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"New and Improved!" - Recent Changes to ActiveRain

Several improvements were rolled out in the ActiveRain platform last night (actually, early this morning).

They include:

New Search program - Can I get a huge collective "AMEN!" from the group? You'll now find a customized Google search that provides much more accurate results, and allows you to break down the search filter by Members, Blog Entries, Groups, and 'Q&A' Questions. Just enter your search term, and the filter categories will show up. Unfortunately, it does not support searching "Members Only" posts.
Disabled Commenting- A number of our members have wanted the ability to disable the commenting feature on their blogs. Now, at the bottom of the page to 'post/edit' a blog post, there is a checkbox that will allow you to disable the ability for people to leave comments on that particular post. Personally, I think that this negates the whole intent behind conversational blogging. But hey, what do I know! We're here to serve the expressed desires of our membership!
No Listings in the Professional Category- a constant problem we've had is members publishing their listings to the 'Professional' category. Many people felt this was inappropriate. Now when you publish a listing, and click the category that specifies it as a listing, it will automatically disable the checkboxes under the 'For Professionals' category.

These improvements were the direct result of YOUR input, the valued members of OUR community. By working together, we will help this Network reach its full potential to effect positive change in our industry!

Rich (newbie ActiveRain demi-god)

Posted by ActiveRain Real Estate Network on 01/18/2008 01:35 PM

Comments (100)

activerain, system updates

100 Comments on "New and Improved!" - Recent Changes to ActiveRain

JAN

2008

Hey Rich - It's good to hear about the new "Search" feature, although I also don't get the purpose of #2 myself. As for #3, it sounds as though there were some ardent complainers who caused that one to occur. It doesn't matter to me a whole lot, but it seems like we should be able to market our listings to other professionals here. I do have a question - is there still a plan to have the "Share" folder, which was to replace the old 1-5 rating system?

Thanks for the update, Rich! I noticed those changes this morning and just thought I wasn't observant about them in the past, but I guess I just noticed them because the change was just made.

The search improvements are over due thanks, eliminating the comments is fine if people don't want to hear what we think about what they say it's fine with me, and finally correcting the listings to the correct area should be an improvement. Thanks for keeping us informed and some of us need more help than others I know I do thanks again.

I like change #1

Rich - love the improvements and I'm with Jason on #2 but to each his own, I suppose. I'm guilty of publishing my listings for professionals to see (even though I don't have many) but I can definitely see how this can be overused.

Thanks for the update. I can't imagine why someone would want to check #2. Isn't the whole point to start a conversation with others? Thanks for continuing to make improvements to this great community.

I noticed the change to the search engine this morning. I am not that familiar with the site yet as I just joined Monday, but I like having the radio buttons in the search section to search for members, blog entries, or groups individually. I guess the change just opens up the realm a bit which isn't a bad thing. Did they add a "listings" folder somewhere? I didn't notice...

Thanks for the heads up concerning changes to ActiveRain. Sometimes in the past changes slipped by without my immediate notice. It's good to be current.

A very LOUD AMEN for the search program! Thanks for all the hard work!

www.stagingwebsites.com

Rich, Thank you! You folks are FANTASTIC!

I only want Rich to comment on my posts. How do I set that up? And I want all commenters to call me Mr Tutas. And I want a 24oz ribeye mr with a bake potato. And a cookie. And a piece of pie.

Oops!!! Almost forgot....how do I become a demi god? And If I do do I get to do Demi Moore?

I also don't get the "no comments" feature. The others are great. But, if you aren't sure enough of your position to defend it, why post it?

LOL at Mr. Tutas!

Rich, keep this work up and you'll attain full-god status in no time. Some might even say you're already there.

I'll be back as soon as I stop LMAO at Blog Boy and the term "Demi-God" :)

TLW...ROAR!

Rich - I am sure you will get a lot of amens and halleua's for this one

Improvements are always welcome.

Thanks

Amen, Amen and Amen! I just used the new search program, and it's such an improvement! Thanks to all of you for your continued attention to improvement.

Mike in Tucson

Hi Rich,

Thanks for letting us know about these updates....they sound like something that will benefit the community as a whole (except for the disallowing comments one...whoever wants that must have an idea why it would be advantageous to them).

Keep up the great work!

I got to use the new search this morning, while researching "CAP RATES". It worked very well! #2 - Also stumped why one would use this - but oh well, and #3 - I'm fine either way.

THANKS for all the work to make ActiveRain better and better!

Hi Rich......sounds good to me. I do see the benefit of the search. I think it's great that you listen to and work around those that share their concerns.

Hey Rich.... aka, baby god.... lol And not baby as in cry baby... maybe I should have said, "little god".... ;o)

In any case, I soooo love the search feature now. I didn't understand it earlier today, when I first clicked on it before reading this.... but it looks good. The only thing that I will miss is seeing the members profile picture when you do a blog search. The same goes for when you do a members search.... you won't see their profile pic, which makes it easier sometimes when searching for their blogs..... other than that, love the search and the "listing issue". Just one problem, I am still seeing a few. I guess the member can game the system if they just list it under professional and not for the public. Yes, that would make no sense...because you would want it for the public... but I have seen a few.... thanks again.,..

Thanks! I don't understand #2 myself...

woohoo! you guys are my hero's.

Nice Work Rich - The custom Google search is SWEET. I like the ability to negate comments too. I can see it as appropriate from time to time. Keep up the good work.

Rich, keep 'em coming. Every improvement adds in a valuable way to Active Rain. Instead of disabling commenting, can we add a feature that requires a comment from everyone who reads or else they suffer the consequences of their computer locking up. Also, a comment auto-responder for when we get busy to reply to the comments on our own posts would come in quite handy.

....I put down 'demi-god' because I haven't been through the formal initiation rites just yet. Bob tells me that there's this 'Gauntlet' of Fire thing that I have to pass through, and then Jonathan has to hit me with a paddle while I yell, "Thank You, Sir, can I have another?"....then, supposedly, I can be promoted.

Cool Beans!! I use the search option often and it was a little frustrating and now is way cool - but "no google I don't mean joe soss!!" lol!! I think those that want feature #2 don't want to "debate" or don't like to see other different ideas - sad. As for the fliers - good move. Too many blogs to scroll thru and if you wrote a good one and are in between 7 or 8 fliers you might get missed.

Bryant - Sorry, but Blogging Bertha already has me under contract for the rest of the year, with an option for the following year as well. You did say, Key Lime with your steak, right? Nice talkin' to ya. Way overdue!

Oh...

I forgot...

Don't give anyone that number. That's my "Private" line :)

I am off to go block Blogging Bertha. She has a mouth on her :)

TLW...ROAR!

Good stuff.

Number two works for listings that go to Localism, as some comments can be a little distracting to the public who is looking at the listing.

The search is great. I used it this morning.

Listings out of professional is great, too.

Rich -- we members are the Gauntlet of Fire

Elaine - no kidding! And I thought being a volunteer Moderator was tough! Now it's like Moderating on 'Steroids!'

If comments can be disabled, then we need a "pontificate" button. If a member is posting but not permitting comments and he/she is deemed to be pontificating, we should be able to highlight a "Pontificate" button.

Never really saw the need to disable comments. My blog has a "Bleep" button.

Good work guys.

Thank you Rich May we have another? Good job on the new additions although we don't understand #2 either. Demi-God? Ha ha......

Lenn - 'Pontificate' button. Hmmm....would that go right next to the 'Hot Air' button? Or maybe over by the 'Swelled Head' button?....the console is starting to get REALLY crowded!

I feel ActiveRain will only get better

These are great improvements! thanks. I am with you, why not have comments on a post?

These continuous improvements are what is making Active Rain the place to be.

Yea! A new and improved search. That's great news I'll have to try it out right now. Thanks!

Good updates and changes. Thanks!

___Off to play with the new search feature___

AMEN and Thank You on the Search, but now may we ask for one more improvement?

Give us a way to sort through the results such as Date Posted.

And if you could put some sort of a limiter such as the Search results should only be if in the Title and not in the body of the blog or article.

In other words, if I put in a search item such as "comments" and I only want the result to be from that word being in the Title and not the body, that is not what we get now.

As great as you guys are at responding to all our requests, it must sometimes seem as if we are not satisfied, but if we are satisfied.....you get AND keep more members, so again, thank you and hopefully this doesn't get buried.

I'll say AMEN to #1... as long as you guys know what you're doing...fine with me! WE need a 'drive in window' for Bryant!!! Thanks, Fran

Ugrades based on user comments are always a go thing in my book nice to have people at the helm willing to listen.

Rich,

I agree with Don Davies request. Is there a way that we could sort by date? Like on Google, most relevant or by date. I am going to try searching demigod and see what the results are.

Update...this blog did not show up! But I do like the new search, it's pretty neat!!!

I ditto Gran and Gary...expecially number #1. Thanks for listening!

You guys do a great job. Keep it up and thanks for listening to your members.

THANKS and AMEN, Rich. Change is good most times and now I'm

"SINGING IN THE RAIN"!!!!

Have a great one.

Good work, Rich, and definitely an AMEN!

I also don't know why someone would want to disable comments in a forum like this. I'll vote for Lenn's Pontificate button as an automatic accompaniment. I suppose if someone really wanted to comment on a no-comments-allowed post, they could just write a new post of their own to that poster, or addressing that topic.

I agree, listings should be in a listings section, not something everyone has to scroll through.

Since I don't get through all the comments in a section or group every day, I'd like to see either a checkbox for read/unread, or a different color on the blog typeface if we're read it (like links that have been clicked) Ideally, we could check that we want to read unread postings in that group. We miss some great posts by not having that, unless someone picks them up on a weekly summary.

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!!! THE BEST KEEPS GETTING BETTER

Thank you for listening, the search feature will be great and no I can't imagine why someone would disable comments but oh well, now they can.

You have my Amen. Thanks for the improvements, I use the search box a lot.

demi-god...Rich your New Signature totally cracked me up. Please let us know when you get the promotion. You know we'll all be thinking about what you said the process was like in this blog. :)

Rich, er "demi-god?" - I would have thought being a Moderator all that time would have served as far more than that 'gauntlet of fire", no?

Good changes for sure. Like Jeff mentioned, I miss seeing the profile pics showing up when you do a search for blogs, etc. Many times that helps you recall whose post it was, at least it does for me. And being able to sort posts by date would be a great thing to have. I agree with Lenn - just use that 'bleep' button we already have....

And while I'm still in commenting mode, for the next batch of changes, can we please be able to sort our bookmarks? I'd love to be able to sort them by category, date, etc. Anything would be better than what's there now, which is whenever the last comment was, which really isn't helpful at all.

Thanks for these changes!
Ann

2 questions. In the search, will it only search Active Rain, or at least start there first? When I search here, I'm looking to see if someone is actually "here"! Secondly, if listings don't go into the professionals section, does that mean that post won't show up for everyone to see? I want to see EVERYTHING that's posted.

Great improvement to the Search Engine program... thanks ever so. I don't understand the "disabled" other than it may be a listing or a post to localism and some buddy comes over and cracks a joke or makes a crass statement... well, maybe I figured it out on my own. LOL! #3 makes sense... thanks for all the improvements.

Rich--Just as I was starting to type I noticed Jan's comment and realized that a "ditto" was in order. Thanks for the update!

Sounds like some good changes, especially to the search feature. You guys are the best!

Thanks for the information. But, how did you find this information out?

Very good. I am glad you are allowing us to remove the commenting feature if we choose.

Thanks to the AR Team for their continuous efforts to improve the platform! What really makes this work is how you listen to the community.

Thanks for the update. Number 1 is definitely the best! I do post listings, but not in the professional category anyway. That really never bothered me much. Keep up the good work.

AMEN!!! Huge amen, the changes you make are wonderful and all of us value you guys and the site you have created. Thank you

Awesome! Thanks for the update. I don't understand why you would want to turn off comments either, but to each their own.

The changes you implemented were good. Like others have stated above I see no reason behind disabling the comment feature (those who choose to use it are missing out).

Personally, I would like to more focus on those AR members who are posting tons and tons of photographs to Localism.com just to raise their point score. Please consider a limit to how many point a member can get per month. Take a look at Virginia for example.

Are the photographs any good? Would they be of interest to consumers? If so, who cares how many points they get?

I wish people would get over the stupid points stuff. ANONYMOUS. Why not post who you are???!

I applaud the newbie god and all of the improvements. I think Active Rain is very responsive -- I agree with several re: #2. One can simply delete any inappropriate comment.

Ok, well I'll add my two cents as well... I can somewhat see the benefit of #2 & #2... kinda/sorta, but I love the new search feature. Much better than the old search. Jesse

Love the search improvement; don't understand the disable comments feature (what ever happened to free speech?), think the listings thing is a problem. Why would professionals not want to see listings from other members? Is someone forcing them to click on the blog to check them out?

Well, how nice. Now, all you need is a tele button for a direct hit to you to "feature." That would certainly cut down on the phone calls to you!

For the life of me, I can't imagine why anyone would not want comments...must be asleep on this one!

Thanks for keeping this updated and easy to maneuver.

Interesting that comments can be disabled by the author...
you mean they can just put out anything in a post and not
hear from someone that it might be wrong or (watch out now) stupid?

I wonder who the people who were so scared to have open
disscussions in comments ...

I like the new search function.... and not having listings in the
professional area was a good call also....

That comments thing tho..... interesting....... and you said
the membership asked for this? How many of us asked for
it and as a percentage of the membership, how big was that?

(I personally did not ever think of it...we already have a delete button)

hmmmm..........

Thanks for responding to our suggestions. You are simply the best.

Thanks for the update, I used the new search program, and it's such an great improvement!

JAN

2008

Thanks guys. You are always providing more and more good stuff.

I couldn't find someone by profile today. Is there a new way to do that? I was looking for Ines and couldn't remember her last name. Luckily her first name is unusual and I found her. People rarely put their name into a blog post, so searching by profiles is invaluable to me.

Rich, I will say AMEN.. ha ha.. I like the new feature sounds this will prevent a lot of people from complaining. Oh wait they will anyway.

The additional of Google search is very helpful!

Modifications to the search are indeed improved. Thanks for taking this action and making the changes.

Hi Rich,

Thanks for keeping us up to date on what's new around here. These are excellent improvements to the system.

Rich. Thanks for the updates on what's going here at Active Rain. Have a great day..

Alexander - obviously there must have been enough member requests and interest to warrant the 'no comment' feature. We don't make just any ole change that comes along, but only if enough members request it. As I said, personally, I don't get it, but that's just me. To each their own!

Rich,

I am sure there were a BUNCH of people who wanted the "No comments" option....... but like you, I fail to understand why... I guess just to give the members what ActiveRain© thinks is good for them is the best thing to do..... even if the reason is not readily understood......

Great customer service is a wonderful thing, Rich...keep it up, buddy!!
It will keep the network growing consistently....

Good job Rich! I like ALL the fixes.

Okay...

I agree with Ann Cummings...

Fire 'is' Fire after all :)

TLW...ROAR!

I saw that disable comments thing and was like....why in the world would I want to do that....but hey, to each his own. Thanks for all the great updates!

GREAT changes! This is great news--I already noticed early this morning, that the option to not allow comments was there and I thought that maybe I had just never noticed it before!!

Nice improvements Rich, although I too don't understand why you'd want to disable commenting. Thanks for pointing out the goodies.

JAN

2008

AMEN! Very very good! Thank you! Happy NEW Year!

JAN

2008

I don't know why you made 2 of the changes, but It doesn't matter, you guys just keep improving the system, and we will all benefit from it.

JAN

2008

Rich - Yeah!!! I'm so excited about the new "search". That is definitely a majot plus in my book! #2 seems silly to me, but must be important to others . . .so good for them! #3 - I never thought too much about.

Have a great week!

JAN

2008

That is the one thing that sets AR apart from the other link farms "real estate social networking sites", the constant upgrades and improvements. -Charles

JAN

2008

Thanks for the upgrades. It is always good to see new improvements to Active Rain.

The upgrades are great! The search engine is exciting.

FEB

2008

Rich - I am so glad the search came back. Thanks for a heads up on the upgrades.

FEB

2008

Hey guys, thanks, is good to use the Contact Us button because the feedback is incredible.

FEB

2008

Activerain

Thank you very much.

Sincerely

Tom Braatz

I love the changes too. Thanks Cassie

FEB

2008

Thanks for keeping us up to date.

APR

'Just stumbled upon this. Rich, we miss your wonderful "official" AR posts. No one does them like you!

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