im new here and this format is a pain!

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Intuitive it is not. Speedy neither. But the content is there if you follow Ken’s directions and have patience.

It is what it is.

The previous software had its limitations too. This WordPress forum software has been running for a short time and we’ll see how much the ownership can improve it.

That being said, the strength of BPL lies in its conversations of the members and some of the articles.

Google Advanced Search will allow you to find whatever you need.

The forum software isn’t going to make or break BPL; the attitude and contributions of the members is what will determine its future. Compared to 2008, when I joined BPL, the forum has stiff competition for readership from other social media and blogs. I like BPL overall, but I think Internet Forums may becoming obsolete. Software platforms can’t fix this trend. If we want to see BPL succeed, all of us need to quit bitching and add value to it. Anthony, this isn’t directed at you, it’s a negative trend that has been accelerating the past few years.

Anthony-

As mentioned, the biggest thing to remember is that BPL just upgraded its website for the first time (ever?) so this is still in alpha. Sorry. The search function in particular seems to be the same poor legacy… thing… it was before.

So, yes, just click on the “My BPL” spot on the header bar. From there you can select Forums to get to your created threads and response posts- which are in different folders. Frankly, this is still kind of cumbersome.

ok, here is an example one of you guys can potentially help with. This morning I wanted to search for “Rainbow Tarptent” in the Gear swap section. I want to look for past tents sold, and possibly current ones to gauge price, conditions, etc… But I can’t seem to find how to isolate the Gear Swap forum when searching.

Any help would be great.

@Nick Gatel you have been missed here at BPL. Nice to have you back.

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Thanks, Kat.

I am now retired. Since my wife wants to continue working for a while, there is this expectation I will finish remodeling our house and I am making progress, however I am left alone every day without adult supervision :-)   which makes it difficult for me to focus, and that has facilitated my return to BPL.

There is no expectation from the boss that backpacking isn’t allowed during the construction phase. And, of course, she is up to camping on most weekends if I make progress on the house during the week. Another compromise is for me to cook during the week and do house chores. I had to learn how to cook, as I found she is not willing to eat a grilled steak every night and she does not appreciate my freezer bag concoctions. I also learned that food at the grocery store is expensive and there are a lot of things that can be purchased aside from backpacking foods in the instant food and candy aisles. Going to the grocery store is like exploring a new slot canyon in the desert. I was shocked to find that most days avocados and cucumbers cost 99 cents each! Unlike the Tyler Perry movie, I now know how much a gallon of milk costs. Using my industrial engineering experience in business I have reorganized the kitchen cabinet inventory to improve work flow efficiency and productivity. I will not implement a food inventory control system, I tried that with wife #1 and it did not turn out well.

Hopefully, as Ryan et al improve the new software to meet most people’s expectations, we will see an increasingly positive attitude among the membership.

Heck, I might even go to the next GGG if there is one. Might be interesting to hike or bike from So Cal.

Is there a way to flag posts on a thread you started? (For a moderator to check out.)

Thanks,

One problem here is the tendency for threads to get de-railed

Yeah, nice to hear from Nick who has been distracted lately

you can click on the little magnifying glass symbol at upper right (or left), type in “rainbow tarptent”, and it will list a bunch of hits.  Click on “forums” and it will give you just the forums (which includes gear swap).  There aren’t that many so you can easily find the gear swap ones.  Hmmm,,, doesn’t seem to be in order of date

You probably already know this : )

Add “swap” and get gear swap posts, add a date range and limit the results…..

Search is for relevance, not date.  Filtering ordered posts is what gear swappers want most of the time.  If gear swap returned the most recent 500000 posts and let users enter keywords into a text entry field and client side filterthe half million entries, while keeping them in order it would provide a lot of what gear traders need.   Recent posts at top, historical prices in order, wtb vs fs ratio, quick keyword changes to compare hexamid vs cricket etc.

Anthony-

On the old forum there was a way to flag a post, but you’re right I don’t see one now. It might be buried somewhere.

Most people just PM a moderator. Roger Caffin is sort of the designated Bad Guy for that.

Best wishes to all concerned with the impending site switch on or about the 15th.

Hope it goes smoothly.