installing a flag option and rewording the TOS reminders twice.

You still cannot go directly to the actual post referenced in the sidebar reliably. It is very hit-and-miss and in general 2 or more page threads still required dragging down every page and straining to even find the post even so. The 'new!' tag doesn't always stay put while you do that.

If you start a new byline with the same or similar title others get confused that their comments were wiped en masse, although many can be found eventually. Hopefully you can correct these two problems in time.

Many of us have had several years experience in Usenet and discussion groups of other kinds. Maybe we agree a lot of it is swirling in an abyss of stuff. You've treated the forums differently than the actual newspaper while insisting it IS the newspaper online. That's weird. This isn't the paper, it's a series of forums based somewhat on the paper with parallel and separate features from the Idaho Statesman.

You have a distinct possibility that flagging or rating systems could easily backfire and lead to assassination by ratings. Been there, been though that with Google. Google is horribly out of touch with reality compared to the actual Usenet and it's thoroughly dismaying to see Yahoo squeezed like oranges as I have a good working experience with Yahoo, off the topic as it seems but there is a point. The point there is that Usenet is harder to find on many systems and not always affordable yet the "free" portal on Google if chock full o'spam and trolls that are actually filtered by either the Usenet providers or the users (you can't block in Google Groups) and the stars they use can be easily jammed at 1 until you are bumped. Anarchy is all too real at Google and the personal group users and owners are flabbergasted at the lack of service or Google even seemingly bothering to care about it. It's always brokenor halted and search is messed up plus the ad sidebar always tends to have Asian, Arabic and certainly porn links, to family groups' horror. Nobody knows what to do and demands ithe platform to accept and operate everything, which it's not remotely capable of doing yet answer are few and randomly dispatched by just TWO entities, GG1 and 2. Imaging how the PEERS trying to answer feel!

You either have a newspaper website or you don't. You can provide more content and less commentary options or you can charge a subscription like the Idaho Press Tribune to provide a duplicate of the printed issues. The Times in LA and NYC and many others provide content from the paper and place more advertisements then give you one story or a page before requiring a signin.

WYGIWYG or What you give is what you get. One either gets tired of junk of rolls with it. I've seen other sites adjust their forums and it involved going back to a basic form of the software and rebuilding. Problem is this isn't as functional as any of those were. It still creates an occasional object/line/character not expected error in IE 7 from time to time and can take a few refreshes to bring up AP items. Perhaps that is related to blocking the popups.

That horrid helicopter animation that infests the IS.com homepage when the Lifeflight banner appears can tend to almost halt the browser and refreshing can be a pain. I had enough of that on YAHOO (I corrected this, it IS Y!) when trying to check my mail, cars and Superman all over the page. Sliders are badly done too. The drop down menu is too sensitive and as bad as IE's menus. One hopes these items will be at least partially converted to click to use and close features as they greatly hinder the use.

In all fairness, critiquing the blogger's opening post can be fair game. You run a statewide publication yet the composition of some posts is either rife with casual errors not afforded them in the newspaper and some bloggers on your staff actually ENCOURAGE casuality. Establishing a balance or finding a uniform standard is critical or you will never be satisfied. You will confuse a lot of people.

You either want a menagerie or a tidy zoo. Hopefully you will acheive either and I wish you the best of progress.

It had to be said, regardless.

Nice post.

I will comment to Darlene though that from what I see (and I am not avidly commenting as much as many of the out-of-work bomb throwers are) comments are RARELY deleted. Even the most profane comments remain and the repeat offenders seem to keep their unfettered access as well.

I think you have the toughest job of all in some aspects Darlene because you not only get pressure from the commenter but also from the reporter who's work is being commented on.

Just do your best to be as impartial as possible and not let Kevin push you around. You have to think of it this way, common sense can determine "racist, profane, personal attacks or inside jokes completely off topic." If the comment does not violate it stays.

As for Kevin, while he may be an editor Darlene there are reasons why he has been passed over for the managing editor and publisher jobs (3-4 times now). So don’t worry that he is going to be in charge someday and make your life difficult. He will never be promoted so don't worry!

to make a personal attack against an Editor as well as some people who post here more frequently than he does.

Nice work, GOP.

I'm not going to follow suit naming them!