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March 2009 Survey Discussion

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mouser:
Thanks everyone that is filling it out -- I know it's a bother but it really will help us all figure out where we should focus our energies in the coming year.
At the end of the month we will post the results.

sgtevmckay:
You folks, just keep doing what you do.
Survey complete :D

mouser:
50+ surveys complete to far, and some great suggestions received -- can't wait to post some of the results  :up:

tranglos:
Mouser,

I've just filled out the survey - and typically for my slow-thinking self, I've come up with a couple of ideas I should have suggested only after I had submitted the survey. So here goes...

1. I'd like a section of the forum dedicated to programs that should be written (but life is too short and I can't write them all ;) ). I know about Coding Snacks, but I feel that section is meant for small requests that can reasonably be satisfied by one coder in a short span of time. What I have in mind here is a section dedicated to ideas that are either too complex or too vague for Coding Snacks; more of a brainstorming section to discuss software we'd like to see someday (preferably tomorrow!). I have a number of ideas like this, some relatively simple, others not so. Some of them I've tried and abandoned; others I wouldn't even know where to start. Still others are merely improvements to existing software. This could be nothing but a pie-in-the-sky, "Dream software" forum - but then again it could be a worthwhile repository of ideas for coders looking for inspiration.

2. Somewhat related to the above, perhaps a subsection of that, would be a place to post / discuss specific improvement ideass for specific pieces of software that's popular on DC - say, Total Commander, DOpus, UltraEdit, EditPad Pro, etc., there are of course many other DC favorites. Such threads often occur spontaneously, but there could be a place dedicated to them, where the makers of those applications could look, should they be interested, and respond. The section could be organized by software title or by domain (file managers, editors, etc). Perhaps this would be enforcing too much formality into a live, evolving forum, but I know I'd read a section like this all the time.

As an example: I know UltraEdit is very popular with many DC posters, and there are good reasons for that. Meanwhile, I find so much wrong with it, it's not even funny. If I wrote a review, it would be scathing negativity :) So I won't write a review - but I would use a section like the one I've just described to vent, constructively. Again, this could be useful to the developers of the titles in question, but also to all developers really, as a handy reference to what users like or dislike in popular software.

3. I mentioned in the survey that one of the major, major strong points here are the software reviews (and the discussions that follow). DC reviews are extremely informative, but what's even more important, they are reliable, because they are not sponsored in any way, and are written by those who actively use the software, rather than by paid reviewers afer 15 minutes of checking out a new package. There's plenty of other good stuff here, but I would love DC as much as I do if there were nothing here except for the reviews. So how about expanding this to hardware? Anything computer-related might still be within the scope of the site. Of course I'd love it to go even firther, into popular consumer electronics, though that might be stretching the DC concept - you be the judge. I just want to stress how important the reviews are to me, and that it might be worthwhile to expand on that virtue.

Besides that, DC is of course perfection incarnate!  :-*

ed: grammar :)

mouser:
quick reply first:

I find so much wrong with it, it's not even funny. If I wrote a review, it would be scathing negativity smiley So I won't write a review
--- End quote ---
hey that seems like a good reason to write a review to me -- go for it!  i've come to believe that no one application is best for everyone and i think it's always helpful to hear different views -- a negative review can tell you a lot.

more thoughtful reply to the rest in a bit.. great comments and food for thought.. i don't think it's revealing too much to say that revitalizing the review section is a major aim this year..

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