Sorry, but I'm not sure what you're wanting for the end result here. Could you elaborate?

Medo - ummm...I doubt that will do any good. The moderators are very hesitant about answering emails, in my opinion. What needs to happen, to keep OT threads to a minimum, is :

1. Don't display pictures in the thread. After a while, it becomes too much to load up.
2. Everyone should stay within the same thread, until it reaches 150 posts.

I would gladly adhere to this policy....Maybe then, some of the more experienced people will come back.

These are my thoughts.....
Now, tell me what section of Walmart has the dang little plastic bags that you sent Carolyn! I want some...Hee hee

EG

OT is a turn off for many. But always having to stay on topic can be dull and boring, too. You can't please everyone, but if our friendly banter in this group stopped, I'd probably be among the "used to post here" group.

I liked the way Medo first started this by having a dated OT post and renewing it every two weeks or so. I think that helps keep us a little bit on topic in the other threads. Just a little bit.

Granny

Here is a link that might be useful: Annie's Kitchen Garden

I agree with Granny. I think the banter gives personality to the forum, one of the reasons I starting posting here. I read a lot of the GW forums. I participate in two of them. I occasionally post on others here and there, but the ones I look forward to reading are the two that I think have a sense of community (there are more than 2 that have that, I just mean of the ones I read regularly). I think having OT threads for really off-topic stuff works.
Just my .02

Granny, you couldn't be more correct. As I was trolling the site, it was the banter that let me know y'all were accepting of new people, friendly, and respectful of other's ideas although they differ from your own. As this spring will be my first thorough experiment with SFG, I depend on your help, support and camaraderie. I count on you to tell me (tempered though it is) that what I've planned is NOT possible and provide constructive criticism. If you desert me now....I think I'll take the girl's way out and just cry.

I'd never desert you, ribbit. If I ever disappear, you know how to find me!

Here is a link that might be useful: Annie's Kitchen Garden

Yeah, granny can't run from me either...i'll just call her! She talks weird, though....definitely not redneck!

EG

Then there's EG, who wants everyone to think he's a big bad guy...I never heard a softer, gentler southern drawl in my life! I think he's just a pussycat.

Here is a link that might be useful: Annie's Kitchen Garden

Heh Ribbit, if we think what you're trying is impossible, lol, we're more apt to say, why don't you try it? I can hear granny and John saying, hasn't ever worked for me, but you give it a run and report back. What works here won't work in many other necks of the woods. I have a friend who literally puts umbrellas all over her yard to protect her plantlings in the spring. Can't get much nuttier than that. Totally works for her. Her neighbors are more forgiving after harvest, lol.

Yeah, Granny...I'm kinda soft spoken, and have been my whole life. When I used to travel all over the country working, people would always comment on the way I talk. It's very southern, but polite.

EG

ya, i did notice they don't like to answer, but i have gotten them to remove a post before, and that is something!!! LOL
i just thought if everyone emailed them a email asking them to consider giving us a conversation side to this forum, then maybe the more experienced people would come back to their this side as their discussion. and then the other side would be our "OT". See??? and i do just LOVE this forum!! that's why i wanted to come up with the ot in the first place, but now i just want the old timers back, cuz its mostly just us, now that mike pointed it out. LOL

it would be just boring if we didn't have all of us, we all make up a great "family" LOL ~Medo

we could also post links to our pics!!

i was asking a friend if she knew how we could get that forum, well she was telling me, but ya'll know peg, she went over to : http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/suggest/
and posted a thing about it, now if we all check in there daily and keep it bumped up to the top and don't let it fall to the bottom of the page, we may get that conversation side, now how nice would that be?? then the others might come back AND we wouldn't have to put OT at the top anymore!! so would ya'll please consider helping with this?? it is posted under west_texas_peg
i put the direct link down there!! :') now won't that be easy!! LOL now aren't ya curious!! **onery grinn** ~Medo

Here is a link that might be useful: peg's link

come on guy's please help me................~Medo

come on guys!! could you please chime in over their?? it would greatly be appreciated!! ~Medo

done.

Holly.....welcome back! Woo Hoo! Where have you been, melon lady?

EG

shhh...hiding in the oncology ward.

thank you so much holly!! now if i could get some more help!! that would be great!! :') and welcome back!! ~Medo

Good to see you back, Holly!

Granny

Here is a link that might be useful: Annie's Kitchen Garden

Hi all! I am a GW old fart - although my profile says April 07, that was just when I forgot my password after I changed my email address so I had to re-register. Before that I was just kay_h. I was around long before GW became part of ivillage, but I admit to being a cold-weather friend. After All, who has time to putz on the computer when they can putz in the garden?

Anyway, I am telling you this because today is the first time I have logged on to this forum in months and months and of the 4 threads I have read, I recognize not a single name, and Rabbit is right. Y'all are friendly! Also, the entire first page is dated THIS month!! Friendly posters on an active forum. Until today, I would not have described the sq. foot gardening forum with those words. A year ago the forum was all but dead. O, I never gave up on it, but it is hard to maintain interest when the veggie and harvest forums are so active.

Anyway, I am really glad to see so much interest. I will be back often now that I know there is somebody here!!

But, back to the topic of going off topic...the veggie forum has a discussions forum....and it is there because the veggie forum is so very active that the OTs could get a little thick if they did not have their own space. Sure it would be nice to see that here, but veggie and sq ft have a lot of overlapping subject matter. I am betting that most of you post there pretty often as well, so getting another discussion forum might be a stretch.
Kay.

I'm going to throw in with the proposal to keep a running "official" OT thread series. Though it has gotten a lot busier here, we still don't have the flood of posts that I see in the fora that have gotten discussion areas. For that mater, we couldn't even get a photo gallery when we tried for that a couple years back, and it is obvious that we post a lot of pictures here.

that is true, i didn't even think to ask for that!! LOL
but they did email me and say that We have added your suggestion to our list and hopefully will be able to incorporate it in the near future. i'll take that, heck any answer is better than none!! LOL they even gave me a number!! ** grinn**
Hey!! nice to see an "old fart" **giggle** in here!! *big smile** it is alot nicer here!! when i first started coming here, the only person who ever really talked to me was EG, then everyone else started slowly!!
a photo gallery would be awesome!! that would be really nice just to show the people what exactly sfg looks like, and how some of the others do them. Awesome idea Ray!! **big smile** ~Medo

I think a photo gallery would be better than a discussion forum. Could we then direct folks to the gallery? I think it would be a good idea b/c it would allow others without as much ram to avoid pics at times. I do a bit of surfing from my mom's house and she has d i a l u p. Grrrr...

Medo - yeah, I know...I created a monster! Heh. J/K

Like Ray, I think the running OT thing would work, as long as people kept their OT comments out of legitimate gardening threads.

EG

ok, if everyone agree's, i'll ask about instead. and as for the ot, if we stick to one ot it would work if we stuck to one or two, i think, ya know, you can provide a link for your pics, instead of leaving the pics on here, that will make them go faster also. someone has mentioned that befor. i think sue or so. **grin**
also guess what?? i "THINK" i fixed my laptop "AGAIN" here's what i did. i switched hubs hard drive from his old pc to mine, mine was FRIED, and then it worked for a little, then BOOM again it didn't work, then somehow i figured with "SOMEONE"S" help (the GOOD LORD"S) that it could be my wireless so i thought, Hey, if it is, why not switch them? so i was checking them out, and i pressed on the one wire and low and behold, the sucker started working like a charm!! WOOO HOOOO!!! i am the BOMB!! but HE is the BOmb for letting me know!! WOOO HOOO!! i'm still gonna get a knew one in march and let tabor have this one, we do the pass down method here, LOL **big grinn**
OMGAWD i just found out how "WHITE" my hubs is!!!!!!!
he said that i was gonna just give my laptop to tabor that he bought me, wellllllll, where i come from, if you buy something FOR someone, its theirs to keep and do with what they want!!!!!! GEEEEEZZZZZEEE!!!!! **sigh**
so i reminded him of that!! **big giggle** ~Medo

In addition to sparing those with slower connections, I've always wanted a gallery is so we could put some visual how-to threads together that would stay here for easier reference from the FAQ or within threads.

i did go to the suggestions and ask for the gallery instead, now, it would be ohhhh so nice if ya'll would help by going over there and doing the same, AND it wouldn't hurt to fire them an email by going down to the bottom and doing that by the contact us, by the suggestion about the (i think its the site) and then voice your opinion. i think if we all do, then maybe we might have a fighting chance of getting this done, it would be ohhh so cool!! now i'm not near as productive as Sue is, buttttt, i'm gonna try!! LOL **giggle** LOL it would be sooooooo awesome!! **just giddy with excitement!!!!**
ok, today i downloaded this live window gallery, don't think it was the right thing i was looking for!! LOL but i have it figured out, if i download then i have to push copy, but i already have picasa3, and photobucket, so i don't really need this new thing. **sigh** i just wanted to be able to download lucy and them's pics, neices pics are important to have!! LOL ya know, download from email. but it's easy now to the picasa, right to the picasa web. so now i'm learning new things, LOL gotto go give the girl a shower, that reminds me, i have to ask ribbit why she always refers to her ol man as the man and her kids as the boy and the girl, LOL made me wonder one day. got to thinking alot about it one day actually, which is really weird. **grinn** ~Medo

Here is a link that might be useful: Barehanded Totally Nutso Gardener!! **Big Grinn**