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Old 11-03-13, 08:05 PM  
adawn
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mollie F. View Post
Maybe one way to deal with OT is never to reply to them. You can always PM someone who's posted an OT query if you have a suggestion. If people don't reply to the OT thread, it will fall off the front page and die a natural death .
I try not to respond to truly OT posts for this reason. But I have been guilty of reading OT threads and contributing to the number of views they get.

Quote:
Originally Posted by pumptmuscle View Post
I always find it interesting that, despite everyone knowing how costly (literally) and irrelevant off topic threads are, they tend to be the most popular. As I write this, there are a total of 6 posts on the first three pages that have over 100 replies, not counting the stickies. Half of them are off topic, which of course, includes the ever present beauty thread. I have no clue why that's here at all. As one of the few male VFers, and knowing that this is essentially a woman's forum, I understand why it would be accepted. Let's face it, if Tony and Vito are hanging out at the sports bar watching football, you probably won't hear them talking about what lipstick or foundation they use.

Do I care about the off topic threads? No. Although they really shouldn't be here and I feel are disrespectful to Wendy, they're not really a big deal to me. I do think though that people who post off topic threads should consider Wendy and her feelings on the issue before doing so.
The annual beauty thread doesn't bother me (and I've occasionally posted to it) because it doesn't clutter up my board viewing and it is occasionally fitness-related.

One thing that I've noticed recently is new beauty offshoot threads being started that could have just been posted to the main beauty thread that is allowed/tolerated. I believe all of the separate beauty threads are eventually merged into the main thread anyways. Some posters may not realize this.

ETA: I see WWWendy already mentioned this in her recent post about OT threads.
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Old 11-03-13, 08:28 PM  
suegy3
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by carole r. View Post
I'm guilty of replying to OT threads. I agree that starting an OT forum would open a whole new set of problems not just bandwidth either. This board is made of people with many diverse viewpoints. I was over at YaYas. It had a great Open Chatter forum. After a while, it was regulated more and more. There were many ugly situations and a lot of trolling. The whole board is very inactive now. I would hate to see that happen here. Just keep it a fitness board and limit OT discussions. Don't forbid them; sometimes there's a good reason for starting them.
Ditto! All the drama that can result can bring the entire board down. The TA threads are enough drama! lol
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Old 11-04-13, 05:01 AM  
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I agree that a check-in is a good place to talk about our daily lives and share concerns or ask for advice. Of course, whatever advice a stranger offers on the internet shouldn't be taken as gospel (as someone else already pointed out).
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Old 11-04-13, 05:35 AM  
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I participate on many boards and I can say with certainty that the people who participate on the board, both men and women, are some of the most intelligent, passionate, compassionate, funniest and dynamic people on the internet.

I'm not surprised that there are so many off topic threads. You folks are interesting, and multi-dimensional. I totally understand Wendy's post however. Just don't want to chase away anyone who needs that social interaction while trying to get healthy.
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Old 11-04-13, 08:02 AM  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sue B View Post
The thread is stickied. That makes two stickied threads about OT. I don't think people pay much attention to stickied threads.
In my opinion, that's because there are too many stickied threads and some of the have been there for years. I'd pay more attention to them if there were less or changed more regularly.

I totally agree that there are too many off topic threads.
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Old 11-04-13, 09:07 AM  
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There are alternatives. There are Facebook groups made up of VFers where there is tons of conversation that is as OT as you can get, even from the stated purpose of the FB page itself.
I belong to one that has about 60 members, but I think only about ten (at the most) actively post and then some people chime in when a thread hits a nerve or if they need questions answered.

Sometimes we are just there for group hugs. Sometimes we just give atta girls or recipes or parental advide/support. We use it for whatever we need. Now, the ten of us that actively post don't keep to the stated goal of a VF community that can talk about diet, but diet and food issues is a common topic. But so are decadent recipes and Trader Joe's finds.

Facebook pages are more personal, though, in that you give your real name (unless you have an online persona that you use for such groups but on secret groups the admin doesn't usually like that). But the conversations touch on many topics.
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Old 11-04-13, 10:18 AM  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pumptmuscle View Post
You wouldn't slap someone in the face as they're handing you a gift. An off-topic poster should be more respectful of the woman who's been nice enough to save us money, time and frustration by helping us not acquire workouts we otherwise wouldn't like through the information found here.
That is a really rash generalization! As long-time VFer, I was so grateful to be able to share the recent death of my cat here and get much-needed support. Yes, it was O/T. But, the comfort those replies gave and the support I received can't be put into words.

I'd be truly surprised if that felt like a slap to the face to our founder.
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Old 11-04-13, 10:34 AM  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Alta-tude View Post
That is a really rash generalization! As long-time VFer, I was so grateful to be able to share the recent death of my cat here and get much-needed support. Yes, it was O/T. But, the comfort those replies gave and the support I received can't be put into words.

I'd be truly surprised if that felt like a slap to the face to our founder.
I'm so sorry Alta.(((hugs))). When I lost my boxer Mercedes, the messages I received were so comforting. I needed to pour my heart out because it was filled with much sadness.
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Old 11-04-13, 10:34 AM  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Alta-tude View Post
That is a really rash generalization! As long-time VFer, I was so grateful to be able to share the recent death of my cat here and get much-needed support. Yes, it was O/T. But, the comfort those replies gave and the support I received can't be put into words.

I'd be truly surprised if that felt like a slap to the face to our founder.
I think solace for the death of a pet or loved one is considered on topic. I think that would go under wellness issues.

On that topic, maybe "wellness" definition should be clarified or updated? I would hate to think that the cat threads on VF will go away (although I do not have a cat) or that the Fall Reading or Annual Beauty threads will fall by the wayside. They have become so much of the culture of this forum. However, I do understand where Wendy is coming from. This forum is expensive and time consuming.
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Old 11-04-13, 10:45 AM  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Alta-tude View Post
That is a really rash generalization! As long-time VFer, I was so grateful to be able to share the recent death of my cat here and get much-needed support. Yes, it was O/T. But, the comfort those replies gave and the support I received can't be put into words.

I'd be truly surprised if that felt like a slap to the face to our founder.
I completely agree! I think some OT threads contribute to our feeling like a community of friends. I know there are many, many members, but I feel as if I know a lot of you and that has come from talking about things other than fitness. I seriously doubt these OT threads are like a slap in the face to Wendy. That is such a bizarre generalization.

I've never started an OT thread I don't think. I've actually started so few threads to begin with, I can't remember for sure. I will (of course) bow to Wendy's wishes, but I hardly think OT threads constitute a thrashing, (as being done here on this thread) whether you start them or particpate. And I assure you I'm one of the first to jump in to post on off topics because I enjoy them...
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