So... I've been thinking on this for quite some time.

I run a forum for my wife, Society of Tortured Daughters-In-Law. It's been in exsistence for quite some time now, however, we just changed our name to the grammatically correct daughters-in-law in lieu of daughter-in-laws. While we have had registrations, participation has been low.

It being a "touchy" topic and having had a couple of "outings" by supposed mothers-in-law who have registered with us to tell their side of the story and/or argue with their DIL via the forum, I've been considering making the forums viewable only to registered members.

Women, more than men, value their privacy. (Us men 9/10 times could care less.)

Anyways, think because the forum is viewable to the public that it may be hindering participation? Do you think it's a good idea to make it so it's not viewable to the public?

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I'd say go private.

I dont think it will stop people from signing up, because it is a semi-private forum type, and people will probably understand that. DIL's probably will understand why it is private when they view it the first time.

There also aren't alot of these forums to my knowledge, so I dont see you losing any traffic to another site like it.

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Personally, I don't join any forum that requires me to log in to see anything. I at least want to know what I'm giving my ip address to before I do ANYTHING.

You don't have to make the entire forum viewable to guests. I find showing them a little, and letting them know there's more, is great incentive for registration.

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I'm the same way, DrkSnpr14.

I guess this is a "different" situation as it's a pretty "personal" topic.

I hear ya on the "preview" thing, though. Sounds like a good idea. I'll see what I can do on that front.

MyBB's so limited when it comes to that.

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Well I am the same, I normally don't bother to register at places that won't even let me see what I am getting into, but in this case, I think it is a good idea. I have seen your wife's site and it great! I don't think I would post though knowing my MIL could just pop on and see what I was saying. At least if she is registered I could tone it down a bit lol

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Thanks for the kind words, Cori. She feels the same about your site. (She's itching to become a parent. lol)

Anyways, I'll just have to think about some ways to close off some things.

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Your IP can easily be logged even if you don't register. I could understand being concerned about your email address though, but you should have a dedicated email address to use for joining stuff you're not sure about (can change to your real email later).

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True, it's more my info in general. I'd rather not give anything out unless I feel it will be safe

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No, i wouldn't make it private either. I'm a woman, and gosh, i'll talk if i want to. Damn MIL

BTW i'm gonna go sign up LOL

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Like some others in this thread, I always preach against making your forums private (only readable to members)...but I think that a situation like this calls for private forums.

There are definitely a lot of potential problems to be had with a public forum there, so I'd definitely consider making them private...if not totally private, at least partially private.

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