Coming Events - YOUR Help Needed!

[Bill Edwards]

Dear All

 

I have been compiling and publishing the Coming Events in it's current format for about 6 months now.

 

I would appreciate your feedback.

 

Do you use it? Is the current format usable? Useful? Could it be improved? Is it easily accessible? 

 

Maintaining it in it's current guise is a lot of work, which I am happy to continue with, but it would be nice to know that it is being used and is useful

 

Regards

 

Bill

 

 

[Martin Ambrose]

Bill you are doing a great job with the coming events list .

I personally appreciate all that effort you are doing.

I use the it most days.

Thank you again Bill

Regards

Martin

[Roger Peatman]

Without a doubt, it's an invaluable asset to the Forum and well worth the effort you put into it Bill.

I often browse it just as a matter of interest, as well as for specific reference.

[Paul McHaddan]

16 minutes ago, Roger Peatman said:

Without a doubt, it's an invaluable asset to the Forum and well worth the effort you put into it Bill.

I often browse it just as a matter of interest, as well as for specific reference.

Well i browse most of the forum most days & Bill does a fantastict job..Thank you Bill 

 

But its not just Bill who puts the effort into the forum its all the Moderators & Panel members!!

 

But most of all its the Members that count thank you!

[Graham Vaughan]

4 hours ago, Martin Ambrose said:

Bill you are doing a great job with the coming events list .

I personally appreciate all that effort you are doing.

I use the it most days.

Thank you again Bill

These words are exactly the ones I would have used. Many thanks Bill.

[Martin]

I use it a lot, in particular to prepare weekend trips. Thanks for your hard work Bill.

[Bill Edwards]

Whilst I don't compile the Coming Events for praise or feedback, I do need to know that it is used and that the considerable effort I put in is of use to members.

 

I currently spend about 4 hours a week on Coming Events, putting in at least 30 minutes a day (and have listed over 1000 events) - given that it appears to be of use to just five members, it would appear to be a waste of time  

[Roger Peatman]

 

30 minutes ago, Bill Edwards said:

given that it appears to be of use to just five members, it would appear to be a waste of time  

I'm sure you don't really believe that Bill, as I am equally sure that that's not the case, but I can fully understand your frustrations at the lack of response from members when asking for input/opinion on the subject.

I assume the Forum software, or any other, can't tell you how many hits the coming events receives as it's no longer in house, but I bet it's used by many members a lot of  the time.

Ultimately, it's your call whether or not to continue with - I ,for one, certainly hope you do !!

[Bill Edwards]

3 minutes ago, Roger Peatman said:

 

I'm sure you don't really believe that Bill, as I am equally sure that that's not the case, but I can fully understand your frustrations at the lack of response from members when asking for input/opinion on the subject.

I assume the Forum software, or any other, can't tell you how many hits the coming events receives as it's no longer in house, but I bet it's used by many members a lot of  the time.

Ultimately, it's your call whether or not to continue with - I ,for one, certainly hope you do !!

I can't tell what the hit rate is on the file, because, as you say, it's housed off forum. What I do know is that every method we have tried has been largely unsupported and this method appears the same. For instance there are numerous examples of the first I know of an event is a photo set or funfair report, suggesting that some members have info they don't share. It is a big commitment - I work full time, have a life and a family, yet must put aside at least 30 minutes a day to update the file - it is getting tedious and I'd be lying if I said I hadn't thought of ditching it. I had hoped that it would of been use to more than five members!

[Owain Williams]

5 people replying to this topic does not mean that only 5 people uses, or sees the value in, the coming events section. There are contributors to the coming events who have not replied here, including me until now. The coming events is the section I use more than any other section on this site. I know of people who do not contribute to this site but they regulary read the coming events section.

 

I spend most evenings trying to work out potential trips and I regulary speak with other enthusiasts about road trips all based on this section. I've visited around 70 fairs this year and around half of those are new grounds based on information from the coming events section, with many planned for the next couple of months. I know how frustrating it is when you feel it's all for nothing as I used to co-run a Facebook page dedicated to up-coming fairs in South Wales, and the research and posting and the constant questioning was hard work, especially when you miss a fair and wonder why no-one had told me about it!. The way the coming events is laid out now is better than anything thats been done before (and I mean no disrespect to the way it was done, or the people involved, previously) and I find it to be the most important tool on this site.

 

I will continue to contribute and I will continue to use the coming events section but don't think that because not many people are shouting about it, that they do not use it. Keep up the good work Bill and to everyone who has contributed to this extremely important part of this forum

[Colinrhooper]

On 5/14/2017 at 18:47, Bill Edwards said:

Dear All

 

I have been compiling and publishing the Coming Events in it's current format for about 6 months now.

 

I would appreciate your feedback.

 

Do you use it? Is the current format usable? Useful? Could it be improved? Is it easily accessible? 

 

Maintaining it in it's current guise is a lot of work, which I am happy to continue with, but it would be nice to know that it is being used and is useful

 

Regards

 

Bill

 

 

I think your doing a great job keep it up please

[Steve Barton]

I use it a lot Bill I'd be lost without it. Thanks for all the hard work you put in.

[Paul Coulson]

I use both coming events and the poster section myself and find them very useful and find them easy navigate could do with more info in my opinion but that is just down to the information supplied to your self from other parties I presume keep up the good work. Bill

 

[Ian Cant]

As others have said, brilliant resource and I would be lost without it. Thank you.

 

I'm sure there are more people utilising it than you think. I for one rarely dip into this forum so others may nearly miss this like myself.

[Trojanhorse11]

I use the coming events posters and fixed date forum. Very useful resource.

[Bill Edwards]

I will continue to produce the Coming Events, for the time being, but unless I feel that it is being supported adequately, I will not hesitate to pull the plug.

 

I have family issues that are taking up a lot of my time at the moment and are, occasionally taking me away from my computer for days on end. This evening is the first time all WEEK that I have had the time to update the Coming Events, and it's taken all evening. Out of necessity, the following change will be implemented immediately:-

 

I will add the details I have. I have a database of previous events and where available I will add full details. If the full details aren't in the info I receive or the database, the info will be added "as is" - at the moment I don't have the time to research Post Codes, Counties etc

 

What can YOU do?

 

• If you add an event, please add as many details as you can. I will accept ANY info for the files, but the more details, the better it is for other members. This is particularly so for posters which, being shown locally, are often missing such info as the County
• If you see details missing from an event and can add the details or have a spare five minutes to research it, please do so.
• If you know of an event, please let me know. There are still a lot of events where the first I know is a Funfair Report!
• If an event is listed without a Lessee, and you know who it is, please let me know

 

To reiterate - I longer have time to research events and am relying on YOU to help. If the help isn't available, the standard of the information will fall. Sorry to be blunt, but help me or lose it

 

Many thanks

 

Bill

 

[Chris Russell]

Hi Bill,

Just to let you know that all your efforts are extremely appreciated by myself and I'm sure most people who look at the forum. We can all be guilty at times of taking access to this forum for granted and it's content without fully realising the amount of work that goes into what we see. Although I don't travel to so many fairs these days I do indeed use Coming Events for many reasons and when i am able I do contribute with dates of local events.

Thanks again.

Chris.

[Ross A Jones]

Coming events is invaluable because there is no other method of finding fairs apart from the Worlds Fair which does not publish a comprehensive list and the only other method  would be to trawl through showmen web sites and Facebook pages which are not always updated.

I look at Coming Events on a daily basis .

[Rod Jesson]

As Ross has stated unless you have the Worlds Fair- which I don't- the list is invaluable Bill; I am sure everyone visiting this site appreciates your work and time, please keep the coming events list going.

[Colin Hester]

Well done Bill I use the events list most days would be lost without it keep up the good work

[Sue Alexander]

I use Coming Events, even if I don't look at anything else - so please don't stop doing it!! I am sure it is a lot of work but personally I think its one of the best things on the site! Well done - and thank you! We should all probably say that more!