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The problem, OTH, is that unless members are going to buy in to the system and tag their posts, it is of very little value. I am interested to see whether there is enough enthusiasm for tags before I start spending my time as moderator tagging other people’s posts.In April 2017, @notion900 started a thread called Please Use Tags. It helped me understand a bit more about tags - tho' maybe they've changed?? My vote would be to use both if it helps find what one is looking for!
I am interested to see whether there is enough enthusiasm for tags before I start spending my time as moderator taggin other people’s posts.
I, too, sometimes feel the search function is lacking, but not sure the tags would help me very much. I am very techy challenged.Whilst not a complete "luddite" I find that the "search function" is less that satisfactory. But it could be my searching skills or the lack there-of.
Oh ... I didn't realise that you can do this!!!Tags are fine for quick links
The "live" tags are attached to the different Caminos, if you click on the link below and then scroll down through the various caminos and check for live tags.I wish there was a way to find all the live reports from the Camino, those present and the past ones, in one place.
Maybe I just don't know how to do it (the colored tag is not clickable). But they are scattered among different sections and hard to find them.
For me those threads, in the present time, are the essence of this forum. There is so much depressing posts lately. The live reports are like a light shining over this covid darkness. I wish they were better featured, if possible...
The "live" tags are attached to the different Caminos
This is a perfect illustration of the difference between tags and forums. If all of these “live from the camino” threads were tagged, it wouldn’t matter which forum they were in, because a click on the tag would bring them all up. Using the categorization function of the forum and sub-forums, you have to do what @arthur1218 describes.That's exactly what I find a little bit inconvenient, that you have to enter every single Camino section and browse through all the threads that are within every section (sometimes a lot of them) and look just for the "live" ones.
Yes they will be redundant if everybody tags all their posts with all the obvious words they used in the title and the post! [How to give a useful title to a thread would be another fun discussion.] The tagging should be done with some discipline and an awareness of how it works. Tagging certainly has its limitations (e.g. we tag threads not posts) so it is not going to solve all our search woes. I think we can use them usefully without huge work IF we set things up carefully.But given the search function and the organization of forums already in place, they seem redundant.
You are a more sophisticated searcher than most of us. I suggest that place names should generally not be used as tags. There will be 100s or 1000s, inconsistently covering Spain and the world, yet they are very easy to find with the Search.For example, I typed Astorga into the box and was then presented with the option to refine my search to Astorga accommodation, start in Astorga, catedral de santa María de Astorga and a few others. Definitely useful.
I wish there was a way to find all the live reports from the Camino, those present and the past ones, in one place... But they are scattered among different sections and hard to find them.
... do the "live from the Camino" threads keep this colored tag forever, or when someone finishes the report and goes home, is it still tagged as "Live" or becomes a regular thread?
This is a great example. There is something special about these threads that is important to our members, and some difficulties of the Search have been pointed out. If we had a tag "live from camino", then posts in any route could be tagged forever and easily found and browsed. Maybe some of our labels should be converted to tags.Because this thread has only one tag and the tag says live from camino frances and not live.
Yes! The cross-forum slice is what we need. The labels have done this to some extent, but in some cases tags might be better.another way of slicing and dicing
I'm not sure I agree with this. Their utility might be small, but small improvements are good, as long as the work is not too much! All threads do not have to be tagged - only those where tags add value.Whatever we think about tags, unless a large number of members tag their threads, their utility is minimal.
You have a point! This could get overwhelming, and we cannot do what Google can do! We should be careful to focus on small changes that will help us on this forum without creating big work.If Google is aiding in the search, why spend all that time on tags? I realize they are useful, but I believe that Google's databases are a bit more comprehensive than this forum.
I have similar difficulties scrolling through every section and thread and post to find an answer. I often just end up starting a new thread with my question. When I try to use the "search", it doesn't seem very comprehensive. Searching for information is really what I use this site for most, but can take me ages. As for the "live" postings, I don't really get that - most of them are old and not about anyone currently walking. Sorry not to offer anything constructive as I don't really know what the best answer is. I'm glad though this is being discussed.That's exactly what I find a little bit inconvenient, that you have to enter every single Camino section and browse through all the threads that are within every section (sometimes a lot of them) and look just for the "live" ones. Those new clickable tags that started appear on the forum lately (looking like luggage tags) could probably do the magic and save some browsing time.
Also I'm not perfectly sure about it - do the "live from the Camino" threads keep this colored tag forever, or when someone finishes the report and goes home, is it still tagged as "Live" or becomes a regular thread?
Find a thread with a tag, which will be up on the top of the thread, and just click on the tag. It will bring other threads up with the same tag. I just put the tag “tagging posts” on this thread, and if you click on it, it will bring up the only other forum post with that tag, one by notion900. If you click on her other tags, which are “tagging” and ”tags”, you’ll see a few more. So the idea is for the person writing a thread to anticipate the tags that others writing about the same topic would use and then adding them.Okay, probably a dumb question, but how do you use tags to search.
I use my mobile phone exclusively for the forum and I had been noticing the tags recently. Only today after Laurie explained did I even realize I could click on them...it works! Not sure I will use the feature, but at least my curiosity and confusion has been resolved.I use my mobile most of the time - when I look at the list of ‘new posts ‘ - I can’t see any with a tag.
Well, you can look at a list of tags for ideas, and click on an interesting one. We just don't have it set up conveniently at the moment. Go to Advanced Search. On the blue band, click on the arrow to the right and you will see "Search tags." Then you see a bunch of the most popular tags. It only shows the 50 most popular ones right now, but if you enter a word in that search, it will find if that exists as a tag. Some websites have a "tag cloud" that shows the most popular ones.You can’t really start a search with tags,
The thread originator and the moderators can set tags.If only the thread originator determines the thread’s tags - what happens when the thread develops and heads off in a slightly different, but potentially useful direction?
It's true that we have functioned quite well, while ignoring this existing feature. However, the nature of the forum/subforum structure, where a thread can only go into one place, has been a frustration at times. Tags would allow us to add another cross-section - for example, a thread that describes interesting historical features on the Camino Frances could be placed in the CF forum, but also retrieved with the tag "history" along with tagged posts from other routes - even those that don't use the word "history" in the post.it seems like a solution in search of a problem
I agree that this shows a weakness, both in tagging and in our posting habits. If a thread has a clear topic, worth tagging, then maybe it will encourage us to stay on track, opening a new thread if we want to diverge from the topic. At least the information at the start of the thread is likely to be on-topic and perhaps useful to someone in the future.when the thread develops and heads off in a slightly different, but potentially useful direction
I don't think so. But also note that the Advanced Search only allow searching for posts "newer than X" (not "older than" or within a frame). That is not particularly helpful because the results are always listed in reverse chronological order anyway, and you can skim down until you have gone as far back as you want.When searching with tags, can you request posts within a timeframe? Like when you do an Advanced Search.
When the thread deviates from the initially tagged topic the newcomer to the thread who is looking for useful information by using the tag search option can stop reading.
No. It is the point. Nobody is forced to use tags. You don't have to set a tag or two when you open a thread. You don't have to search by tags. You don't even have to click on a tag when you see one. I know that forum members marvel in the fact that they can find unexpected nuggets, whether entertaining or interesting, in unexpected places. But as far as searching pure information about one specific topic goes, this forum is an unwieldy mess. And I say this with much loveThat’s hardly the point though, is it? The more interesting nuggets of knowledge are to be found in some unlikely places.
I prefer search but can see the use of tags. However when running my eye down the threads I find the tag at the top awkward and would much prefer it at the bottom, under the name of the OP and start date. That way I catch the thread subject, which is what I am looking for, but can click on the other items if I want to do so.Find a thread with a tag, which will be up on the top of the thread, and just click on the tag. It will bring other threads up with the same tag. I just put the tag “tagging posts” on this thread, and if you click on it, it will bring up the only other forum post with that tag, one by notion900. If you click on her other tags, which are “tagging” and ”tags”, you’ll see a few more. So the idea is for the person writing a thread to anticipate the tags that others writing about the same topic would use and then adding them.
No. It is the point. Nobody is forced to use tags. You don't have to set a tag or two when you open a thread. You don't have to search by tags. You don't even have to click on a tag when you see one. I know that forum members marvel in the fact that they can find unexpected nuggets, whether entertaining or interesting, in unexpected places. But as far as searching pure information about one specific topic goes, this forum is an unwieldy mess. And I say this with much love.
The moderators' question is whether it is worth their time to tag some threads that have not been tagged by the originator of the thread or whether it is a waste of time. I say that it is not a waste of time but it may be a labour of love. And we all know what will happen. In a few weeks, we will not discuss this anymore. We may even say to a newcomer: click on this tag or this tag for more useful information about your question about tagging or footwear.
I'd even go as far as to say: please, please give us more tags if we can't have FAQs.
I can say that the work of the moderators is not a trivial matter. And their attention and commitment immediately give the "direction" of a forum. Thanks moderators.
Hi @jsalt . This is a recent change that Ivar has made while we are playing around with some options for how to manage tags. It is somewhat interesting to have it highlighted while we do this. However, your comment about it being distracting is good feedback. Hopefully, people will be patient while Ivar and the mods consider the options.is it really necessary to have all these tags above the title of the thread? They are very distracting .
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