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Author Topic: Seeking feedback  (Read 2286 times)

Jenett

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Seeking feedback
« on: December 02, 2016, 11:41:56 am »
(Apologies for the pun in the title...)

I'm looking at doing some significant revamping on my Seeking site toward the end of the month when I have some time off work, and now seems to be a good time to ask people who've found it useful what would be useful.

Big things I'm looking at:
1) Breaking out the pages into more sections.

Specifically from the current 6 (Getting Started, Building your practice, skills and practices, common questions, learning more, reaching out) into eight:

  • Beginning (the current basics stuff)
  • Building (how you learn, starting new religious exploration, building practices over time)
  • Doing (how to do stuff)
  • Learning (books, evaluation of information, libraries, scholarly writing, etc.)
  • Connecting (general community stuff and group stuff)
  • Common questions (same as the current)
  • Concepts (definitions, what is magic, intro to ethics, etc. I'd like to add articles on things like the Rede and Witch's Pyramid, etc. in there too.)
  • Adaptations (accessibility, modifications for chronic illness, specific situations, etc.)


Question: Would it be helpful to break out group work explicitly into its own category, or is having it in 'Connecting' sufficient?

I think the new headings are a good bit more clear, and they're also mostly shorter, and it will simplify URLS.

I believe moving them to new locations will automatically forward people to the new section URL if I have WordPress set up the way I think I do, but I'll be testing that and doing it manually if I have to.

2) Adding some material to existing essays
I have a list (which includes explaining more about different kinds and goals of meditation than I currently do, adding some protection and cleansing info and links, and other things like that.)

But if you have things you'd love to see (that seem like a thing I might include: bear in mind I write from stuff I do and practice or that is at least related, so there's stuff I'm unlikely to touch), I would love to add to the working list.

(Related, I've added a good dozen new pages since this summer: if you haven't seen them, one of the things I started then was blog posts with new pages. I've been doing it in batches, but still helpful, I hope.)

3) Make some graphics changes
It is never likely to be a site with lots of graphics, but I want to do something different for the header. (Ok, still blue, but blue watercolor, maybe).

But would more graphics in specific places be helpful? Different headers for different sections of the site? Are there articles where photos or illustrations would be especially helpful?

(I do have plans to do an altars and shrines page with some examples, but that requires me to have time to set up a whole bunch of them in sequence to illustrate some of what I want to illustrate, so.)

4) Other navigation stuff
Also this summer I added a table of contents plugin that does a nice little one at the top of the page, making navigation easier. It also lets me produce a sitemap automatically.

I also plan to rearrange tags so they're more useful (and probably fewer in number?), but I'm trying to figure out what the actually useful ones are. I'd like to use them for things that are not duplicated by the section of the site the page is on (i.e. beginning info doesn't really need a basic tag, maybe, you can already find it on the beginning page.) Are there across-site topics you'd like to be able to find more easily?
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Seeking: first steps on a Pagan path (advice for seekers and people new to Paganism)

Sefiru

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Re: Seeking feedback
« Reply #1 on: December 02, 2016, 07:06:36 pm »
Quote from: Jenett;199687
(Apologies for the pun in the title...)

But would more graphics in specific places be helpful? Different headers for different sections of the site? Are there articles where photos or illustrations would be especially helpful?

(I do have plans to do an altars and shrines page with some examples, but that requires me to have time to set up a whole bunch of them in sequence to illustrate some of what I want to illustrate, so.)

 
I think some illustrations would be helpful for those who are more visual learners. Like, on the page about ritual tools, have an example picture of each tool. Likewise things like meditation positions, or the food-and-drink page.
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SunflowerP

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Re: Seeking feedback
« Reply #2 on: December 03, 2016, 09:33:37 am »
Quote from: Jenett;199687
(Apologies for the pun in the title...)


No apology needed; I enjoyed it.

Quote
Question: Would it be helpful to break out group work explicitly into its own category, or is having it in 'Connecting' sufficient?


Seems to me that it might well be useful eventually to break it out, but not necessarily immediately. I'm thinking of it hinging on how much material you have. If you were thinking more in terms of, 'how easily will people find the groupwork-specific stuff if it's lumped into "Connecting"?', that's why you have brief contents-descriptive blurbs under the pics for each section.

Quote
But if you have things you'd love to see (that seem like a thing I might include: bear in mind I write from stuff I do and practice or that is at least related, so there's stuff I'm unlikely to touch), I would love to add to the working list.


It's quite possible that I do have ideas (I know I've had thoughts about this in the past), but just now I have no clue at all what they might be. I'll certainly let you know ifwhen they come to mind.

Sunflower
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Jenett

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Re: Seeking feedback
« Reply #3 on: December 03, 2016, 10:14:47 am »
Quote from: SunflowerP;199724

Seems to me that it might well be useful eventually to break it out, but not necessarily immediately. I'm thinking of it hinging on how much material you have. If you were thinking more in terms of, 'how easily will people find the groupwork-specific stuff if it's lumped into "Connecting"?', that's why you have brief contents-descriptive blurbs under the pics for each section.


Oh, that's a good point to mention - because there's a limit on the number of the image+info blurbs, those will probably turn into something else - I'm thinking something like "Guide to getting started", maybe the concepts page (which is general material to be referenced), a list of useful general resources, etc. the about/contact stuff.  Still trying to figure out what I want that breakdown to be. (I believe I can do 3-5 of the image modules)

On the connecting / group, it's more that I'm seeing an increasing split in context between 'want to connect wth other people, but not the same people regularly' and people seeking groups, but it might just be something that can be handled with two sections on the same index page (especially now I've got the table of contents plugin going, so it's easy to skip to the section you want.)

Quote

It's quite possible that I do have ideas (I know I've had thoughts about this in the past), but just now I have no clue at all what they might be. I'll certainly let you know ifwhen they come to mind.

 
I have that problem too, so I can't complain when other people do. (This is why I have gotten better about putting them in my to-do list)
Seek Knowledge, Find Wisdom: Research help on esoteric and eclectic topics (consulting and other services)

Seeking: first steps on a Pagan path (advice for seekers and people new to Paganism)

Jenett

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Re: Seeking feedback
« Reply #4 on: December 03, 2016, 10:19:10 am »
Quote from: Sefiru;199701
I think some illustrations would be helpful for those who are more visual learners. Like, on the page about ritual tools, have an example picture of each tool. Likewise things like meditation positions, or the food-and-drink page.

 
Thanks, that is helpful (I am both not a visual learner, and there are complications in what I can get illustrations of that I like and/or can produce myself. I'm not lousy at sketching some kinds of things, but...)

I should note: I'm not willing to do photos of myself anywhere, because online image matching programs are a thing, and while my current job wouldn't care about me being openly Pagan, it's possible sometime later in my career, I'd care more about being able to be private or at least *obscure* about it again for various reasons. (Which is probably a whole other thread.)
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Seeking: first steps on a Pagan path (advice for seekers and people new to Paganism)

Vixen

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Re: Seeking feedback
« Reply #5 on: December 05, 2016, 05:04:34 am »
Quote from: Jenett;199687


I'm looking at doing some significant revamping on my Seeking site toward the end of the month when I have some time off work, and now seems to be a good time to ask people who've found it useful what would be useful.

 
Being relatively new to paganism I found your page very useful. I am not a librarian but an archivist, so I am familiar with your way of thinking and redirecting and research. I love it. But I think it can be a bit overwhelming for those who are not used to that information stream.

The only thing I was missing, and this might be a deliberate choice on your part, was personal experience with the Gods. How do you know who is speaking to you. How to find out if its not just in your mind but if its real.  Are the Gods calling you or not? How to deal with them if they are, or if they are not.

Not sure if this is of any help. But I sure am very happy with your website!
You're only given a little spark of madness, you mustn't lose it.

Jenett

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Re: Seeking feedback
« Reply #6 on: December 05, 2016, 09:29:51 am »
Quote from: Vixen;199781
But I think it can be a bit overwhelming for those who are not used to that information stream.


So glad it's useful!

And yeah, there's a lot of information there, and it's serving a couple of different purposes, so I'm hoping reorganising a bit will make it a bit easier to find paths through the material that will help people.

(The site has several different goals: one was to get my brain going after a big health crash in 2010/2011.

One is to pull together material for when I teach Craft students in person, so I don't have to start from scratch (which means I prioritise info that'd be helpful for that a certain amount). One is to take stuff I kept writing here and other places and give it somewhere stable to live so I could point at it and not recreate it every time and/or point at longer examples. One is to write about stuff that other people don't talk about as much, like the library and research for religious purposes stuff, and also some of the Pagan "Why do people not talk about this thing?"

Only, you know, over 5 years, there's a lot of accumulated bits and pieces that could maybe be better fit together.)

Quote
The only thing I was missing, and this might be a deliberate choice on your part, was personal experience with the Gods. How do you know who is speaking to you. How to find out if its not just in your mind but if its real.  Are the Gods calling you or not? How to deal with them if they are, or if they are not.


That's one I've been chewing on how to write for a while (because I do my best to write from personal experience, but my own deity work is not a thing I'd necessarily suggest as a model for other people for various reasons, some of the other approaches I've learned are things I can't get into without getting deeper into trad practices than I am willing to do in a public discussion, and so on.)

One of the more recent essays does touch on pieces of the above, though - Deepening interactions and I think I have an idea now for touching on some of it in a way that makes sense.
Seek Knowledge, Find Wisdom: Research help on esoteric and eclectic topics (consulting and other services)

Seeking: first steps on a Pagan path (advice for seekers and people new to Paganism)

Jenett

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Re: Seeking feedback
« Reply #7 on: December 31, 2016, 11:17:05 am »
Quote from: Jenett;199687

I spent 5 days around Christmas doing vast numbers of edits and changes, and the revised site is up and running (and I think I've caught most things that needed editing.) If something seems broken as you click around, please tell me!

Big changes:
- Images: Every page now has an image, by focus of the page, so if you search on something, you can see the general focus / category at a glance. (Also, makes it easier for people who might want to Pinterest or other bookmark tools that like images. Images should all have alt-text.)

- Renamed the sections to be more internally consistent and moved some pages around. I think I've caught all the redirects internally, and old bookmarks and links should forward to the correct page. If you discover ones that don't, please let me know. (Contact form on the site is probably best for this.)

- Broke out a specific section on adapting practices to personal needs (accessibility and related topics) and I have plans to add more to this section as I can get it written.

- Redid the tags, to better group material by topic in a manageable way.

- Pulled out some pages that were seriously outdated, into an Archive section. (You'll see it if you go to the sitemap, but not otherwise)

Stuff still to do
I'm hoping to add some additional images to the altar and shrine page this weekend (we'll see how far I get on excavating my ritual items basket today and tomorrow.)

Put up a note on the blog about the revisions (I'm waiting to see if I can manage those altar images and one other article that's a revamp of stuff I've already written this weekend before I do that, but it'll be up Monday either way.)

I've also got a whole long list of pages I want to write and add and need to figure out priorities for which ones.
« Last Edit: December 31, 2016, 11:17:21 am by Jenett »
Seek Knowledge, Find Wisdom: Research help on esoteric and eclectic topics (consulting and other services)

Seeking: first steps on a Pagan path (advice for seekers and people new to Paganism)

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