Update on Group Migration

[Peter Walker]

Hi,

I just wanted to give you an update on the migration process to the new forum.
The forum is online and most features have been implemented. All the members of the YahooGroup have been added to the forum and it is nearly ready to be opened.

Due to some technical issues with importing your messages, we are still waiting for that to happen. I do not know how long that will take as that is being handled by someone else who is being paid to do the job and this has to be done properly. Your forum is the first on the new https://forums.group platform that I am setting up.
In future, all posts are to be written online on the forum, not via email. So that you know when new posts are made, a daily topic summary will be sent to you via email (possibly via this YahooGroup) and you can click on a link in that email to reply.
More details on the features available on the new forum system can be found here: https://forums.group/features.php

Your forum will have advertising to cover the hosting costs and the included features listed on that page.
Do you like the forum banner (that big image at the top) or would you prefer a different one?

If not, feel free to design your own image that needs to be 1500 pixels wide and send it to me.
The new forum can have a wide range of different sections so that you can better sort your discussions into topics. As I have no idea what topics you people like to discuss, can you please suggest topic sections that would make sense for you.
To give you an idea of what this can be, have a look at the Categories and sections on my own Rife Forum that has been growing for years. You can basically have the same kind of structure. Just tell me how you want the categories and sections to be that are relevant to your group and I will set them up.

https://www.rifeforum.com/forum/index.php
As the preparations continue, I will send more emails. The biggest thing yet to happen is to restore your message archive and once that job is complete, the forum can be opened. The Minutus group on groups.io will then no longer be needed.
Finally, you will of course have full freedom of speech on this new platform as you asked for.

Regards

Peter Walker
The Rife Forum
www.rife.de
www.rifewiki.org
www.rifeshop.com
www.rifeforum.com
groups.rifeforum.com
groups.io/g/rifeforum
rifegroup.groups.io/g/Rife
gadgetheaven.net

[Carol Boyce]

Many thanks Peter it is much appreciated.
Carol B

[Ellen Madono]

Hi Peter,

Your forum looks great. I don't know how most people would like the forum organized.

My triple split personality has these opinions.

1. One part of me says that the administrator needs to sort messages into separate parts of the forum. That seems time-consuming for the administrator. I have never done it, so maybe it is a no-brainer. Soroush is our moderator. Ask her.

2. Then another argument is our past way of having all the emails together was ok. "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." If we have a hodgepodge of message title, then at least I look through a few of them. Many topics I would never open if I knew the content ahead of time.

3. Another part of me says, how wonderful to have categories.
Here is what I came up with looking at your forum example. No doubt others have other opinions. Please speak up.
New Member introduction

Forum guidelines

Hahnemannian Homeopathy

History

Personal testimony

Audio and video library
Forum polls

Advice requested

Technical concepts used in homeopathy

Science

Health policy and society

Complements to homeopathy

Misc.
At least the first 6 categories seem like permanent installations that after a while we will not want to fuss with.

The later part consists of topics that we sometimes visit. I am sure there are others. Since these topics often cross over, it would seem more practical to have tags several of which could be stuck on a topic.. But the normal contributor will not think about tags and I am pretty sure a moderator would not want to fuss with them either. I am guessing that most participants are not eager to devote time to the forum.
Best,

Ellen Madono

[Peter Walker]

Hi Ellen,

As the new forum will have a number of categories and your archives are all in one long list, it would make sense for a moderator to move messages to the proper places. That is not a job I will be doing, but one or more people could volunteer to do that job. The more that help, the faster this could be done. Having messages sorted into categories makes it a lot easier to find the information you need from the archives. It is not technically difficult, just a matter of reading each topic, deciding which category the topic belong in and pressing a couple of buttons to move it there. Due to the large number of topics, I suggest a team of volunteers to do this job.
I have run multiple YahooGroups and forum and helped a number of them move to forum systems, including my own. Email groups like this one tend to only discuss the topic of the day as past topics get forgotten. Forums open up your archives to make them much more accessible. You no longer have to read every topic that is posted and it is very much easier to find past topics and respond to them. My Rife YahooGroup has been slowly dying out and the posts have dropped to a trickle even though my group moved to groups.io in time with its archives. I started my Rife Forum back in 2003 and it started out slow as people got used to the different platform. It is now a thriving community and people love the highly organised wide range of categories and topics. Instead of just one or two conversations in a list, you can have a large number of simultaneous discussions on a forum, yet you only need to read the topics that interest you. There are loads of advantages in the forum system as you will discover.
As to your category suggestions, I have already received some good suggestions that have been implemented on the beta forum and I will see how yours can be added as well.

Regards

Peter Walker
The Rife Forum
www.rife.de
www.rifewiki.org
www.rifeshop.com
www.rifeforum.com
groups.rifeforum.com
groups.io/g/rifeforum
rifegroup.groups.io/g/Rife
gadgetheaven.net

[Peter Walker]

I enclose a screenshot of your new forum as it currently looks. I have added a number of sections as recommended. As soon as the messages have been imported, the forum can open for business.

Regards

Peter Walker
The Rife Forum
www.rife.de
www.rifewiki.org
www.rifeshop.com
www.rifeforum.com
groups.rifeforum.com
groups.io/g/rifeforum
rifegroup.groups.io/g/Rife
gadgetheaven.net

[Peter Walker]

I enclose a screenshot of your new forum as it currently looks. I have added a number of sections as recommended. As soon as the messages have been imported, the forum can open for business.

Regards

Peter Walker
The Rife Forum
www.rife.de
www.rifewiki.org
www.rifeshop.com
www.rifeforum.com
groups.rifeforum.com
groups.io/g/rifeforum
rifegroup.groups.io/g/Rife
gadgetheaven.net

[Leilanae]

Does this new Group have a "search feature"?
I'm wondering if you are "designing" a "left brain" list for "right brain" homeopaths?
Atb,
Leilanae

[Shannon Nelson]

My vote, I like it!
Shannon

[Peter Walker]

It has all the standard features you would find on a phpBB forum plus a few extras. The search feature is quite powerful:

Regards

Peter Walker
The Rife Forum
www.rife.de
www.rifewiki.org
www.rifeshop.com
www.rifeforum.com
groups.rifeforum.com
groups.io/g/rifeforum
rifegroup.groups.io/g/Rife
gadgetheaven.net

[Roger Barr]

I think it is fine. People can propose others and we can change it later if desired, I assume.

Roger Barr

+52 222 739 8334 (WhatsApp & Cell)
+1 510 480 1070
Skype: rrandor
www.canhealyourself.com