to think there are too many topics on Mumsnet

[IthinkIamUndecided]

Did you know there is a Potty Training topic on this board? And one specifically for parents of pre-teens as well as one for parents of actual teenagers? There's a topic for car seats and well ... the list is almost endless.

AIBU to think that the reason people post unnecessarily in AIBU is that there are too many topics with not enough traffic in them so they use AIBU to get replies as they know they'd go unnoticed if posted in the relevant topic?

Yanbu.

The site could do with some streamlining.

Personally, I would start with getting rid of AIBU.

Well equally chat has a lot of traffic. AIBU is for when you want to start a ruck, chat is for when you want the item autodeleted after a month, and hunting out a topic is when you want an "informed" view.

Surely this should be moved to potty training?

Or pre-teens?

No, maybe car seats?

Oh I don't know! I agree with ^^

YANBU
Time for a good clear out - a lot of the topics hardly seem to get any posts from what Ive seen

YABU, you may find you need to visit one of those topics one day.

YABU. I read the holidays section, news, chat and conception as much as AIBU.

Could do with a WWYD and an insomniacs topic for me.

Wild boars?

YABU..

The only reason people don't use all the topics is because they are lazy, and finding different topics is really difficult.

I think that someone would be mad to use AIBU to get noticed-it will be the wrong sort of notice if they want help!
(however AIBU is my favourite)

I think there are a lot of topics, but most are regularly used. The car seat one, for example, I go on regularly when someone is stuck looking for some details about the car seat they are after. Some though when you go into them haven't got any new threads at all.

For example Home Front has only one thread that has been posted on in August, with only 6 replies.

And MumsNot is totally dead I think.

But most others do get some regular through traffic so its hardly worth culling them all.

I agree that AIBU can often end up being a bit harsh ( Someone did say something along those lines, right ? )

Even though I'm on here quite a lot since I became an addict
recently, I mainly go from either "I'm on", "discussions of the day" or "most active"
I've rarely checked out other dark corners of MN world, although I did venture into mumsnet local today after a link was kindly provided on home page.

Agree therefore that some streamlining (taking account of lazy user habits ) would be great

I agree. MN is flabby.

It needs Jillian.

Gillian is no fun.

She doesn't drink

YANBU I don't understand why everything has to be in a certain category

The thing about internet chat forums (refuses to use the word fora!) is that you start to build up relationships with certain posters...not necessarily friendships but you 'get to know' how they post after a while.

Therefore, if I wanted to ask a question about anything...I'd ask it here because I feel I'm amongst 'familiar' people IYSWIM.

I realise doing that would send the board police racing for their medication and they'd be straight on to MNHQ via speed dial...but hey I live life on the edge

I think we could do with losing a good 50% of the categories here.

Naaah, I disagree.
I think there's (sort of) a problem with overuse of AIBU - for the reasons worra gives - and also, of course, that everyone knows they'll get lots of answers quickly on AIBU.
Seems, though, that when someone wants a more considered answer on a given topic, they go to the specific place for it - then come back here when they have to wait too long for answers - and often end up with thread derailed/overrun with ranters. Oh well.

I'm not aware that all these categories exist. I've hidden all the topics that I have no interest in so my active convos only contain subjects relevant to me. I think it's ok.

Ebay did the same thing years ago with their forums

It started off with just a couple of chat boards and a specific help for sellers/buyers board.

Then they went and added loads more until almost every board turned in to a ghost town. It was ridiculous.

Compared to many rivals, it's actually not too bad I think. I also like being able to hide topics I don't want to see, or am not interested in. So YABU for me.

You know what would be great? If you could tag a thread with two or three different topics (e.g. "one child families", "teenagers", "lgbt teenagers") and the thread, in this instance presumably about your gay only child, could appear in all three topics as a single thread that people could reply in whichever topic they viewed it in. So no cross posting.

That's not a bad idea pignatelli that'd solve the traffic problem (or lack of it on certain topics)

You are on to a good idea, pig