Cudos to Wayne

[Jeff B]

I hope I am not embarassing anyone, but I sent the below private message below to Wayne aka Dekaybrown, (sorry Wayne guess it's not so private message now, lol) and I think he also desires some public acknowledgement on this site for his extra effort in welcoming and helping a new member get started on this site, and I would also like the originators of this site to please consider my suggestions to include Waynes work onto this site I think it would be very benifitial to all.
Thanks for your consideration.
Thanks again Wayne

"Wayne, I forgot to mention, thank you very much for putting that tham for dummies togather, it was extremely helpful, very well put togather, and very easy to follow and very thoughtful and considerate of you as well. I think that should definately be included on this site as a how to get started page or even a whole section either on its own or linked to the home page. You could possibly even expand on it to include other how to's to features on this site. I think it would be EXTREMELY helpful to all new members, and also a very useful aid in recruting new members, which I would think would be of high importance to the originators of the site.
Thanks again Wayne and great job!!!"

[infernalis]

Thanks Jeff, Appreciate the acknowledgment.

[Stefan-A]

I hope I am not embarassing anyone, but I sent the below private message below to Wayne aka Dekaybrown, (sorry Wayne guess it's not so private message now, lol) and I think he also desires some public acknowledgement on this site for his extra effort in welcoming and helping a new member get started on this site,

We would actually prefer that extra efforts in welcoming and helping new members get started were done in public, both to help other new (or potential) members and to provide other viewpoints and suggestions.

and I would also like the originators of this site to please consider my suggestions to include Waynes work onto this site I think it would be very benifitial to all.

I have no idea what "work" you're referring to here, but we do have an Articles section that we encourage people to use and improve.

[And_Lyn]

I agree! Wayne is super rad

-Lyndsey

[Jeff B]

What I am refering to is the fact that this site is not at all an intuitive format, or intuitive to get around and use, ect. so it could really use a "how to" start using the features and "how to" navigate around the site and use it, BEFORE someone joins and stubbles around.
Otherwise some people will find the chore to cumbersum and intimidating and not bother to join and become active even though they want to. I know personally it is part of the reason I had not joined sooner.

I just realized that maybe this is actually a barrier of countries, maybe it is just not what we are used to seeing in the USA, perhaps this is intuitive and more typical in Europe? Not sure, either that or maybe I am just slow

It is a mere suggestion that you add a "how to" or "tutitorial" section that easy to find and easy to follow, and Wayne is very brilliant with that and could probably offer some great help with that, and I bet that he would if you asked him nicely.

The goal would be to make this site more user friendly and less intimidating for newbies, young people, or people with limited internet experience. I myself am none of those things, and even I found it intimidating and difficult at first.

I am just offering suggestions for improvement and trying to keep it positive, this is a great site and not saying there is anything wrong with it, it has a lot of great features, but the fact that it has so many great features is what also makes it complicated to the new person, so take my suggestions for what it's worth.
Peace

[Stefan-A]

What I am refering to is the fact that this site is not at all an intuitive format, or intuitive to get around and use, ect. so it could really use a "how to" start using the features and "how to" navigate around the site and use it, BEFORE someone joins and stubbles around.
Otherwise some people will find the chore to cumbersum and intimidating and not bother to join and become active even though they want to. I know personally it is part of the reason I had not joined sooner.

I just realized that maybe this is actually a barrier of countries, maybe it is just not what we are used to seeing in the USA, perhaps this is intuitive and more typical in Europe? Not sure, either that or maybe I am just slow

It is a mere suggestion that you add a "how to" or "tutitorial" section that easy to find and easy to follow, and Wayne is very brilliant with that and could probably offer some great help with that, and I bet that he would if you asked him nicely.

The goal would be to make this site more user friendly and less intimidating for newbies, young people, or people with limited internet experience. I myself am none of those things, and even I found it intimidating and difficult at first.

I am just offering suggestions for improvement and trying to keep it positive, this is a great site and not saying there is anything wrong with it, it has a lot of great features, but the fact that it has so many great features is what also makes it complicated to the new person, so take my suggestions for what it's worth.
Peace

Thanks for the feedback. It makes me wonder, if this is something that our administrator has been made aware of, or if it's something our members have just been quietly cursing.

[adamanteus]

I was also unaware of any 'work' being done outside the forum. And I have no idea at all what 'Tham for Dummies' is.

Whilst I agree that anyone extending a warm welcome and useful advice to newcomers deserves thanks, we should remember that this is an open forum, and such greetings and advice should be given in the forum, where others may add their perspective to whatever advice is being given. Otherwise it ceases to be a forum.

There are extremely clear, accurate and easy to follow basic care rules in the simple to find articles section. Maybe we should offer kudos to those members who have spent weeks researching and writing up the in-depth notes, exhaustive species lists and accounts, extensive photo galleries etc. for us all to benefit from. Most of this work has not even been signed by the authors, it is offered as a gift, without seeking praise or recognition.
I think it unfair in the extreme to set one member (whoever they may be) above any other. Especially if this special status is for work which is not even visible to us all.
I'm sorry if this offends, but I just think it's wrong.

[drache]

hm
this is interesting
I've always thought of myself as being easily intimidated by anything internet, yet I found this site easy to use, uncluttered, and straight-forward
the only thing I had major problems with in the beginning, was posting pictures, but I'd never done that anywhere else either
maybe it's because I'm german, but I've lived in the US 1976 - a lot of my europeaness has come off
and now it occurs to me that it's the very first time I've ever heard anyone complain about the user-friendlness of this site (other than posting pictures), and we have had members who professed to be impaired like me in the web-arena

anyway - not to embarrass anyone, Wayne
but congrats on your fan base