Should Event Cache Announcements Be Pinned?

[+Bloencustoms]

I was thinking it might be a good idea to "pin" threads announcing event caches in the regional forums, so that they will be less likely to be missed.

[+CYBret]

Sounds like a great idea to me!

 

If anyone wants to pin it, I've got one over here. In fact, there are a LOT of winter events coming up in our area!

 

Bret

[+robert]

As long as they get "unpinned" when they're over. For the Maryland stuff, I try to keep it (reasonably) at the top of the list. I'll bump it every few days to keep it fresh, posting as far ahead of time as I can to get the word out.

[+briansnat]

I don't think its necessary to pin them. They are bumped whenever someone responds and when organizer bumps them. You start pinning too many things and pinning will lose its importance.

Edited December 19, 2003 by briansnat

[+travisl]

As the organizer of a few event caches, I'll second Brian's comments. Events are ''pinned,'' as it were, to the top of the state page , for those who are interested. And for an event that's popular enough, it will be commented on frequently and be at the top of the regional forum on its own merit.

[+Bloencustoms]

Well, I can see your point, but how many events would really be at the top of a page at once? Also, as they would be in the regional forum, they would be viewed mainly by people to whom the particular events are important. And, because they would drop off the page after the event, you wouldn't really have that many pinned simultaneously. Bumping threads for the sole purpose of keeping them at the top of the list works, but it takes up more space than is really needed. As of yet, I have never seen a pinned topic in the south and southeast forum, and event anouncements aren't that frequent. I don't know what it's like in other regoinal forums, because I haven't needed to visit them so far.

[+robert]

And, because they would drop off the page after the event, you wouldn't really have that many pinned simultaneously. Bumping threads for the sole purpose of keeping them at the top of the list works, but it takes up more space than is really needed.

They won't drop off unless they're un-pinned, so someone would have to be in charge of that, say the moderators? If there's an event, whomever is hosting it or in charge of it should keep it "bumped" to maintain interest. The moderators have their hands full enough without pinning and unpinning events.

 

Also, pinning takes up more space than bumping a thread!

[+wray_clan]

There's a list of upcoming event caches on the home page.

 

Hope that helps

[+Bloencustoms]

Last time I looked, the upcoming events list had caches that were the next few to actually occur. Harly enough time to prepare for a trip.

[+Doc-Dean]

First of all, they are not pinned at the top of the state pages, they are at the top because the date for them is in the future... So the one furthest in the future will be the topmost one. The next furthest will be 2nd and so on. This way they do not have to be unpinned and they will fall down in the list after their day occurs and new caches are registered after that date.

[+IV_Warrior]

Last time I looked, the upcoming events list had caches that were the next few to actually occur. Harly enough time to prepare for a trip.

There's also a "calendar of event" page....as far as I know, it lists events are far into the future as people have events planned.

 

Staying 'on topic' no, I don't think they should be 'pinned' in the regional forums. There's enough clutter 'pinned' in the various forums already.

[+MissJenn]

I was thinking it might be a good idea to "pin" threads announcing event caches in the regional forums, so that they will be less likely to be missed.

I like this idea.

 

It doesn't seem like too much work for the moderatos (IMHO). Someone would surely - eventually - post a "this event is now in the past" post to alert the mod that it can be unpinned, if that mod was unaware of the fact.

[Keystone]

Sorry, but when thinking of the summer months when there is at least one event cache per weekend somwhere in one of the states covered by the regional forum where I'm a moderator, that's a bit more pinning and unpinning than I'm game for. I would feel differently if there were not a feature listing on the main site page with a link to a Full Calendar, if event caches were not listed at the top of the list of newest caches placed when searching within a state or country, if event caches weren't featured on each state's page, and if event caches weren't listed in every weekly e-mail notification until their time has passed. Add to this Jeremy's hope to integrate event caches into the calendar feature here in the forums, and you have plenty of coverage for events, IMHO.

[+Divine]

I don't think its necessary to pin them. They are bumped whenever someone responds and when organizer bumps them. You start pinning too many things and pinning will lose its importance.

I tend to agree. In my case, I often actually pass the pinned topics in the forums I usually read. They're always there, often there are no new messages, and the more interesting stuff is right below them, so my eyes automatically find their way there.

 

I admit though, that pinning topics has it's benefits too.

[+trippy1976]

I also think pinning them is unnecessary. A good thought, but it would become a mess. When do you pin them? When do you un-pin them. I know like other groups, we are beginning to see events be planned MONTHS in advance. Posting into the thread to bounce it to the top is a good way to manage pinning. Eventually they die a natural death, in the meantime if interest exists they live at the top of the forum anyway.