Working through large threads/topics

[Carol/Bonadie]

We don't so much have this problem here, as our activity is pretty manageable, but I wonder how people work through very active groups where the new posts pile up. For example, I just joined a GR group and some of the threads have hundreds, even thousands of new (to me) posts, since I've just joined. It's time like these when I still long for AOL's system that allowed you to mark individual posts read or unread, so you could slowly work your way through lots of new posts. Unfortunately GR either marks all threads in a topic read once you open the topic, or lets you mark them all unread before you leave the topic.

So, how do folks work their way through posts? Do you write down the number of the last post you've read? Or do you not worry about it?

[Ann]

Carol: I could use some tips too! Those groups with a huge following are a challenge to my orderly mind that clamors to me "read them all" before you go further.
I also like a concise list of unread posts to refer back to that I could read in one sitting. The size of this group is just anout perfect and almost always makes that possible.
I have done a couple of things that sort of work for me in those larger group cases. New notification policies have wreaked a little havoc with one of them.

I read a few posts under a thread to mark it read and then click the " follow this discussion " box at the end of a thread or two on a new group that look interesting.
That used to result in one email reminding me to check back. It seems lately that every new post gets an email so I have had to resort to turning off notifications for the really popular topics.

I employ the " newest " link at the top of a really long thread to take me to the end and just plunge in. It does crimp my commenting though as I hate to repeat. I just figure a lot of others haven't read them all either, so will comment if I have the urge.

Mainly I just use the "My Groups" area to pick one at random to visit and I then try to find shorter topics of interest. One huge group that is currently on my visit list is " The Year of reading Proust" Wow there are a lot of posts over there! Well organized though.

[BarryP]

I use the "mark all read" once I have read all the topics tat interest me. I'm amazed I did not give this one the ax.

[Ann]

Not so funny, but for AOL email addresses, GR is unable to get AOL to accept GR notifications lately so I can follow more topics, not get the notices, and have both advantages. The notices are on the GR site too.
Too many is still too many though sometimes.

I switched notices to a different email address i don't use much and I can delete them easier there. I'll try to link the GR Feedback topic about the status of AOL email as spam when I am on my PC.

[Melodie]

I belong to 3 other boards right now that I'm active in besides this one. One is a YA board that doesn't have quite as many active threads so it's easier to keep up with. The 2 cozy boards that I participate in are sometimes quite prolific. I mainly just stick with the threads that I'm interested in and mark the others as all read.

[Susie]

I participate in the same 2 cozy boards as Melodie does, and I do the same thing. When I first joined the boards, I picked the topics I liked and read about 20 of the most recent posts. Now I just try to keep up with those threads, and then mark the others read. Goes pretty fast that way!

[Amy]

What if we all wrote to goodreads and ask them if they can change it? Maybe
if enough people do, they will.

[Carol/Bonadie]

Amy wrote: "What if we all wrote to goodreads and ask them if they can change it? Maybe
if enough people do, they will."


We actually did this awhile ago, and I like to think that resulted in the "mark all read" feature, which is barely adequate but better than nothing. As I remember, there was some technical difficulty with creating a truly post-specific system of marking read. It might be worth poking them again, though.

[Shomeret]

I don't read very many threads on the large groups. I am only notified about the threads where I'm active.

[Donnajo]

I find I just mark email me when people comment on the threads that I want to keep up with. with this board I do come back and go though any unread threads every once in awhile to keep it cleared off. it's not as busy as it used to be in the old days. the only other board I check more into but again not on all threads only on certain ones is Novel ladies. but I belong to a bunch of other boards which I haven't checked on lately. I was getting emails on some of them but I went back and changed a few to no notification. at times I'll just go see what is happening on certain ones.