Posted by Jim Erhardt on November 21, 2010 at 9:26 AM
This post is intended to serve as an over view of the purpose and intent of the regional forums and IC galleries, aka "regional groups" (RG).
The original intention of RG was to serve as a benefit of NPN membership for those NPN members who live in the same geographical region. The RG forums were intended to discuss issues/topics that are specific to the region, as well as to discuss local conditions, local photographic destinations and subjects, group events, etc. In this regard, the RG have served their purpose extremely well!
However over the years many RG evolved into "mini nature photography sites" that some members rarely venture out of. The ability to upload photos in the RG forums for the original purpose of species identification, location reviews, etc. slowly mutated into photo critique, thus giving less reason to use the main NPN IC galleries for this purpose. Over the years some RG groups had become functionally disconnected from the main NPN site.
Some of the RG have thrived for years operating in this fashion, which in itself isn't a bad thing. However, in order to at least partially restore the original purpose and intent of the RG, some changes have recently been made;
1. The new NPN membership requirement for posting restores the original RG purpose of being a benefit of NPN membership. There were certainly non-member nature photography enthusiasts participating in the RG who never supported the greater cause by becoming a member or posting/contributing any where else on the NPN site.
2. The addition of RG IC galleries now provides a venue for the IC/photo-sharing function. The RG IC galleries will be especially useful if members post photos that are representative of the region. For example, if you are participating in the Rocky Mountain group and have a photo of an alligator taken in Florida, it would be preferable to post that photo in the Fauna Gallery, or in the SENP RG IC gallery since it is representative of the fauna found in that region.
Additionally, photos posted in the RG IC galleries also appear site-wide in the All Photos gallery, restoring some connection between the RG and the main NPN site.
3. With the introduction of RG IC galleries, the RG forums (and the posting of illustrative photos in them) can now return to the original purpose as described above.
Over the years, there has been great latitude in how the RG are allowed to function and operate. This has been without a doubt a key aspect in the success of the RG and something we wish to continue. It is our intent to maintain site-wide functionality and purpose while still allowing a degree of autonomy to the RG, which we hope these latest changes help us to achieve.
If you have any comments or suggestions, please feel free to contact me directly. Our sincere thanks for your time and participation!
Discussion
0 repliesThe original intention of RG was to serve as a benefit of NPN membership for those NPN members who live in the same geographical region. The RG forums were intended to discuss issues/topics that are specific to the region, as well as to discuss local conditions, local photographic destinations and subjects, group events, etc. In this regard, the RG have served their purpose extremely well!
However over the years many RG evolved into "mini nature photography sites" that some members rarely venture out of. The ability to upload photos in the RG forums for the original purpose of species identification, location reviews, etc. slowly mutated into photo critique, thus giving less reason to use the main NPN IC galleries for this purpose. Over the years some RG groups had become functionally disconnected from the main NPN site.
Some of the RG have thrived for years operating in this fashion, which in itself isn't a bad thing. However, in order to at least partially restore the original purpose and intent of the RG, some changes have recently been made;
1. The new NPN membership requirement for posting restores the original RG purpose of being a benefit of NPN membership. There were certainly non-member nature photography enthusiasts participating in the RG who never supported the greater cause by becoming a member or posting/contributing any where else on the NPN site.
2. The addition of RG IC galleries now provides a venue for the IC/photo-sharing function. The RG IC galleries will be especially useful if members post photos that are representative of the region. For example, if you are participating in the Rocky Mountain group and have a photo of an alligator taken in Florida, it would be preferable to post that photo in the Fauna Gallery, or in the SENP RG IC gallery since it is representative of the fauna found in that region.
Additionally, photos posted in the RG IC galleries also appear site-wide in the All Photos gallery, restoring some connection between the RG and the main NPN site.
3. With the introduction of RG IC galleries, the RG forums (and the posting of illustrative photos in them) can now return to the original purpose as described above.
Over the years, there has been great latitude in how the RG are allowed to function and operate. This has been without a doubt a key aspect in the success of the RG and something we wish to continue. It is our intent to maintain site-wide functionality and purpose while still allowing a degree of autonomy to the RG, which we hope these latest changes help us to achieve.
If you have any comments or suggestions, please feel free to contact me directly. Our sincere thanks for your time and participation!