Up the Clarets was two years old last month and we've been looking at some potential changes to the message board whilst also considering the ever growing number of problems now being encountered from some posters, none more so than the constant bickering between some of them which is unnecessary and is causing others not to use the board as much.

We will be looking to add a couple of moderators to help with the management of the board in that respect and if anyone is interested in taking on the responsibility they can contact us via admin at uptheclarets dot com.

For now, we'd like your thoughts on whether you think the board should remain as it is, with one forum, or whether we should split it.

As such, could you please vote in the poll below.

Agree re "constant bickering" (and more). I wonder whether we can improve this situation by listing who has been suspended from posting - and what earned the suspension.

Just get rid of that stupid pop up for over 50s or tyres

dpinsussex wrote:Just get rid of that stupid pop up for over 50s or tyres

Can we widen the area for the over 50's first?

Asking for a friend.

Not being able to respect opinions that are not always agreed with, is a problem for this and the other site. It's not a problem just disagreeing the a poster, it normally involves personal insults.
The way Ablue Claret is abused is disgraceful, he may say things which you think is rubbish, but he is always polite, never retaliates and articulate. If you don't agree with him, say why, don't throw personal insults

ClaretTony wrote:As such, could you please vote in the poll below.

Sorry but can't find the poll below?

EDIT - The poll suddenly appeared at the top!

gtclaret wrote:Not being able to respect opinions that are not always agreed with, is a problem for this and the other site. It's not a problem just disagreeing the a poster, it normally involves personal insults.
The way Ablue Claret is abused is disgraceful, he may say things which you think is rubbish, but he is always polite, never retaliates and articulate. If you don't agree with him, say why, don't throw personal insults

Part of the issue with abc is the 5 threads saying virtually the same thing posted either on the same day or over a couple of days.

Can I suggest one thing when you review the results. I think the group of people in favour of a 'split' will have their vote split (irony eh) between the two 'split' options. For example I wasn't sure which one to go for.

So perhaps a more broad 'split' versus 'keep the same' then if the combined 'split' vote is above 50% then look into which split option was more popular?

I think it would be a good idea to split the place, most forums do the same when I've visited others and it doesn't seem to create an issue.

Falcon wrote:Can I suggest one thing when you review the results. I think the group of people in favour of a 'split' will have their vote split (irony eh) between the two 'split' options. For example I wasn't sure which one to go for.

So perhaps a more broad 'split' versus 'keep the same' then if the combined 'split' vote is above 50% then look into which split option was more popular?

Hopefully it's a clear result either way or the losing side will be demanding a new vote

I think the poll is a good idea but I fear the status quo will prevail despite there being a majority wanting to change the board. The pro change vote will be split across options 2 and 3. Wouldn't posts falling under option 3 just belong in option 2 anyway, i.e. non-football?

It would be good to have the first sentance of a post show up as a rollover. This would prevent misleading titles of posts wasting your time

Please may I have my own section so I needn't have to discuss with the should I say “rats” ie, working class members of the board.

Thank You

It's absolutely fine as it is.

. thinks he would be an excellent moderator, and a real fan favourite amongst the regular posters.

I'd ban political and religious threads as they do nothing but sow discontent and the threads tend to get very abusive. Otherwise keep it as it is. Creating different subsections doesn't do a lot because if you use the quick menu to check recent posts they all appear together anyway. Thanks for the good work to date.

Probably best as it is. I might be a good idea to limit how long a message you can post. Sometimes they are like essays and normally in tit for tat posts. Also maybe change it so you can't post one message after another straight away on the same thread. This might help stop two posters hogging a subject to have a two way disagreement.

Maybe a dislike button.

That’d be excellent

points
how long will the poll run for
is it a straight majority wins or is there going to be a % required over others
Personally agree a dislike button would be nice

The board isn't that popular that topics are dropping off the front page instantly, there's generally a good day or so on the front page so I don't think that's a good reason to split them (a working search function would make it easier to find those that aren't immediately apparent but I understand there are issues with that).

It's normally pretty clear which are the off-topic threads, if people don't want to read them don't click on them.

A bit of merging may help. For instnace until recently all Brexit "discussion" was limited to one thread (which was about 60 pages long). There was a fair bit of pointless bickering on there but it kept it all in one place (until it was closed for some reason).

The mods will also just spend time moving discussions to the other board and fielding questions about why people can't find the thread, etc.

Keep it as it is.

The problem (that is a much wider internet problem, not a UTC issue) will not go away with different boards.

Also, and this is really important, if people used the "mute" button a bit more or actually read the thread title (nothing annoys more than people logging on to say "not this thread again" - don't read or comment on it then!) then a lot of the issues wouldn't be relevant.

A dislike button isn't constructive.

It's one of the reasons why Facebook decided against it. If person A posts something and poster B dislikes it, it'll just create tension and potentially create even more arguments. A definite no from me, on that one. Plus, I don't think it's part of the phpBB set up, so would require a decent amount of coding.

In the main, I don't think it needs any significant changes. Political/Relgious discussions possibly being put into its own section, because I see them as lose-lose discussions, anyway.

aggi wrote: A bit of merging may help. For instnace until recently all Brexit "discussion" was limited to one thread (which was about 60 pages long). There was a fair bit of pointless bickering on there but it kept it all in one place (until it was closed for some reason).
.

Totally agree with that.
At one point we seemed to be getting one or more brexit threads everyday, and then it appeared that the contributors seemed to settle on the one thread rather than having multiple threads running.
I sort of guess why it was closed - because a couple of posters couldn't give up disputing a fairly petty point, but - a bit like WW1- they would finally have battered each other into submission whilst we all looked on.
There's bound to be a new brexit thread shortly, so let's just keep it to the one, even if some posters go a bit over the top. Afterall, if it's clearly marked THE BREXIT THREAD then everyone else can avoid it like the plague.

The best way to prevent bickering would be to activate the messageboard's private message function.

Moderators can then communicate with troublesome posters privately and warn them that they're overstepping the mark. People can also conduct arguments with individual posters privately if they want to.

This board is fine, but, just like anywhere on the internet, people lose all pretence of civility once a debate reaches a certain point and there is mutual disrespect between many posters.

Tis what it is, and until those responsible alter their tone then it will continue regardless of splitting the forum.

The problem with splitting the board is that there are some subjects that I like but wont get to see if the board is split. I just ignore the threads that annoy me.

I'd be more inclined to look at the board on a day-to-day basis if the off-topic stuff was in a separate forum, FWIW. I don't have any interest in coming on here to discuss non-football topics.

mickleoverclaret wrote:I'd be more inclined to look at the board on a day-to-day basis if the off-topic stuff was in a separate forum, FWIW. I don't have any interest in coming on here to discuss non-football topics.

You do comment on the odd non football topic though mickleover. The "I was out screaming today" reply to Claret and Jew was the funniest post I have personally ever read on this forum, Comedy Gold.

RocketLawnChair wrote:You do comment on the odd non football topic though mickleover. The "I was out screaming today" reply to Claret and Jew was the funniest post I have personally ever read on this forum, Comedy Gold.

Haha, about as constructive a response as I can muster!

kritichris wrote:I'd ban political and religious threads as they do nothing but sow discontent and the threads tend to get very abusive. Otherwise keep it as it is. Creating different subsections doesn't do a lot because if you use the quick menu to check recent posts they all appear together anyway. Thanks for the good work to date.

I'm in favour of the 'split', most other football boards do this, but not at all in support of keeping it football only. When you go to a game with mates do you ONLY talk football? I don't. It depends on the game of course, if it's gripping and edge of seat stuff then football is the only game in town, but if it's like watching paint dry then the attention drifts to other things. The same with a board, sometimes the football side is so quiet that other things should be discussed.
Just a thought.

Brexit has been a particularly divisive topic on the board but this is to be expected given its continuing divisiveness throughout the country since 2016. I find many non-football topics of interest - photos, history of Burnley as a town, job experiences, holidays, financial advice, school recollections, cricket and many others. Since joining the board I have learnt quite a bit from fellow posters, know which topics and posters to avoid so suggest we leave "well alone". It's not broken so don't mend it. With thankfully few idiots on board we get on quite well and are a generally agreeable community. Carry on campers!

I like it as it is but have ignored some of the posts for a while just because of the originator. You know some people are simply spoiling for an argument and others, possibly with a diagnosed syndrome, who will not accept an opinion different to their own.
I dislike the personal attacks from behind a keyboard aimed at all and sundry. On simple posts like 'What will the score be' or What is YOUR team for' there is a tendency for some to turn it into a 'virtual pub brawl' when someone has the temerity to pick a score or team using their OWN differing opinion.

We are all supposed to be fans of the same Club but you wouldn't think so sometimes.

Edit
Just to say thanks to those who make this site possible!

UTC

Add a dislike button and any that get a certain amount of dislikes gets banned/thread closed!

I like it as it is. I don't mind the varying topics, as like others have said you don't go to the pub with your mates and just talk about one thing.

What I would like to see though is to see the post originator when viewing on "mobile", like you can on "desktop".

There have been posts I've opened that to be perfectly honest i would have ignored if I'd known who started it.

JohnMac wrote:I like it as it is but have ignored some of the posts for a while just because of the originator. You know some people are simply spoiling for an argument and others, possibly with a diagnosed syndrome, who will not accept an opinion different to their own.

Just seen JohnMac post above and this is what cant do when on mobile

The site just needs tighter moderation in my opinion.

Keep it as it is.
I enjoy the mix of football and non-football - it is a good resource for getting quick advice (like where to park/pubs/holidays/etc)
It is easy to ignore daft/controversial topics and polemic contributors (you know who you are!!)
Thanks for the work you do Claret Tony - it is much appreciated. UTC

Keep it as it is. On a desktop, it's easy enough to see who's posting and skip. Better thread titles would help choice too.

All in. All counts, however, personal abuse from one Claret to anothet, is unacceptable. Warning and out.

Leave As is. Yes, there are issues with some posts but these could be moderated - and they are nothing like as bad as some. if the forum splits then i would tend to scan the football posts for any upto date information \ misinformation and probaby ignore the "sub forums" which would, I suspect quickly reduce in contributor numbers and lack the variety which makes the current board generally "work"

Quite like the forum as it is, allows you to read posts that you would more than likely miss if the forum was split.
Would it be possible to add a key? As in next to the post title to allow readers to see what topic the post is based around (similar way to how some users add O/T to a thread title).

The forum is brilliant how it is though, one of the best in the country. Wouldn't want it changing too much.

I'd personally like to see it split like the majority of forums. I enjoy some of the non football threads and it's always good to get differing opinions on matters. Those that just want to talk about the footy then have nothing else to worry about. It's a great forum with lots of great posters (even those I disagree with)

We just need a more visible presence from the mods.

That's not meant as a criticism. I just feel that the very small group of moderators are too widely spread. I welcome an increase of mods.

I would also recommend more communications from Mods regarding bannings, suspensions, thread closures, etc. That might garner more respect and co-operation from those who aren't able to control themselves appropriately on this site.

I see this board as the social media site for folks who are Burnley fans, but who are also members of the Burnley community whether they live locally now or not. I log on for all of the positive reasons above. So keep it as is but explore ways to limit/curb the excessive behaviour and personal abuse.

I think a split is a good idea. I still think the same minority will find a way to ruin it though. It’s a shame as it used to be a friendly place to be. Nothing wrong with differences of opinion, but the personal insults are out of order. Fingers crossed we see an improvement.

A separate Religious/Political forum would be heaven

Ditto- Cobble.

I like the fact that we can discuss what we like on the board and it doesn't always have to be directly football or BFC related.

Perhaps the threads could be colour co-ordinated to help guide users to the threads they'd be interested in? There are certain posters who only post on football and there are those who prefer a wider choice.

I don't know how practical this suggestion is. Perhaps there could be an option when you start a thread? Claret for football or Blue for anything OT?

Just a suggestion.

As for what to do about the bickering, well ******** started it. Not me.

I like the colour coded system actually.

Reddit style labels on the threads to describe the theme/topic, etc. too.

Rowls wrote:I like the fact that we can discuss what we like on the board and it doesn't always have to be directly football or BFC related.

Perhaps the threads could be colour co-ordinated to help guide users to the threads they'd be interested in? There are certain posters who only post on football and there are those who prefer a wider choice.

I don't know how practical this suggestion is. Perhaps there could be an option when you start a thread? Claret for football or Blue for anything OT?

Just a suggestion.

As for what to do about the bickering, well ******** started it. Not me.

Oh you f...... blaming him are yee and what is OT "o'er top"?

I like my football mixed in with politics and other interesting/non-interesting topics, I like the variety.

From the comments though a good amount don't. Maybe the answer is a user-level filter. Threads would need a category (football/politics/other) and users would have a filter. I'd leave mine at 'all', someone else could set theirs to 'football-only'.