Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
Okay - HoL is now open range territory - read without log-in
I've been umming and aahing for a while now about opening up the site so that everything can be read without the need to login.
I've just been improving things on our Facebook page so that more content gets read over and goes where we want it! This has meant that now full stories can only be read on HoL, whereas before the whole thing copied over to Facebook. A HoL Facebook user politely suggested it was about time we stopped being coy and came out from behind our log-in wall.
That's prompted me to think again and even see bigger increases to the number of daily users.
Good thing? Bad thing?
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Alan Stanton on
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Hugh, is the idea that anybody will be able to read anything? But that only those with a Ning log-in could add comments?
So would there be any means to hide some comments from general public gaze? (Other than by using private messages?) If not, then people may need stronger advice on not posting some stuff. (E.g. "Can anyone look after our pet puma as we are away for the next month and the house will be empty.)
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Permalink Reply by Hugh on
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Yes that's the idea. Since registration is unrestricted, we already regard the site as public and if we see anything like the example you mentioned we advise people to change it. Do you think we need to do more?
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Permalink Reply by 0r8y0922zqj9c on
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Thank you Hugh! This is brilliant! - And case and point, i've just signed up to reply to this post which I wouldn't have been able to see before!
Alan - in my experience (I'm a Digital Project Manager) if anyone can read content, it encourages the feeling of openness in the community and shows people a good indication of the feelings of the community to the post. In addition to this, the idea of adding a password to add comments, replies and feedback, provides sufficient filtration that only genuine users will bother to actually signup and contribute (along with moderation).
You'll always get the odd strange contribution, but it wouldn't be our Harringay if there wasn't the odd crazy - We love them for it! :D
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And thank you Abi - we all need a nudge from time to time. The logic for keeping things behind a password wall is probably long gone - an' old habits and all that.......
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Permalink Reply by Lesley Ramm on
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Came across this by accident when using a link from Twitter which took be direct to item without logging on. I like this. i often want to view but not comment and it saves time/effort and hopefully encourages more new members.
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Permalink Reply by Kake on
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I think this is an absolutely brilliant change! (Though since I don't actually live in Harringay, my opinion probably shouldn't hold as much weight as that of others.) If you stick to it long-term, I'll be able to link to HoL discussions of pubs, restaurants, etc from the relevant pages on RGL, which should help people from outside the area discover and explore your "local gems".
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Permalink Reply by alistairj on
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Most people seem to be positive on this so far so I will just add my caveat. Four years of 'walled garden' contributions will now be being indexed by Google so if you posted anything using your real full name and you don't want the world to see it or search for it (eg. future employers) - you might want to act quickly...
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Thanks for that caveat Alistair - always helps to have technical expertise to hand! Do you know if Facebook, Twitter and Linked in etc are indexed by Google?
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As far as I know, Facebook and Linkedin only let you see a minimal amount of info unless you are logged in? (and therefore the Google indexing is also limited)
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We were pretty much the only local discussion site I know of that was behind a password wall and there's been a steady pressure over the years for us to open up.
I've already thanked Alistair in a HoLMail conversation for his bringing the Google indexing to our attention.
I guess if people are generally uncomfortable, we could put up the drawbridge again. We've regularly changed our sign-up protocols to respond to varying conditions.
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Permalink Reply by KP on
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To be honest I am not very comfortable with the idea that anyone online will be able to read my postings. I would prefer to have the choice to change my settings so that they can't be read by people outside this group. Otherwise a lot of us will have to start using pseudonyms which seems a bit counter-productive if you want to get to know your neighbours!
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Thanks for the feedback Kavitha. As I've said before, it's always been the case that anyone on line can read anything on HoL. There's never been any join-up criteria. Okay, reading what's on HoL is just that little bit easier, but I don't imagine people will browse the threads here unless they have a local interest any more now than they have done in the past. Pretty much all local websites are open range. We seemed to be out of step.
But I'm pleased to hear people's views and have added a question on our Opinion Page which we can leave up for a while and see what response we get.
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