Welcome to board77!
And welcome to the Guide to board77 thread. This thread is intended to give you an idea of the history and structure of the board, and a few quick references to helpful tips in navigating your journey here at board77.
First off, stop by our Welcome to b77 thread and introduce yourself! Even though we are opening the board on Sunday, June 26th, we are hosting an official Grand Opening Celebration on July 6th to fete our new members. This will also be an opportunity for current members to celebrate the end of the long process of laying the groundwork for an open board. Watch the Welcome Forum for more announcements about our Celebration!
For detailed information about how our member-moderated board is structured, please reference the b77 Charter index. There is a great deal of good information to be found there!
The History of board77(often abbreviated b77)
Where did you get that name?
Alandriel answers:
What happened when on b77?
Quote: In the days of the petition (Oct 04) I decided to open a free board on phpbb as a communication platform as discussion via email amongst so many people proved very cumbersome. And so, on October 27th, 2004 I signed up… and then had to come up with a name. For about half an hour I sat there in front of my screen… a name… a name… I didn't want an obvious reference to Tolkien. Just something.. welll… simple, innocuous. I went to make a cup of tea and then the number 77 just popped into my head. It's neither my birth-year nor did I ever think we'd get stick with 77 members. It just happened, call it serendipity – like so many other things just happen here
Alandriel has also put together a timeline of events for b77, found here. It has a lot of good information about the early days on this board.
But I thought you were a closed board, or an invite-only board?
We were! Once the board starting growing past the first few participants, it became obvious that many people here knew they wanted this to be an open board. Unfortunately, we didn’t have the structure in place to accommodate that, until now. Hereis a great explanation of the history of our journey from closed/invite only to the open board you are visiting today!
Did it really take all this time to create an open board?
We have a great new forum, a history of the processes that have gone into opening up b77, Threads of Historical Interest. Into this forum we have moved threads relevant to the creation of b77 as an open board. Hereare the actual records of the effort and planning that went into the making of our self-moderated, democratic, open board. Major decisions were debated in committees and then submitted to the membership for ratification. Democracy can take a while!
The Organization of board77
Who are the moderators?
We have no moderators here on b77… or, more accurately, we are ALL moderators here on b77. This is a self-moderated board. We will rely on the expectations outlined in our charter, and on the vigilance of our members, to moderate our board.
Who are the admins?
Someday, it could be you! Currently, the list of admins—or Rangers, as we refer to them here at b77--- can be found here. Rangers are members of the board who have volunteered for this task (the volunteer pool can be found here)and who have established themselves as members of b77. They are only Rangers for a short period of time; people come in and out of their Ranger obligations on a rotating basis. In this way, the burden of administration is not carried by only a few people, and the people who are truly interested in participating in the administrative duties can have a chance to do so.
For a very complete and detailed explanation of the organization of b77, please refer to the b77 Charter index .
The Structure of board77
The board77 index has our forums listed. We have role-playing, lighthearted talks, serious discussions, Administrative discussions, discussions about movies, books, music, Tolkien, hobbies, m00ts… many interesting and enjoyable topics.
We also have a few forums which are a bit unique. Firstly, we have a Bike Racks forum, where participants in intense discussions can go to resolve their conflicts. Secondly, we have the Thinking of England forum, where more private conversations about intimate topics are conducted… this is a restricted-access forum. More details can be found here, and here. Finally, we have a new Member’s Lounge, where topics can be discussed between members only. This forum is not access-restricted to members, but it cannot be seen by lurkers. Conversations held here will not be available to information databases like Google.
And here's something else you need to know...
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Notice: Adult language is allowed on B77, but generally occurs no more frequently than in real life. We do require that members be at least thirteen years of age before joining. This board also contains an age restricted forum for discussion of topics inappropriate for children. The contents of this forum are not accessible to members who are under the age of eighteen, nor are they immediately accessible to the newest registrants.
All new Board registrations must provide their date of birth and a confirmation email from the member’s registration email address before membership [in this forum] is activated.
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But… can you help me figure out how to…?
Yes! Yes we can. There are threads that members have created, which are chock full of useful tidbits of information. The two most comprehensive threads that we have so far are b77 FAQ, and Acronyms, etc.
Here’s direct linking to relevant posts for a few questions:
- How do I post pictures?
- What does that acronym mean?
- How do I send someone a private message?
- Can I delete a post?
- How do I add a smiley? and How do I code a smiley?
- How do I make quotes, or highlight certain text?
- How do I get a spiffy byline under my name?
- How do I register an alternate name for Role Playing?
- How can I help out around the board? or volunteer even more?
Please don't hesitate to post questions here:Concerns, problems, questions etc. with this board or to PM a Ranger (here's the current list of Rangers) with questions.
If you have any questions whose answers you would like to see included in this Guide, or any feedback on the Guide whatsoever, please PM Anthriel... feedback is good.
ATTENTION CURRENT MEMBERS! I would very much like to have any feedback that you would like to share even BEFORE we open on Sunday ; and certainly after. Please PM me with any and all suggestions. I would LOVE your feedback... it can only serve to make this document more clear, and useful, to our n00bs-to-be! ~Anthy
Above all, just relax and have fun. Welcome, again, to board77!
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Here is the text of the "old" first post:
Okay, I took a good look at the document that Farawen prepared, and two thoughts immediately crossed my mind: boy, have things changed since she wrote that, and wow, there sure is a lot of great info around here!
I am concerned that I may not be familiar enough with all the good sources of information on this board for me, personally, to give n00bs the best intro to b77. This is why I am so looking forward to your input.
In this first post, I have created an outline of information, based upon Farawen's previous thread, to form the basis of our new guide. I will, of course, plump it up with verbiage before we post it... I thought it would be easier to add ideas and edit in linked threads if it were in outline form at first.
I copied Farawen’s Comprehensive Guide and posted it in the second post in this thread, for reference and comparison purposes.
I will be unable to spend a great deal more time on this project before Wednesday, June 22nd. On that day, I hope to pull together suggestions that you all have made, type up a new guide from this outline and any revisions suggested, and post it for a vote.
After the 48-hour vote, and if the document is workable, I should be able to post it in the Info Forum/Welcome subforum on Saturday, June 25th, just in time for the grand door-opening on Sunday, June 26th. (Phew!)
First, though, I have a couple of questions:
- Does it have to be called a “comprehensive†guide? Perhaps it’s my own insecurity speaking here, but I worry about being responsible for creating ANYTHING that bills itself as “comprehensiveâ€. Could the title “An Overview of board77- Stop here first†or something like that work?
- What will happen to the old Comprehensive Guide? I would think it would be confusing to have both up there… especially when Farawen’s is a little out of date.
- Alandriel: Would you like me to just re-use the quote that Farawen has about the genesis of the b77 name, or would you like to create a new one?
- I'd also like to write a quick line at the bottom about feedback; that is, if a reader has any ideas how to improve upon the overview guide, that person should PM me. What do you think?
Here’s my basic outline:
- Intro and welcome:
- Introduce yourself in the new welcome thread [link]
- We are an open board
- We are self-moderated, democratic board [link to charter document so far]
B77:
1. History- previously invite only board [link to Jn’s history of invites]
- constructed self-moderating, open board [link to History sub forum]
- timeline [link to Alandriel’s b77 timeline]
- history of b77 name [copy Farawen’s copied post or Alandriel type something new?]
- No moderators
- Admins/Rangers on rotating schedule
- List of current admins/Rangers [link]
- For eligibility to serve as Ranger [link to charter]
- To add name to Ranger pool [link]
- Current Charter document [link]
- Look at index for list of forums
- Notice special fora
- ToE… requires eligibility to enter [link to ToE info]
- Bike Racks… [link to Bike Racks info]
- Member’s Lounge [link to Member’s Lounge info]
- [link to b77 FAQs] edit: Alandriel's thread
- How to post pictures [link to Leoba’s thread]
- Acronyms, etc. [link to laureanna’s thread]
- [link to concerns, problems, suggestions]
- PM a Ranger [link to current Ranger thread]