Jeff Moffett
08-17-2006, 3:56 PM
There seems to be a lot of interest in turning assignments/contests, but SMC isn't organized in such a way to facilitate them very well. I'd like to propose a new forum called "Turner's Monthly Assignment". Here's how it could work:
A new or existing moderator would be assigned to this forum. He or she should be a respected, advanced woodturner who would not be permitted to enter a turning in the monthly assignment.
At the beginning of each month, the moderator would post three sticky messages:
"Vote for Next Assignment" - This message would allow each SMC member to vote for next month's assignment using the voting functionality. It would also provide a thread for people to post suggestions for future monthly assignments. The moderator would use those suggestions to setup the voting categories for the following month.
"Vote for Winner of Previous Assignment" - The moderator would select the best entries as finalists. The number of finalists would be up to the moderator each month and could vary based on the total number of entries and the quality of submissions. Pictures of each finalist along with voting buttons would be included in this message. Each SMC member could then vote for his or her favorite.
"Winner of Past Assignment" - After accumulating a month's worth of votes, the moderater would annouce 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place in this message.During the month, SMC members could submit an entry into the contest, but the turning must have been created during the month of the assigment. Each turner would only be allowed to submit one entry per assignment. Replacing an existing entry is fine. To be considered for the monthly assignment, the subject line of each entry must be in the following format: "#21: Title", where the number is the monthly assignment number and the title is the name of your piece.
I've seen this format work very well in a photography forum and figured the same organization could work on SMC as well. Since each entry has it's own thread starting with the assignment number, things stay pretty well organized. I also think this would be an attraction for new turners to join SMC. I joined the photography forum specifically so I could enter shots in the monthly assignment. PM me if you'd like to see the photography forum for an example.
Is this something you guys and gals would be interested in? If so, any additional thoughts?
A new or existing moderator would be assigned to this forum. He or she should be a respected, advanced woodturner who would not be permitted to enter a turning in the monthly assignment.
At the beginning of each month, the moderator would post three sticky messages:
"Vote for Next Assignment" - This message would allow each SMC member to vote for next month's assignment using the voting functionality. It would also provide a thread for people to post suggestions for future monthly assignments. The moderator would use those suggestions to setup the voting categories for the following month.
"Vote for Winner of Previous Assignment" - The moderator would select the best entries as finalists. The number of finalists would be up to the moderator each month and could vary based on the total number of entries and the quality of submissions. Pictures of each finalist along with voting buttons would be included in this message. Each SMC member could then vote for his or her favorite.
"Winner of Past Assignment" - After accumulating a month's worth of votes, the moderater would annouce 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place in this message.During the month, SMC members could submit an entry into the contest, but the turning must have been created during the month of the assigment. Each turner would only be allowed to submit one entry per assignment. Replacing an existing entry is fine. To be considered for the monthly assignment, the subject line of each entry must be in the following format: "#21: Title", where the number is the monthly assignment number and the title is the name of your piece.
I've seen this format work very well in a photography forum and figured the same organization could work on SMC as well. Since each entry has it's own thread starting with the assignment number, things stay pretty well organized. I also think this would be an attraction for new turners to join SMC. I joined the photography forum specifically so I could enter shots in the monthly assignment. PM me if you'd like to see the photography forum for an example.
Is this something you guys and gals would be interested in? If so, any additional thoughts?