NEWSLETTER
For the last several months, I’ve been exploring options to improve the commenting experience here and to add a place for you all to start discussions on your own. Ultimately, the best option looked to be adding a message board to the site.
But, for a few reasons, I didn’t want to just throw up a traditional message board and say, “have at it.” It wouldn’t really address the genesis of this process: namely, a better commenting experience, and a place to start your own discussions. Also, most message boards fail. Bleacher Nation, as a site, has been a huge success (as far as these things go), and I’m not particularly interested in strapping a superfluous weight around its neck.
So, I’ve been trying to work on something a little different – something that improves the commenting experience here, and gives you a message board-type-place to start discussions of your own.
Yes, the starting point is a message board. Check it out. Hope you enjoy.
But more than that, you can now register as a member of Bleacher Nation, which will give you full access to the message board AND advanced commenting features here at the blog. If you don’t want to register, nothing changes for you – you can keep commenting on the blog, and you can read the message board.
If you want the ability to post on the message board, and to do things here on the blog like post pictures, style your comments, add links, edit your comments, etc., you’ll need to register and be logged in to do so. I personally find it more convenient to register for a site and log in once, rather than manually entering my name and information every time I want to comment. It also makes me feel even more like part of a “community.”
Although I’ve been futzing with the changes for a few months now, I guarantee there will be hiccups.* The software is good, but imperfect. And some features, for now, remain out of reach. But if you discover issues, just let me know. You don’t need me to tell you that the most important part of a community is the community. This is the first major step toward improving ours, and I hope you continue to participate both here on the blog, and at the message board.
Be forewarned: if you post something really awesome on the message board, I reserve the right to promote it to the front page here (with whatever edits might be necessary, and, of course, with proper attribution).
Be forewarned redux: you all know I’m not a fan of heavy-handed moderating. Please don’t make me regret that. Let’s all be responsible adults and not do things like post illicit or copyrighted material. Let’s not get in stupid fights. Let’s not call each other names (save where absolutely necessary and/or funny). Let’s try to use some semblance of sentence structure, grammar, and punctuation. I suppose now’s a fair time to remind you that your participation here at BN is subject to the site’s Terms of Service, which lays out a lot of this stuff. In short: be good.
So, get started: register here. Explore the message board here.
*Like, for example, the first time I added a message board and improved the comments. It lasted approximately four hours. Hopefully this makes it to five. By the way, for the small handful of you who managed to register the first time around, let me know if you have any issues registering with your name of choice this time around.
