Which new categories should the forum have?

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Now that it’s been *checks watch* about 20 months since this forum was launched, it seems as good as time as any to revisit how it’s organized. I’m updating the list of categories and wanted to see if y’all had any input around this?

I’ve skimmed through all of the posts so far, trying to see what categories they fall into. These first few are no-brainers to me:

  • Feature requests: probably the most popular type of post!

  • Help: “how do I…” type posts; seeking assistance.

  • Bug reports: for when things don’t work as they should

  • Share Your Charts: for sharing songs and lists; might rename this, open to ideas

  • Recordings by You: for folks who want to post videos/recordings of themselves playing with Strum Machine; again, better name?

  • News & Announcements: a place for me to post about bigger releases, status updates, etc.

That covers most of the posts we’ve seen so far, but there are a few dozen that don’t quite fit, including:

  • General feedback on Strum Machine
  • Tips and suggestions for getting more out of Strum Machine
  • Sharing stories and SM-adjacent news

Any suggestions for additional categories I should create? Or should I just lump everything else under “General”, “Other”, “Everything Else”, “Misc”, or some other catch-all category? (Like the current “Uncategorized”?)

I’m thinking about adding a “Tips” category at minimum. Not that people have posted that many tips, but I feel like people may feel encouraged to post when there’s a category available that’s a good fit.

Finally, I want to start a new category for myself, tentatively titled Behind the Scenes, where I share what I’m working on in the earlier stages of design and development. Things always turn out better when I can get more eyes on them. I’m also considering an “Insiders Club” or “Backstage Pass” newsletter, where I can share such things more directly and also share things I might not want to be public on the internet quite yet. I might also start a more general newsletter which I’d reserve for announcing new releases when they’re actually live. If you want to get on either list, send me a message here or within Strum Machine. (I’ll make a signup form later!)

Ideas? Don’t be shy! :smiley:

Update (Jan 30, 2023): here is what I settled on for now (subject to change and improvement)

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A few suggestions for the user example section.

StrumYouTube
Users Strumming
Share The Rhythm U Made (STRUM)

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TIPS category sounds very helpful, but I think you, Luke, will be the main contributor!
Would it be worthwhile to have categories for the instruments we’re playing? There we could share tips pertinent to, say :wink:, a banjo, without cluttering the forum.
As a banjo :banjo: player, I always strive to improve accuracy, rhythm, and, of course, speed. As general concepts, we all do, I guess, but the specifics of my practice are probably different than fiddle or guitar.
Other than that, do your magic, Luke!

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Tips would be interesting. Possibly relating to a specific instrument. Other than that a big” well done” on the strum patterns. Strum machine does everything I hoped it would.

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Sign me up on both lists INSIDERS & BACKSTAGE. Thank you, I enjoy reading your comments and new ideas. Keep up the good work.

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Your catagory ideas are good. The basic layout of the page is confusing to me for some reason - the left column and right column and their different functions. My eye isn’t naturally drawn to what I might be looking for, or to what’s new. Might just be me. Not really a complaint.

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A post was split to a new topic: Vote on a new forum layout!

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I did some design work on the forum index; would be curious to know if you think it’s improved now. I also made a poll with all the alternatives here.

I’m thinking most advice would be at least somewhat related to Strum Machine (rather than just general instrument advice) and so may apply to multiple instruments… but we can see what people end up posting. I find most good general advice for practicing stringed instruments applies to multiple instruments…

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OK, I ended up with the following ten categories:

New forum categories grid
New forum categories grid979×1349 112 KB

Part of me thinks that Help and Tips could be combined, and that Feature requests (and maybe even Bug reports) could be folded into Feedback. But I will leave it like this for a little bit and see what y’all think.

By the way, the difference between Announcements and Backstage is that the former will be used for announcing big new releases and other news, while the latter will be for sharing the process and progress of feature development as it goes along.

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