Site usefulness - Poll, pls rpnd

[AmSci]

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" size="2">Originally posted by This_Idiot:

I think that what I find most disturbing is that many folk don't actually know where they are, that there is no "brand imprint" on the forum.
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Like many of the other have said, I too visit the forums almost daily. Always interested in the tidbits that Dr. Mordrid supplies

Also, for awhile I did not know about desktopvideoworld. If someone was to come straight to the forum (as most people do), there is no indication that there is a main site.

My suggestion is to place a link and graphic (up at the top of the forums screen where the "MURC forums" logo is) to all relevant host sites (DTV, etc). You will get more visits if the forum visitors see the link. The regulars here already know about DTV, but for those who just come here for quick answers never see DTV.


Terry

[jeff b]

...it does seem terribly obtuse of the MURC not to give you a visibly prominent link on the forum page. It never seemed to me that the situation was anything other than "not a problem" from your end, though.

It's clear that the forum, however, will always be the focal point of the desktop video site's daily and weekly activity, and that the other features on your site would never show that kind of sustained and regular activity. The consequence of not having a link on the MURC page is now a fait accompli, though.

I still have a link to Doc's page, too, but like your DTV page, Chris, it's only checked by myself every once in a blue moon these days, because all the sustained activity is in this and other active forums.

It does seem lacking that the MURC Desktop Video page doesn't at least have a "links" shortcut, though. I mean, how hard can it be to put some links right there for helping people who come here find other resources? People such as yourself, Chris, have obviously put a lot of time and effort into those resources, and not having any slightest indication of their existence on the forum page that you moderate seems a bit strange to me.

So how about it? Can't we have a "links" resource right here on the forum page to not only help out people like Chris, Doc, et al, who have pages up and running, as well as those who are in need of the info they have stored on those other sites?

Jeff B

[jeff b]

AND...

Couldn't the MURC at LEAST keep the link to Desktop Video CURRENT on their top page??? SHEESH!

Jeff B

[AmSci]

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" size="2">Originally posted by jeff b:
AND...

Couldn't the MURC at LEAST keep the link to Desktop Video CURRENT on their top page??? SHEESH!

Jeff B</font>

Yes, the little recognition that DTV does get is incorrect!
By the way, could you pass along the address of the Dr's page? thanks

[Ansigod]

I'd use these forums and DTVW.uk a LOT more if I had an operable card in my box. I've been waiting for months for release drivers for a Marvel G400 for Win2k, and the time is soon to come. Once I'm back in business, there will be at least one more active user in this forum and another unique hit for the site.

I love what you're doing, I just wish I could actively apply the knowledge.

[This_Idiot]

Crumbs, there's a few new bits to address this evening.

Firstly, neither MURC, or DTVW, or these forums are anything to do with Matrox. They're run by users, for users. We don't get paid (in fact we have to pay for hosting OR sign over advertising rights in order to get free hosting). Matrox sometimes provide hardware for review purposes, and sometimes we get to retain the hardware so we can support ongoing issues.

DTVW and it's predecessor (This Idiots Guide) have always been part of the MURC network until the recent change of hands of our hosts. Gamers Alliance were taken over by Euniverse, who immediately "rationalised" by dumping any URL that didn't meet the number of site hits deemed to be "profitable". I'm not the only one, there are dozens, hundreds. In fact I'm still turning up at old sites on my favourites list and finding that I'm getting a redirect to an Euniverse advert page, so obviously they haven't finished yet. So far their support for the remaining sites has been appalling I guess there is chance (and plenty of scope) for it to improve, but it seems more likely that it will deteriorate as they try and squeeze more and more profit out of the infrastructure.

On the subject of individual headers for the forums (fora?) and links etc. The forum software is a package that supports multiple forums, but the configuration is common across all forums within the group. Therefore, Ant can't label this forum as belonging to DTVW and another as belonging to MURC, it isn't possible.

Lastly, on the subject of the link from MURC to DTVW. I did ask Ant to update it to the .co.uk site, but he's been a bit busy trying to get his new site software/look operational, so this must have been pretty low on his priority list. And now he's off on a well deserved break in the Med (hey, he'll be back in a day or so). I'm sure he'll address it when he gets back, but it isn't going to send hits through the roof. Basically that is going to take a lot of effort in terms of updating the content, increasing the update frequency (how many of you remember the days when the news page was updated at least daily ?), and then getting the lot linked up to search engines. I'm just debating whether I want to go through the effort one more time The answer will probably be "yes" eventually, but I might have to take a pad and pencil out into the garden to do the donkey work during the summer evenings ...

[Hans Gelton]

This is a great site although I don't visit it very often. When I get really "stuck" with a problem there always seems to be an answer here. Can't fault the folks at technical support either - very patient and always willing to help.
It would be a great pity to see the site go!

[Frank Marshall]

I browse this forum almost everyday. I thought it was set up by Matrox! Sorry... I've been to the DVW site a few times and have it bookmarked but I don't go there anywhere near as often as I visit here. I too would be sorry to see this forum go.

Good luck!

[Patrick]

Hi Chris,

As someone who has been hanging around this forum for a long time, I'd hate to see you and/or your involvement disappear. There's been a lot of laughs and a lot of valuable information exchanged here over the years. Although I haven't posted that much in the last few months, this is the only site I visit on a daily basis. However, I have to admit that I seldom visit the DTVW site. Part of the reason is because I come directly to this forum (like many others do) without going through DTVW. And has already been mentioned, for a long time there were no updates being done to DTVW. That's definitely NOT a criticism of your efforts. I'm aware of the difficulties and challenges you've experienced in the last year. I'm pleased that you've been able to hang in there as much as you have. A lesser man would've packed it in ages ago.

As Jeff has already pointed out, perhaps the lack of hits at DTVW has something to do with the huge change in home video technology in the past year or so. Compared to the relative simplicity of setting up and using a digital capture card (Pyro, Studio DV, etc), the Matrox Rainbow Runner was a nightmare to set up and have run properly. There was much more of a need to have a support group when using the Rainbow Runner than there currently is with the newer capture cards. That's not to say that there isn't a need to exchange information anymore, but there doesn't seem to be as much of a bonding force among the forum members. Misery loves company. All of us Rainbow Runner folk used to hang out here and whine... It's possible that people are now actually editing videos instead of just pulling their hair out in frustration! I still break out in cold sweat when I think of those cursed evil frames...

Chris, I think you need to evaluate what YOU get out of keeping DTVW alive. Do you enjoy your involvement anymore? Are all the compliments you receive from us enough to make it worth your while? If it's become simply an unwelcome chore and an unnecessary expense, well...

My own selfish desire is for you to stick around. If it wasn't for you and the original This Idiot's Guide to the Rainbow Runner, I might still not be involved in this fascinating hobby. I certainly appreciate all you've done for all of us. Whatever your ultimate decision is though, you have my respect and my thanks.

[gibverse]

This site, back when it was This Idiot’s, was what persuaded me to get into video editing and buy a Marvel G200 over two years ago. I must say I am most grateful to Chris for his efforts in creating and maintaining thus far.

However, for a number reasons, the site has become less “valuable.” One big reason for me, is like Ansigod, I am waiting for Win2K drivers. I did try dual booting with 98, but that just turned out to be a hassle. When Matrox started their forums, most of the Matrox-specific troubleshooting moved over there. The site has responded by broadening to support everything “desktop video,” but I feel that loosening of the focus has also lead to a decrease in interest. It seems to be just a spamless rec.desktop.video newsgroup. Digital may be easier to deal with, but there are still enough questions to create a need for a site such as this. Lastly, the recent outage has decreased traffic considerably.

At this point, the site’s most valuable asset is the forum. Although not nearly as active as it was it the past, it still does get regular posts. As for the rest of the site, I don’t visit those pages, since I’ve read all that’s there already. With no regular news updates, it appears even staler. I would hate to see it go, but will understand if it is time.

One thing Chris may want to consider is taking on some of the old regulars as assistants in running the site. I am terribly busy this summer (full time job + full time college); otherwise I’d volunteer to help.

If Chris does decide to continue the site, then I think the site needs a clearly defined focus. The closest fit would be a newbie’s guide to desktop video. Although the regular’s may not find as much interest, it would service a specific need and hopefully receive sustained traffic.

I know the decision is a tough one. But no matter what, I will always remember this site fondly.

John

[jeff b]

AmSci, Doc's page is at:

http://www.dr.mordrids.castle.8m.com/

It's interesting that the easiest way to find that url is to go over to Chris's Desktop Video World site and click on Links to get one to Doc's site...

All the search engines in the World(wide waste of time) aren't worth the powder and shot to blow them to hell when you're looking for something like that, in comparison to having the link to Chris's page and all the links he's collected over the years for our collective use.

I know if Chris decides to 86 the DVW page that someday afterwards I'll have a burning need for some information that I know is there, and I won't be able to find it anymore.

Chris, I hope that you can keep the site on line, regardless of whether it gets updated with any frequency. And the picture I get of the "takeovers" and squeezing reminds me of the movie "TRON" and that deep-voiced computer control program, the "MCP", that sought to take over the world...

One other thing: It seems that some of the posters to this thread have the mistaken notion that Chris is talking about this forum within MURC, rather than the separate site he's maintained for years at

http://www.desktopvideoworld.co.uk/

Jeff B

[Ant]

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" size="2">Originally posted by This_Idiot:
I'm know that a lot of folks arrive here by accident via the MURC network, but do they know that the forum is actually a window onto www.desktopvideoworld.co.uk ?
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Well I wouldn't say that is by accident this is a MURC forum shared by DTVW as you know due to our history

[Ant]

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" size="2">Originally posted by Pooh:
There is very rarely a day that goes by without me visiting at least once this forum and I will be very sad to see the demise of it but I would agree whole heartedly with the Doc's and jefb's comments.
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Whatever Chris decides with regard to his own website one thing that will not happen is the demise of this forum. This forum is the desktop video editing forum of the MURC that has been shared with Chris' site due to the fact that it was hosted on the MURC network.

[Ant]

There is nothing obtuse about it this is primarily a MURC forum!

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" size="2">Originally posted by jeff b:
[B]...it does seem terribly obtuse of the MURC not to give you a visibly prominent link on the forum page. It never seemed to me that the situation was anything other than "not a problem" from your end, though.
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[Ant]

Chris is in control of his own domain name, the last I heard before I went away on holiday was that he was going to get it pointed to the server he is currently using which is why the link remained pointed at the .com domain. I really object to the MURC being painted as some bad guy here. Chris is responsible for his site, yes EU screwed up and Chris took the decision to move onto a new server, he has obviously not done anything about getting his own domain name redirected, that is not my fault! SHEESH!!

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" size="2">Originally posted by jeff b:
AND...

Couldn't the MURC at LEAST keep the link to Desktop Video CURRENT on their top page??? SHEESH!

Jeff B</font>