Chat Feature

[thatTexasLady]

It would be neat if there were a chat feature here

[psijac]

disagree

[AEA]

Disagree

[Keith B]

We had one at one time, but it was not utilized. Also, too much of an issue to try to moderate, so we dropped it.

[pbwalker]

Disagree

[Bulldog1911]

Maybe under the ladies only section??? Men have no use for that foolishness

[thatTexasLady]

Well that wasn't very nice. I have used the chat feature on another firearm forum I am on to learn very important information. It; however, is not a Texas forum. I just thought if folks could ask a question and get an answer quickly that might be a great option. I am sorry it was such "foolishness".

[MasterOfNone]

One of the disadvantages of chat is that the good information shared in the sessions should be captured. But the informal nature of chat can make for hard reading. A forum requires the user to think through each post and provide all relevant information in a clear manner, whereas chats typically end up as long strings of very short questions and answers that make for tedious reading.

[Divided Attention]

I agree that chat would be impossible to monitor. One thing I like about this forum is I can let my teens on with little worry about what they will get into. Chat can open a can of worms. If I have something I would like to share with a member online and don't want all eyes, I can PM them. This has worked well for me, YMMV

As far as Bulldog's comment, I don't think he was being mean, just (and no offense intended, JMPHO Bulldog) an epic failure at being silly. Unfortunately the written word can not convey the body language, tone and facial expression so important in human communication.

[MrsFosforos]

The version that was used here before was primitive and unwieldy to use and follow the attempts at conversation. There are better options available and moderation could be implemented. It's just a matter of finding the application that meets those needs and is easier to manage.

[AEA]

MrsFosforos

If there were a suitable animal as you say, I would not be opposed to having it on the Site as long as it is not on the main forum page (clutter).

A link up in the top of the main page to the chat page for those that wanted to use it would be fine with me. This is from a user point of view only. Moderators and Site Owner may (probably do) have a different point of view.

[blackmesa]

This forum has the ability to list chat contact information on AOL Instant Messenger, WL/MSN Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, etc. if people want to chat.

[psijac]

One of the disadvantages of chat is that the good information shared in the sessions should be captured. But the informal nature of chat can make for hard reading. A forum requires the user to think through each post and provide all relevant information in a clear manner, whereas chats typically end up as long strings of very short questions and answers that make for tedious reading.

chat, in my opinion, is a social tool. The focus of our forum is information sharing and political action not necessarily social networking

[BrianSW99]

I usually read the forum as I get time while also doing other things. Trying to keep up with a real time conversation on top of that would be too much for me. I don't do any kind of IM or chat thats not required for work. When I'm logged into facebook, I stay logged out of chat. I will do text messages on the phone though. Maybe I'm more anti-social than most.

Brian