Moving Discussion Topics Between Forum Categories and Groups

Over the weekend a member of my network posted a discussion topic in the main network forum that did not belong there. The topic more appropriately belonged in one of our network's group forums. I had to delete this topic from the main network forum, and then contact the member and request that they post it in the specific group forum instead. He sent me a message back asking why I didn't just move it there, and I had to explain to him that Ning has not yet given network admins the ability to move discussions between the main forum and group forums. I also had to tell him that I originally requested this back in 2009, but I'm still waiting. I find it odd and annoying that I keep seeing little improvements here and there, but one of the biggest issues of our network remains unresolved. Is it seriously taking Ning over a year to implement this option, or did they just shelve the request and will get to it *someday*? I guess the only thing I can do is to continue to request it. I would appreciate an honest, concrete timetable as to when this will be added, because I feel if I am paying $500/year for a network, I should be able to have better controls over our forum. With phpBB forums this sort of functionality is built right in. Why is it so hard for Ning to make it a function of their forums/groups?

Thanks,
Jeff Kopp
GaragePunk Hideout
http://garagepunk.ning.com

Tags: discussions, forum, groups, merging, moving, topics

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Permalink Reply by kopper on December 18, 2011 at 8:50pm

Simple: It can't be done. Great, huh?

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Permalink Reply by Cyndi on January 1, 2012 at 7:09am

Happy New Year Kopper! ..and everyone else who continues to raise their voice on this matter... & I too would like to add mine... I've been plodding along, making do but this is a priority for me now as I wish to streamline my groups & make certain improvements without loosing any of the content... but without this feature I'm lost thinking of how to work round it... I was encouraged by an earlier post where it was indicated to you that this was in the pipeline for 2011 but here we are in 2012 & disapointingly its a function which appears to be at the bottom of the pile in terms of what ning believe is a priority...

We need more voices!!

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Permalink Reply by Asil on January 1, 2012 at 11:51am

Happy New Year to you too, Cindy. Welcome to the fight!

And you're correct ...this thread does need more voices. Best if they are voices with thick skins, as the site moderator will squash 'em ...be on the lookout for "not at all" ...when you see that phrase, know you've hit a sore spot. (Just kidding with you, Evan ...overall, I think you do a great job managing the boards.)

I do hope NING gets this done in 2012. I manage several sites via NING. most of which are annual subscriptions. The inability for creators to move content at-will is the single biggest issue facing us and if its not addressed, will surely force us off the platform.

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Permalink Reply by Cyndi on January 2, 2012 at 9:01am

Happy New Year Asil! I'm a lover not a fighter :) but I do feel quite strongly that this is a big issue for creators, and will do what I can to raise my squeeky voice on the matter.

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Permalink Reply by Michael Goebel on January 1, 2012 at 8:50pm

Why not post your suggestion in our Suggestions for Ning group ? - I think it is worthy of inclusion...

http://creators.ning.com/group/creators-suggestions-for-ning

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Permalink Reply by kopper on January 2, 2012 at 9:14am

Is that really necessary? I mean, it's been posted here for almost a year now... would it matter if it's posted in that group or not?

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Permalink Reply by Cyndi on January 2, 2012 at 10:04am

I was sorry to see that this thread had dropped to page 3 of the forum only 12 hours after posting yesterday... nice to see at least 1 ning network is busy!?!?! I guess the opportunity to share the issue with Michaels group may raise the problem to those who may have missed it... lots of great info here Kopper so I posted the suggestion & linked back here... hope this was okay...

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Permalink Reply by Shannon @ SyfrSpace on January 11, 2012 at 10:11am

I too have been waiting for the ability to merge/move discussion topics and threads since 2009, when there was discussion of it back then. It seems from this thread that it actually is something that creators want and need, and every other forum I have worked with has the ability to do so. I now have a major client who wants to reorganize her group's discussions because they are all over the map and very disjointed, and I have to tell her that we "may" be able to do that sometime mid-year. It is very frustrating.

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Permalink Reply by Asil on January 11, 2012 at 10:26am

I had a meet with a client who is also wanting this function and when I shared this thread with them, they started a new team to look for a different platform. What NING isn't "getting" is the fact that just because hundreds of creators aren't posting to this particular thread doesn't mean they don't need the functionality and aren't voting with their feet.

As a consultant, its no fun having to tell the client that you talked into using NING that this most fundamental of management tools isn't considered a priority to the platform they are paying thousands of dollars to use.

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Permalink Reply by kopper on January 11, 2012 at 11:24am

But weren't they excited that the Chat has been overhauled? ;)

Meanwhile, the invite functionality is still clunky as hell, too.

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Permalink Reply by Asil on January 11, 2012 at 11:39am

The new shiny is so much more appealing to developers than infrastructure, however, platforms risk their existence when they ignore the bones of their code. The most beautiful house in the world is unlivable if the plumbing doesn't work.

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Permalink Reply by Shannon @ SyfrSpace on January 11, 2012 at 11:54am

I can't even get anyone to reply when I type in chat. I'm sure that there are other networks that use it successfully, but at this point chat is of no use to us.