Re: Should we or should we not?

[Guest guest]

<<A Poll has been created as to whether or not we should close older Polls,

and we would encourage all our members to cast their vote. It is also

suggested that you post a reply to this message as to why you voted a

particular way. Your input is important to us. Sooooooooo.........get out

and vote >>

My vote is let the creator of the poll decide.

Clearly there are times when somebody wants a quick answer to a question and

can run a poll for a few weeks then close (and delete) it.

There should though, be no reason why some (most?) polls can't stay open all

the time if the creator of the poll is looking for long term results. New

people are arriving all the time and I'm sure some of the closed polls are

still relevant (the results can still be posted periodically to the group

without closing the poll)

If there is a long term poll that clearly is not getting any votes then I've

no objection to a moderator deleting it (preferably with a warning to the

group first in case somebody has a good reason for it to stay open)

long term polls also give people a chance to change their vote if their

circumstances changed (for example a poll charting the number of people who

are considering or have had a successful/unsuccessful ablation would look

very different today than the same poll 3 years ago)

--

D

[Guest guest]

It just plain ole annoys me to see a Poll created over a year ago,

and some two years ago, by a member, who maybe is among the missing,

sitting there month after month, with only three or four votes -

cluttering the Board. In my opinion, a cluttered *open* Board

discourages our members from making use of our Poll feature.

I do agree that the member who created the Poll should have control

over that particular Poll; however, I would think that a year is

more than enough time for members to create a Poll and collect his

or her votes - and, if necessary, start anew the same subject, and

possibly even improve upon its presentation.

Many of the recently closed Polls were created by absentee members.

There was a time I was emailing those members and advising them that

if I did not hear from them within a date certain, that I would be

closing the Poll. I never heard from any of them. I could only

guess that they were unsubscribed members who had no interest. Many

of the Polls created were nameless, and I had no way of contacting

them. I have to tell you...this was time consuming and a nuisance!

This is just my penny thought.........what are yours? Your input is

important........your vote is important. Please let us know how you

feel.

Ellen

69 in still rainy lovely NC

NSR on Dofetilide

*****************

A Poll has been created as to whether or not we should close older

Polls, and we would encourage all our members to cast their vote.

(snip)

> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AFIBsupport/polls

*******************

[Guest guest]

It just plain ole annoys me to see a Poll created over a year ago,

and some two years ago, by a member, who maybe is among the missing,

sitting there month after month, with only three or four votes -

cluttering the Board. In my opinion, a cluttered *open* Board

discourages our members from making use of our Poll feature.

I do agree that the member who created the Poll should have control

over that particular Poll; however, I would think that a year is

more than enough time for members to create a Poll and collect his

or her votes - and, if necessary, start anew the same subject, and

possibly even improve upon its presentation.

Many of the recently closed Polls were created by absentee members.

There was a time I was emailing those members and advising them that

if I did not hear from them within a date certain, that I would be

closing the Poll. I never heard from any of them. I could only

guess that they were unsubscribed members who had no interest. Many

of the Polls created were nameless, and I had no way of contacting

them. I have to tell you...this was time consuming and a nuisance!

This is just my penny thought.........what are yours? Your input is

important........your vote is important. Please let us know how you

feel.

Ellen

69 in still rainy lovely NC

NSR on Dofetilide

*****************

A Poll has been created as to whether or not we should close older

Polls, and we would encourage all our members to cast their vote.

(snip)

> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AFIBsupport/polls

*******************

[Guest guest]

> It just plain ole annoys me to see a Poll created over a year ago,

> and some two years ago, by a member, who maybe is among the

missing,..........snip.

Ellen,I agree with you. Close the poll after a year...and if there

is interest let it be reopened with some improvements as a result of

knowledge gained from the firs poll and so on. If you can have it

end automatically than you would not have so much work. Maybe you

can state on the page of instructionthat a poll will close

automatically after one year.

Thank you for all that you are doing......You and the other

moderators as well as all others are rendering a great service to

the afib community through information and support. Regards,

Isabelle

>

PS I still don't know how to delete the way you explain it...I don't

have any such capability on my computer....I usually delete with the

delete key.

[Guest guest]

Good Morning Isabelle:

You're *snip* *snip* is doing very nicely. You could make it a

little easier on yourself if you learned how to *Cut & Paste* by

using the *Edit* key on your toolbar. I believe all computers have

this capability - look whose talking! I still refer to all my

*Dummy* books when sitting at a computer. I consider myself an

official *Dummy*.

Now, how about casting your vote? Can you find your way around the

Poll section? BTW, the creator of a Poll can elect to close his/her

Poll automatically within a certain time period; but most choose to

close manually. I think Bobby mentioned he elects to close his

Polls in three months.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AFIBsupport/polls

My computer is stationed by a huge window overlooking a lake - what

a lovely sight. I'm really enjoying my new house - it's a dream

come true!

Ellen

(NSR on Dofetilide)

*******************

(snip) Close the poll after a year...and if there is interest let it

be reopened with some improvements as a result of knowledge gained

from the firs poll and so on. If you can have it end automatically

than you would not have so much work. (snip) I still don't know how

to delete the way you explain it...I don't have any such capability

on my computer....I usually delete with the delete key.

********************

[Guest guest]

Good Morning Isabelle:

You're *snip* *snip* is doing very nicely. You could make it a

little easier on yourself if you learned how to *Cut & Paste* by

using the *Edit* key on your toolbar. I believe all computers have

this capability - look whose talking! I still refer to all my

*Dummy* books when sitting at a computer. I consider myself an

official *Dummy*.

Now, how about casting your vote? Can you find your way around the

Poll section? BTW, the creator of a Poll can elect to close his/her

Poll automatically within a certain time period; but most choose to

close manually. I think Bobby mentioned he elects to close his

Polls in three months.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AFIBsupport/polls

My computer is stationed by a huge window overlooking a lake - what

a lovely sight. I'm really enjoying my new house - it's a dream

come true!

Ellen

(NSR on Dofetilide)

*******************

(snip) Close the poll after a year...and if there is interest let it

be reopened with some improvements as a result of knowledge gained

from the firs poll and so on. If you can have it end automatically

than you would not have so much work. (snip) I still don't know how

to delete the way you explain it...I don't have any such capability

on my computer....I usually delete with the delete key.

********************

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 11/18/2002 5:04:33 PM Pacific Standard Time,

trudyjh@... writes:

<< I guess I still don't understand the value of closing a good poll -

maybe it only has a few answers because it is about a new procedure

and more answers will show up in the future, etc. One person's

clutter is another person's valuable info. >>

I agree with Trudy. I basically question the validity of polls, especially

short-lived ones, because information and answers about afib are changing so

rapidly. If I were to participate in the polls, my answers would have been

changing from month to month over this past year as my afib experience has

changed. For example if I participated right now, I might say my afib seems

to be " cured. " Next week I might have a different answer although I hope not.

Since Yahoo doesn't limit space (or at least it doesn't in another group,

unrelated to afib, that I started), I don't see a reason to be concerned

about lengthy polls. Perhaps at least the originator of the poll should be

consulted before closing the poll, if that's possible. Since I don't

participate, my perspective might be flawed, and my opinion is always subject

to error and correction. :-)

in sinus in Seattle (Day 180 = six months of straight sinus)

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 11/18/2002 5:04:33 PM Pacific Standard Time,

trudyjh@... writes:

<< I guess I still don't understand the value of closing a good poll -

maybe it only has a few answers because it is about a new procedure

and more answers will show up in the future, etc. One person's

clutter is another person's valuable info. >>

I agree with Trudy. I basically question the validity of polls, especially

short-lived ones, because information and answers about afib are changing so

rapidly. If I were to participate in the polls, my answers would have been

changing from month to month over this past year as my afib experience has

changed. For example if I participated right now, I might say my afib seems

to be " cured. " Next week I might have a different answer although I hope not.

Since Yahoo doesn't limit space (or at least it doesn't in another group,

unrelated to afib, that I started), I don't see a reason to be concerned

about lengthy polls. Perhaps at least the originator of the poll should be

consulted before closing the poll, if that's possible. Since I don't

participate, my perspective might be flawed, and my opinion is always subject

to error and correction. :-)

in sinus in Seattle (Day 180 = six months of straight sinus)

[Guest guest]

> It just plain ole annoys me to see a Poll created over a year ago,

> and some two years ago, by a member, who maybe is among the

missing,

> sitting there month after month, with only three or four votes -

> cluttering the Board.

I guess I still don't understand the value of closing a good poll -

maybe it only has a few answers because it is about a new procedure

and more answers will show up in the future, etc. One person's

clutter is another person's valuable info.

The reason I didn't respond when I was sent mail about a poll being

closed was because I was irritated about it being closed when it was

my poll.

[Guest guest]

The reason I suggested closing polls over one year old is that when I

went to the polls section, it appeared to me a cluttered and stagnant.

We all have opinions on the way things like this should be handled. I

was looking at it from the viewpoint of a co-moderator, seeing something

that needed to be cleaned up. Seeing as though almost half of the polls

were over a year old, I asked Ellen about closing them. Closing a poll

is not a bad thing. Closing of a poll is a very common end to most poll

processes. When a poll in the group is closed, be it after the

designated time set by the creator, or at some time later by a

moderator, an email is usually sent to all members with the results. I

usually set my own to automatically close in 3 months.

To me, that is the purpose of the process, to get the results. Until the

poll is finished, it is nothing but a survey. There is nothing wrong

with that, and I enjoy keeping up with the progress in some of them. I

do feel that I have a responsibility to see that the group runs smoothly

and in an organized fashion, and I saw an area that had fallen behind in

its maintenance.

When polls are closed, the results remain for all to see. There was

mention of deleting polls in an earlier post; we do not delete them. I

think we should have a current active section, and the closed section

can be used for reference. If there is ANY issue that anyone wonders

about at any time, they should be urged to create one for the group. It

is easy and fun, and if anyone needs help, let me know. Do be aware that

if you create a poll, receive a few votes, then go back in and edit it,

you will lose those first few results. If you would like to see one and

do not feel comfortable setting it up, let me know and I will do it for

you.

Sorry to cause such a stir here, but " just doing my job " .

Bobby

Should we or should we not?

Good Morning Everyone:

A Poll has been created as to whether or not we should close older

Polls, and we would encourage all our members to cast their vote. It is

also suggested that you post a reply to this message as to why you voted

a particular way. Your input is important to us. Sooooooooo.........get

out and vote <g>.

[Guest guest]

> Until the

poll is finished, it is nothing but a survey.

At the risk of dragging this discussion out, I'll make two comments.

I agree that the poll section is cluttered. I think this is yahoo's

fault - they don't have polling designed well. For example, the

messages that come out announcing a poll should have the link to the

poll, not the link to the whole poll page. Also the list of polls

should be ordered in some fashion.

But I still don't see why closing off a poll to new info is good. It

doesn't magically achieve " non-survey " status once it's closed.

[Guest guest]

I definitely disagree with and Trudy, and by her own words as the reason.

The need for information about medications does change rapidly, and I want to

know how many take it now, not how many did take it and changed to something

else. My own medications have changed 4 times in the last 2 years. I was

offered a medication and I wanted to know how many others are taking it, side

effects etc, so I could make my decision to try it, based on what others had to

say about it.

the validity of polls, especially

short-lived ones, because information and answers about afib are changing so

rapidly. If I were to participate in the polls, my answers would have been

changing from month to month over this past year as my afib experience has

changed.

XXXX

Yes, and if you had given the information, the person making the poll could

have gotten the information updated each time, and they adjusted their poll for

the new information, required.

For example if I participated right now, I might say my afib seems

to be " cured. " Next week I might have a different answer although I hope not.

Since Yahoo doesn't limit space (or at least it doesn't in another group,

unrelated to afib, that I started), I don't see a reason to be concerned

about lengthy polls. Perhaps at least the originator of the poll should be

consulted before closing the poll, if that's possible.

XXXX

Why don't you participate ??, you said that you stay on this board to help

people, and you have had a-fib for 19 years, that would be valuble information.

Since I don't

participate, my perspective might be flawed, and my opinion is always subject

to error and correction. :-)

in sinus in Seattle (Day 180 = six months of straight sinus)

I might be flawed to, as Ellen started this wonderful board for a-fib support

and Bobby was only trying to clear out some of the open, but not being used

polls. Suppose someone thought that it was still open, and changed the figures.

The person making the poll might have already made a decision, based on the

information given. What good does an open poll do. Polls were designed for

information needed, to make decisions now. I sure couldn't wait forever for

someone to answer my poll. I guess we here in the south, like information

quicker, only talk slower. Take care, and everybody have a good day, celebrate

's 6 month sinus. Sounds good to me, and I think that I will go have a big

bowl of ice cream. Walt in SC, raining but still love it. Ellen, my pond is

getting bigger, almost like a lake. My dream came true tooooo.

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 11/19/2002 4:37:11 PM Pacific Standard Time,

james@... writes:

<< You also need to be aware of the limitations of

the polls - issue such as side effects are hard too gather through polls

unless you know the list of side effects upfront and are possibly more

appropriate for the message board. It is quite hard to come up with the

right selection of answers that enable readers to cast a vote. All/most of

the answers need to be known before hand and a full selection should be

available which are not always the ones you are looking for. >>

,

I agree. Since the weirdness of my afib experience doesn't fit into any

preconceived mold or pattern, I find it more effective to share my experience

in messages posted to the board. This medium offers more flexibility and

individuality without limitations on expression of individual differences. I

also agree that your thoughts are usually right. :-)

in sinus in Seattle (Day 181 and working on my second six months)

[Guest guest]

<<I definitely disagree with and Trudy, and by her own words as the

reason. The need for information about medications does change rapidly,

and I want to know how many take it now, not how many did take it and

changed to something else. My own medications have changed 4 times in the

last 2 years. I was offered a medication and I wanted to know how many

others are taking it, side effects etc, so I could make my decision to try

it, based on what others had to say about it.>>

There are good reasons for short term polls and equally good reasons for

long term polls - it should be up to the creator to decide which they want

to run. Some polls lie in the middle and, in my view, should remain open

since people joining the group will still be able to contribute and nothing

will be gained by closing the poll. Closing polls does not solve the poor

user interface that the polls page has and may add to the clutter if people

have to duplicate a poll. You also need to be aware of the limitations of

the polls - issue such as side effects are hard too gather through polls

unless you know the list of side effects upfront and are possibly more

appropriate for the message board. It is quite hard to come up with the

right selection of answers that enable readers to cast a vote. All/most of

the answers need to be known before hand and a full selection should be

available which are not always the ones you are looking for. There are also

good reasons to run year long polls close them and start another so you can

compare year on year results but this should again be up to the creator of

the poll.

I'm afraid in this case one rule does not fit all situations and flexibility

/ user choice is the answer.

just my thoughts (but I know they're right

--

D

[Guest guest]

> For example if I participated right now, I might say my afib seems

to be " cured. " Next week I might have a different answer although I

hope not.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but with an open poll you can change your

answer at any time. Once the poll is closed, the answers are frozen.

[Guest guest]

> For example if I participated right now, I might say my afib seems

to be " cured. " Next week I might have a different answer although I

hope not.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but with an open poll you can change your

answer at any time. Once the poll is closed, the answers are frozen.

[Guest guest]

That is true.

At this point we have approximately 100 polls. I am too busy to maintain

my answers to 100 polls to make sure the answers are still

representative of my situation.

Bobby

Associate Poll Closer and Mischief Maker

Re: Should we or should we not?

> For example if I participated right now, I might say my afib seems

to be " cured. " Next week I might have a different answer although I

hope not.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but with an open poll you can change your

answer at any time. Once the poll is closed, the answers are frozen.

[Guest guest]

That is true.

At this point we have approximately 100 polls. I am too busy to maintain

my answers to 100 polls to make sure the answers are still

representative of my situation.

Bobby

Associate Poll Closer and Mischief Maker

Re: Should we or should we not?

> For example if I participated right now, I might say my afib seems

to be " cured. " Next week I might have a different answer although I

hope not.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but with an open poll you can change your

answer at any time. Once the poll is closed, the answers are frozen.

[Guest guest]

Good Morning everyone:

Just to add a note here: Shouldn't we also be considering our Poll

section to be a wee bit of *fun*?

I've had my beautiful Blue Heron just hanging out in my backyard.

Does anyone know if they stay here in North Carolina for the winter

or do they go south? It would break my heart to see him take off to

South Carolina <g>

Ellen

(NSR on Dofetilide)

*******************

--- In AFIBsupport@y..., " Walt and Karla Barricklow " <pondsite@b...>

(snip) Polls were designed for information needed, to make decisions

now. I sure couldn't wait forever for someone to answer my poll.

(snip) Ellen, my pond is getting bigger, almost like a lake. My

dream came true tooooo.

*******************

[Guest guest]

Good Morning everyone:

Just to add a note here: Shouldn't we also be considering our Poll

section to be a wee bit of *fun*?

I've had my beautiful Blue Heron just hanging out in my backyard.

Does anyone know if they stay here in North Carolina for the winter

or do they go south? It would break my heart to see him take off to

South Carolina <g>

Ellen

(NSR on Dofetilide)

*******************

--- In AFIBsupport@y..., " Walt and Karla Barricklow " <pondsite@b...>

(snip) Polls were designed for information needed, to make decisions

now. I sure couldn't wait forever for someone to answer my poll.

(snip) Ellen, my pond is getting bigger, almost like a lake. My

dream came true tooooo.

*******************

[Guest guest]

<<Just to add a note here: Shouldn't we also be considering our Poll

section to be a wee bit of *fun*?>>

I think the crucial word is 'also'. If somebody wants to put up a fun poll

that closes in a week then fine but it shouldn't stop somebody doing a

serious long term poll. All I'm suggesting is don't put any constraints on

the list. I'm all for having a laugh and a smile but at the end of the day

I'm here because I want to get rid of a debilitating condition and we can

collect some useful information from each other.

Just as I very much enjoy Walt's observations on life it's not the main

reason I visit this site. I think the poll section is mainly there to do a

serious job but I wouldn't object to it occasionally raising a smile.

We are all trying to get something slightly different out of this group, I

believe wherever possible we should be open ended rather than restrictive.

--

D

[Guest guest]

<<Just to add a note here: Shouldn't we also be considering our Poll

section to be a wee bit of *fun*?>>

I think the crucial word is 'also'. If somebody wants to put up a fun poll

that closes in a week then fine but it shouldn't stop somebody doing a

serious long term poll. All I'm suggesting is don't put any constraints on

the list. I'm all for having a laugh and a smile but at the end of the day

I'm here because I want to get rid of a debilitating condition and we can

collect some useful information from each other.

Just as I very much enjoy Walt's observations on life it's not the main

reason I visit this site. I think the poll section is mainly there to do a

serious job but I wouldn't object to it occasionally raising a smile.

We are all trying to get something slightly different out of this group, I

believe wherever possible we should be open ended rather than restrictive.

--

D

[Guest guest]

<<At this point we have approximately 100 polls. I am too busy to maintain

my answers to 100 polls to make sure the answers are still

representative of my situation.>>

but you are not necesseraily representative of everyone in the group and a

new member arriving should have the right to cast their vote even if it is

only once per poll. I don't visit the poll section every day but I do go

down it once every 2 or 3 months and occasionally I do change my answers

(but not very often).

How would closing polls improve the way you use the section?

If it only lets you get to new polls a bit quicker because of the poor

layout then a 'ctrl F' (find) will solve that problem. (or a post of the

real url to the board will mean everyone can get to it with a single click)

--

D

[Guest guest]

<<At this point we have approximately 100 polls. I am too busy to maintain

my answers to 100 polls to make sure the answers are still

representative of my situation.>>

but you are not necesseraily representative of everyone in the group and a

new member arriving should have the right to cast their vote even if it is

only once per poll. I don't visit the poll section every day but I do go

down it once every 2 or 3 months and occasionally I do change my answers

(but not very often).

How would closing polls improve the way you use the section?

If it only lets you get to new polls a bit quicker because of the poor

layout then a 'ctrl F' (find) will solve that problem. (or a post of the

real url to the board will mean everyone can get to it with a single click)

--

D

[Guest guest]

Hi Trudy, that is correct, but the sentence that you quoted was from in

Seattle, not me. I would rather take my information from the poll, and use it

for the purpose that I intended it for, and if more information would be needed,

I would start a new poll, and then if you changed it would show up. I never look

at the person anyway,only where they put there information, unless I want to

question them about helping me with an answer. I think that the best answer

might be let the creator of the poll determine how long it will be open. Even

though we might have 500 plus registered, only about 30 or so actually

participate on the board. Walt in SC

For example if I participated right now, I might say my afib seems

to be " cured. " Next week I might have a different answer although I

hope not.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but with an open poll you can change your

answer at any time. Once the poll is closed, the answers are frozen.

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