NEWBIES: We need your feedback!

[YardSaleDad]

YardSaleDad, you into hang gliding? Something I tried to get into a few years back, just too time consuming. Let me know if you're into it and if so where do you go. I tried Elenville, NY.

I was going to Ellenville last summer. Got up to USHGA Level 2 certification. I will be starting mountain launches soon. I hope to buy a glider and get Level 3 this summer. As for time consuming, you could say the same thing about skiing Except that I am only 45 minutes from Ellenville. My ride for skiing is at least twice that.

 

[andyzee]

YardSaleDad, don't want to hijack this thread so I started a new thread for the hang gliding conversation http://forums.alpinezone.com/8696-hang-gliding.html#post91122 .

 

[bvibert]

Thanks Andy.

Back on topic, anyone else care to comment, address the questions??

 

[ga2ski]

Although I have a been a member for a little over a year i decided to answer the questions as I feel this is one of the easiest going and well moderated forums that I have found.

Do you feel too intimidated to post here often?

No. I only posts on topics that I feel I have some good to add to, unless I'm busting on Tree_skier, Bob or Greg, etc.

Are you concerned about how a beginner level question will be received or responded to?

No, most folks here really welcome new posters. If anything I thonk we welcome new posters questions and try to help them.

Are you simply more comfortable lurking vs. posting? If so, why is that?

I actively post but only when I feel like responding to a topic or making a new post to share a trail report or have a question

Do you feel AZ members could be more friendly or welcoming?

More friendly . . . let's see people who i had never met before that post here have given me free lift tickets, bought me beer, and toured me around their favorite resorts. Everyone who posts is very friendly here, especially compared to other forums.

Do you have any ideas for getting folks like yourself to post more often?

IMO the best way to get "good" people here is word of mouth. If we continue sharing good info and respect for each other, more posters will come.

Are there any other changes you'd like to see here or do you have any other suggestions for the site in general?

I really wish I could give reputation to others . . . Not.:razz: Serously though keep it simple. Some times I think this site is too geeky or complicated to post on. It seems like the posting format has been changing alot recently. You might get more people if it was simpler. I have figured it out, but only through experience posting here and on that other site that I moderate.

That's it for now. Keep up the work. The AZ outings are great. It is always great to meet folks that have a passion for sports that I love.

 

[bvibert]

Some times I think this site is too geeky or complicated to post on. It seems like the posting format has been changing alot recently. You might get more people if it was simpler.

Are there any certain aspects to the site that you find complicated? I've heard this a few times in the past, but I can't get a good feel for what exactly needs to be simpler. Maybe there are some settings that Greg can change or some tutorials can be made up if we know what needs help.

Is there anyone else out there that with the same concerns?

 

[ga2ski]

Nothing in particular, but if I was someone unfamilar if posting pictures and quoting, it might be hard. I don't have any solutions on how it make it better. Many of us would be bummed if those features were removed.

Also I think things will pick back up soon, right now we are in between seasons.

One last suggestion, if you want more suggestions on this might topic, you might want to post a link oon the main skiing and hiking pages.

 

[Greg]

I don't have any solutions on how it make it better.

I would like to suggest that if anyone has any questions at all about how to use a particular feature of the forums, simply start a thread in this forum asking how to do something. This is in part why we have this particular forum; Site Feedback and Help .

 

[NYDrew]

blame it on the weather. really, since january all we have really done was complain about the weather. Granted it is the most appropriate thing to do, but perhaps that could be the reason.

 

[Jonni]

For me it's more the problem of time. If there were 36 hours in a day and sleep counted three times, I would probably post more often. Between working on NELSAP.org, Skilifts.org, Skisunapee.org (new release coming soon...), work at Mt. Sunapee, and teaching myself more coding languages I'm very busy. Whenever I post I try to make it more than just a one or two word answer.

I love reading all forums related to skiing as well as ski lifts. My passion is what drives me to contiually come to all these forums and support these organizations. The only downside is that there isn't enough time in the day to make it all work. But either way before I know it, I'll probably be up to 1,000 posts in no time.

 

[AMAC2233]

I have been lurking around this site since about January and joined up in April. I figured if I joined up I might actually start posting but I never really did. It's not really the fact that I've been intimidated (OK, maybe a little, but that's partly since I'm at least 10 years younger than everyone else,) but everytime I find a thread that I actaully know enough about to post in, I never get around to it.

But I am feeling a little better, since I was lurking around the other day and found an age thread, discovering that I'm not the only one in my teens. I will be getting around to posting more frequently soon enough.

 

[oldefarms]

Ok there it is...my first post.

i sugest that someone create a forum/ stickey next winter so that AZ members can meet (at a specific resort) old and new members on a weekly or bi-weekly basis..
That would encourage new members to become more involved

 

[BeanoNYC]

Ok there it is...my first post.

i sugest that someone create a forum/ stickey next winter so that AZ members can meet (at a specific resort) old and new members on a weekly or bi-weekly basis..
That would encourage new members to become more involved

Welcome oldefarms. The forum you suggested is a reality. It can be found Here.

 

[TenPeaks]

I'm a longer term member, but infrequent poster. Mainly because I've been cut off from AZ at work. I used to catch up on AZ during the day, but can't anymore. It really bums me out.

Anyway, I enjoy all the various topics on AZ and unlike most poster I think of this as more of a hiking site vs. a ski forum. This site is well moderated and more open than other hiking sites that are out there. For example, if things get a bit off topic you're not chastised to stay on topic or leave the site.

 

[Marc]

Sorry to hijack, back to your regularly schedule new guy talks and whatnot.

 

[bvibert]

Sorry to hijack, back to your regularly schedule new guy talks and whatnot.

I took the liberty of moving your nerdy posts to a new thread:
http://forums.alpinezone.com/8890-nerdy-programmer-talk-stripped-serious-newbie-discussion.html

 

[bvibert]

Ok there it is...my first post.

i sugest that someone create a forum/ stickey next winter so that AZ members can meet (at a specific resort) old and new members on a weekly or bi-weekly basis..
That would encourage new members to become more involved

A good idea, as Beano mentioned we have a forum dedicated to such meet-ups.

http://forums.alpinezone.com/trips-events-forum/

We encourage people to post in there. During the ski season there's ussually a few 'organized events', but it's not limited to that. I know of several occasions this past season where individuals were able to meet-up at different mountains through out the region. If anyone has any ideas on how to make that forum better we'd love to hear it, just start a thread in the feedback forum.

 

[awf170]

If anyone has any ideas on how to make that forum better we'd love to hear it, just start a thread in the feedback forum.

A calender like T4T's. I think Steve brought this up before but I can't remember what the answer was.

 

[bvibert]

A calender like T4T's. I think Steve brought this up before but I can't remember what the answer was.

Yes he did, amd here is my response from this thread:

Steve, there is a calendar already enabled as part of them forum software. It hasn't gotten too much use other than automatically tracking member's birthdays. It's not as fancy as the T4T, but it's something to start with.

The calendar is something that I plan on checking out a bit more this summer...

 

[SnowRider]

I love posting. Heck I joined only a month ago and I come back from school and look every day. I think it might be cause people are intiminted by rthe fact they have 20 posts and someone else has 1,000. They also may not want to look like a newb.

SnowRider

 

[awf170]

I love posting. Heck I joined only a month ago and I come back from school and look every day. I think it might be cause people are intiminted by rthe fact they have 20 posts and someone else has 1,000. They also may not want to look like a newb.

SnowRider

;-)