Chatbox - To Be, Or Not To Be?

Hello Everybody
Our revered  @Admin has asked me to do a quick survey about the chatbox. This, as you will know, is put up at weekends to allow members to have a more immediate interaction than is allowed by PMs, and there is no inbox to get clogged up. When it works, it's great fun, but it doesn't often happen. I keep looking in when the box is running and nobody seems to be logging in or making a comment. Anyone looking at it over last weekend (and I don't think anybody did, to be honest) would have seen that the last two sessions consisted of Martin and I conversing one to one. This evidence of civilised behaviour is not good for Martin's carefully cultivated reputation as a semi-house-trained polecat (to coin a phrase) and more participants are needed. There is a downside in that it can be hit and miss whether anyone is on the box when another member looks in, but we can make dates with each other for a chat which others can join if they spot it's happening.  So, the question is, is it worth continuing with the chatbox?
Please let us know whether you think the chatbox adds anything; whether it would be better at a different day or time; if there is something we could do to persuade you to use it (other than financial inducements), or whether you don't think it adds any value at all and we can scrap it. Your views do matter (said with a straight face) because we want all members to enjoy their time here.

Hi  @The Cat's Mother. I'm not sure, because I've never seen it or tried it. So, for me, the jury's out, but I'm interested to see what others say

Bondie wrote:Hi  @The Cat's Mother. I'm not sure, because I've never seen it or tried it. So, for me, the jury's out, but I'm interested to see what others say

Hi @Bondie , that's part of the problem, nobody seems to be trying it. Perhaps if we gave it a go this coming Sunday (I can't make Saturday), and see what you thought. Perhaps some others will join in too.

Hi  @The Cat's Mother. That's a good idea. I can't do Sunday, however (watching rugby amongst other things, but mainly yelling at Scotland to slaughter France ) Are there any other days that might work?

The chatbox goes up at weekend. We're having friends over for lunch on Saturday, but they might not stay too late as they have to get back to Sheffield. I could PM you in the evening if that would work for you?

@The Cat's Mother , by all means. You’ll have to explain what’s what to me!

Only until Monday I shall leave the Chatbox open, so that everyone can see what the fuss is all about.

It should show up on the top of your screen. Mobile and Desktop version.

As of right now... it is up.
TA... DA



But seriously please comment down below if you think it adds value to have this chatbox open on the weekends or not.

I haven't been on for awhile definitely can't do weekend evenings, afternoons would be best for me

@Admin and  @The Cat's Mother, I popped onto the chatbox briefly yesterday at about noon to say hello... I couldn't see any other contributions, and now I can't see the chatbox at all. I tried!

Bondie wrote:@Admin and  @The Cat's Mother, I popped onto the chatbox briefly yesterday at about noon to say hello... I couldn't see any other contributions, and now I can't see the chatbox at all. I tried!

The Chatbox is normally open on a Friday and closes early on a Monday morning.

I left the chatbox open last week for this discussion. It was to show everyone that it exists and lets people know how to use it a bit.

But the problem we face over the weekends is as you found. You could be on the chatbox and no one else joins in. They can be online but not joining in on the chatbox.

So we normally have to give a rough time and hope others might join during that time. This is where the first question comes into force. Is the chatbox worth it or not. It is a nice treat for the weekends when you might just want to chat away to friends on here and enjoy yourself. It takes it to a safe spot and allows real time conversations to happen. OR do we just say this is daft and give up?

As a newbie, I don’t feel able to answer that question. How popular has it been in the past? Also, should I have been able to see contributions from earlier in the weekend… I saw nothing at all?

PS: the weekend can be a busy time for a lot of people, but I can’t think of an alternative time, unfortunately!

Bondie wrote:As a newbie, I don’t feel able to answer that question. How popular has it been in the past? Also, should I have been able to see contributions from earlier in the weekend… I saw nothing at all?

The way to see earlier contributions is to log into the chatbox and click on the 'Archives' button. That will allow you to see past contributions - to date mainly Martin and I winding each other up and being rude about Jon. Keeps him on his toes.

@The Cat's Mother

To Be for me please.

Well, this is the second day this weekend that the chatbox has not been up - obviously due to Jon being ill and not as a deliberate ploy. I can't say I've missed it, and since the posts on this thread ended at the end of February - more than a quarter of a year ago - I have been religiously logging in every weekend to see who takes part, and also to see who has even logged on to the box. The picture seems to be that  @Admin  and I and  @tray  and I occasionally catch each other;  @SilverTrader  can (very) occasionally be lured on;  @Bondie has had a go;  @Periodic Table  and I have had a good natter once, with Jon as well for quite a bit of the time. I have also seen that those members have logged in from time to time, but got no further. Other than that, I usually find myself calling into the wilderness, with no response. No other members have even logged on to the chat, still less left a 'hello' or an invitation for a date. Frankly, I don't think the chatbox is worth it.

I do look but normally miss everyone, weekends in the summer not in very much and family come over when Iam.

tray wrote:I do look but normally miss everyone, weekends in the summer not in very much and family come over when Iam.

Exactly. You have a healthy, normal, lifestyle. You are also one of the very few members who even bother to log on to see if anything is going on. Most people have things to do at weekends, especially in summer. There may be an argument for having the box up at holiday times, but as a general rule it doesn't seem worth it.

In principle, I think it’s a lovely idea for people to get together in real time. However, I think it’s failing because people are busy at the weekends. I like the idea of the chat box being up over the Christmas period (as I think you’re suggesting @The Cat's Mother), especially for anyone who might be on their own and appreciate the company… but then that can be a busy time too, and it would be sad if someone went on only to find there was no one else there. Regarding the weekend, I either forget or get caught up in other things      

@Bondie, Easter and Bank Holidays too! Jon may want Thanksgiving and whatever that date is in July for our US members. I get the feeling that people celebrating Diwali, Eid and Hanukkah have better things to do than sit at a computer screen and chat, but I'm happy to be corrected.
I have often posted that I'll look in at a particular time on the days the chatbox was open, but if nobody even looks, they won't see that. Of course, they might well have looked and decided that they'd rather do the washing up than chat to me. I still tend to the view that if someone looked in, and did want to meet up, they would leave a message to say so, when they'd be back, and if anyone wanted a date to look in then or PM with a time.

I have recently decided that if I want to speak to anyone on TPMF about anything it is easier to use the PM system we have provided for us all.

denby wrote:I have recently decided that if I want to speak to anyone on TPMF about anything it is easier to use the PM system we have provided for us all.

To be honest @denby , I think that's how most members operate. I'm sure that if we were all gathered in a pub we would have a great time chatting, but the chatbox is a little clunky, and it's easy to lose the thread of the conversation.

Chat was very good in becoming acquainted with @admin and @The Cat's Mother. And it's free!
The thing is, is that I had to give it my undivided attention lest I'd fall behind in conversation with more than one person. Also, I'm a man of few words.

I think it works well on a one-to-one basis, but with more than that taking part it gets very confusing. We did have a good chat though (when does your sister get her rose coin?). It is a lot more immediate than PMs - and the inbox doesn't fill up either. We need a system where only two people can chat at once. Hmm, maybe call it a .... telephone. But free to use.

The Cat's Mother wrote:I think it works well on a one-to-one basis, but with more than that taking part it gets very confusing. We did have a good chat though (when does your sister get her rose coin?). It is a lot more immediate than PMs - and the inbox doesn't fill up either. We need a system where only two people can chat at once. Hmm, maybe call it a .... telephone. But free to use.

Just lobbing this thought in here on the back of your telephone idea - if people have smart phones, free calls can be made to anywhere in the world, using WhatsApp or Facebook Messenger. I’ve also used a similar app called Signal. I don’t know if this helps at all?