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[silicontraveler]

Why do think a forum like trip advisor is so popular and successful? To me it seem impersonal, unattractive, kind of spam everywhere, the comment box is really small etc. Seems ironic. Seems to be more popular than lptt though, i wonder why?

What kind of forum is better yahoo answers type or the traditional type like this one?

Do you assume that many forums have hired staff to post questions and answers?

If a forum has lots of features is it better, avatar, photos etc or is simpler better?

What do you think about picture forums like 4chans?

[flashy_mcflash]

To me the actual information on the forum is more important than the layout. Imageboards like the Chans are hardly user-friendly but that's probably by design to keep old people away.

In the end it's the people posting that make a forum useful or not.

[Drew87]

Why do think a forum like trip advisor is so popular and successful? To me it seem impersonal, unattractive, kind of spam everywhere, the comment box is really small etc. Seems ironic. Seems to be more popular than lptt though, i wonder why?

What kind of forum is better yahoo answers type or the traditional type like this one?

Do you assume that many forums have hired staff to post questions and answers?

If a forum has lots of features is it better, avatar, photos etc or is simpler better?

What do you think about picture forums like 4chans?

Forums like Trip Advisor are really popular because of the content....A site like TA has content that can be verified or not which is huge - Users can post their opinions on attractions/hotels/resorts and other users can either agree or disagree with the content. The admins and moderators of that forum also weed out the blatantly obvious erroneous posts or posts that are just meant to irritate people...

Another thing that makes TA popular is you'll have legitimate managers of resorts and hotels or airline companies message users and try to make them happy if they had a really bad experience..

Things aren't swept under the rug and people there aren't censored.

[silicontraveler]

Forums like Trip Advisor are really popular because of the content....A site like TA has content that can be verified or not which is huge - Users can post their opinions on attractions/hotels/resorts and other users can either agree or disagree with the content. The admins and moderators of that forum also weed out the blatantly obvious erroneous posts or posts that are just meant to irritate people...

Another thing that makes TA popular is you'll have legitimate managers of resorts and hotels or airline companies message users and try to make them happy if they had a really bad experience..

Things aren't swept under the rug and people there aren't censored.

Yes i agree with you there, but why design the site that unappealing way?

[Drew87]

Yes i agree with you there, but why design the site that way?

site owner/admin preference - they probably think it's a cool layout design...

It's subjective - everyone has a different opinion when it comes to what "looks good"

[flashy_mcflash]

Yes i agree with you there, but why design the site that unappealing way?

I imagine that most people on TA don't find it unappealing, or at least not unappealing enough to stop using it. Therefore, why spend time/money on 'improving' the design for a tiny amount of people that don't like it?

[AudiDude]

Yes i agree with you there, but why design the site that unappealing way?

Nobody cares. I just want up to the minute info and I get it. I only look at the negative comments and discard any whiners that complain about irrelevant things to try to trump up their whine.

I use Yelp for dining mostly. I posted on how to save money at a restaurant and received a thanks in a half hour. I can deliver so much info so fast to so many people, it is disturbing. The only way I'd complain about the site is if it difficult to navigate and sometimes, the app is so much better, so I'll just use that.

[silicontraveler]

What do you thin k of this one WorldTravelAnswers.com

[Manatus]

What do you thin k of this one WorldTravelAnswers.com

Personally I think it looks like it's for kids.

If it had the best info though, I'd use it. It's all about the core service. I don't care if something looks like a 90s geocities homepage if it has the most accurate info that helps me get the most out of my vacation or saves me from spending big bucks on a bad hotel. TA is successful for similar reasons that Microsoft is successful. It might not be the "best" out there in terms of technical proficiency, but it's the best out there because it's the biggest, has the most users, stuff like that. TA is a Big Deal. For one, if you post a bad review about a hotel, the manager will often try to get in touch with you to make it better. Stuff like that basically makes the site design irrelevant (though I actually like how TA looks).

If RFD stopped providing me with useful, relevant information, I wouldn't continue to use it even if they hired the best designers in the world to design it, even if every page was a Picasso masterpiece. It's all about the content really.

[Syne]

Nobody cares. I just want up to the minute info and I get it. I only look at the negative comments and discard any whiners that complain about irrelevant things to try to trump up their whine.

I find between the whiners and the shills and the people who focus on irrelevant things, you actually have to dig a bit to get a good review.

[AudiDude]

I find between the whiners and the shills and the people who focus on irrelevant things, you actually have to dig a bit to get a good review.

Agreed. I stop reading when it says "Well first off it was raining" or something irrelevant to the topic. You just know EVERYTHING is going to be an issue and the reviewee is going to take the blame. The ones that are too positive, I avoid. "Well first off the birds were chirping harmoniously". You definitely have to have a method for searching, but I've had no surprises yet.