The ability to group posts into categories could make it easier to go back and trace a specific discussion that spans multiple posts.
It would,, for example, be nice to be able to go back and read everything that's written on terminology and definitions without searching through the archive.
The reading group sounds great. I personally would not be a participant (just because I wouldn't want be part of a group that would include me as a member...[respects to Woody]).
I don't hang out here much but really like this site, its design and content. It has been informative, funny and stimulating.
A Search feature would also help address NickS's desired outcome. I'm sure you're all over that.
#3 -- oh, stop showing off. Well, I suppose that is the point, it is easier. If you're really clever, it is possible to be constructive and non-mean/non-annoying.
Ben, while modifying your behavior, perhaps you could consider ceasing to "accidentally" show people your dong--we're all onto your little "Oh, I must have forgotten to tuck it back in after going to the john" scam.
Censor certain terms likely to be used in in-jokes, don't tell us about it in advance, and then wait for hilarity to ensue as people discover they can't use everyday words and phrases like, "Gayatollah, Tivo, Museum of Bridgplatica, Mineshaft" etc.
While you're censoring certain words, you should also censor the German language in order to prevent those who know it from setting themselves apart by showing off.
Although the in-jokes about the Mineshaft do seem to have helped create gemeinschaft, I have to say.
Clicking on the "comments" link should take you to a page – in the very same, non-pop-up window – with the text of the post at the top, and the comments beneath it.
This isn't really a site design issue, but it would be great if participants who actually know something about philosophy found themselves moved to link copiously to definitions, background reading, whatever, when they used technical terminology or addressed philosophical issues familiar from outside the text.
I assume that that will go on a lot in the first sections, which, as ogged has noted somewhere, lay a lot of groundwork and terminology &c.
Not that I want to do it because I found the beginning sections among the more baffling. Now, when you get into the late teens and twenties, all the Vorhandenheit & Zuhandenheit stuff, that's a lot easier.
Hopefully. I'm a little intimidated by my lack of a philosophy background. Expect most of my participation to be couched in the following terms: "Well, Ah'm jes' a li'l ol' country lawyer, but seems to me that..."
No no, I'm a stickler for plain English explanations, so we'll deal with the terms in the text as we come across them, but otherwise, try to avoid jargon. The whole point is for us all to go through it with fresh eyes and the benefit of lots of different perspectives.
Warning. In the three years I have known her, I have never seen LizardBreath be intimidated by anything. Watch out for the "shucks, this philosophy stuff is too hard for my little brain" stuff. It's a set up. To what purpose, I do not know, but it is not to be believed.
OK, I'd like to join in the reading group too, but I know astonishingly little about formal philosophy. Jargon doesn't bother me when it's accurate so long as it's hyperlinked. Also, I will probably drop out as soon as the new Harry Potter is released. For a day or two at least.
i have no idea if this constitutes a "feature," but in most webpages, if you follow a link, and then go back, the page reloads at the same place (in re scrolling) that you were when you followed the link. the comment mini-windows should do that too, damnit! do you have them set to default load at the bottom?
Do those people know about the "End" key? Or if the mouse is more their style, ogged could add a link at the top of the comments box that would scroll to the bottom when clicked. Just say "no" bottom-seeking comments boxes.
The only work-around I've found for the present behavior is:
1. Use Firefox.
2. Set new windows to appear as new tabs.
3. For links inside the comments box (tab), choose "open link in new tab".
4. Instead of clicking the "back" button, close the new window, and click on the tab you just came from.
5. All done! No more losing your place in the comments.
For obvious reasons I'd prefer that people who rely on the present behavior use the "End" key instead.
Greasemonkey away. One thing I've learned is that any design decision is going to make some people happy, and annoy others, so personalization on the client side is all to the good.
But this is how unfogged differentiates itself from other blogs, Standpipe.
Unfogged is already plenty different from other blogs. For another example in the same vein, the platform is Movable Type, but the comments are counterintuitively Haloscan-esque, popping up and omitting the text of the main post. Each post and its comments are intimately related, but the relationship is strained. Unfogged needs couples counseling (for itself and its partner, also itself) just as a structural matter. The least it could do is read some Deborah Tannen.
Ben, I resent the implication that the site needs to be "fixed," but if you give me a description of what this does (and any instructions), I'll put a link to it in a post, so everyone who wants it can use it. Thanks for doing it, I think.
It makes it so that opening the links to the comment threads doesn't automatically take you to the bottom. I, too, don't think unfogged needs fixing—but in the (darkened, perverted) minds of those who might want to use it, it is a fix.
Then, use Firefox, and install the Greasemonkey extension.
Finally, right-click on the link above and select "install user script", or follow the link itself and select Tools -> Install User Script from the menu.
The ability to group posts into categories could make it easier to go back and trace a specific discussion that spans multiple posts.
It would,, for example, be nice to be able to go back and read everything that's written on terminology and definitions without searching through the archive.
Posted by NickS | Link to this comment | 06- 2-05 6:01 PM
The reading group sounds great. I personally would not be a participant (just because I wouldn't want be part of a group that would include me as a member...[respects to Woody]).
I don't hang out here much but really like this site, its design and content. It has been informative, funny and stimulating.
A Search feature would also help address NickS's desired outcome. I'm sure you're all over that.
Posted by Judy | Link to this comment | 06- 2-05 7:05 PM
Not Groucho?
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 06- 2-05 11:41 PM
The Stambaugh translation is on google print, by the way. You can't read every page, but this should mean all the text is searchable.
Posted by eb | Link to this comment | 06- 2-05 11:41 PM
can we rate comments so we can establish an atmosphere of snobby elitism?
Posted by Michael | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 12:33 AM
#3 -- oh, stop showing off. Well, I suppose that is the point, it is easier. If you're really clever, it is possible to be constructive and non-mean/non-annoying.
Posted by Judy | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 6:25 AM
Mean? Heaven forfend!
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 8:18 AM
I see your generous and sympathetic sense of humor remains misunderstood.
Posted by Standpipe Bridgeplate | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 8:44 AM
Ben, while modifying your behavior, perhaps you could consider ceasing to "accidentally" show people your dong--we're all onto your little "Oh, I must have forgotten to tuck it back in after going to the john" scam.
Posted by Chopper | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 8:54 AM
But I want people to like me more, Chopper, not less, and how can I do that if I deprive them the sight of my dong?
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 8:56 AM
Have you thought of huffing in shocked delight in the gym shower? That's a big icebreaker.
Posted by Chopper | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 9:09 AM
You need to tell him ahead of time that you don't want to see it.
Posted by apostropher | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 9:17 AM
You might want to institute some sort of mechanism to keep the reading group from turning into in-joke wars amongst the regulars. Lord knows how.
Posted by Matt Weiner | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 9:33 AM
Ask people not to kid around?
Posted by LizardBreath | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 10:21 AM
Censor certain terms likely to be used in in-jokes, don't tell us about it in advance, and then wait for hilarity to ensue as people discover they can't use everyday words and phrases like, "Gayatollah, Tivo, Museum of Bridgplatica, Mineshaft" etc.
Posted by washerdreyer | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 10:30 AM
and "Wolfson"
Posted by Matt Weiner | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 10:35 AM
The political posts here tend to generate considered, earnest comments. Perhaps Heidegger will do the same.
Posted by Standpipe Bridgeplate | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 10:37 AM
I agree.
Posted by ben molfson | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 10:38 AM
While you're censoring certain words, you should also censor the German language in order to prevent those who know it from setting themselves apart by showing off.
Although the in-jokes about the Mineshaft do seem to have helped create gemeinschaft, I have to say.
Posted by eb | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 10:49 AM
eb is banned!
Posted by Matt Weiner | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 10:52 AM
Clicking on the "comments" link should take you to a page – in the very same, non-pop-up window – with the text of the post at the top, and the comments beneath it.
Posted by Standpipe Bridgeplate | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 10:57 AM
Und "is banned!" ist verboten.
Posted by Standpipe Bridgeplate | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 10:57 AM
Well played, eb!
Posted by apostropher | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 10:58 AM
Alles was nicht Pflicht ist, ist verboten.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 10:59 AM
The exception proves the rule!
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 11:00 AM
That was mean, molfson. If you were really clever, you'd have posted it in Dutch.
Posted by apostropher | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 11:08 AM
First a banning, then praise: the vicissitudes of unfogged.
Posted by eb | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 11:12 AM
This isn't really a site design issue, but it would be great if participants who actually know something about philosophy found themselves moved to link copiously to definitions, background reading, whatever, when they used technical terminology or addressed philosophical issues familiar from outside the text.
Posted by LizardBreath | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 3:19 PM
I assume that that will go on a lot in the first sections, which, as ogged has noted somewhere, lay a lot of groundwork and terminology &c.
Not that I want to do it because I found the beginning sections among the more baffling. Now, when you get into the late teens and twenties, all the Vorhandenheit & Zuhandenheit stuff, that's a lot easier.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 3:31 PM
Hopefully. I'm a little intimidated by my lack of a philosophy background. Expect most of my participation to be couched in the following terms: "Well, Ah'm jes' a li'l ol' country lawyer, but seems to me that..."
Posted by LizardBreath | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 3:38 PM
No no, I'm a stickler for plain English explanations, so we'll deal with the terms in the text as we come across them, but otherwise, try to avoid jargon. The whole point is for us all to go through it with fresh eyes and the benefit of lots of different perspectives.
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 3:41 PM
Warning. In the three years I have known her, I have never seen LizardBreath be intimidated by anything. Watch out for the "shucks, this philosophy stuff is too hard for my little brain" stuff. It's a set up. To what purpose, I do not know, but it is not to be believed.
You have been warned.
Posted by The Idealist | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 3:43 PM
"seems to me that" is the tip-off. Real country lawyers "reckon that".
Posted by eb | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 3:44 PM
OK, I'd like to join in the reading group too, but I know astonishingly little about formal philosophy. Jargon doesn't bother me when it's accurate so long as it's hyperlinked. Also, I will probably drop out as soon as the new Harry Potter is released. For a day or two at least.
Posted by Kriston | Link to this comment | 06- 3-05 3:49 PM
i have no idea if this constitutes a "feature," but in most webpages, if you follow a link, and then go back, the page reloads at the same place (in re scrolling) that you were when you followed the link. the comment mini-windows should do that too, damnit! do you have them set to default load at the bottom?
Posted by silvana | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 8:31 AM
Actually, yes, he does. It was taken out but people objected.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 8:34 AM
Do those people know about the "End" key? Or if the mouse is more their style, ogged could add a link at the top of the comments box that would scroll to the bottom when clicked. Just say "no" bottom-seeking comments boxes.
The only work-around I've found for the present behavior is:
1. Use Firefox.
2. Set new windows to appear as new tabs.
3. For links inside the comments box (tab), choose "open link in new tab".
4. Instead of clicking the "back" button, close the new window, and click on the tab you just came from.
5. All done! No more losing your place in the comments.
For obvious reasons I'd prefer that people who rely on the present behavior use the "End" key instead.
Posted by Standpipe Bridgeplate | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 9:06 AM
But this is how unfogged differentiates itself from other blogs, Standpipe.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 9:08 AM
To the bottom we go, because: I like it, I don't use the keyboard so "End" "Schmend", and I'm not adding a damn button.
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 9:13 AM
Don't use the keyboard much, obviously, not not at all.
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 9:15 AM
The time is ripe for an unfogged-specific Greasemonkey script.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 9:19 AM
Greasemonkey away. One thing I've learned is that any design decision is going to make some people happy, and annoy others, so personalization on the client side is all to the good.
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 9:22 AM
But this is how unfogged differentiates itself from other blogs, Standpipe.
Unfogged is already plenty different from other blogs. For another example in the same vein, the platform is Movable Type, but the comments are counterintuitively Haloscan-esque, popping up and omitting the text of the main post. Each post and its comments are intimately related, but the relationship is strained. Unfogged needs couples counseling (for itself and its partner, also itself) just as a structural matter. The least it could do is read some Deborah Tannen.
Posted by Standpipe Bridgeplate | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 9:27 AM
Do you have something to say, Bridgeplate?
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 9:33 AM
You just don't understand.
Posted by Standpipe Bridgeplate | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 9:35 AM
Quit sniveling and tell me what's wrong so I can fix it.
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 9:37 AM
—How do you like the site?
—The site is fine.
—So, you like it?
—Sure. It's a fine site.
—You can tell me what you really think, you know.
—What did I just do? I told you. Don't get so emotional.
Posted by Standpipe Bridgeplate | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 9:47 AM
Ogged's good at relationships.
Posted by Michael | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 9:47 AM
47: Monologue of the lonely web designer.
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 9:49 AM
Quit sniveling and tell me what's wrong so I can fix it.
This really does belong 5 threads up. Never, ever say this to a woman. Ever.
But if you do, please videotape for all to enjoy.
Posted by Chopper | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 10:00 AM
By the power of Greasemonkey!. This works for me.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 10:47 AM
Ben, I resent the implication that the site needs to be "fixed," but if you give me a description of what this does (and any instructions), I'll put a link to it in a post, so everyone who wants it can use it. Thanks for doing it, I think.
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 10:59 AM
It makes it so that opening the links to the comment threads doesn't automatically take you to the bottom. I, too, don't think unfogged needs fixing—but in the (darkened, perverted) minds of those who might want to use it, it is a fix.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 11:01 AM
And how does one use it?
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 11:02 AM
First, do no harm.
Then, use Firefox, and install the Greasemonkey extension.
Finally, right-click on the link above and select "install user script", or follow the link itself and select Tools -> Install User Script from the menu.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 11:05 AM
And that exclamation point followed by a period, Ben?
Posted by Matt Weiner | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 11:08 AM
What about it? It reads naturally to me.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 11:09 AM
I was just being mean, anyway.
Posted by Matt Weiner | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 11:10 AM
53: who you calling perverted?
Posted by silvana | Link to this comment | 06- 6-05 2:41 PM
Never, ever say this to a woman. Ever. But if you do, please videotape for all to enjoy.
Would it look like this, you think?
Posted by apostropher | Link to this comment | 06- 7-05 6:05 AM