Powerlink Lite users and forum access and stray threads

Question

Lately we've been getting more questions floating into the Coffee Break, the Powerlink, the Forums-support and the Linux forums. It's because these are people who can only see those forums.

The Linux Community forum is available to people who register on Powerlink as Lite users. That means that they don't have an email address that is registered as an EMC customer. They only get to see some parts of Powerlink.

I've started to mention this when I move those questions - they'll receive the emailed responses but not be able to enter the forum and give the points etc.

We had a discussion a year ago about opening forums. Now things have changed a bit and Erich and I have discovered how to open selected forums to Powerlink lite users.

I think that we could have a more forums open to Powerlink Lite users. Would this make people feel too public? It still wouldn't be the same as making it available to Google, and registering on Powerlink is likely to halt any but the serious minded.

Feedback? And mention which forums we might start with.

Thanks
Julie

julieg1 · Answer

The other discussions are herehttp://forums.emc.com/forums/thread.jspa?threadID=57659http://forums.emc.com/forums/thread.jspa?threadID=57719

dynamox · Answer

i just hope we don't start seeing all those annoying spam postings that you see in other public forums, even though they do require registrations as well. Value of the forums goes to nothing and people are reluctant to participate.

julieg1 · Answer

Right now I'm more thinking of removing forum privileges from the lite users entirely. It seems to be causing more headaches than not.J

ble1 · Answer

Right now I'm more thinking of removing forumprivileges from the lite users entirely. It seems tobe causing more headaches than not.Agree

dynamox · Answer

Julie,would you please clarify what powerlink lite users can and can not do ? I know you moved a thread from one of those users to Celerra forum. I'll be honest it's kind of tough to work on a technical problem without getting user's feedback. I am reluctant to recommend things of fear that it might break something without getting more details from the user about his technical problem.

julieg1 · Answer

Hi dynamox thanks for pointing this out - sorry about slow response - I've been off work for a week.

Right now the Lite people can do very little. They can't even see the forums just the Linux and a special lite forum.

I would like to open the forums more to the lite users, but this is a big change of approach. Meantime I'll open the Lite Users welcome area so that kind people can answer threads there.

Julie

ble1 · Answer

I really don't like that approach. If you have category X for product X then question about X should be handled under that forum. With this lite users forum now you get place where you get mix of questions for all EMC products (and not just that in theory). Surely, admin can move that later, but why creating more work...?

ble1 · Answer

Opening or not is pure EMC decision based on whatever these decisions are made on.

julieg1 · Answer

I also don't like it. It's just the best I can do for now.What I would like to do is open the forums to lite users. Can you see any reason why not in the Networker forums?Julie

ble1 · Answer

If forum is designed to serve registered users, what is the purpose of Lite users?

julieg1 · Answer

The Lite users are not registered as EMC customers, they are "Lite" in only that sense. They have registered on Powerlink but cannot access much of what is available there.

We opened the forums to lite users because of the Linux users forum, but it keeps showing up problems. They would post product questions into the wrong areas because they could not see the correct places.

Now I see that they will become a sub class who don't have access to the Powerlink knowledgebase solutions. It won't be good if they start to use the forums to accommodate that lack of access. We can't open the forums without causing more problems.

Maybe we have to close them again!!

J

dynamox · Answer

yeah ..it would be tough to help these users as we often refer to technical documentation, software download section, white papers ...and if lite users don't have access to those areas it will be frustrating for them as well as people trying to help them. Then you will get into ..'Hey dude ..can you email me that document/file ..etc'

ErinLucas · Answer

I think it's for laggy users

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Powerlink Lite users and forum access and stray threads

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