Message Board vs. Blog

[Neighborhood Archive]

Now that the message board has been up and running for several months, what are your thoughts? Here is what I recently posted on the NA Blog...

Speaking of blog updates, I've been thinking lately about getting back to the blog a bit more than I have been since the inception of the message board. Quite honestly, I've been pretty disappointed with the move from blogspot to wordpress for a variety of reasons. If the blog is going to pick up a little bit, I've even considered going back to the original blogspot location. We'll see. I'm curious to know what you as readers of the site think about this. I'll add a thread to the message board for this topic. Feel free to stop by there and chime in.

So. Feel free. Chime in.  :)

[earnhardtfan4life]

It depends on how much time you want to put into it in terms of the blog.  Are there a lot of subjects within the MRN realm that we/and you haven't covered yet that you have the urge to write about?  I really like the section with recent updates where I can hit the link and go right to the new posting.  You are already putting forth a huge effort on the Character section and I guess you are going to do the same for the Cast section too.  Plus not to mention the Location section. 

I'm sure you have noticed this as well that there really seems to be major influx of Fred Rogers stuff on the internet now.  More so now than there ever before.  It wasn't until his death that you could hardly find anything on Fred Rogers except for a couple of sites.  Now I'm finding pictures of press photos that I haven't seen before on ebay.

2012 has the potential to be a really huge year for everything Fred Rogers.  From the way it sounds Fred Rogers Center wants to change the landscape of children's programming.  It will be interesting to see what they come up with.  Hopefully in 2012 we will get 50-100 pre-79 episodes to review.  All the buzz with Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood come September.  Plus whatever else the Fred Rogers Company may have in store as well. 

So my question to you is where do you see your archive going in 2012?   

If you have the time to do it, in terms of the blog - go for it.

[Neighborhood Archive]

Mike -- My immediate plans are to get through the character pages, at least some of the cast pages, and get going on all of the other fun references I'd like to add. Locations around the Neighborhood are on the top of that list but I'd also like to start adding pages with descriptions of other things from the show and Fred's other works (ugga mugga, 143, etc). As I've said all along, this Archive is going to be a constant work in progress as there is seemingly an infinite amount of information that could be added.

As for the influx of Mister Rogers stuff found online, I keep a pretty close watch on eBay and I don't necessarily think there's more new memorabilia being offered...just more of the same old same old (the books, the DVDs, the videos). Occasionally there will be some cool stuff pop up like the Childrens Corner LP that's on there now.

With the premiere of Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood coming up next year, I could not be more excited about the possibilities. Merchandise. New episodes. A renewed interest in Fred Rogers' work. As for the Archive, DTN will open up a whole new realm of information once it's on the air. Can't wait!

When it comes to the blog though, there was something that was lost with the move to the message board that I was not expecting. What's weird is that I can't quite put my finger on what it is that was lost. We'll see. I may start messing around with the blog again here sometime soon.

Anyone else have any thoughts on this? Am I the only one that feels like something was lost when the blog went to just weekly updates? I'm not saying the blog is going to bounce back for sure...but I'd be interested to hear some other opinions.

[OperaLover]

I sort of miss the style and presentation of the old place.
I think that is because the imaginary but very real "fourth wall" no longer exists for me at this new place.
Do you know what I mean by that?
At the former place, I read often and commented rarely.
There was a distinction between the hunters and gatherers.
I always felt like I was learning something by stopping in at the Neighborhood Archive.
It was quite pleasing to the eye with it's lovely layout, colorful banner and always informative postings.
I never had to click on a link or choose to open a lesson for the day because they were always at the ready when I first clicked through.
Now I have to choose to click a post to read and I find myself not doing it for various reasons.
I skip too many and I shouldn't because the best books don't always have the prettiest covers.

Having said all of that, I want to mention that I absolutely love and appreciate this place, but while here, I feel like I am sitting around with friends just chatting.
I feel less that here we have a leader/mentor/teacher or expert to learn from.
It's sort of "friendlier" here for some reason but really, all of the same information is available and we are all the same people, aren't we?

[Neighborhood Archive]

Like I said before, I'm not sure that I can specifically pinpoint what it is that was lost by moving to a message board versus the blog, but I think you've hit on some of major downfalls for sure.

Maybe the blog was okay the way it was and the message board could continue for any general discussion that anyone and everyone might want to start or continue (I certainly don't want to dismantle the message board). I know a lot of folks who kept up with the Archive site by adding the blog to Google Reader and such. That way, the information came to them. Then if they ever wanted to go back and find something, everything was always easily accessible on the Archive site itself.

I don't know. There was just something fun about the blog that I didn't expect to lose by shifting over to a message board. Apparently, I'm not the only one who thinks that. Anyone else have any thoughts here? I'll likely be deciding what to do with this sometime in the very near future.

[earnhardtfan4life]

Here is a snapshot of what you had earlier this year:

http://web.archive.org/web/20110427095644/http://neighborhoodarchive.blogspot.com/

Maybe what your driving at is the lost of the scrapbook like layout.  The message board provides no pictures.  Therefore, if there is something to discuss about a current posting on the site/blog, you have to flip back and forth between the archive/blog and the message board.  Maybe that is what your thinking of.  Sometimes I have to keep 3 windows open on my screen between the blog, message board, and archive.

[Neighborhood Archive]

I've still got the old blog saved and could easily get it back up and running with all of the old content still intact within a matter of minutes. That's not really my concern.

But I think you've hit another major point right on the head with the fact that the message board is so much less visual.

As for having three separate sites going at once, I agree that can become chaotic but at the same time, I think each serves a very different purpose. I've kind of addressed this in the past when I first started the message board but here's what I have in mind. Assuming I get back at the blog more than I have been over the past few months, I see that as a place for me to share new things that I add to the site. I see the Archive site itself as an overall resource for everything that's ever been covered. Easy to search. Easier to browse. Finally, the message board would continue as a place for discussion. I'm thinking if I share something on the blog, comments and discussion could take place in the comments section of that post. If a person comes across something on their own or wants to bring up a new topic for discussion, the message board would be the place for general "chit-chat" and sharing.

Hmmm. I think I'm leaning towards getting the blog back where it was. Moving everything to a message board format has been good in many ways but hasn't quite worked out exactly as I had envisioned back in the spring.

Stay tuned.

In the meantime, anyone else have any thoughts on this?

[Neighborhood Archive]

Let's get things back to normal...

http://neighborhoodarchive.blogspot.com/

[OperaLover]

I clicked the link and my eyes got that sting at first sight of the old blog.
I didn't realize how happy I'd be to have it back but I am.
Thank you.