[susanr]

I have to say I really liked the format of TechTalk.  I have started using the forum but don't find it as useful as TechTalk - it takes longer to read the topics since it is in a tread format and I have to keep returning to see the replies.  New Topics will be fed to your e-mail but I haven't found a way yet to get the replies fed to my e-mail.

Perhaps some of you can help on this but here is what I have found so far:

New topics will come to my e-mail - but if I don't go to the forum - only one/category will come until I go back. - thus if I don't go there for several days - no e-mails come to remind me to go.  TechTalk just shows up Monday thru Friday and I can read it all when I have time.

No quick way to know if someone has replied to your post other than going back to the board frequently and clicking on the reply button at the top - If I am not reminded to go check something - it probably won't happen.

I have checked several of the categories to get an e-mail on when there is a new topic - I will get one e-mail from each category - but unless I follow the new link - nothing more will come from that category - and with 5-10  categories checked I tend to forget which ones I went to check thus I quit getting emails from several of them.

All of these emails from so many categories are filling up my mail box - TechTalk gave me one e-mail a day and altho slower - I only at most had to wait a couple days to get a reply to my question (or I also got several immediate responses from people who prefer to keep their answer private).  I also liked that I got several varying responses from several people who have different ideas - all in one e-mail.

I am not saying that I don't like the forum - it has it's place and I am trying to embrace it - but there are many endearing features of TechTalk that I really liked - antiquated or not - perhaps some of us are also antiquated - or perhaps some of us just like things at a slower pace.   There is also something to be said on the advertising end of it - 15000 members got a reminder 5 days a week that they were AHA members and that the AHA was thinking about them.  Not the case with the forum where you have to sign up and then tend to forget about it.

[dean]

I've been reading about TT the last couple of days now with some interest but kept any thoughts to myself because I'm another that has looked at it a few times and gave up reading it because it was hard to cypher through.

I'm not going to vote one way or another because while I don't think its all that great, I do feel for those that like it... once and if its gone.  

[denny]

Susan, we're hard at work looking at ways we can make the forum behave the way you want it to.  Hang in there!  In the meantime, look at it the other way around...it's great for all of us here on the forum to have the benefit of your knowledge and experience!

[hamiltont]

FWIW...  Once the AHA Forum was fired up I dropped my TT subscription.  So much more discussion on the forum & as close to real-time as possible.  Additionally I can't imagine the amount of time spent managing TT that could be used more productively.   The TT has served the AHA community well over the years but I think it's time to move on to more current technologies IMO...

[ajk]

No quick way to know if someone has replied to your post other than going back to the board frequently and clicking on the reply button at the top - If I am not reminded to go check something - it probably won't happen.

Follow the PROFILE link at the top of the page, then "Notifications and Email" under "Modify Profile".  Check "Turn notification on when you post or reply to a topic."

I have checked several of the categories to get an e-mail on when there is a new topic - I will get one e-mail from each category - but unless I follow the new link - nothing more will come from that category - and with 5-10  categories checked I tend to forget which ones I went to check thus I quit getting emails from several of them.

In the same list of checkboxes, uncheck "Receive reply notification only for the first unread reply."  At least I think that will get you what you want -- I'm still experimenting myself.

[susanr]

AJK - Thanks - I will try that.

[tschmidlin]

it would be nice if there was a middle ground for the notification checkboxes.  Once per topic is no good for the reason Susan mentioned.  Once for every reply is too much for high traffic topics.  Maybe it can be set up to only send one reminder every 6 or 12 or 24 hours.  Just a thought.

[denny]

Tom, I think what we're hoping to do is set it up in some sort of "digest" fashion.  Some of us on the GC web subcommittee are testing and talking about possible mods now.

[tschmidlin]

Cool, thanks Denny. I'm looking forward to seeing how you guys improve the forum.

[witsok]

I think TT has an advantage when one is announcing homebrew competition and call for judges and stewards.  The push model likely gets the message to more viewers.  That said, I don't believe discontinuing TT is a big lose.  More often than not, the topics were "where do a get a good beer in city X."  Other major group of topics were very basic/fundemental questions about brewing - when do I add yeast?  How long till my batch is ready?  I don't mind answering questions, but I also expect people to do a little homework themselves.  I find the forum to have more/better topics of interest.  Yes, some of the same basic questions are asked, but at least there are more intering threads.

[chadada]

Put me down as another vote to keep TT.  The forum is useful, but TT is a better fit for my daily life.

[aubreygayle@yahoo.com]

Yes. Please keep TT!
By the way, it just took me over five minutes to figure out how to vote on this poll. GRRR!

Cheers!
  --Aubrey

[richara]

I just cast my vote for keeping TechTalk.  I am very pleased that the Governing Committee has asked for suggestions, and I hope that they will find a reasonable solution.  From reading the posts on TechTalk, it is clear that even if they are in the minority, the users of TechTalk are very passionate about the service (me included).  I would also like to point out, that while this poll may be interesting, just the fact that it appears in the Forum makes it extremely biased.  No one would conduct a political poll by walking into the Republican National Convention and asking how many people favor the Democrat.
Thanks,
Andrew Richardson (one aspect of the Forum that I don't like is the anonymity)

[Bruce B]

Although I'm a fan of TT I casted my vote to retire it.  When it comes down to it the forum offers more information on a broader range of topics while at the same time produces less overhead and cost for the AHA.  How I get the information has changed but I can adapt to that.  Plus I'm all for taking 3 hours of copying and pasting emails out of any one's work load.  Thank you very much to the person who has been assembling those emails and sending them out all this time.  If I had to do 3 hours of copying and pasting for my job I might would probably do some sort of career end-er like the JetBlue guy.

[beerrat]

I posted questions via tech talk a few time, but found it less effective in getting responses then this AHA forum.  The interaction in AHA forum threads and spawning new threads from them in a short amount of time has been very valuable to me. Tech talk emails not as dynamic, response would go to personal emails and not seen by all participants, and the time lag hindered its effectiveness for me.

I'm learned so much in the 9 months I've been on AHA forum.  The forum is like sitting down having a conversation, were techtalk was like letter correspondence.

Regards,

Dan Schreffler