What do we need on the Main page?

[Michael A. Barr]

We have so little space, and it is valuable.

Do we need a news feed taking up a fourth of the space? I wonder.

What do we really need?

How do we minimize the clutter and maximize ease of use ( increase size of font?)

[amit mendelsohn]

i simply think that the news in the main page is usefull and make other people stop also. increaing the fonts will make the font huge on some computers, depends on the users setup. i would love to get rid of the ad in the right size but then its Nings' ads and i am stuck with it
i thing the setup... graphic...text...graphics...text is the best
when i am back i will try to work on it

[Michael A. Barr]

the news is available everywhere. it's a commodity. It takes up a lot of space. It does not connect with our concerns directly ( indirectly, of course, we are impacted.)

Just to get people to stop? And do what?

Row back the Bateau Ivre and let's figure this all out.

[amit mendelsohn]

I simply know that wherever the text is rulling less people use it... once someone watch the news here it also stop and reads what is around it. and then again i rather have the news from several reasons:
1. the alternative is pictures or our own videos... (i rather have something that changes often as news)
2. there is not enough graphics possibilities on ning system and again i rather not have text only system

and basically i am planning to add more features that ning doesn't have to everything is temporary for now.

[Michael A. Barr]

Message to the Forum: this is a good discussion for anyone wondering how to improve his or her presence on the cluttered Internet. I defer to you, Amit, because you are more experienced in this realm. I am eager to know how to grow beyond ning. I am more eager to know how to minimize text - a la Google which is the ultimately economical site with billions of words behind the Home page.

Minimize text, maximize pull. How do you DO that? How does Facebook grow to 68 million users?

[amit mendelsohn]

its easy for the google to minimize the text as people go there to get a specific service harder for us as this is a network and some of the indicators are actually to show the activity. basically I would like to make sure we will have more graphics and thats include video. One of the idea is to keep the groups graphics clean (I will create a graphics icon to any group anyone will create) to keep the design as clean as possible A minimize text box which I don't yet know where to place. and additional application that ning does not offer (one of them is already inside the chat/messenger). Facebook like myspace are a mess and annoyance but they are trends I have seen many trends in the past though not as successful as these. I am not sure a millions user netwro is useful to our purpose.
i think when i am back we will have a chat either on skype or here on the messenger and discuss possibilities, and what we may want to add.
Apart from this there are marketing tricks that I will use and some candies to all of us. When I am back we will discuss it and hopefully other will join us in this discussion.

[Michael A. Barr]

I can't get messenger to work. Any diagnostic tools?


We want people to be responsive; they will be if they see opportunities here.

What do people want? Has the user public got all the tools it needs? I need to talk. Others need investment. Others need to sell. Maybe everyone is fishing, dropping the hook into the water faster and more often in the hope of quick catches. Certainly the ease of using multiple resources has made us all impatient.

[amit mendelsohn]

the chat is running outside ning therefore you will have to choose a password (its not connected to ning database) nd it will work

i think most people failed to realize that the networks they have is not the customer list its the tools to reach the customers. they fail to realize that if they see a job offer that suit to a friend they should take few second and send it to this friend.and if they need advise they can find it within the network

One of the tools i'd like to install is a travel agenda so that if any of us travels he can arrange a meeting with another maybe even just to learn the person maybe more.

Patient is the name of the game because you cannot create a real relationship offline as well as online with a person who is just a mail address.