussion about men's issues on boards (but keeping the tone light too, kudos!).

Snowie

I think the forums grand cant really complain at all. :cool:

Khannie

I dislike what the forum has become to be honest. It's basically after-hours-lite. I don't really drop by much any more. Threads like "omg, chicks in halloween costumes ftw" just put me off.

Otis Driftwood

Khannie wrote: »

I dislike what the forum has become to be honest. It's basically after-hours-lite. I don't really drop by much any more. Threads like "omg, chicks in halloween costumes ftw" just put me off.

I think thats a little unfair Khannie.Every effort has been made by the mods to keep the AH style muppetry to a minimum.Obviously you cant see them but there are lots of posts that have been deleted for that very reason.The Halloween thread mentioned hasnt been closed as yet as I want to give the OP a chance to elaborate on it rather than locking it right off the bat.Its much easier to criticise than to suggest ways off improving things which is why this thread was started in the first place,ya know.:)

OldGoat

I don't think that was Khannies point Ned. No one is disputing or questioning the amount of work the mods do (unseen) on the forum and we are all thankful for your efforts.

I believe what he means (and I agree) is that the quality, scope and content of the threads in the forum more noise then signal.
That is all well and good if that is what the users want for the forum but it's not what the forum is claiming to be.

I would much prefer to see fewer but better quality posts rather then a high number of frivolous posts that would be better suited to other existing forums. The number of good threads being posted is enough to keep the forum alive and viable and it doesn’t need the PI/tLL/AH style threads littering the place. There is plenty of room for chat and banter amongst the interesting threads so the forum feeling won’t be stifled.

tl;dr
Nip mundane threads in the bud.

Khannie

I'm just telling it like I see it dude. It's not a commentary on your moderation at all. I think you do a bang up job. I'm just conscious that I don't really drop by here much any more and that's the reason why. You asked for feedback (critical or otherwise). It's a "feeling" that I have, so not something I could directly suggest ways to change. The tone of the forum is fairly different from 6 months ago, no?

edit: OG got in there while I was typing, but I essentially agree with him. I'm not mad for nipping things in buds so much (moderation should be unnoticed for the most part IMO and I think you all do a great job of that). I'd very much agree that the signal to noise ratio has declined though.

Handsome Bob

It comes down to the old cliche doesn't it? You want less mundane threads? Well then take the bull by the horns and create the threads you want to see yourself.

tbh

I would much prefer to see fewer but better quality posts rather then a high number of frivolous posts that would be better suited to other existing forums. The number of good threads being posted is enough to keep the forum alive and viable and it doesn’t need the PI/tLL/AH style threads littering the place. There is plenty of room for chat and banter amongst the interesting threads so the forum feeling won’t be stifled.

the problem with that OG, is that you end up with a forum full of threads that I, or Ned or Sam find interesting - it reflects our personal tastes. There is a bit of steering that goes on, but at a very very high level - usually the forum reflects the majority of the posters.

Now, that's not to say we can't *protect* other threads. The difference is, I don't feel like I have a right to say "you can't start a thread on <subject>" where it falls generally within the remit of the charter, albeit leaning towards...shall we say...the lowest common denominator.

However, if you or khannie start a serious thread, you both know that the mods are going to cut out any crap that anyone posts in that thread.

However, we have a catch 22 situation. The majority of threads are light-hearted so people like yourself (and myself to be fair) may feel it's a waste of time posting more serious threads.
However, in order to attract more serious posters, there needs to be more serious threads.

All I can do is suggest - and I mean this with the greatest respect, I'm not having a dig at all - that if you want a more interesting forum, you change your role from passive (wanting others to start serious threads) to active (starting those threads yourself). I think after a while you reap what you sow, and you'll see more threads like that being started.

Again, I know exactly where you and kahnnie are coming from and I know there's no beef here or anything. I'm just pointing out that these things don't happen organically but if anyone makes the effort to start a serious thread, we'll (the mods) make sure that those threads are protected.

tbh

tl:dr: what lz5bz5 said

OldGoat

*Cough* Moar Beers needed.

It's not down to just the mods tastes tbh. If there is a thread posted about football them realistically it should be moved to the football forums. If there was a question about cars then the place for it is in the motoring forums. The most frequent of these threads cropping up are the "My boyfriend/My girlfriend" types things that should be in PI.

Perhaps thats just my OCD kicking in and wanting things neatly cubbyholed where they belong. I just believe the forum would be better for being a bit more rigorous in pruning threads.
Just my opinion.


If and when I find suitable topics to create threads about I'll post them (and hopefully get to post it before Ned steals my thunder like he did with this thread ).

So you see I'm not complaining about the derth of good threads but rather the abundance of trite ones.

Otis Driftwood

I had a good chat with P.C. at the last beers just about tGC in general and I think his thoughts pretty much hit the nail on the head.

BTW,Im ad libbing here

The problem (sic) with tGC is that there are so many other forums that cater for alot of the threads that alot of men would have an interest in eg problem with my car,problem with my appearence,football, etc etc etc.The motors forum for example,its a very tight knit forum where if users were having a bad day they could post there and have a moan or if something good happens they would post there about it as well.tLL is a forum designed for female posters and is pretty much all encompassing (within reason of course).Female centred forums are virtually non existent so naturally it gets alot of traffic which is why I think tGC can sometimes struggle for more serious threads.

Its there or there abouts anyway.So as others have suggested,more serious threads = more serious posters = more serious threads.

Also,in case my last post sounded defensive or anything,that certainly wasnt the case.I wrote it on a mobile so its a pain in the nads to try and write even remotely eloquently using it.

hobochris

Having read this thread http://boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056075636 in the TLL where 'Awful_Bliss' got a verbal beatdown for being male and daring to offer his opinion, It re-affirms the place of this forum to offer a male orientated discussion on issues.

A few months back I had feared that this forum policy may be dictated by our female visitors, seconding our opinions on our own forum, but luckily this didn't happen. As a result we have a forum which caters to male points of view on serious issues, as well as a place for a bit of banter that includes female visitors, allowing for there opinions to also be taken on board.Good Job Mods.

One thing that does annoy me though is the occasional thread that crops up where the a person(often female) seeks advice on a boyfriend/guy they are seeing, its not tolerated in the ladies lounge and don't think it should be tolerated here, that's what PI is for.



I think mirroring some topics of TLL might be a good idea, in order to facilitate male opinions on an issue.

That's pretty much my thoughts on the forum.

sam34

hobochris wrote: »

One thing that does annoy me though is the occasional thread that crops up where the a person(often female) seeks advice on a boyfriend/guy they are seeing, its not tolerated in the ladies lounge and don't think it should be tolerated here, that's what PI is for.

generally they're not tolerated here and are moved to PI/RI

if you see one here, hit the report button as it'll draw the mods attention to it quicker

donfers

hobochris wrote: »

Having read this thread http://boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056075636 in the TLL where 'Awful_Bliss' got a verbal beatdown for being male and daring to offer his opinion, It re-affirms the place of this forum to offer a male orientated discussion on issues.

A few months back I had feared that this forum policy may be dictated by our female visitors, seconding our opinions on our own forum, but luckily this didn't happen. As a result we have a forum which caters to male points of view on serious issues, as well as a place for a bit of banter that includes female visitors, allowing for there opinions to also be taken on board.Good Job Mods.

One thing that does annoy me though is the occasional thread that crops up where the a person(often female) seeks advice on a boyfriend/guy they are seeing, its not tolerated in the ladies lounge and don't think it should be tolerated here, that's what PI is for.



I think mirroring some topics of TLL might be a good idea, in order to facilitate male opinions on an issue.

That's pretty much my thoughts on the forum.

Please, for the love of god, don't make this place become like tll

I saw in their recent feedback thread all sorts of interesting comments - one poster said she was aware that men used tll but didn't particular want to see them start threads or even read their posts, nobody batted an eyelid at the comment

that type of mindset will hopefully never invade this forum, I hope that debate and alternative perspectives are always encouraged here, I hope that ladies can always feel free to post here and give their take on things and I hope we don't become a big clannish bunch of thanks whores who all think the same way and make anybody who thinks differently unwelcome

basically I know exactly what I want the forum NOT to become

Maguined

hobochris wrote: »

Having read this thread http://boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056075636 in the TLL where 'Awful_Bliss' got a verbal beatdown for being male and daring to offer his opinion, It re-affirms the place of this forum to offer a male orientated discussion on issues.

A few months back I had feared that this forum policy may be dictated by our female visitors, seconding our opinions on our own forum, but luckily this didn't happen. As a result we have a forum which caters to male points of view on serious issues, as well as a place for a bit of banter that includes female visitors, allowing for there opinions to also be taken on board.Good Job Mods.

The big difference between TGC and TLL and one that I think is important is that TGC is not about mens "views" but about mens "issues", as such the views of female posters are welcome and just as valid as the views of male posters, merely that the topics of threads are supposed to be themed towards issues affecting men.

I definitely do not want TGC to go down a route that devalues the opinions of a poster based on their gender and I always like reading views offered here by women even if I disagree with them.

I hope this difference continues to be maintained so yeah kudos to the mods as so far so good imho.

Otis Driftwood

Just a reminder folks,this feedback thread is about tGC and tGC only.Its of no concern how any other forums run,just this one so if there are criticisms this thread and forum isnt the place for them,unless they are tGC specific.Cheers.

Mrmoe

I don't think anything major needs to change, the forum is well run as it is. Keep up the good work.:)

Galvasean

Maguined wrote: »

The big difference between TGC and TLL and one that I think is important is that TGC is not about mens "views" but about mens "issues", as such the views of female posters are welcome and just as valid as the views of male posters, merely that the topics of threads are supposed to be themed towards issues affecting men.

That is a very good distinction. If tGC were to tolerate "well you're a woman so you're opinion is not valued here" type responses I'd pack my bags and be on my way.
Of course, it never will come to that

big b

I posted my self-introduction a few weeks ago, but being busy in RL has meant I haven't posted much since.

Anyway, I said hello because I thought this was a good forum for those who find AH wearisome, BGRH too "rashers, nyomm"-ish, etc etc ( no offence intended to those who also post in these fora-they're just not for me)

I like the mix of advice and banter & I recognise 1 or 2 posters from elsewhere that I know to be good sorts. So all in all, there isn't much I'd change aound here

nompere

I browse here from time to time, though I very rarely post. This thread has provoked me to post again.

Part of the reason why I look briefly, and move on, is that the front page is really quite off-putting. I might have got my count wrong, but there are 26 threads there. Six are stickies, three of the others are locked and five have been moved. That's more than half the page. There's another where the OP cannot spell his topic. I wouldn't be hurrying to open that one either. It's hard to have interesting discussions when there's really so little apparent content.

I know I can go on to page 2, but it's just as easy to move somewhere else.

There is also a fear of getting the "tone" wrong. I recall posting in a lighthearted thread and wondering if I was going to upset a mod. The forum can't really make up its mind what attitude it wants to portray - and I suspect that in turn make people nervous of posting in the first place.

tbh

nompere wrote: »

Six are stickies, three of the others are locked and five have been moved.

Fair point. I'm the one who's stuck those threads, so I've unstuck them. None of them are very likely to drop off the first page, but I think they should stand or fall on their own merits. I've left the charter and the resource threads. I may re-stick the off-topic thread later if it falls too far behind.

There are a lot of moved threads at the moment, but I don't know if it's a regular thing. I'll keep an eye and if it is, we can look at not leaving redirects. The redirects are there as a service to the OP, but the OP is generally subscribed to the thread so I don't know if they are needed.

Wolfe Tone

Can I ask why PUA stuff is banned? I was looking at the Greatest womanizers page there and it said techniques(this piqued my interest) are not to be discussed, confused, I consulted the charter, banned. Now, I am not into this stuff myself, but in the OP there was a guy called Mystery who I heard of, he has a TV program or something. I didnt know he looked like such a tool. However, with a bit of googling etc, I found some blog posts and stuff about how he does what he does. I was gonna post some of it but was afraid to. In the ten mins or so I spent looking at it it seems to be stuff to build up peoples confidence with women. Is this not a gentlemans club issue?

Thought this would be the place to ask.

Otis Driftwood

The reason PUA stuff has been banned from discussion is because it essentionally goes against the spirit of the forum.Its one thing to have discussion about becoming more confident when talking to the opposite sex but its another thing entirely when posters start spouting crap about tricking women into bed,that men who act like regular guys are idiots as they should be using women as they see fit and other such things.Any time this topic arose it led to some posters taking it to extremes and being downright rude to borderline mysoginistic.The mods discussed it and the decision was made that it simply didnt have a place here.Hope that clears that up for you.:)

Wolfe Tone

Ah, ok fair enough. Having read a bit more it does get a bit dodge. What I had read earlier was just ways to start conversations with women, but it goes a lot further than that, seems to advocate some sort of formula approach. With some psychology thrown in. Along with degrading the woman so you dont care what she thinks.
Thanks for the reply anyway

Otis Driftwood

MUSSOLINI wrote: »

Along with degrading the woman so you dont care what she thinks.
Thanks for the reply anyway

Aye,it was that kind of crap that was causing the hassle.You are welcome BTW.

tbh

MUSSOLINI wrote: »

Ah, ok fair enough. Having read a bit more it does get a bit dodge. What I had read earlier was just ways to start conversations with women, but it goes a lot further than that, seems to advocate some sort of formula approach. With some psychology thrown in. Along with degrading the woman so you dont care what she thinks.
Thanks for the reply anyway

it tends to be that the dedicated PUA dudes are only interested in posting techniques, but never discussing them or objectively evaluating them, which tends not to fly on a discussion board, as ned has said.
It's a shame, because topics like that (how to talk to women, how to boost your confidence etc) are a natural fit for this forum. We do try to let the genuine stuff through, but "reserve the right" etc etc.

myflipflops

nedtheshed wrote: »

I had a good chat with P.C. at the last beers just about tGC in general and I think his thoughts pretty much hit the nail on the head.

BTW,Im ad libbing here



The problem (sic) with tGC is that there are so many other forums that cater for alot of the threads that alot of men would have an interest in eg problem with my car,problem with my appearence,football, etc etc etc.The motors forum for example,its a very tight knit forum where if users were having a bad day they could post there and have a moan or if something good happens they would post there about it as well.tLL is a forum designed for female posters and is pretty much all encompassing (within reason of course).Female centred forums are virtually non existent so naturally it gets alot of traffic which is why I think tGC can sometimes struggle for more serious threads.
.

I like it in here.

The above is very true. I mainly post in athletics and gambling as specific personal interests of mine and then stop in here for a read and the odd contribution.

I think the forum has a good core of posters and fulfills a purpose. I personally don't see it as a purely male version of the Ladies Lounge and would not want it to become that.

Bottle_of_Smoke

MUSSOLINI wrote: »

Can I ask why PUA stuff is banned? I was looking at the Greatest womanizers page there and it said techniques(this piqued my interest) are not to be discussed, confused, I consulted the charter, banned. Now, I am not into this stuff myself, but in the OP there was a guy called Mystery who I heard of, he has a TV program or something. I didnt know he looked like such a tool. However, with a bit of googling etc, I found some blog posts and stuff about how he does what he does. I was gonna post some of it but was afraid to. In the ten mins or so I spent looking at it it seems to be stuff to build up peoples confidence with women. Is this not a gentlemans club issue?

Thought this would be the place to ask.

The real reason is PUA would stop being effective if everyone knew how it worked. The forum is too widely read -the PUA illuminati then stepped in.

Wolfe Tone

I knew it!

Otis Driftwood

Bottle_of_Smoke wrote: »

The real reason is PUA would stop being effective if everyone knew how it worked. The forum is too widely read -the PUA illuminati then stepped in.

No they didnt.

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