Should I tighten up the forums?

[JediTricks]

With the new cartoon, PCC, Hunt for Decepticons, a new movie next year, and SW and Marvel TFs still going strong, it seems like "The Now" is getting crowded with sub-forums. Should I compress them all into 1 "the now", or maybe 2 sub-sections of "main entertainment" and "other stuff"?

A similar question applies for Animated and "The Then". I've already moved Animated down there since Hasbro is all but abandoning it. Similarly, "Other Stuff" has Titaniums and Robot Heroes, both of which are now dead, but I don't think making yet another forum for that stuff is a very good idea.

Your input will help the forums immensely!

[Dominic]

What, you are not making any decisions about "what is G1"?

I would also move that "Universe" and "Classics" be moved into "Then". (I also move that "Then" be renamed "Old Lines", or something similar.)

The "Other Now Lines" should be renamed "Other".

Perhaps it would do to not split the lines up by time? Instead, we could order the forums according to release/end dates, or even by active priority.


Dom

[andersonh1]

I think dividing them up by lines the way you have them works well, and makes more sense than organizing by release dates. We describe the figures by the line they originate from, so it makes sense to divide the forums that way as well. And I'd keep Universe and Classics with Generations since they're all essentially the same line, just renamed.

[Dominic]

Let me clarify': I meant dividing the lines up by release/end dates, not necessarily listing them by date.

I was actually thinking about this on the way home last night. Might it be a good idea to include TFU and "Generations" in "Other"? both lines make liberal use of old moulds alongside new moulds. And, we know that "Generations" will effectively lack a unified aesthetic bectween the older moulds, the movie moulds and newer non-movie moulds.

And, TFU muddies the water furtehr by having sub-sub-lines listed on the packages. (Dinobot and Cheetor were BW. Inferno was G2. And, so on...)


Dom
-loses sleep over this sort of thing.

[andersonh1]

An option for tightening up the forum might be to split things up by decade, with the various lines from that decade discussed within that forum.

[Onslaught Six]

Ehh, then it gets messy when you involve the movieverse.

[138 Scourge]

Maybe the "Rid/AEC/" section could be expanded to be "Other Then Lines" or "Miscellany" or like that, and the "Now" lines could be Movie, ClassicVersErations, and then an "Other Now Lines" for stuff like the fan club stuff, PCC, or like that?

I've wondered if maybe an "Other Toys" section might not be a bad idea in case we wanted to go into the Marvel 3/34 or G.I. Joes or like that, but since neither line is doing much now, maybe this isn't the time for it.

[JediTricks]

What, you are not making any decisions about "what is G1"?

Since the forums are broken down by toy lines, G1 ends at G2. Anything newer is Neo-G1 at best, and that's fine for the comics, but in terms of organizing I treat it as a whole new breed because that's what it is. Generations Drift has nothing in common with the G1 toyline, even if he is considered by the majority of the fans to be a G1 character in the comics.

I would also move that "Universe" and "Classics" be moved into "Then". (I also move that "Then" be renamed "Old Lines", or something similar.)

The "Other Now Lines" should be renamed "Other".

I'll consider this, but they seem a little arbitrary at the outset, so can you explain the thinking behind it?

Perhaps it would do to not split the lines up by time? Instead, we could order the forums according to release/end dates, or even by active priority.

Release/end dates, how is that not splitting it up by time? Maybe I don't understand your thrust here.

I think dividing them up by lines the way you have them works well, and makes more sense than organizing by release dates. We describe the figures by the line they originate from, so it makes sense to divide the forums that way as well. And I'd keep Universe and Classics with Generations since they're all essentially the same line, just renamed.

This is how I see it as well. And Hasbro sees Universe/Classics/Generations as all 1 thing as well. According to their comments in '09 at Botcon and SDCC, it's a line they can put on hold when a new entertainment comes out because they know they can get back to it later.

Let me clarify': I meant dividing the lines up by release/end dates, not necessarily listing them by date.

I was actually thinking about this on the way home last night. Might it be a good idea to include TFU and "Generations" in "Other"? both lines make liberal use of old moulds alongside new moulds. And, we know that "Generations" will effectively lack a unified aesthetic bectween the older moulds, the movie moulds and newer non-movie moulds.

You and I have very different meanings on the word "clarify", that didn't clear it up at all IMO.

And, TFU muddies the water furtehr by having sub-sub-lines listed on the packages. (Dinobot and Cheetor were BW. Inferno was G2. And, so on...)

They're homages, same as Titaniums, it doesn't pay to include them in those lines because they don't share designs or even line-specific manufacturing elements, which each line has of its own.

An option for tightening up the forum might be to split things up by decade, with the various lines from that decade discussed within that forum.

The problem I have there is that so many lines cross those boundaries, and the 2000s had a lot of little lines in them.

Ehh, then it gets messy when you involve the movieverse.

That's true, especially with movie 3 coming out next year, across the decade divide.

And there's going to be folks out there who point out that decades start on their year 1s, so 1991 is a different decade from 1990 (they are wrong, btw, 1990 day 1 is the first day of the '90s and so on).

Maybe the "Rid/AEC/" section could be expanded to be "Other Then Lines" or "Miscellany" or like that, and the "Now" lines could be Movie, ClassicVersErations, and then an "Other Now Lines" for stuff like the fan club stuff, PCC, or like that?

I've wondered if maybe an "Other Toys" section might not be a bad idea in case we wanted to go into the Marvel 3/34 or G.I. Joes or like that, but since neither line is doing much now, maybe this isn't the time for it.

Then I'd be tempted to do "Other TF Items" and "Other non-TF Items" which only grows the forums more.

I think maybe breaking it down by "now/then" is part of the problem. The Now keeps changing, Animated finally had to be dropped into the Then, and those Other Toys really are split.


Maybe not having "The Now" and "The Then" is what Dom was saying, but then we have just 2 clusters of forums, one of them very full. Like "The Collectibles" covering ALL the lines, and "The Other Stuff". Would that be a problem for comics discussions though? Other thoughts?

[Dominic]

Anything newer is Neo-G1 at best, and that's fine for the comics, but in terms of organizing I treat it as a whole new breed because that's what it is. Generations Drift has nothing in common with the G1 toyline, even if he is considered by the majority of the fans to be a G1 character in the comics.

"Encore" and other re-issue lines, along with eHobby recolors, could credibly be argued into the G1 category though. Of course, those could also just be given a thread, as there are comparitively few of them.

Release/end dates, how is that not splitting it up by time? Maybe I don't understand your thrust here.

I was thinking of lines that start and stop, like G1 or "Universe".


The more I think about it though, the less I like the distinction between "old" and "new" lines. We could simply break the forums down by recognized era or line, with the understanding that we can always go into sub-forums and add threads as needed. Many lines cross eras. And, removing the "then" and "now" feel would also keep the forums more unified.

But, this will require the use of standard terminology, (such as "Unicron Trilogy" instead of "AEC"). We can trust readers to recognize tertiary stuff like Mighty Muggs as some kind of "Other" line.

I can see listing "Generations" and "Universe" together. (Though the engineering differences between the figures become more obvious over time.) Listing lines by release date does not work. We can split them up by date in the sense that we will not conflate a line from '01 with a line from '05. But, we should try to label the lines using the most recognizable terminology.


Dom
-saw your post on Drift JT. Them is fighting words.

[JediTricks]

"Encore" and other re-issue lines, along with eHobby recolors, could credibly be argued into the G1 category though. Of course, those could also just be given a thread, as there are comparitively few of them.

To me, those aren't something you can hang a new line on, especially with there being so few.

The more I think about it though, the less I like the distinction between "old" and "new" lines. We could simply break the forums down by recognized era or line, with the understanding that we can always go into sub-forums and add threads as needed. Many lines cross eras. And, removing the "then" and "now" feel would also keep the forums more unified.

But, this will require the use of standard terminology, (such as "Unicron Trilogy" instead of "AEC"). We can trust readers to recognize tertiary stuff like Mighty Muggs as some kind of "Other" line.

My concern is that what we accept as obvious for "Unicron Trilogy" may not be clear to others, I know a few collectors who have no idea what that is referring to or consider AEC to be a true trilogy. And I certainly wouldn't accept folks knowing where Mighty Muggs and Robot Heroes should go. I am thinking of doing away with "The Now/Then" breakup, then "other" would remain as is. This is getting very convoluted when you work in stuff like Power Crap Combiners though, it's a little too much to be "other" and yet not good enough to deserve its own forum. I'm trying to tighten up the forums, and now it feels like we're talking about fattening it up.

I can see listing "Generations" and "Universe" together. (Though the engineering differences between the figures become more obvious over time.) Listing lines by release date does not work. We can split them up by date in the sense that we will not conflate a line from '01 with a line from '05. But, we should try to label the lines using the most recognizable terminology.

IMO, the engineering between Classics and Generations is unnoticeable in terms of sculpting, as it was intended.

Dom
-saw your post on Drift JT. Them is fighting words.

Careful Skippy or you'll find your rank changed to read "Mary Sue".