Should there be an Apple section?

[aryayush]

Hello!

First, some statistics:
There are more than ten dedicated Mac users (some are even referred to as fanboys) on this forum and definitely a lot of iPod users. We even have a few iPhone users, even though it isn’t officially available in India yet. The Apple thread, which was started in May 2007, is the fastest growing thread around these parts and, with over 6,750 replies as of this writing, is the lengthiest one on the entire forum.

This thread has now become absolutely huge and it’s very difficult to harness the vast pool of Mac-related knowledge it contains. We need a way to categorise our discussions, the ability to search them properly and spotlight the more important posts. We need to have more of a presence on the forum so that the growing base of Mac users in India have a stronger representation on one of the premier technology forums of India. The launch of the iPhone is only months away and it would be great if the new users had a forum to post their problems into.

We need a new category for Apple related threads on this forum. There are just too many of these spread all over the forum—at least 918, as of this writing—and it would be very convenient to be able to have them all in one place. It would also be better for those others who do not want to have anything to do with Apple. Just like you can ignore the open source section if you don’t want anything to do with Linux and the gamers one if you’re not into it, you can choose not to visit the Apple section then and will hardly ever run into any Apple related threads.

Please vote in the poll above and let us know what you think. Administrators, or whoever decides matters like this one, we request you to make a new section for Apple fanboys like me. Please give it a thought!

Thank you!

[din]

First vote goes here

Which will make you happy

[aryayush]

Thank you, that was fast!

[hullap]

i dont have any problem with it being a section or not
sure, make one

[FilledVoid]

I agree . I don't see why not.

[Pathik]

+1

[nvidia]

Thats fine with me i guess..
But make sure you have a sticky related to iPhone just to make sure new iPhone threads dont pop up every now and then..

[The_Devil_Himself]

there should have been a fourth option:

4.I don't care at all,but if that makes you guys any happier,I am sure gonna vote against it.

Just to keep the poll neutral. .

[Garbage]

No problems with me at all... Go ahead, n make one...

[BBThumbHealer]

I vote in favour of arya .. ! there's no harm in creating a separate section for Apple Discussions !

[preshit.net]

A separate section would actually help in answering all the "OMG iPhone Indiyeah. When coming??????? OMGzzzzz .... ooh iPhone" queries that pop up every now and then

No, seriously though, there is a vast amount of information that lies in that thread. And there's even more with its contributors. Segregation is ideal and preferable

[Pat]

Who are the 2 people who voted "No! The last thing we need is MORE of this Apple nonsense." ?? :-P

[narangz]

New section would be great

[preshit.net]

@Pat:

It's an Open Poll. See for yourself

[slugger]

+1
a dedicated Steve Jobs section wud not b a bad ida

a revelation preshit votes for "I don’t care either way, but if it makes you guys happy, sure, go ahead."

[infra_red_dude]

+1. I vote for a YES

[Kl@w-24]

I don't care either way, but if it makes you happy, go ahead
Technically, that's a 'yes', right?

[nish_higher]

hell yeah
that would be great and few sticky threads for common questions related to iphone,ipod,imac,mac/macbook,mac os

[Pat]

Originally Posted by preshit.net

@Pat:

It's an Open Poll. See for yourself

Oops..My bad..Dint realise that

[kumarmohit]

I am all for it if it makes forum, better organized.

[dinesh72]

Improvise - any time
+1

[Kenshin]

+1
Yeah there should be an apple section, that would make things better organised

[ico]

Well, anyways why to create a Public Poll?? Do you want to know the names of Apple haters??...

But if it makes the forum better & more organised, then its okay.

But sometimes, what do I feel is that the Official Apple thread also contains some offtopic Chat and it is in QnA........whereas the BSNL thread which is on-topic most of the time, is in Chit Chat........No offense to anyone BTW......

[chesss]

No. Apple is toooo expensive in India

[Charan]

+1 .. a dedicated section for apple related products will be excellent move.

@Mods: can you create the new section or is it done by the admins

[mehulved]

It can only be done by admins. And this has been suggested couple of times earlier too but seemingly admins don't think that it's worth it. But, looking at the amount of apple queries, though insignificant compared to ones for windows and windows based products, surely there should be a separate section.

If mods could create sections then goobimama would create one for apple and one for alcohol
/me runs

[Vishal Gupta]

Another vote goes to "YES". Since there are many mac users in the forum, it'll be a good idea to create a separate section for it.

[Sourabh]

I would be voting No after this reply.

My reasons: Apple is an integral part of everything related to consumer technology, computing, software and even the smartphone segment now (which will help the company to become more mainstream soon, especially in India). Considering the volume of discussions and threads which we have on a daily basis (and their nature), I am inclined to think the current sections suit to a tee. The existing ThinkDigit forum layout is based on categories, so we have discussions based on categories (a PMP thread allows discussion of all PMPs be it an iPod or any other brand). So, all the discussions and views are welcome.

If there was a section dedicated to Apple, all the posts related to Apple news, rumors, discussions, troubleshooting and likes would go directly in the Apple section. It goes without saying that this would damper all-round growth of the general category wise layout. The most important thing to take into consideration is that requesting an Apple category is not the same as asking for a "Gamerz" section. Reason being the latter doesn't disrupt or disorganize the flow of views. Topics which go in Gamerz have nothing to do with any other section but the same cannot be said for an "Apple" section (if we have that somewhere down the line).

I have my own reservations from a moderator's point of view too. Anything slightly Apple related would be asked for a push to Apple section be it - should I buy a MacBook or a PC laptop, should I buy a iPhone or an HTC touch, so on and so forth. This is why a category wise layout is good. And past experience of moderation alone reminds us the horrors of keeping a check on the long Apple thread and requests like - 'Zomg, can't you just leave this thread alone, is a single thread for Mac users too much to ask?!' and all those things on an open, free-to-use forum. There's no way I can be sure if it would repeat but it's highly likely that the number of instances where members get carried away can escalate.

There's nothing to feel bad about 'not having an Apple section on this awesome forum'. There was no Gamerz for what seemed like an eternity (imagine where all those HL2/DOOM3/FarCry discussions used to go). We already have a good thread going related to Apple in general. Rest of the discussions can be continued in individual category based sections. It would help if the off-topic discussions are kept in check so that there's more useful discussion (and not a chatroom) which more users would be interested in.

If there was any doubt, here's the dealio: these things (grant of new sections) are entirely on the discretion of admins/Team Digit. I would like to use this thread to request for a 'Personal Technology' and "Laptops" or 'Mobile Computing' section instead. The former to keep some personal tech discussions like wallpapers, Bloggers Corner, Share your websites, etc (which sometimes gets deleted due to the pruning which is enabled in ChitChat). Mobile Computing, obviously, for tons of laptops which people tend to buy these days, netbooks, UMPCs and all those crazy stuff people use to surf the internet on the move.

Sorry for the long reply, never intended to make it so long. Just went ahead and clarified on some of my views in more detail.

[aryayush]

I see your point but what you aren’t taking into consideration are the Mac related discussions, which will form the crux of the new section. There is simply no place on this forum for Mac users right now. Macs are different from other computers—the hardware is different (and I’m not talking about the technical aspects here, which no one cares about) and the software is definitely so. You just cannot create a new thread asking how to secure empty the Trash and hope some Mac user takes notice. And the thread for all things Apple is getting a bit too unwieldy now.

I’ve been on this forum for several years now and never entertained the idea of a section dedicated to Apple stuff. When others raised the issue, I was the first one to vote against the idea. I think, back then, it didn’t make sense to make a new section for a few people, a tiny percentage of the total number of members on this forum. However, the scenario is different now. Apple has become a lot more successful and the number of Mac users has increased. More importantly, the awareness has increased and Macs, iPods and iPhones are frequent points of discussions these days.

The Mac and the iPhone are platforms which are different from all the other platforms we have discussions on on this forum. Why do we have an open source section? To segregate Linux users into their own area, because the Windows discussions are not very useful to them. Open source was clearly taking off and it merited a section of its own, so that open source users didn’t go scurrying around trying to find their topics of interest all over the forum.

Same goes for us, Mac users. It’s very difficult to find out the new Mac related discussions being started almost every day here. Sure, the volume is a far cry from the amount of Windows related threads, but it’s a significant number. And it would definitely increase if users had a proper place to put them into. Typically, a Mac user’s doubts can only properly be solved by other Mac users and we don’t want PC users to be barging in and flaming the Mac when we post about our problems and issues, as happens every so often around these parts. I’m sure it would come to a stop if we had a separate section. Just like I never visit the open source or gamers section because I’m least interested in what happens there, I’m hoping the Apple haters will avoid the Apple section if they have nothing of value to contribute.

Please take this seriously. Apple is completely different. It’s in a category of its own. None of the hardware or software in any of Apple’s products is the same as the rest of the industry’s. Apple customers also typically tend to stick to Apple whenever they make any new purchases and like to listen to purchase advice from other Apple customers only. When we purchase new accessories, for example, we want the Mac users to weigh in with their opinions about its compatibility and stuff. If a PC user comes in, even with an intention to help, his input is of hardly any value to the Mac user if the device in question happens to be incompatible with Macs, for instance.

We need an Apple section. There’s no doubt about it. The Apple related discussions are spread all over the place right now and you frequently hear people complain “not again” and “this is not in the right section” in them. I would like to see all that put to a stop once and for all. Even the forum members are with us, as you can see from the poll. I request the moderators to please bring this to the attention of the administrator(s) and at least ask them to enlighten us with a reply.

Thanks to everyone who’s voted in the poll!

Originally Posted by mehulved

If mods could create sections then goobimama would create one for apple and one for alcohol
/me runs

LOL! That’s a good one.

[MetalheadGautham]

it would be fine, but I think there are tooo little apple users in this forum to add significance to the section. so I chose the second option.

As far as I can see it, the apple thread is doing fine, so stickying it and perhaps moving it to chit-chat would do the trick.