It would be great to have a Web Host Reviews forum, so that we can weed all of those out (and make them easier to find) from the main one. There are so many "my host is great" "my host sucks" posts in the main forum that all the other ones sometimes get lost in the shuffle.

--Tina

It would be great to have a Web Host Reviews forum, so that we can weed all of those out (and make them easier to find) from the main one. There are so many "my host is great" "my host sucks" posts in the main forum that all the other ones sometimes get lost in the shuffle.

--Tina

Sounds like a good idea to me.

It would be great to have a Web Host Reviews forumGood idea. I nominate you to move the thousands of posts into the new forum ;)

Very good idea, but would be a lot of work to do.

Nahhh...just move the last month or so with a sticky on the new forum saying "posts prior to (insert date) are in the main forum".

Problem solved!

Soooo...when's the new forum going to be created?

--Tina

Sounds like a awesome idea to be it would weed out 80% of the post in the normal webhosting and reseller hosting forums which are usually my host sucks or my host kicks butt posts.

Also a suggestion would be to require people to post a domain with all reviews, I don't think asking for this is that big of a deal and would cut down on a ton of the 'sig spammers' in those forums from those posting 'do you have a url' in every thread.

Yea I think it would be a great idea.

Also a suggestion would be to require people to post a domain with all reviews, I don't think asking for this is that big of a deal and would cut down on a ton of the 'sig spammers' in those forums from those posting 'do you have a url' in every thread.

VERY good idea. Further, maybe require that they have been with the host for at least 30 days. I can't even count the number of times I've read "I've only been with them a week...but they rock!" kinds of posts. :P

--Tina

Any feedback from the higher ups here?

We were listening.

I got kinda distracted when conditions were starting to be placed.

But, we're still listening.

Further, maybe require that they have been with the host for at least 30 days. I can't even count the number of times I've read "I've only been with them a week...but they rock!" kinds of posts. :P

I agreed with you -- until I remembered that I ended up at one of the hosts I use in part because of a review made (not here) within a week or so of the reviewer signing up. The poster described all the help he'd gotten getting everything set up. That got me looking into it more, and when I signed up, I found the service to be as good as he said it was. That was over 2 years ago, and it's still good. :)

A relevant point is that I was influenced not just by what that poster wrote but by how he wrote it. There was none of the "I've only been with them a week...but they rock!" type of language; he provided details as well as his background, which gave him credibility. But not all reviews are like that.

If we have such a restriction, how about if we require the member to have been with the host for at least...7 days? 10 days? 2 weeks? Or maybe not bother with the restriction. The "I've only been with them a week...but they rock!"posts don't have much credibility, so they aren't hurting anyone.

Lois

How about no signatures get displayed in this particular forum?

I like the idea very much, by the way. Hasn't this been proposed before? What prevented it from happening?

It should be one top-level forum that encompasses reviews for all types of hosting - shared, reseller, VPS, Dedicated, Colo, Game, Cluster, etc.

How about no signatures get displayed in this particular forum?

I like the idea very much, by the way. Hasn't this been proposed before? What prevented it from happening?

It should be one top-level forum that encompasses reviews for all types of hosting - shared, reseller, VPS, Dedicated, Colo, Game, Cluster, etc.

:banana: FABULOUS IDEA!!!!! :banana:

Sirius

If a new forum is created for hosting reviews, it would be good if there could be a new text box added when you go to create a review - 'what domain do you have hosted?'

Not a bad idea. It would mean there would be lots more work required from the mods, in moving review posts into the review forum, and then there's contacting the forum poster and telling them that their thread was moved.

Lots of extra work for the mods, but I think it's worth it. :)

I have a question inspired by an Aussie Bob post here: http://www.webhostingtalk.com/showpost.php?p=3637952&postcount=15
Not a bad idea. It would mean there would be lots more work required from the mods, in moving review posts into the review forum, and then there's contacting the forum poster and telling them that their thread was moved.

Lots of extra work for the mods, but I think it's worth it. :)
I seem to remember that when posts were moved in the earlier days of WHT the thread would say "Moved: <Post Title>" in the original place it was posted. A user could click the link and it would show them the thread in the proper forum. The "Moved:" notification in the original forum behaved like a locked post and gradually moved down the list as other threads were added.

Would putting it back help fix the issue of notifiying their posts were moved? Or do folks think that would just create too much clutter? Or is there a Vb hack that auto-notifies just a thread starter via email or PM that the post was moved?

The mods can always ask for help. There's plenty of people here who wouldn't mind helping out with post moving.

As for telling people their thread was moved? I wouldn't bother.
A nice announcement at the top of general in BIG LETTERS should do the trick.
If neccessary, they could send an email to every WHT member as well to tell them about the new forum.

And for spams sake how about a "10 post +" limit to post in the reviews forum?
Similar to the Advertising forum now.

It's not as though we get a lot of genuine reviews and if this forum should go ahead, we can do what we already do and post "Moved to <whatever> forum" when we move it.

Further, maybe require that they have been with the host for at least 30 days.How about the times when the host messes things up in 5 days, the user is unhappy, leaves the company, and wants to post a review? Is his story not real or irrelevant? I still think it's up to the reader to decide the value of a review. :)

There are so many "my host is great" "my host sucks" posts in the main forum that all the other ones sometimes get lost in the shuffle.Actually, collecting reviews is one of its main functions, as per its description. After all, it is basically the forum where people ask for and post reviews about (shared) hosts. The way I see it, if we take away the threads that are about feedback/reviews (in one form or another), the "main forum" will no longer be the main forum at all.

Maybe things should be different and I'm too used to the way things are? Could be.

. . . I seem to remember that when posts were moved in the earlier days of WHT the thread would say "Moved: <Post Title>" in the original place it was posted. A user could click the link and it would show them the thread in the proper forum. The "Moved:" notification in the original forum behaved like a locked post and gradually moved down the list as other threads were added.

Would putting it back help fix the issue of notifiying their posts were moved? Or do folks think that would just create too much clutter? Or is there a Vb hack that auto-notifies just a thread starter via email or PM that the post was moved?
Could create too much clutter, but would be good if there was a VB hack that informs the thread starter that the thread was moved. That could say some confusion and create less work for the mods.

Hasn't this been proposed before? What prevented it from happening?



Its a great idea but YES it has been mentioned before. Ive started some threads about it myself but if I recall correctly I always thought the mods or whom-ever was in control of making those decesions thought that the "general forum" served the purpose for reviewing.
IMO this should have been implemented a long time ago. :peace:
After all, this is a web hosting talk community, yet there is no one specific forum for praising or complaining but yet there is a forum for everything else.
If you really look around, everything else is geared more for the WEBHOST..not the consumer! :crap:

Anything involving more work for the highly overworked, and grossly underpaid (unless you're an elephant and like peanuts :P) admin around here is just crazy. These guys already do enough work as it is.

That said:
What COULD be done is very simple, really. In fact, it was done (and IMO SHOULD be done again) to the tutorial sections.
Create the forum, let the users post away in it. However, before the post goes in, require admin approval. This way, the only work that has to be done is on the side of the admin, verifying it's a real, genuine post, not a 1 line post. No moving around of things. When 30 days are up (or whenever), the post isn't shown, at least by default.

Just a thought. The idea is great, but the extra work for the admin might not be worth it :P

Have the mods decided on this yet?

Create the forum, let the users post away in it. However, before the post goes in, require admin approval. This way, the only work that has to be done is on the side of the admin, verifying it's a real, genuine post, not a 1 line post. No moving around of things.
Actually, that isn't a bad idea. As so many *good* reviews are shill posts or the host asked them to make a review post, we could sort that out before it went "live" ;)