I'm looking at both the Front Page, and the Everything page, well I don't see anything different between the 2, so I'm sure that all the projects including yours are appearing on the Front Page. You will need to physically click on the Newbies area to view it though.

I will say that there seems to be times each part of each year, where there's a rush of new people asking the same questions, some do research others "don't" and get mad when it's pointed out.

I'm an optimist at heart, so personally, it'll always be worth it, here or elsewhere.

Perhaps ALL the editor(s) will chime in with where this is going.
I'm not taking up for TomW, I just know there's more than 1 or 2 and they all have input as to what gets pushed where and what the standards are.

AND there are times when there seems to be posts of on going projects every other day.

Rgds

Is your main criticism that the Everything and Front Page links often look that same?

For example I know that there are lots of controllers out there which you guys in the US can probably buy new for the cost of a tank of gas but it ain't really the case here, hence my quest to find out how lead-acid batteries work in detail so that I can design my own controller (especially since I'm using my system in a slightly unconventional way).

I do wonder though, coming back to 'oztules' comments, if there would be much interest as it seems at this level it may be over most peoples heads (i.e. it won't be something they can just go out and buy!).

Well, I think if they were "Diaries" we usually do not put them to the FP. Mostly historically than some "policy". At one time we did bump Diaries to the FP but there were issues with some users not wanting their Diaries on the FP.

I do honestly try to push all interesting "regular" stories to the FP, almost always anything where someone is doing something, even a simple TDM and PVC blades.

Scoop has been getting steadily less stable as time goes on. The uploads area is one example. Mangled filenames, corrupt files, etc.

I do not look at the FP myself, I use recent activity to keep current. Even that is buggy and stuff slips through that I don't see until another comment is added.

Anyone working on a real project will get an FP bump for questions. Mostly so they can get an answer quickly.

There is really no policy as such for what goes FP. Sometimes there is not much to choose from.

It kind of comes down to getting the most use of this resource for the broadest audience. Lately that seems to be folks with questions on planned projects and some in progress projects.

It is also summer up here and most folks do their projects inside in the workshop in winter and outside stuff in summer. I think your southern hemisphere seasons being reversed makes it look worse than it is. By the by, you were pretty quiet all winter up here but I figured it was because it was summer there.

For a site with 11K+ registered users, we do not get a lot of fresh story posts. Frankly, some are not worthy of inclusion at all but we leave them in their section.

OK, heres my proposal for fixing this:

I make you an editor [its like vampires, takes one to make one]. You can push stuff you think should be up front to the FP. It takes 30 seconds to infect you [%=}.

Beyond that, I think we are open to suggestions. Not like we can force folks to build turbines and systems and post about it.

Your call.

Tom

The questions are (more often than I expected) from builders who don't post the end result.
The controller kit puts me in a fairly unique posisition to know what people are doing.

Fairly typical type email I get about controllers...

"Ghurd, I am 'ABC123'.  I asked a single question 3 months ago.  Now my 4' windmill is finished, and I need a controller."

'Did you post pics?'

'No, it is so small.  I don't have space for anything larger.  Everybody builds 10' and 15' windmills.  Mine seems trivial.'

An example is bend1.  Posted only 2 questions.  
One about what kind of motor, one about being confused on the operations of LVDs and dump load controllers.
Only replied 3 times.
Then just today he posted a photo of his windmill and one of his control panel.
No info, just 2 photos and a thank you.

Be patient and everyone can have a field day.

I don't care where it gets to on this site as I only every use Site News Everything.

    sum replys evan went to try and attack your thinking.
    for a story to reach the front page i think it needs to have merit.
   and bye putting a story on the front page it gives credit to the poster.

   so if you want to read a interesting post .thats full of info about how
  the poster made or built sumthing bye himself .
   for the purpose of renewable energy .
    and with pics if possible .
    of course there are many other things that can go on the headlines.

    as you said your post about cutting timber blades with a chainsaw never made it.
    i dont know why not.
     sure was interesting story with great pics.

     as was the guy who couldent afford two steel discs at $100 each.
    so he did it his way.
     that story impressed me . as yours did.
     thats why the front page is there for that type stuff .

     unless you browse the recent activity.  as you say things are gone.
       sumtimes my post gets moved to mechanical.
     and now my spelling is getting much better .
    i find my post on the front page.

   i enjoy how the dans share with a good story and great pics.

Ok,this will be #25 or higher reply to this story.

Have you decided to come on board to help fix the problem?

Just say the word [OK] and you can get in here and forge it to your liking.

I am serious. We could use the help balancing this behemoth on the welding rod.

I think I understand your point[s] but not sure we share the same vision of what the site is "about"

Despite our size we do not really get that many quality story submissions.

We can't win for losing. Not too long ago their were complaints that the FP was stagnant. Month old stories with no new comments in a couple weeks, etc.

It kind of comes down to who are we geared towards? New folks? Google? Established builders? Lazy folks who only found us trying to save money on utilities? Who?

The Dans have effectively abandoned the board as far as posting goes. Thats because they are busy with other stuff, I am sure.

Not sure I agree with your vision, but its not about you or me. Its about keeping this resource alive and useful for people who want to build.

Anyway, I guess my final comment [now] is here is your chance to help make it what you think it should be.

Join up and help fix the problem and all that.

Tom

For one thing, I'm not a Diary-type person. I don't need to tell
everyone about everything I did today. WAIT!! Don't blast me yet!!!
I'm saying that was the way I was thinking. Now, after reading Oz's
post and the replies, I can understand the other side of things.

I really thought that another story of a standard 10 footer was
nothing new and didn't rate the space it would take to post it.

The other thing is, no matter what you say on this board, someone
will have to make a snide comment. That's probably why there are
11,000 registered users, but very few that actually post.
OK, I will admit that a lot depends on the frame of mind that
I'm in when I read the post as to whether it comes off as rude or
not. Sometimes we are in a joking, laughing frame of mind, and
sometimes we're not.

I remember what Tom is saying about the FP being stale and needing
to be updated. But he's right about not having a lot to choose from.

I really enjoy this site. Especially more so recently as I will soon be extremely bandwidth limited and have to view the site using "links" (very old skool text only browser for those who don't know). Well, Scoop happens to render not too bad for that purpose as far as I can see..

Anyway (digress), it's cool seeing what people are doing and if the front page isn't necessarily reflecting a lot of the stuff going on deep in the forums then that's ok, it's the nature of the web (and this postmodern world we live in). And cos' it's difficult making stuff and maintaining a bunch of old hospital (small APS) batteries to keep the irc server going and who knows what else goes on to keep this site alive.

Until very recently, I didn't even care to use the recent activity link. Took away from the coolness of checking out the Front Page and then clicking through the different sections. Never knew if a story or question would be posted that I could help with, or where it would be posted.

If I'm in a hurry, not where I can log in and go clicking, OR trying to stave off boredoom while waiting for a flight, on my PDA, I will also look at the Front Page as a guest.

If there looks to be "stuff" on the Front Page that I'm curious about, then I'll do a proper login to either answer a reply, or try to help.

To me this is what I use the Front Page for.

Back a while ago, when posts became something people started getting snippy at instead of actually helping, I merely stopped adding pics to my diary or writing, and went to helping with info in the NEWBIE and sorting out fact from fiction and now only post pics when they'll prove helpful.

For Otzules: I think I'm understand what you're trying to get out in the open and that you're NOT trying to beat your chest over your posts, but a handle on what makes the front page, or possibly how to push the real "doer" stuff up there.
 If I'm wrong then I misread something.

For ALL:
I count myself lucky, I don't have to do this because I'm on the grid, and my food and beers aren't going to go bad if the power I saved up gets trashed by a bad battery.
I do it because I like to, its better than spending money at the nearest bar, and though I'll never likely break-even, I do save just a bit off the electric bills and I like to learn.

The last month for me has been extremely busy and I assume others as well.

Currently I am designing and writing software to make a very complete system monitoring and logging software for my Xantrex XW system.  When done it will blow away anything currently available!

All of this has detracted me from getting together the results of the 17' wind turbine that I recently completed.  I hope to get back to this and give several charts showing the output from my turbine soon.

Your contributions have always been thoughtful and technically valuable.  If you were to join the editorial staff, it would be a big step forward.  (That's not a dig at Tom, Kurt, or any others).  Current editorial approach has a "police" nature.  Your style would bolster the "guide" point of view.

I have a thick skin when it comes to critique, so I like to post my stuff, and I'm typically surprised by how positive the feedback is.  I actually would prefer more nitpicking because when I look back at my old diaries I wonder why people didn't notice this and that mistake.  Mistakes I only recognize after learning and learning over the following years, you know.

I've had postings moved to the front page, but that's not what I'm looking for.  When I post I want two things: show something that's good enough that it might help someone else trying to do something similar, and receive feedback that will improve my own project.

If they avoid putting diary entries on the front page, because that makes them disappear somehow, then WHAT'S THE POINT?  That's where the neat projects are going to appear!

Have I posted new stuff recently?  No, I've been saving it (sounds like what others are doing, too) for a big complete contribution when I'm done my 24V upgrades.  Scoop has become such a mighty PITA that posting pictures is a total mess.  That might be why I have delayed, too.  You can be sure that I will do so, despite these problems.  Others cannot be expected to be so patient.

I'm surprised to hear about the members that don't check the front page.  Maybe I just bookmarked the front page the day I arrived, and haven't updated the link since, but I always log in on the front page.  I see it first, then I go on to recent activity, diaries, or see what the newbies are up to.

I have always been critical of Scoop.  It does not sort threads by recent activity, it does not sort pictures, it does not permit uploading of pictures through a separate dialog box (which causes constant interruption of my typing as I carefully construct a posting), and whenever I make a reply to a question, sometimes the OP responds to the "reply", other times they respond as a "comment", making it impossible to follow all threads to which I contribute without going to both "recent activity" AND "your comments", and trying to sort out the old from the new.  Lastly how come nobody's realized that all these stacked replies in the threads just encourage off-topic postings?

I don't push hard with my criticizms of Scoop because I don't have the time nor skills to make a solution happen.  

At the root of it, though, Oz, the moderators don't have full control over the problem you have found.  The site needs someone to spring for new software, so that members new and old can feel more comfortable taking part.  Otherwise more and more of us will join the other fora that do.

This is already happening.  I have followed several "former" fieldlines members' postings, made on other sites, not THIS one.  Oz, you miss seeing the new projects being posted... here.  Well I also know that you participate on other fora and are making comparisons.  So am I.  We're seeing the new stuff there.

I know, I know, it's not a competition.  I'll avoid naming names so that I don't make this any worse.