Opinion needed please before we get busy - yes I AM AN OPTIMIST LOL

[tinkerbell]

I am asking for a general review of our forum now before it is up and running 100%. There is a very good reason for this:

1. I need the review before I get members under 17. Once I have under 17 year old members I cant give you full access as that area will be locked out to all those over 17 and those of you here under 17 wouldnt see the over 17s sections.

I know that COPPA sets the limit at 13 the reason why I have chosen 17 is purely due to help with school subjects as I dont want to be repeating my self in both areas.

If a member of 13, 14, 15 or 16 wishes to be in the other area they can always email me as adult material will not be featured on the site anyway. The isolation between the two has more to do with direct contact between members, I haev to have a record of who is in touch with our members under 13 for there own safety.

The aim is to build a forum like no other out there, which is a safe environment for children while catering for adults within families as well. This isnt a small project but one that requires a lot of thought, work and getting it right.

I have set up 2 usernames for you to use over these next 14 days but i am posting them here and not on our forum.

login 1

username: test
password: letmein

This log in lets you see all areas and go anywhere except our mod lounge and is what the staff see.

login 2

username: test 2
password: letmein

This log in gives you the same access as our new adult members and is set as a free trial for 14 days. Once this trial period is over a few forums become subscription forums and can not be accessed.

Now the important bit the link to our homepage:

http://globalfamilyforum.com/

Basically have we missed anything??? and do the threads in this section take too long to open http://globalfamilyforum.com/forumdisplay.php?f=7

Karen

[peterska2]

Nice style, and a good idea.

IMO, you have a few too many banners, especially in your header as they distract away from the content instead of being secondary to it.

I would consider changing the status icons and buttons with some that will batter match your style, but apart from that it does look good.

[tinkerbell]

Thank you peterska2.

Template altered and one header banner bites the dust, lol. Now to continue building and look at status icons and buttons.;)

Karen

[peterska2]

Thats a lot better already :)

You could put your remaining banner and text into the same table as your logo and align it to the right which would streamline the header even more.

[Freesteyelz]

Off the bat I like the premise of your site; Before I read the information provided I was already comfortable being there. Everything you need to know about your site is layed out in the home page. It's not fancy by graphic standards yet visually it is catchy. The globe in the background is a nice touch. *Cute dog too* :)

The forums are well spread out. I see adult and children specific forums as well as inclusion forums for all. Is it too much in the early stages of site development, only time will tell.

I'm sure you and your two partners have gone over COPPA regulations so I won't go over it in detail. I've read both adult and childs TOS statements and I'm curious about locking the under the age of 17 forums to adults. Can I assume that there will be moderators provided for these forums? Also, while I'm not a parent myself I do work with many and understand the concerns they have for their children. Will these parents at least be allowed to surf in the children forums to monitor their activity?

[tinkerbell]

Peterska - Agreed and will work on it.

Freesteyelz

Good point and something I hadnt thought about - parents surfing to monitor their own childrens posting and replies - and one I will think about seriously. Yes the forums will be moderated I already have 2 moderators dedicated to that area.

A Senior Software Manager from a very very large computer company has told me that I cant possibly even hope to lock down a childrens area within a forum secure enough for it to be safe - I dont see why not.

Yes I have gone over COPPA, when a child under 13 registers the permission form is sent to the parents of that child and I have to recieve it back with contact information before they gain admittance. For now I am the only one to hold parents information and child contact information and I hold it on hard copy, not on the computer. The login details for that child are also sent to the parents for the parent to be able to login and check that childs profile so your question above is answered if a parent logs in as the child they can surf that area.

My staff with access to that area have to send me their id in hard copy, the two staff I have at present I have also known for the past 18 months and worked with.

Because we have disabled the direct contact on the forum we have set up the contact centers and where as its not important to monitor the adult contact center, for the under 17s contact center I hold the records of who is in contact with whom, again on hard copy not on forum or the computer.

I have waiting to get started one of the teachers from the AOL homework help desk to help with homework and I am approaching Head Teachers and teachers of schools in the UK and Spain to help with this area. A good teacher isnt interested in money but interested in the child that needs help, I am one of those teachers and there are more out there. I am confident the forum will make a revenue eventually but I am in no hurry.

As I said above this forum will be like no other - it will be comprehensive for educational help for children and adults, it will be fun while being informative to all. This is no small project and I will be calling for help from time to time in here I am sure, after all the experts of this software are here:D

One final thing here - the private messaging feature is enabled at the moment however this is only until I change the code to enable the quiz results to be shown on the forum rather than sent via PM. If I dont adjust this before my next under 17 member joins I will be disabling the PM and temporarily taking the quiz offline. The one under 17 member there at present is my son, he's 16 and I have now worries about him and the PM.

The key is communication and I intend to work with parents of our child members so that the child is as safe as humanly possible on the site and the parents feel confident that they can contact me with any concerns they may have either via post, email or telephone.

Any other questions please ask and if I have forgotten anything please let me know I am an over protective parent that thinks the children should have access to the internet for help and to make friends globally and in safety and that is my goal. The goal of my partners is to make this forum successful, lol.

Things I cant cover
1. hackers (which is why information is kept on hard copy and not the computer or forum)
2. the child entering a false date of birth (the areas have to be geared to the age groups to minimalise this)

Thank you for all you questions and comments and suggestions, I will take all on board.

Karen

[Freesteyelz]

As you've pointed out in #2 there won't be a 100% safeguard against fraudulent information but we do what we can to minimize them. I did like the fact, as I've read in your TOS, that parents can contact you via phone as well as e-mail and forum.

Yes, a good teacher's interest should focus on the well-being of the child and their families. Creating a resource network geared for families is a great idea. It has been done before but there's always a need for more. Especially in today's society the focus of the family structure has gone a bit off-course and I think it is in our best interest to build it back solid. A community such as yours will give families a fighting chance.

I praise you for what you're working towards and I hope that your community will flourish. :)