Hi everyone.
I have a small issue with the way the forums on the site work.
Firstly, I should point out that I have learned more in three days by starting a discussion topic that would generate feedback, than I learned in four weeks of using drupal and the handbooks. My issue is that, as a newbie, as soon as my feedback stops, my learning curve becomes alot steeper. The way that the forums are structured is not conducive to lots of replies or feedback. As soon as the topic grows to a certain size, and replies to many others' replies, people stop responding. It seems there is a direct connection between the organization of the topic and the interest level of the reader. Is there a way to organize these sorts of topics in a way that promotes a more collaborative learning enviornment?
This is just one idea... maybe it would be easier if readers were able to create sub-topics within the topic itself and then the titles or replies within the sub-topic along with teasers were displayed in a block next to the sub-topic, allowing the reader to navigate through a much shorter page. Also, clicking the "replies" in the subtopics could open the link in a new, smaller window so that the reader could quickly decern whether the info contained within was applicable to their question and navigate back to the corresponding topic. The subtopics could be contained in themed containers that made the titles "pop." Topics could also be cross-referenced with sub-topics from other topics.