Author Topic: To index or not to index?  (Read 5296 times)

Wilson Fowlie

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on: December 27, 2012, 07:38:26 PM
Are the Author and Reader indexes of use to people? I notice that they haven't been updated in a while, here or at EP. I don't fault the moderators for this, as they have plenty to do and lives of their own, and maintaining the indexes is something of a chore (a more and more daunting one as the backlog grows, too - I know how that is!).

Anyway, I was wondering if people felt they were of any use. If the consensus is that they are, I volunteer to maintain them (for both EP and PC) and take what little stress I can from the moderators on that front.

If people don't see a need for them, I would suggest that they be taken down, as an outdated index speaks of neglect and I don't think that's the impression EA wants to give.

"People commonly use the word 'procrastination' to describe what they do on the Internet. It seems to me too mild to describe what's happening as merely not-doing-work. We don't call it procrastination when someone gets drunk instead of working." - Paul Graham


danooli

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Reply #1 on: December 27, 2012, 07:44:35 PM
I've referenced both author and narrator indexes quite a few times myself.



Talia

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Reply #2 on: December 27, 2012, 08:26:33 PM
I'll update PodCastle's tonight after work.  I was doing it about once a month for a while, but then got behind, and more behind, and more behind, etc. :)
I don't mind doing it; it's just that in this case I wasn't sure the effort to catch up was worth it if no one was using it.




Wilson Fowlie

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Reply #3 on: December 27, 2012, 08:41:25 PM
I'll update PodCastle's tonight after work.  I was doing it about once a month for a while, but then got behind, and more behind, and more behind, etc. :)

Yeah, that's what I meant about the backlog.

I'm happy to help out any time.

"People commonly use the word 'procrastination' to describe what they do on the Internet. It seems to me too mild to describe what's happening as merely not-doing-work. We don't call it procrastination when someone gets drunk instead of working." - Paul Graham


Talia

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Reply #4 on: December 27, 2012, 08:58:01 PM
Oh yeah. Sorry for basically repeating what you said. It was, um, the aliens. faeries. Faeries got into my keyboard.  That's what I get for running out of Faespray.

 ::)



DKT

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Reply #5 on: December 27, 2012, 09:04:51 PM
FWIW, I reference them both regularly :)


Scattercat

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Reply #6 on: December 27, 2012, 09:20:54 PM
If we're being honest here, when I need such information, I usually just Google the story title and the relevant 'cast to find the splash page with the author/reader listed, so I guess I'm on the "don't use much at all" side.



Devoted135

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Reply #7 on: December 27, 2012, 09:34:40 PM
FWIW, I've used the indexes numerous times. :)



danooli

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Reply #8 on: December 27, 2012, 11:42:57 PM
If we're being honest here, when I need such information, I usually just Google the story title and the relevant 'cast to find the splash page with the author/reader listed, so I guess I'm on the "don't use much at all" side.
Oftentimes it's the author or narrator I can rememeber and not the title. I have an unreliable memory though.

And, many thanks to Talia for maintaining the indexes!
« Last Edit: December 27, 2012, 11:44:43 PM by danooli »



eytanz

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Reply #9 on: December 27, 2012, 11:48:13 PM
I've neglected the EP index more or less since I started moderating, mostly because I don't have time to maintain it. It's definitely one of those things where the longer you ignore it, the bigger the task becomes. I think that in the beginning Swamp kept maintaining them even after he passed the moderator baton to me, but it's been forever.

I've toyed with unstickying them several times, mostly because it's quite easy to search the EP blog for the information if you have either the author name or story name. But the indices do have the advantage of being easily browsable.

Wilson - if you're willing the update the EP index, either on an ongoing basis or as a one-off to help me catch up with the backlog, I'd be very grateful. If you want, create new threads for them and I can copy the contents of the old threads into them - that will let you edit them without any hassle. Just PM me to let me know.



Fenrix

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Reply #10 on: December 30, 2012, 05:39:05 PM
I use these and the PP one on wikipedia together probably a dozen times a year.

All cat stories start with this statement: “My mother, who was the first cat, told me this...”


Bdoomed

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Reply #11 on: December 31, 2012, 08:08:29 AM
I've been meaning to put together a PP index for quite some time now... never get around to finishing it tho... maybe one of these days... :P

I'd like to hear my options, so I could weigh them, what do you say?
Five pounds?  Six pounds? Seven pounds?


Fenrix

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Reply #12 on: December 31, 2012, 02:11:27 PM
I've been meaning to put together a PP index for quite some time now... never get around to finishing it tho... maybe one of these days... :P

No need. It's here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pseudopod_(podcast) and up to date. Thanks to those who keep it updated.

All cat stories start with this statement: “My mother, who was the first cat, told me this...”


Umbrageofsnow

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Reply #13 on: January 08, 2013, 12:16:20 AM
For what it's worth, I use the indices about 5 or 6 times a year.  I really appreciate them being around.  Thank you all for the hard work.