Yep- the closest thing that works here is the automated 'Trending' function if you select 'Hot' instead of 'Newest' posts- that last about 24-48 hours before dropping off the edge of interest.

That's part of why I said it should just be a personal recommendations, not an Official "Best Of" listing. No points, no submission process, no competitions just Mods, Admins, whoever wants really, saying "hey - I thought these posts were neat - check them out! And if you like these picks, here's other recommendations I've made in the past." As it is decentralized and non-official, anyone can curate a list of posts they thought deserve some more love and attention.

If you think it'll improve things then give it a go. I don't see it working- but I'm the first person to say give that wacky idea a shot- you just never know

Improve things? Again, what exactly is the "FAQ Category" idea supposed to improve? The suggestion is that it both would somehow reduce or weed-out repeat "theory" topics (which, judging by posting history, are clearly the most popular topics) and yet highlight "decent discussion" (which somehow is neither popular enough by number of posts, replies, or upvotes to be Trending). The implied statement is that "decent discussion" isn't getting the attention it deserves, although obviously most people don't want to participate in it.

The Frequently Asked Questions are not "decent discussion" topics - they are popular, casual subjects that fans of any level can participate in. That's why when Staff posts here they are "What's your favorite X?" type questions because nearly everyone can, and often do, reply.

What you want is a curated list of "good" discussions - which anyone can make and highlight them anyway they want based on their own interests. There is nothing stopping any individual(s) from making a "Slug Club" or MN Academia-like group that regularly contributes meaningful posts for decent discussion which could be highlighted, summarized, crosslinked, etc. What constitutes a meaningful topic and "decent discussion" could vary between differing groups, weeks, etc. with some posts focusing on literary analysis, series predictions, fanfic book club, HP chapter reviews, or whatever there is interest in.

TL;DR - The FAQs are the casual posts you keep seeing. There is no single centralized standard of "decent discussion" so its up to users to curate a list of posts they are interested in order to help draw attention, and hopefully participation, to those topics.

I wasn't even talking about the FAQ idea. I was saying give your idea a go.

U mad bro?

I gave up on FAQ 5 hours ago

I was, and still am, trying to clear up what the things are that you feel need improving. No reason to try out solutions when the goals aren't yet understood.

The intent behind the "FAQ" idea seems like an odd mix of trying to filter out the mass of "theory" topics (the actual FAQs by definition) and/or group together the "decent discussion" topics (a minority selection of posts by whatever criteria that is judged). The Golden Quill awards was a regular post designed to highlight a group of "decent discussion" posts, but ran into issues as people felt jilted by not having their contributions "officially" recognized. Which makes sense - why should one user's "Scientific Nature of Spells" discussion be more "valid", "valued", "important", or "superior" to someone else's extensive and highly-participated-in roleplay? What does highlighting and awarding one type of post over everything else accomplish other than to alienate the fans of and contributors to the mass of entertaining, fun, casual, and demonstrably most popular topics?

It seems there is little to be gained by "officially" choosing the "best" posts. However, fans of these different interests can self-organize and create their lists of own favorite posts any time they want. Again, if user(s) wants to create a "Decent Discussion" club and organize topics, they are welcome to do so. But to try and have some official ranking or categorization of posts as "better than others" does not appear to be supportive of, or productive for, the fandom as a whole.

ETA: No, not mad at all. Sorry if it seems that way, just trying to sort out what was intended as many of your posts on this topic are laden with value judgments about what is "decent discussion" - as this is only your opinion, who would know what posts qualify other than you?

Mate.

I'm more than happy to let it go.

I've only ever wanted to help out, and that's why I stick my neck out on a hunch.

I see similar sites with ten times the content and upvotes in the thousands.. where are we going wrong? I don't know- but at least I'll have a go.

You don't need to be angry. It's totally not worth it.

Sigh... As I said already, I'm not angry though I do grow tired of repeating myself. This tendency to goad and prod doesn't serve you well.

You feel there is something wrong with Discussions - okay. Yet the problem for you seems to be there are too many posts to scroll through to find something you like? So Discussions appears to be working fine for many other people. If there are topics you'd like to see, please add them. Everyone is equally able to make posts that reflect their Harry Potter interests. I'm sure there is a contingent of users that also share those interests and would contribute, although they are unlikely to outnumber the vast population of casual users who are just here to have a bit of fun.

I wasn't goading or prodding, but whatever.

Your ETA was an edit that I didn't see at first.

When you throw in your "a mature discussion on how it would be used best" comment and try to repeatedly cast my replies as being angry simply because I'm trying to sort out the contradictions in the suggested change, it certainly appears you are trying to goad and provoke. Perhaps leave such aspersions at the door next time? It should be clear they are not going to be well received.

That said, I look forward to whatever new topics or contributions arising from this conversation that help improve Discussions.

ETA: I wouldn't have to constantly ETA my replies if you didn't keep editing your posts either... :)