And the closed threads are going to move off the server, is that right?

Once DXM works his magic, yes, I believe so.

t edit Actually, not off server, but off the database.

Plei, can you please help me remember. . . Keep Bitchy Fic opened but possibly renamed and close PPO and Anthology. Did I get that correct?

Keep the Bitchy Fic thread open (maybe rename it Buffista Fic or something) and close PPO and Anthology, yes. PPO fic might as well go in BF, as BF has expanded to where it's no longer just Spike, and no longer just Buffyverse.

I was objecting to the mischaracterization that I was saying UnAms could discuss in all 6 threads.

Read my post again. I never said that you said UnAms could discuss in all 6 threads.

You keep saying UnAms can discuss in 3 threads: Buffy, Natter, UnAm. I feel Buffy should remain essentially Buffy; Natter is for nattering and by definiton Angel talk is not Natter - it's on topic; and UnAms is a subcommunity of it's own. And you leave out NorthAms who are seeing the syndicated episodes for the first time. Should they go to UnAm? Buffy? Natter? Angel? Bitches? None of those places seem right to me.

X-posted with a lot of recent stuff. Taking a breath and going to find some chocolate. (And for all the numbersluts - Pffffffttttt.)

I never said that you said UnAms could discuss in all 6 threads.

No, you didn't. But I'm unsure of the implications of these statements of yours:

I felt that if a thread is not UnAm safe, then it shouldn't be considered as one of 5 possible threads to replace Previously.

and

To say that there are six threads to discuss Angel previouslies so let's get rid of one of them is unfair.

- if that isn't a reasonable conclusion for me to be drawing. I'd thought we'd already cleared that up though, until I came back and read your post.

Now I don't know what to think and don't really want to. Can we drop that part of the conversation, and just talk about why we do or don't think the thread is close-able?

...

Point by point, you said:

I feel Buffy should remain essentially Buffy;

I too, feel Buffy should remain essentially Buffy.

Natter is for nattering and by definiton Angel talk is not Natter - it's on topic;

Lots of TV shows are relegated to Natter. Angel and Buffy both come up in Natter from time to time. If we don't tighten our belt, there may be no more board for either natter or topic.

and UnAms is a subcommunity of it's own.

I agree. UnAms is a subcommunity of its own, that was created to give UnAm Buffistas a place safe from NAFDA spoilers. And if people arguing in favor of keeping Previously and repurposing it as a Previously on Angel thread, because the UnAms need a safe-for-UnAms conversation venue, then I'm going to point out the ones that already exist.

And you leave out NorthAms who are seeing the syndicated episodes for the first time. Should they go to UnAm? Buffy? Natter? Angel? Bitches? None of those places seem right to me.

NAFDA posters can post about Angel in more threads than anyone else. They can go to UnAm, but they don't have to. They can post in Angel. They can post in Atlantic Canadians and Bitches as well. We've always ALSO talked about old episodes in the main show threads. It's not as if NAFDA was always only current season, with no mention of seasons past. The topic is allowable in the other threads you mention too, because (aside from spoiler rules) we don't restrict topic.

Regardless, I'm not trying to assign anyone to any of those threads, or recommend one over the other. I am only pointing out other possible venues for the discussion of Angel reruns, and began doing so, when people were defending "Previously" as if there were no other venue to talk about Angel reruns, either with or without UnAm Buffistas in the mix.

I am saying that "Previously" is far from the only place where we can (do, and have) talk(ed) about Angel, whether or not we're Ams or Uns or a mixed group. There are even places we can talk together, all we have to do is the getting together part, and that doesn't need to be legislated, it can just happen naturally.

Many discussions are expected to share space. More will after this ballot is decided.

Is it (Previously) a nice luxury to have? Absolutely! It's not like I hate the Previously thread. But when...

• we can't open any new threads
  
• we're talking about cutting all sorts of threads
  
• we're breaking the terms of our agreement with our host and could be bounced
  
• we're having our techies spend time scanning code for connections that aren't closing

...well then, keeping a unique thread for a discussion that can (and to some extent has) happened in other threads that aren't on the chopping block, and won't be - keeping Previously and repurposing it for Angel reruns is an extravagance that I think we can do without. You think it is not.

I don't agree with the notion that the only reason to keep Previously open is for UnAm safe discussion. That's a benefit, but not the main reason it's nice to have.

Plei, I harped on it, because it's the one people kept bringing up in defense of "Previously". All the stuff we're talking about cutting is nice to have, and some threads (Angel Spoilers Lite comes to mind - even though I recommended we dump it, too) seem to me to serve a much more unique purpose than does the "Previously" thread. Even when BtVS was an active show, the FX BtVS rerun discussion wasn't confined to "Previously".

What Plei said. Yes. This all makes sense to me. I'd also, personally, be happy enough to merge Smallville with Due South, because there's a fair bit of aesthetic overlap imho - it's the bit Pulp HoYay thing. I totally wouldn't add Farscape to the mix, or make it a general telly thread, but I think SV and DS could be merged without much discomfort.

I have a strong urge to be a brat and note that Angel is being syndicated in the US, not abroad, and therefore the UnAms may not be feeling the same deep, heartfelt need to discuss each syndicated episode as it airs. But hey, I could be wrong.

Okay, I'll go away now.

OK, here's a draft of summary arguments for and against the ballot items. For some items, I haven't seen any arguments against.For others, I'm not familiar enough with the particular threads to write anything coherent. Feel free to suggest additions or changes, but please keep them brief -- we don't want an essay -- just a few sentences at most.

Preamble: Eleven ballot questions?! WTF!?!
The last Buffy episode has been aired in the US, Canada, UK, Australia, New Zealand, etc., and some of our threads have become redundant. It's housecleaning time! To the extent possible, it's best to get this all out of the way now, before the US fall TV season begins. In addition, we recently learned that our current usage is overloading our server. We are working on coding changes to improve this, so there's no need to panic and implement draconian cuts, but removing redundancies on our board will help the situation.
[added the morning after]

1) Close Buffista Corp:
For: Very low traffic. No posts for nearly three months. I have seen no arguments against.

2) Close Buffy Quotable after Death Matches Finish:
For: With no new Buffy episodes, this can easily be folded into the regular Buffy thread. I have seen no arguments against.
[edited to clarify post-death-match]

3) Close Firefly Quotable:
For: There are only 12 episodes out there so this can easily be folded into the regular Firefly thread.
Against: 3 of those 12 episodes have not yet aired in the US. We should wait until sometime after the complete series is released on DVD in December before closing this thread.

4) Close Previously:
For: Old Buffy eps can now be discussed in the main Buffy thread. Old Angel eps can be discussed in the main Angel thread, in Natter, in Unamerican, or even in Buffy. In fact, historically, old episode discussions have always taken place over several different threads. Also, since only North Americans are getting Angel reruns, RestOfTheWorldistas may not feel the same pressing need to discuss them.
Against: With Angel starting up in syndication this Fall, it will be frustrating not to have a central place where old Angels can be discussed. The main Angel thread won't work -- Unamericans won't want to be spoiled on current episodes (whether or not they have to same pressing need for discussion, it's still unfair to exclude them). The other suggested threads all have other purposes. While it's true that discussions have historically taken place over several different threads, you could say the same about almost any topic of discussion. Most of it still takes place in Previously.
[edited to include Cindy's comments]

5) Change Previously Slug:
For: If item 4 fails to pass, then this follows logically. Old Buffy episodes can be discussed in the main Buffy thread since there's nothing new to discuss there anymore (sob). I have seen no arguments against.

6) Consolidate Due South, Smallville and Farscape:
For: These shows are all genre, pulp or HoYay shows. The threads have many of the same posters and/or posters with similar interests. Combining them would allow posters to respond to more posts in the same thread, rather than spreading their responses across two or three threads.
Against: Each has, to some extent, become a subcommunity. Those who watch one particular show do not want to wade through discussion of the other two to discuss their particular show. Those who have not yet seen one or more of the shows may not wish to be spoiled on show(s) they haven't seen. It is also feared it could become a general TV thread which could increase, rather than decrease, the overall thread traffic.
[Thanks Deena!]

7) Close Buffy Spoilers Lite:
For: No new Buffy episodes means no new spoilers! I have seen no arguments against.

8) Change Buffy/Angel Spoilers to Angel Spoilers:
For: No new Buffy episodes means no new spoilers! I have seen no arguments against.

9) Consolidate PPO, Bitchy Fic and Bitches' Anthology:
For: Fic of all stripes seems to be focusing in Bitchy Fic (see PPO) and the project for which Anthology was designed is currently waiting for people to spare attention for it.
Against: none seen, but the PPO folks may not want to lose their focus.
[Thanks Connie!]

10) Close F2F thread until planning for the next F2F:
For: This thread was intended to plan only our big annual F2F events. Small, regional events can be announced in Press and/or Natter with details worked out there or via email.
Against: For smaller events, it's hard to wade through Natter and email is inefficient.

11) Close Angel Spoilage Lite:
For: You can learn about casting and other "lite" spoilers by visiting TVguide.com (or other websites), emailing one of our known spoiler whores, or by writing in the main thread "I'd like a rumor confirmed. Can someone help me?" You can also jump to the end of the regular Spoilers thread to do this.
Against: Some people visit Spoilers Lite to read about casting spoilers they might not have otherwise known about. You can't ask a question about a spoiler if you don't know that the spoiler exists. The main thread has a very strict spoiler policy, while TVGuide.com (and other websites) often give away plot-points and other more "hardcore" spoilers. We should continue to have a central place to learn about non-plot-point-specific spoilers like casting news.
[edited to include Cindy's comments]

2) Close Buffy Quotable:

I have seen no arguments against.

There is a "wait for the end of the death matches" faction on this one, though the current method of voting may be contributing to the problem.

6) Consolidate Due South, Smallville and Farscape:

I need help with this one.

Hmm... I could probably help, but not tonight. I'm for bed, soon.

9) Consolidate PPO, Bitchy Fic and Bitches' Anthology:

Pro: Fic of all stripes seems to be focusing in Bitchy Fic (see PPO) and the project for which Anthology was designed is currently waiting for people to spare attention for it.

Con: none seen, but the PPO folks may not want to lose their focus

There is a "wait for the end of the death matches" faction on this one

I was abbreviating. That will be written in the ballot question.

Thanks Connie. I'll edit that in.