When the forums went down there was no word about it on the USMS main page. They are back and they are similarly not announced. Since you can't go to the forums to find why they are down when they are down, I request USMS post that on the homepage and also post when they are up and running.
I'm on 2 USMS national committees, and we use the forums for the committees, so perhaps that email was directed to me in that capacity? It didn't say anything about committees, so I thought everyone got it.
Wow. I only got one reply when I repeatedly asked what was up and it was a canned answer that referred to me twice as "Jack" even though my name was clearly on the initial email I sent.
I must not have enough street cred to be "in the know."
Hey Jack,
The forums are up and operating again, but names of users have been anonymized in order to confuse the COVID-19 virus. If you are healthy, it must be working.
Thank you, I look forward to the new system. i agree forum usage is low, but it wasn't always this low. What was the usage when the link was at the top of the homescreen?
Thank you, I look forward to the new system. i agree forum usage is low, but it wasn't always this low. What was the usage when the link was at the top of the homescreen?
Good question. If our membership was more aware of the discussion forums and its benefits, perhaps there would be greater usage.
P.S. Please keep the "Smilies" on the new platform! :bliss: :ohyeah::cheerleader::wiggle:
Sorry about the forums outage last week and any impact it had your ability to communicate with others that take part in the USMS forums. The email shared by aztimm in this thread provides the background. That email was shared with USMS national committee volunteers because they make up the majority of forums usage.
As I have noted previously in communications from the national office, forums usage beyond USMS Committees is in the hundreds, less than 1% of USMS total membership. Given the usage, an email to the full membership or a posting on the USMS homepage wouldn't have been information that wasn't relevant to most members or to those that visit the site that aren't members.
Unfortunately due to the outdated technology of the current forums, we don't have a great way to pull contact info for those of you that aren't active users into our email communication systems. And posting on the forums isn't a great way to let folks know they are back up and running because if they are seeing the post - they are already in.
That said, we are mere months away from transitioning the forums to a new platform - the USMS online community, fully integrated with our membership and email systems with single sign on login, using the same email and password that is used to login to My USMS. There will be significantly improved and modernized functionality with new features that will be promoted more broadly once tested and launched. This upgrade will be substantial and will also ensure we don't see the type of outage or the length if one does occur in the future.
I appreciate your patience. The timing of the outage was challenging given the myriad of issues we are working through to support our members, coaches, clubs and events during the COVID-19 crisis.
Stay tuned for more on the new USMS online community.
Thanks for your continued membership and input.
WOW! The "format" I tried a few days ago was a real challenge to navigate. I'm glad it's back to something I can easily use.
As a Stay at home" survivor, I rely on this as way to see the positive future for us.
