Genealogy Chat

"I reckon it changes at 60 minutes - no reason to program for 64 minutes, or whatever."

Yes as it rounds up the time and minutes are only displayed to one significant figure then 60 minutes probably means between 55 and just under 60 minutes and when it gets to exactly 60 it changes to one hour.
Of course I refreshed every few seconds while I made the observation.

my name seems to still be in tact for now

Had a PM from a chap that doesn't know me from Adam. He had titled it Help and here is what it said;

"How do i get onto the page were you can give me answers, I have only been on here 2 days, I am lost already."

I have directed as best I could, however how could I go and confuse him regarding surname filters, I get confused enough about that one myself.... GR really needs to start listening to their customers!! If "us" older hands who are use to the boards struggle how on earth are newbies going to cope?

Put away the tissues. I am on a roll. What it means is that us "second class citizens" can have a competition with the first class lot. Brings in potential excitement of winning the race!

We can all amend our board names to include a star (not gold of course), so I will be Madmeg*, meaning second-class adviser, and we can run our own club, keeping an eye on the Help Clinic posts, and seeing if we can beat the team! I can see some members (JC for e.g.) not liking to be classed as second class, so maybe we should put TWO stars after our names - which puts us ahead!

Seriously, hope all you peeps find it helpful to have this new scheme - but I thought that we already had message boards for people who are stuck - i.e. most of them.

Love to all

Madmeg**

I can't post on the thread that Sylvia put on the Clinic Board, so I know that Kath will see this here.

Kath you stated;

"I really don't know why threads are deleted but I think it may be that Genes want this help clinic to be to help break down people's brick walls in their family research"

What have we ALL been doing since we started helping on the boards? Surely as we all know 2 heads are better than 1, and therefore 100 odd heads would be better than 10? When we try to help people knock down their "brick walls" we all bounce off each others info posted on these threads. GR are not doing anything new here, all they are achieving is segregation within the boards and helpers.

The official advisors are under a lot of pressure now and I would imagine the "fun" has been taken out of their time on here. I do feel for you all and think that GR should seriously rethink this silly idea!!! Waving hello to the ones I know and saying hello to the ones I don't.


Dee x

Dear all

I try to help people who have hit brick walls. I have hit some myself. Members have helped. There are many people out there able to help. Not just ten people. Scores of people. Why are we putting up with this new system? Time to tell GR to leave well alone.

Hello BatMansDaughter

We might never meet again.

My name has returned, without my trying again to put it back.

but some people are still invisible, and I believe there are more invisibles today than there were yesterday!





Madmeg


I love your idea!!!



sylvia**

Madmeg Request Review 19th Nov 2010
So can us "non-starred" people reply on the Clinic posts? Or are we now resigned to either the easy stuff, and the stuff that the limited number of Clinic members cannot solve?

Have GR taken away my hobby? Will they pay for treatment for my withdrawal symptoms?

Does this mean the end of the Tips Board, and the Trying to Find Board? If so, I suspect an awful lot of us old hands will not be renewing our subscriptions. End of an Era maybe. Bye bye Janey, Jax, Lancashire Ann, Click on the Purple Button Not on My Name, even BrummieJan (traitor!!), Jonesey, IGP, Mgnv, Sylvia, and all the rest of you that I have worked with and who have helped me in the last few years. Good luck for the future.

Love

Madmeg

I need the use of the tissues after just discovering this thread ..thanks Sylvia.;)

The tissues are to mop up my tears because Madmeg didnt mention me in her goodbyes ...sobs,weeps and wails....sniff,big blow...
Nope still weeping ...sobs...

Not only dont get asked to be a Starry one (Thank Evans)didnt volunteer either,but now dont get in the roll call of Madmegs goodbye ...waaiiillll...

And yep I have to agree,that BrummieJan is a traitor,and there was me always thought what a nice person she was...more waaaiiils.

If my name goes AWOL the wails will be heard in OZ and NZ all the way from rainy Wales I tell you,I LOVE my name......

BatMansDaughter

I have just read your post on here giving part of an answer I gave to Sylvia on the Help Clinic.

The second sentence of my answer was:-

"I think they may want the sort of question you asked to be directed to Support at [email protected] because they are the ones that can answer that sort of thing."

I really feel that if everyone who is unhappy with the changes to the site were to direct there concerns to Genes themselves it would be more constructive than just using the help clinic to vent their feelings.

I myself have already let GR staff know how unhappy members are with the "advisors" because they particularly asked for feedback. Can you ever remember the past owners of the site being interested in the members thoughts?

And yes, you are right, the fun has gone out of the last few days on the site - but only because the questions on the Help Clinic have not been the sort of questions I had expected to have to answer.

Kath. x

I have noticed, that a majority of people who helped me when I first started using these boards, early this year, DO NOT have stars, they were all brilliant. So who do have the stars the 2nd raters!!!

Why GR did you have to change the time? In Australia when I noticed that the time was 23.45, I knew that not many people would be online to help. Now I have to check the time to see what 10 minutes, 1 hour ago means!!

Kath


to clarify


I HAVE complained to GR


I sent 5 complaints in during the first 4 hours that I was on site after the changes had happened on Thursday

I had several email exchanges with Estelle after I was offered the chance to become an Official Advisor, and sent further emails to her on Friday


In every complaint and email, I made constructive recommendtions on how to solve whatever I was talking about


I have said nothing on any of these threads that I have not already said to GR



so please don't accuse me of not being constructive



sylvia

Look Fans you were not important enough to be menioned in Madmegs goodbye....so just live with it ok lol


ja...x

Sylvia

I wasn't accusing you at all. There are lots of people complaining about the changes and I'd be surprised if they have all contacted Genes. I really wish they would. As I said - I have also been in contact with Estelle and told her how things are. They need to know how everyone feels and they did ask for feedback.

Kath. x

Kath

it came over that way!


And you would be surpirsed how many people have sent in complaints to GR .......... not only about Help Clinic but all the other things that have happened.



they must have been inundated


Hopefully, Monday will see some change ............. as they only work Monday to Friday 8 am to 4 pm, there's no chance of any earlier response.



except possibly removal of threads and posts .......... which has already happened



sylvia

Sylvia,

Please let me know which bit of my reply to your thread on the Help Clinic you thought made me sound as if I was accusing you of anything (I really wasn't).

I know everyone on the site is upset about things but you have no idea how upset I feel myself right now. I thought all I'd have to do on the Help Clinic was answer posts in just the same way as on all the other boards - but up to now I have only answered one such question - the rest have not been what I expected. After 7 happy years on this site I am actually thinking of packing it all in completely. I am not even doing any family history research of my own these days but still subscribe to sites so that I can do look-ups for others to pay back the help I had in the early days.

I'm logging off now so will not be around to see any more posts until tomorrow.

Kath. x

Kath


it was this bit on the posting above on this thread:-

I really feel that if everyone who is unhappy with the changes to the site were to direct there concerns to Genes themselves it would be more constructive than just using the help clinic to vent their feelings.


I felt that I was included in that, and wanted to make my position clear ....... I've never been one to hold back from venting on the boards AND contacting GR when things are going up the creek ............ during any of the changes that have happened since I joined this site in 2003.



I'm sorry that it has all been such a bl***dy mess for you guys


One of the many reasons I had for turning them down was that I feared what would happen

....... but the reality has been even worse than I could ever have imagined



and just think ............ this is all supposed to have been a way to acknowledge the help given on GR by members helping members


I don't think any of us could have imagined a worse possible way than taking 10 people out of, what, 100 or so (if that many) who regularly help, give them stars, and say they are being recognised for their expertise!


Plus, the fact that I was told that the Help Clinic was for Standard members, as they considered that newbies started off as Standard members ................. that to me implies that the Help Clinic was supposed to be for newbies, whose "brick walls" are not usually that high or solid.

Estelle did add that they were considering opening Help to Gold and Platinum Members



so what do you get?

Mainly old members with massive brick walls, that have not been solved after several attempts on the regular boards ..... and you guys are stuck with only being able to use 3 sites, and none of the interplay that goes on on the other boards.

Other members who do see where they could help are reduced to sending pms to the requesters ........... who may thus be getting pm after pm after pm!


I've only seen a couple of newbies posting ANYWHERE in the last couple of days ................... the nights, which is when I am usually on, have been dead!





I am so sorry that the fun has gone out of it for you

.............. I have never intended any of the comments that I have made to be aimed at any one of you personally, except in so far as questioning why things are being done that I was told would not be done.



Please try to stay on the site .............. even if you ask to be removed from Help Clinic



I can only hope that things will improve when the technical difficulties are sorted out.


Imagine the state that newbies must be in if we oldies can't find our way around!




sylvia

It is extremely frustrating, having looked at the HELP CLINIC board, to have found an answer (or something that might help ) not to be able to post it.

What am I supposed to do? PM the poster? PM one of the star members?

How the dickens can people, willing people, the very people that GR has not recognised as keeping their site going ( if no-one did the research, there would be no site) keep it going now?

**Flummoxed**

Penny


people are sending a pm to the poster

I have not noticed whether any are sending a pm to the star member ..... and they're not supposed to post anyhting not found on one of the 3 brightsolid sites anyway



sylvia