Moving on?

Marg2k8

mumto2boys said:

Just to clarify, I'm not wanting to set up a new forum, or necessarily move to one, I like it here! I've tried other sites but keep coming back here, i'm just frustrated with things not working properly so trying to find solutions.  I'm going to stay here and keep posting where I can,  and hope things improve.  If everyone made an effort, even to post a couple of comps a day, it would make a big difference.  

Yes, I'll try and post more.  Perhaps we should start a 'post two comps a day' thread to motivate each other. 

BerryFeather

I comped for years and years solely using MSE, then I took a loooong break and when I came back (at the end of March) everything had changed. I set up a new profile (as i'd lost my previous details) and I did try using it for around a month. I just couldn't seem to get my head around it, but I was worried about losing track of what i'd already entered if I used another site. I decided to bite the bullet and tried Loquax as I was finding it so difficult here. I find it so easy to use their site, one thing I find especially useful is that you can ignore certain comps, so when I have a little less time for example, I will put FB and IG on my ignore list so I don't see them (they're the ones I enjoy the least). Then if I find that I have more time on my hands, I just change it so that I can see them, and i'll work through some. I also like the fact that it's just as easy to work through the list of recently added or the ones closing soonest, I find that I do both depending on the mood I'm in. If I'm feeling extra productive I will do some from the recently added, if I'm not really feeling it, i'll just do the ones ending soonest that I want to enter.

I spent the first few weeks cross checking some with MSE unless I was certain that i'd already entered - the links also change colour if you've already visited a particular site, this isn't 100% foolproof but it is very helpful in seeing at a glance the ones you may have already done from another comp site.

I always found it hard to post comps here years ago without them being dupes etc but it's quite easy to search to see if a comp is already there and if not, very easy to then post. I have really been enjoying finding new comps and getting involved.

I know the answers situation is a concern for some people but Loquax doesn't have any rule not to post the answers so it's down to the individual posters if they want to post an answer, in my experience a lot of the answers which are tricky to find on the company site do tend to get posted, otherwise I usually find that the answer is very easy to find in a few clicks on the company site.

I just thought I would share my experiences in case it is helpful for any of you guys, I guess it has been an easier transition for me to another site as I had previously had quite a long break. Good luck to all and happy comping.

Blulu

Sorry to bump the thread, but I think I've worked out what must've happened for me, about missing MSE_Tine's post in my 'paranoid' thread. At some point, I was so fed up with these naff changes that I decided to quit comping altogether. Then, when I missed coping, I dabbled with Loquax for a short while.

Well, when I quit MSE, I cancelled all my bookmarks. I have a strong instinct that MSE_Tine posted on my thread after I'd left MSE, which is the only reason I wouldn't have seen it. When I came back, I never thought about checking my old posts/threads. I should have and I have now messaged MSE_Tine to apologise and to say a belated thanks.

Blu XXX

Spot5Flowers

I've been comping here for some years now, and I absolutely loathe the new forum.  I've tried, but it doesn't function in the way I want it to anymore.  Along with the lack of competition posts now there's not really much point hanging around.  I've stuck my head in over at the yellow duck place, and there are so many competitions there, many of which used to be posted here but aren't anymore.  So, with regret, I've decided to move over there.  If this place becomes functional again I'd happily come back.

thingamaBob

Spot5Flowers said:

I've been comping here for some years now, and I absolutely loathe the new forum.  I've tried, but it doesn't function in the way I want it to anymore.  Along with the lack of competition posts now there's not really much point hanging around.  I've stuck my head in over at the yellow duck place, and there are so many competitions there, many of which used to be posted here but aren't anymore.  So, with regret, I've decided to move over there.  If this place becomes functional again I'd happily come back.

1. If you know where there's lots of comps not posted on here, why not help out & post them?
2. If everyone follows your lead, there won't be anything to come back to.

Blulu

Spot5Flowers said:

I've been comping here for some years now, and I absolutely loathe the new forum.  I've tried, but it doesn't function in the way I want it to anymore.  Along with the lack of competition posts now there's not really much point hanging around.  I've stuck my head in over at the yellow duck place, and there are so many competitions there, many of which used to be posted here but aren't anymore.  So, with regret, I've decided to move over there.  If this place becomes functional again I'd happily come back.

Thank you for commenting. I appreciate you sharing your honest opinion. What you said makes total sense, to me.

Blu XXX

Spot5Flowers

thingamaBob said:

1. If you know where there's lots of comps not posted on here, why not help out & post them?
2. If everyone follows your lead, there won't be anything to come back to.

1.  There are hundreds of comps not posted on here, and as people have commented, you can only post very slowly or you get timed out.  Also, the search function on here is a constant source of complaint as it doesn't work, or doesn't work well.  My leisure/comping time is fairly limited.  I quite honestly don't want to be spending my time posting competitions for them to be removed as dupes, or measuring time between posts so I don't get a ban.
2.  Well, if everyone goes to a more functional forum, then so be it.  I'm not the only person to leave, and the main reason people have left is because of the new forum.  
Change is good, if it's change for the better.  Which this change hasn't been.  There used to be at least a couple of hundred comps posted here most days, now it's less than a hundred.  

Blulu said:

Thank you for commenting. I appreciate you sharing your honest opinion. What you said makes total sense, to me.

Blu XXX

Thanks Blu. xx

thingamaBob

Spot5Flowers said:

thingamaBob said:

1. If you know where there's lots of comps not posted on here, why not help out & post them?
2. If everyone follows your lead, there won't be anything to come back to.

1.  There are hundreds of comps not posted on here, and as people have commented, you can only post very slowly or you get timed out.  Also, the search function on here is a constant source of complaint as it doesn't work, or doesn't work well.  My leisure/comping time is fairly limited.  I quite honestly don't want to be spending my time posting competitions for them to be removed as dupes, or measuring time between posts so I don't get a ban.
2.  Well, if everyone goes to a more functional forum, then so be it.  I'm not the only person to leave, and the main reason people have left is because of the new forum.  
Change is good, if it's change for the better.  Which this change hasn't been.  There used to be at least a couple of hundred comps posted here most days, now it's less than a hundred.  

Have you tried? I do not have problems posting. The "time limit" has only been introduced recently in response to massive amounts of spam and I'm sure it will be amended as soon as as they can introduce other spam prevention measures. The search facility is working very well, indeed, better than the old forum, you just need to use it correctly.
You have only posted 4 comps (none since 21st April), none of them were dupes/got merged but 2 of them did not have the standard date format which may have affected whether or not they showed up correctly in search. If lack of comps is one of the big problems then people running away and not posting only makes it worse.

I think people are making a mountain out of a mole hill. The new forum is not as bad as is being made out and the small, but yes irritating, problems are on the list to be sorted once the Covid19 workload/problems slow down. 
I have been a member of Loquax for more than 10 years but still prefer to comp here. I have had a look over there and have found very few more comps that I want to enter than I have already done here. Yes. it is a very good site if it suits you but if it's that good why even think about coming back when those that stay have got this one improved.  As I said, if all the compers go, there will be no competitions board to come back to.

You say "Change is good, if it's change for the better.  Which this change hasn't been" but the old forum was old and near the point of collapse especially as regards security. I'm sure you would not have liked it if it had been hacked and your details stolen.
It's true, the change could have been handled better but, as I said earlier, the old forum took years of development before it got to where it was. This one has only been here 4 months and for most of that time the workload and precautions from Covid19 have made it virtually impossible to put time in to make improvements.

"There used to be at least a couple of hundred comps posted here most days, now it's less than a hundred." Well there was about 109 comps posted here on Thursday and about 129 posted on Loquax. I think the problem with numbers of comps being posted is that many sites are not running comps at the moment, probably because the staff have all been furloughed or they just can't afford to give things away with no trade going on. I check a number of sites each month and many of them have either reduced the number they have run or they have not run any at all.

I have no problem with people going somewhere else if they like it and it suits them better but they should consider carefully if it is really as bad as they think or if they are just listening to the people complaining who never like it when something changes.

strawberri_shortcake

Am am one hundred percent convinced that MSE are done with the competition forum. There is so much evidence to back this up so I'll just highlight two.
I don't believe for a millisecond that they couldn't have put the tick/cross boxes back.
I would imagine that most of their techies are working from home and are more than capable of getting back to responses regarding the new forum. 

It makes perfect sense that they're hoping to drum the competitions forum off the pages or at least have few posters. 

libra10

I tend to agree.  The MSE weekly newsletter regularly promoted the competition section up to February this year, when the new forum started.  It hasn't been mentioned at all since then.