Let's Make LocalChurchDiscussion Better in 2017!

[UntoHim]

Hey LCD Members! The New Year in upon us. No better time than the new year to make this forum the best it can be.

There are new and improved software and organizational changes that can be made to make this place a little more inviting and user friendly, and I'm open to anything that will accomplish this!

I'm not very computer/Internet savvy (duh), but we have some members who are. Please feel free to post your ideas and suggestions on this thread and everything will be considered.

Just a joke....

[Unsure]

Is the forum set to "mark all threads as read" by default every time you leave the site? Is there a way to turn that off (so that if you leave and come back, the bold threads are still bold and you can jump to the first unread post)?

[UntoHim]

I don't believe there is such a universal setting that I can adjust as the admin. I noticed that anytime I come back to the forum any unread thread always appears as bolded until I open the thread.

I'm not sure this is the feature you are inquiring about.
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[OGOP]

I'm new to this forum but I've been involved with forums similar to this one for years so I feel like I have a lot to compare this to.

The in-thread layout is probably my favorite aspect of the site with the exception of how you reply to threads. If you reply to a certain person your post shouldn't be hidden because you didn't reply to the OP. It should just be a continual thread, in chronological order regardless of who you replied to. Thats my personal preference.

In terms of the number one thing I would improve, it would be the organization of threads. The home page is FAR too confusing and there are too many links to two many topics and threads etc. The home page needs to be simplified. Perhaps on the left side of the page have the lists of all the forums, subtopics, etc. but on the front page only feature the 10 or 15 most recent threads being discussed.

Make LCD Great Again!

-sorry couldn't resist, OGOP

[UntoHim]

Thanks OGOP for the helpful comments! There are FAR too many sub-forums. I've received this complaint by others as well. Changes are in the works!
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[leastofthese]

Has anyone looked into Search engine optimization (SEO)? This would help this website be found more easily by those looking for help. It would move the website higher on the list on search engine results.

Note that when I Google "Living Stream Ministries" "Living Stream Ministries Cult" "Lords Recovery" "Local Church Cult", etc. the localchurchdiscussions.com doesn't pop up on the first page.

This forum is the most active and helpful resource that I've found - maybe I'm just missing the good ones - so I would like it if others could also benefit.

It may be helpful to also include the Christian Students on Campus (CSOC) in this process.

I'm not really familiar with how the SEO works - but I'm willing to help fund this depending on the cost.

[ZNPaaneah]

Originally Posted by leastofthese

Has anyone looked into Search engine optimization (SEO)? This would help this website be found more easily by those looking for help. It would move the website higher on the list on search engine results.

Note that when I Google "Living Stream Ministries" "Living Stream Ministries Cult" "Lords Recovery" "Local Church Cult", etc. the localchurchdiscussions.com doesn't pop up on the first page.

This forum is the most active and helpful resource that I've found - maybe I'm just missing the good ones - so I would like it if others could also benefit.

It may be helpful to also include the Christian Students on Campus (CSOC) in this process.

I'm not really familiar with how the SEO works - but I'm willing to help fund this depending on the cost.

What you need to do is have different sites put links up to this site. Those links would boost its visibility in a google search.