Thread: Removal of the Computer Science subforum

The computer science subforum is the least populated, and least used, of all subforums in current existence. The majority of threads there are homework question threads, and those that aren't generally ask questions about fixing computers. Thus being more of a "computer help" subforum than a "computer science" one. Due to its general lack of activity and poor activity at that, I advocate its removal. I admit there are a few good discussions there, but due to their infrequency I question the need for such a subforum when many websites dedicated to it already exist.

On top of that there hasn't even been a nomination for a moderator since the nominations began, making the subforum even more trashy. If the consensus is not to remove it, then I advocate swift nomination of someone to moderate it and clean it up. With at least a volunteer so people have an idea as to who to nominate.

Yay - but this one may be dear to (In)Sanity.

Curious that so many would vote "no" without even a single response as to why. Perhaps my reputation matters more than my idea.

i voted "no", because my opinion is that, in order to delete a subforum, it needs to be shown that its existence is actually detrimental to the forum
whilst it may not be the most popular part of the forum, i don't think there's any evidence that it does any harm

It's not causing any problems at this time. We actually get a large number of new members who are looking for a good computer science forum. The problem with the forum is that it's too broad to be a real computer science area. We would need sections on various languages, hardware, software, etc. The internet is saturated with forums that specialize in exact computer science related topics, such as C++. Having a computer science forum here is more for completeness then anything else.

It seems fine to me, just because there isn't anyone there now, doesn't mean that there won't be in the future. Besides finding tech wiz kids on computers on a forum like this may take a while. They've got to work out the drok yet.

I think its best to wait a while and see if we get any takers. Besides there are forums out there dedicated to computer science so people will look for them. Most often than not, CS trained knowledgable people are probably the opposite of us in which we focus on the three main sciences as a whole and looked here for this forum as 'science'. Not computer science. Anyone likely to be wanting to find a CS sub forum in a science forum wouldn't bother, unless they were willing to share their knowledge.

On a final note, most people here on this forum only have a fair and reasonable amount of well rounded knowledge anyway, with the tech guys and gals who know all kinds of technical and professional information in the specific topics of say physics or biology being the moderators. Which makes perfect sense to me.

What would fit is someone who is interested in science as a whole and wishing to talk about it, yet having professional knowledge speicifc to computer science. We have yet to meet this person.

Keep the sub forum, one day we might get someone knowledgable on CS and lose them, because we don't have a CS fourm. And seeing as we don't already have one, I'd say we'd lose out.

Yay.

Computer science is kind of a bastard science IMO anyways.

computer science is advanced plumbing

Originally Posted by SuperflyTNT

It seems fine to me, just because there isn't anyone there now, doesn't mean that there won't be in the future.

It seems to me that, just because there aren't unicorns now, doesn't mean there won't be in the future.

The computer science forum has been around for many years, and in all those years it hasn't improved.

Originally Posted by marnixR

computer science is advanced plumbing

Being a computer science and electronics guy, not hardly. Whole lot of physics going on as well. Computers at such high clock speeds as we see today are very much an exact science. Back in the 80's your statement was a little more true.

ahem, i WAS joking - i was referring to a senior manager at work who once famously said "why do you need a director for IT ? you might as well have a director for plumbing"

Originally Posted by Darius

It seems to me that, just because there aren't unicorns now, doesn't mean there won't be in the future.

The computer science forum has been around for many years, and in all those years it hasn't improved.

People come and go. All that has to happen is for a couple of computer science geeks to show up and start discussing computers. Not long ago the math subforum here was a ghost town. Now we have several members there who really know their stuff.

How exactly does the subforum bother you and what will improve if we get rid of it?

Originally Posted by Harold14370

How exactly does the subforum bother you and what will improve if we get rid of it?

You could use that exact arguement to support keeping a subforum called "Unicorns, leprochauns and count chocula: discussion of why they are real and why if you don't believe you are wrong"

Not saying that anyone here would, cept maybe a few people in pseudo

If you got rid of it, knowing your luck the next day you'd have a tech wiz join the forum saying 'where's CS?'. You'd bring it back, and then you'd find they never return. Might as well leave the bridge open even if nobody is crossing it.

Originally Posted by mormoopid

You could use that exact arguement to support keeping a subforum called "Unicorns, leprochauns and count chocula: discussion of why they are real and why if you don't believe you are wrong"

It was a rumour on the internet that just such a sub-forum existed here that first led me to the site. Overcoming my initial disappointment that reality and fantasy were different, I elected to stay.

Leave the sub-forum open. If the forum membership grows it may become more active in future.

Why do you guys care if the subforum stays or not. It may not be doing anything positive, but it sure ain't doin' anything nrgstivr. Its a purely nuetral force. Heres what I say: Give it another 2 monthes and if it stays the least populated, axe it!