Posting in Layout Topics - a waste of time?

[Guest jim s-w]

Thing is a lot of new layout threads dont have a lot in them. Its rare for one to start with a bang, most of them building slowly. As for making them sticky why would a new layout post have more value than a new post from someone on their 50th page?

 

Quite simply it wouldnt.

 

Cheers

 

Jim

[Oldddudders]

Hi

last I week posted about my next new layout only to find it was on the second page within several hours and the next day page 3 with only just over 100 views.

Why cant any new layouts started on layout section be marked new layout and stay at top of page for 7 days (semi pinned allowing comments) then after 7 days released ?and can then drop dowm the list. At least it might be seen by some of the thousands of members on the site?

If you want to keep your layout on the front page, then it needs to be newsworthy. That is to say, it needs to prompt other members to comment - every time anyone comments on any item it goes to the top of the New/Active Content heap. There are plenty of layouts that are seldom far from the front page for that reason. You can also help by making frequent thread updates - but these will do far better if they display new modelling skills, rather than "I just got an RTR Bleep in the post - isn't she pretty?". My impression is that the best layouts - and size has nothing to do with quality - are the subject of regular conversations among members, with the layout owner at the heart of it all. I suggest you look at any layout that appears on the front page and identify why it is there, and how the virtual conversations are working that mean it keeps reappearing.

[Claude_Dreyfus]

I have a similar experience to the OP. I think there are a number of factors (excuses?!) with my layout...first and foremost its subject matter. Whilst a model railway is a model railway, no matter what subject it portrays, I am certain had my layout been a modern British terminus, as opposed to being Japanese, then there would be more interest.

 

It may also be that the use of many ready to plonk buildings (albeit detailed, repainted and in some cases modified) put people off. I don't think its rubbish (but then against I'm biased...most people don't think their kids are ugly do they?!), and it has a healthy thread on a Japanese forum, so it is probably just one of those things.

 

Do I mind? Not really, this is more observation. The thread title does what is says on the tin, and my thought that being a Japanese model puts people off is borne out by a relatively low number of views...especially as a certain percentage of that will be me posting, editing and generally referring.

 

Incidentally, this thread prompted me to put a link in my signature for the layout, so thanks for that...

[Happy Hippo]

Just as a matter of interest, I trawled back through a huge raft of layout topics, and it is surprising how many of the threads have a few, possibly as much as half a dozen replies or entries before going dormant.

 

Does this mean that the builder (OP) has had enough? changed his modelling habit? Or even fallen off his or her perch, and gone to the great model railway in the sky?

 

Other very popular layouts, such as Penlan, lie well back in what could be called the archive pages.

 

This is not a reflection on their failing popularity, just that they are being overtaken by a host of newer threads that update on a more regular basis.

 

I sympathize with Beast, and his comment about photographs; it takes time and effort both to take them and them post them up on this site.

 

It does only take a click of the mouse button to say thank you, and i am as guilty as the rest of not using that quick and simple facility.

 

In my defence, I'd say that there are many sections of RM Web I've never delved into, so cannot comment, like or even criticize (in the best possible taste) the OP.

 

My plan is to build and photograph my layout, and then post it in regular dribbles onto the layout thread and then have praise heaped upon me from every one for the impressive speed and quality (some hope) of my efforts.

 

Expect the first installment in June 2020.

 

Regards

 

Richard

[Guest oldlugger]

If you want to keep your layout on the front page, then it needs to be newsworthy. That is to say, it needs to prompt other members to comment - every time anyone comments on any item it goes to the top of the New/Active Content heap. There are plenty of layouts that are seldom far from the front page for that reason. You can also help by making frequent thread updates - but these will do far better if they display new modelling skills, rather than "I just got an RTR Bleep in the post - isn't she pretty?". My impression is that the best layouts - and size has nothing to do with quality - are the subject of regular conversations among members, with the layout owner at the heart of it all. I suggest you look at any layout that appears on the front page and identify why it is there, and how the virtual conversations are working that mean it keeps reappearing.

 

I really agree with Ian here. Also I think a lot depends on the subject matter that is being posted and the way it is presented. I always look out for the southern layouts (such as "Brighton East" by Kipford and "Newhaven Harbour" by Colin Parks) which are easy to spot because there are relatively few of them. Both of my example layouts are photographed well and have interesting modelling details and ideas that I can try out for myself on my own layout. Even though I'm not a fan of motive power depots with large numbers of out of the box diesels, and there are a fair number of them here, I do look at them and will comment on the ones that are well presented with some unusual features. It doesn't matter to me what scale or gauge the layouts are as long as they're eye catching and have a degree of atmosphere.

 

Simon

[Physicsman]

I spend hours uploading photos and rarely get comments or likes from anyone other than the expected few - I often wonder whether that's because clicking "like this" is a technically challenging option or it's because people aren't actually interested in the stuff. However, for now at least, I plod along as I think it's the nature of things (and people) on here, if we could predict their whims, we could make a fortune.

 

Interesting comment. I've found I have a standard group of people - many are much better modellers than me - who are always willing to comment, offer encouragement, ask for advice and click the "like" box in appreciation of what they see/read. This group has gradually expanded and I feel that some have become friends. So I've certainly found posting in a layout thread beneficial. Constructive criticism and encouragement is a marvellous thing.

 

One annoyance - which Beast has mentioned (along with others) on a number of occasions. It is annoying when help given (often involving a fair amount of effort) isn't even acknowledged with a "thank you". Just common sense and good manners, isn't it?

 

Jeff

[aberdare]

Having recently started my thread I was also keen to see whether it would prove popular or not as I think that is something we would all like. As our models or layouts are important to us as Individuals we would like to think there are other like minded people out there too who would appreciate our efforts. After first joining and seeing some of the work on the site I thought I would like to achieve the same result as some and in the case of others to better it, so the only way is to have a go.

 

So I have and I was over the moon when I reached 100 views and a couple of comments by the time I was on page 2 or 3 (which wasn't long). I now have a few followers get a few likes which encourages me to do more, however the model is for me and my enjoyment so I would except it if I had less attention than it's got. As it is I have put it up to share as I know I can improve on what I do and would welcome other peoples input if they thought I could do, after all I have never yet finished anything I have started for various reasons and it's about time I did.

 

I hope that my modelling improves over the coming years and that it will be seen on the thread and I welcome the friends I am making and the positive comments so far.

 

So thank you all and if you haven't visited please do.

 

Jim

[roundhouse]

One other thing that I have found is that if you are modelling a present day real location then you are very likely to have a lot more interest as not only are there those who are interested in modelling on here but also those who take photos of the real railway plus peopel who might even work there or work the the train operator. I have a number of people who generally dont post a reply on Rmweb but do look and they have then either PM'd me or spoken to me at shows which is all part of the benefits of posting your layout on RMweb. - far more than I could have ever imagined.

 

With a fictional location then you wont get the same interest from the people working there although you may well get help from people who can help with what would be prototypical operation or signalling etc.

 

With a 'foreign' layout there isnt the same number of people with the interest in that particular country as the current UK scene.

 

Ian

[Kenton]

I think interest in a layout from the builder's perspective ebbs and flows - it is not usually an overnight event they evolve over months and even years. I do not see why the topics should be at the top of the VNC unless something really is happening.

 

Some layouts just start and then seem to fly. Though they continue as more of a conversation than any great addition. Masons Lane has been a good example of that. A layout that seemed to explode as a topic going from start to finish in a matter of days but with no further progress - not a criticism as it is effectively now a completed layout. Other layouts start with enthusiasm and then seem to fade as progress is slow. I am sure there are other layouts that are simply conceptual, testing the idea, perhaps for when space/finance is available or rejection because it never does.

 

Undoubtedly there are some layout topics that just appeal while other struggle - just like layouts at shows it is difficult to understand why. I have to admit that one thing that does act as a slight deterrent is too much information in the first post. A track plan, a location/prototype photo, a short description of why it exists is all that is required.

 

Some of my favourite layout topics I might never have even commented on, I just look in on them in admiration, what more could I add other than another ME2 likes that post.

[Sir Madog]

Kenton,

I think you hit the nail on its head!

 

I see the layout topics section as a place to present your work and share your achievement with the community, but not so much a place to discuss queries and issues. There are better places for that here in the forum.

[Hugh Flynn]

Hi

Wow so many comments ,its good to talk?

And no I did not bring this thread back to life I just made a comment this morning.

 

Some of you just dont get it - NO I am not wanting loads of comments and praise its when I look on layout section

what I look for is any new layouts ,

But I did not realise that in only a day I might might not have seen layouts that have been put on by 3-4 pages that is why

I said give a 7 day semi pinned but this was only an idea. (if you look not that many new layouts each week).

At least you would see what is actually new.

 

Hugh

[Kenton]

But pinning is a complete waste of time for those of us who use the VNC to browse RMWeb. I also suspect that many who use the forums to view RMWeb mentally skip the pinned topics especially where they are so numerous to fill the first page. I still think the best way is to add something to a layout thread that is new and gives something to talk about or a question to which you would like input or others opinions. That new post pushes it to the top of the VNC and the responses keep it there.

[ess1uk]

I still think the best way is to add something to a layout thread that is new and gives something to talk about or a question to which you would like input or others opinions.

that's fine if anyone reads the question or bothers to answer it

[tender]

But pinning is a complete waste of time for those of us who use the VNC to browse RMWeb.

 

Can you explain VNC for the uninitiated.

[Shed]

View New Content

top right of screen

[beast66606]

Can you explain VNC for the uninitiated.

 

View New Content - the button on the home page, shows a list of the active content, most recent first.

[Oldddudders]

Can you explain VNC for the uninitiated.

View New Content, aka Active Content "is" RMweb for some of us who have a little more time to spare. Every time I log in - and I am able to be on here several times a day - clicking on New Content gives me all the latest messages for the previous 24 hrs, and I believe I miss very few posts on subjects that might be of interest. Thus I see layout threads that generate copious comment and interaction from other members - and which are therefore by definition healthy.

[tender]

View New Content, aka Active Content "is" RMweb for some of us who have a little more time to spare. Every time I log in - and I am able to be on here several times a day - clicking on New Content gives me all the latest messages for the previous 24 hrs, and I believe I miss very few posts on subjects that might be of interest. Thus I see layout threads that generate copious comment and interaction from other members - and which are therefore by definition healthy.

 

Brilliant, how did I miss that.

[MrSimon]

Haha I never realised there was a view new content button... Oh well!

 

New topics take a while to get going - when I started Gresby getting to the end of the first page took 7 and a half months - don't get me wrong I moved house in the middle of that, but I kept on posting if only to remind myself what I'd done (and that still is one of the main purposes of my topic, so I can flick back through and remind myself what I used for suchandsuch when I have to replicate it somewhere else) today I clicked over on to page 26 but now its picked up and I get loads of really useful tips, excellent advice and really nice compliments on the topic as well as me still building the layout.

 

Keep posting on your topic, it'll be worth it even if its just to chart your own progress!

 

Cheers

 

Simon

[Kenton]

As above, sorry I just assumed that everyone knew the abbreviation. The can be to some extent manipulated by period and by the type of topic - so for example limited to 24hr, excluding some forums, only those you have already replied to. The button is at the top of every topic as well ast the home page and others.

 

I also open it first thing (in fact I never visit the home page) I then scan back through the topics and open each one of interest (based on the title or previous participation/interest in a topic) in a new browser tab. Note the topic title in the VNC goes faded if there has been no change since I last visited. I go back to the last time I clicked on the VNC which might be hours or minutes. O then read each topic opened in a tab, either posting, liking, or if disinterested closing it.

 

The result is that I tend to visit all topics of interest (title drawing me in) at least once. I emphasise topics because it is a waste of my time reading the RSS Fetcher ones as I can't open up blogs in a readable form.(just me it seems).

 

I believe there is a similar VNC available for the blogs - at least there used to be, though the format was quite different.

 

It isn't for everyone though. If your interest lies only in one area of the site you get a more isolated view by following the forum directly.

[t-b-g]

I usually do my RMWeb viewing via the "View New Content" button. What does seem to be happening now is that there is so much activity on RMWeb that several pages of new content can crop up very quickly and you have to look at many pages before you get back to 24 hours ago. I have a quick look , once or maybe twice a day and by the time I have gone down 3 or 4 pages I have pretty much decided that the topics creating any activity have probably been on there.

 

So I probably miss loads of stuff, especially if it has dropped down a few pages since my last visit.

 

Tonight I looked down to around P20 and we were still only on yesterday.

 

So I think that part of the problem with lack of views/responses is possibly the sheer size of RMWeb means that it is impossible for most people to look at everything. I tend to skip any threads that don't have a title that grabs my attention and I never look at blogs, so out of those 20 pages I looked at about half a dozen threads. As an example, I wouldn't bother with "new shunting plank" or suchlike but "new minimum space pre-grouping layout" would draw me in. Both could be titles for the same layout thread.

[buffalo]

Brilliant, how did I miss that.

Haha I never realised there was a view new content button... Oh well!

You're clearly not alone, it would seem from comments here and elsewhere that many people are not aware of VNC or, for that matter, how much interesting material they miss. As an example, a couple of days ago I encountered three different topics in which the same modelling material was being discussed. In each case, several folk claimed not to have heard of it and no one seemed to be aware that it was being discussed in a slightly different context elsewhere.

 

...The result is that I tend to visit all topics of interest (title drawing me in) at least once. I emphasise topics because it is a waste of my time reading the RSS Fetcher ones as I can't open up blogs in a readable form.(just me it seems).

 

I believe there is a similar VNC available for the blogs - at least there used to be, though the format was quite different.

Yes, it is just you. As to VNC for the blogs, just click 'blogs' under the 'by content type' on the left of the page (always assuming you can see it without the aid of Javascript). It works very much the same as the forum VNC pages (also works for galleries and other stuff).

 

...you have to look at many pages before you get back to 24 hours ago...So I probably miss loads of stuff, especially if it has dropped down a few pages since my last visit...

People often say this but to me it's a bit of an exaggeration. Yes, there's plenty of material, but does it really take that long to scan the titles? I reckon it would take a great deal longer to find interesting new material by any other route.

 

I recently returned from a couple of weeks holiday and set VNC to two weeks rather than my usual 24 hours and it took no more than a couple of evenings to catch up. That was not reading full time, but just five to ten minute bursts in between other activities.

 

Nick

[coachmann]

Click on your name at top right of page. This brings down your avatar, which you then click on. Your members box then appears and Inside that box is 'Find Content'. Clicking on this brings a list of all the threads you have responded to. When these have been read, click on 'View New Content' and this brings down all the new threads plus those that are currently popular.

[t-b-g]

You're clearly not alone, it would seem from comments here and elsewhere that many people are not aware of VNC or, for that matter, how much interesting material they miss. As an example, a couple of days ago I encountered three different topics in which the same modelling material was being discussed. In each case, several folk claimed not to have heard of it and no one seemed to be aware that it was being discussed in a slightly different context elsewhere.

 

 

Yes, it is just you. As to VNC for the blogs, just click 'blogs' under the 'by content type' on the left of the page (always assuming you can see it without the aid of Javascript). It works very much the same as the forum VNC pages (also works for galleries and other stuff).

 

 

People often say this but to me it's a bit of an exaggeration. Yes, there's plenty of material, but does it really take that long to scan the titles? I reckon it would take a great deal longer to find interesting new material by any other route.

 

I recently returned from a couple of weeks holiday and set VNC to two weeks rather than my usual 24 hours and it took no more than a couple of evenings to catch up. That was not reading full time, but just five to ten minute bursts in between other activities.

 

Nick

 

That is fair comment and it is pretty much how it works for me. I know I miss some things because when I did look back the 20 pages I saw a few threds that were of interest that I would have missed normally. What usually happens is that I find something of interest on the first few pages of new entries and never get any further until it is time to log off!

 

I also do a catch up if I have been away from the computer for a while. But did you actually click on and read the thread of each new entry? What I was getting at is that I read down the list of new entries and pick and choose which threads to actually read, based on the chance of it having something of interest to me. So a well chosen thread title, with EM, P4, or "pre-grouping" is much more likely to get looked at than a more generic "New layout" type.

 

Regards

 

Tony

[buffalo]

That is fair comment and it is pretty much how it works for me. I know I miss some things because when I did look back the 20 pages I saw a few threds that were of interest that I would have missed normally. What usually happens is that I find something of interest on the first few pages of new entries and never get any further until it is time to log off!

 

Yes, that's all too easy to do...

 

I also do a catch up if I have been away from the computer for a while. But did you actually click on and read the thread of each new entry? What I was getting at is that I read down the list of new entries and pick and choose which threads to actually read, based on the chance of it having something of interest to me. So a well chosen thread title, with EM, P4, or "pre-grouping" is much more likely to get looked at than a more generic "New layout" type.

No, I don't read more than a fraction of topics. Like you, I select by topic title but also back that up by checking 'My content' to see if I've missed anything in topics that I've posted in. So really, I do much the same as Larry, but the other way round.

 

Nick