Fitness.com is in the process of doing a redesign. We need feedback from you guys on what you want.

First off, do you use the main website?
If yes, what features do you use?

What features / improvements would you like to see on the main website?

What features / improvements would you like to see on this forum?

Well I just typed a rather well thought out response to this and got told that it was an invalid thread. I don't want to retype the whole thing, so here's the summary.

I don't think I've ever been to the main site - I found the forum through a search and now I come to it via a bookmark.

I'd like to see a section of the board where all the info about the board could be posted: the rules, a list of the mods, threads about how to create sig files and tickers, etc. I know those threads exist, but they're scattered all over the place and hard to find sometimes.

I can work on that 2night Kara!

That would be cool! Thanks Korrie!

I must admit that I didn't even know that there was a 'main website'. I have the forum bookmarked and that's it.

I agree with Kara, one section with all the rules and info would be good, instead of having it scattered all over the place. Also, maybe some sort of function that sends new members straight to the rules section after joining, so if they get in trouble for spamming/advertising etc., they can't say they didn't know (which a lot of them do).

Other than that, maybe a thread that explains how to create new threads etc. in an easy to find location. I am surprised how many people seem to have trouble with that. Basically just an explanation of how the board works. And if there already is such a thing, just ignore me...I didn't actually check, I'm just going by what some people told me.

I didnt know that there was a main website either - but I like the ideas that people are coming up with.

It would be wonderful if when a newbie is about to input their first posting they were taken on a tour which they have to go through. You would think that it would not be necessary but there are always people posting in the wrong sections or asking stupid questions. People seem to need to be told to read the sticky threads and have no idea about what sections are here.

Maybe a welcome email should be sent to them too with all the info so that they can reference it later if they get a bit stuck. If we knew that everyone was being told the basics - we could make the initial welcome greeting that we send in "newcomers" much more individual - and they would be quicker to deal with too - meaning that less people would sit getting no welcome at all. There is a finite amount of time that we can spend doing that.

KC, can you be a little more specific??? I have this thread up but it already has all the things in it that you mentioned. I will go back and add a couple 'rules' though.

http://weight-loss.fitness.com/newco...tips-help.html

anything else you think I should add or combine another thread together into one??

Korrie ... I wasn't thinking so much a single thread, but a sub-forum where all the relevant threads could be created and maintained.

On the board I used to own, we had a section called "Rules, Regs, & Things to Know". It included the rules of the board, a thread introducing the moderators, and then various posts on things like how to create a sig, how to subscribe to threads, how to start a new thread, what a sticky post is, etc.

Another board I belong to has a sub-forum called "Forum Help" where people can go to get that kind of information or ask questions about the forum software - things like "how do I modify my profile" and "how do I upload a profile image" and so forth.

Maybe using STeve's board as an example: forum-body-improvements.com - Powered by vBulletin Notice that the first 3 "sections" or sub-forums are about the rules and guidelines for the board.

To be honest I still haven't seen an official "rules of the forum" post - and I've gone looking. I consider myself a message board expert (having run one of my own in the past) and if I'm overlooking it or can't find it .. then it must be that much harder for a newbie to.

For an example, if you look at Steve's diary, the last post is from someone who is COMPLETELY clueless about how to navigate a message board. He or she is asking all kinds of questions in Steve's diary that would be better answered in a general info forum. When I mentioned such (politely) he/she said "I don't know what you mean ... where do I go to find all that stuff." It would be nice to have a sub-forum where we could direct complete and utter message board newbies that had all that information in one place, rather than pointing them to a bunch of different locations.

Ok, so that was really wordy and long to just say ... I think we need a "rules" sub-forum.

Ok, i understand what your saying! I did the best I could on my end with that thread in the newbie section. You keep asking for rules, and as far as that goes, our only main 'rule' here is that you dont' spam, ya know? Sean likes to keep the place open for everyones opinions and such. I can't really think of any other rule besides the spamming.

Here are my rules, which you can take and use if you'd like. If not, that's cool too. Obviously some will not apply here.

We are very lenient with regards to what is posted on our forums. Minors are not permitted to join the community and thus we expect adults to behave accordingly. We understand this is a stretch for some so we’ve instituted a set of guidelines we expect all members to abide by. We hope this isn’t a problem. If you have any questions or concerns about these rules, please post them in this thread and they will be addressed in a timely fashion.

1. We hate spammers. We’re only interested in members who are here with genuine intent. This can range from people looking for advice and support even to other professionals interested in helping our members. If you’re here clearly to fatten your wallet it’s not going to fly.

The rule in relation to spammers is as follows: If you post a link for your product or website without approving it with an administrator or moderator first, it will be deleted and you will be warned. If you do it again, you will be banned. On top of this, we’ll probably give you a silly usertitle and try our best to make you look stupid and incompetent.

2. Be respectful. While we don’t mind the occasional use of profanity, we aren’t interested in porn, discriminatory remarks or content. As hard as it is given the veil of anonymity the Internet provides, try your best to act as you would in any other public setting. If you’re an asshat by default… expect to be treated accordingly.

3. Try your best to respect people’s threads. Don’t hijack someone’s thread by taking it off topic. There is plenty of room on the forum for your own thread if you’re interested.

4. Do not post anything that could potentially generate legal trouble.

5. We ask that all members read through the sticky threads located at the top of the various forums. They are stuck there for a reason; that being that they contain important, useful information relative to the forum they are found in that could answer your questions. We will try to help everyone as best we can but we expect the common courtesy from you to take the time to read these sticky threads.

6. Don’t double post. All questions will be answered as best we can. If a day or two pass with no response feel free to ‘bump’ your thread. Do not, however, post another thread asking the same question. On this same token, refrain from posting multiple threads regarding the same topic... it only serves to litter the forum.

7. Disagreements and debate will certainly arise in this setting. They are inevitable. Please try your best to separate yourself from the information you are discussing. Simply because someone disagrees with a point of yours does not mean he or she is attacking you as an individual. Being forced to defend your beliefs will either 1) reinforce them or 2) create doubt, in which case you reassess and either go back to 1) or you learn something. If handled appropriately only good can come from it. We don’t tolerate crybabies and if one emerges he or she will be treated accordingly.

8. Related to #7, if you have a personal problem with someone please handle it in a personal manner. Private messaging is probably the best course of action in this event.

9. If you simply can’t tolerate another member’s posting, simply utilize the ignore feature. It isn’t difficult. Go into your settings and add the member’s username to the ignore list and PRESTO, you will not see their posts again.

10. If you put something in your signature that is excessively large or annoying, it will be removed at the discretion of the moderation team.

11. You must be at least 18 years of age to participate in discussions here.

All members should report an abuse of the above guidelines to the moderation team so things can be handled appropriately.

We hope that this is not too much to ask.

Thanks for respecting our desires. If you have any questions or concerns pertaining to forum policy, please feel free to address them in this thread.

If I'm being honest Sean, I never visit the main site. But I'm probably not at all your target audience.

As far as the forum goes... I like some of the suggestions above. Other than that, I've got nothing.

Ya, I know. Entirely worthless post.

Im w/ ya steve..i've never visited the other site, I didnt' know there was one!

The problem is, I think most people enjoy the idea of having their specific, personal questions answered here on the forum. Rather than reading articles and the like, they prefer the individual attention.

So if you're looking to get traffic to the main site from the forum, you have to have a unique proposition to entice them.

What that is I do not know. I know what works for my place but we're much different and niche.

Only we do allow people under 18 to join...i wish it weren't so, but it is.

Yeah, exactly like what Steve posted. There *are* rules here - any good message board has rules. No spamming, obviously, but there are also rules about sig length and content, rules about personal attacks, etc. They're just not codified anywhere in one place. There are a bunch of random threads talking about how sigs might be edited and what constitutes spam that double posts will be deleted and so forth - but they're scattered and hard to find.

And yes, all of those things are common sense and most people should know them ... but any community that is as open to the public as this one needs at least a basic set of guidelines published somewhere obvious. At the very least it gives the mods someplace to point to and say "you can't do that here - the rules say so".