Personally I liked the old format better. That's just me though.

I don't want anything in return for posting but to be honest I think a lot of people don't feel welcome anymore.

Who is not welcome, and why? @leslie110

If you don't fit in to the ''clique'' here it can take a while to feel welcome. Take one look at your newest member, @Illinoisjarhead asked a question over 3 hours ago, Although I wish I knew the link to his answer, I don't. His thread does not appear very ''inviting'' JMODo you remember when I first became a member here and was ''grilled''...
Who are you?
Where are you from?
Why are you here?....Those were just a few of the questions I got hit with.

I get the email from Amy Blain that tells me what is going on in town. ExplorePeoria lets me know what is going on if I remember to check the website. I could post about what is going on close to me, but it would most likely be met with negative comments that sometimes border on vicious. As plans get firmed up, I could post about the Art on the Ave. or the East Bluff Sunrise 5K Run, but those would probably be met with some Facebook meme involving a disgusted look or head shaking. By the way, the next hike for Friends of Rocky Glen is May 7th from 10 - Noon. Unfortunately, I can't go since I work the East Bluff Food Pantry on Saturdays. The hike is worth it though. Check it out! friendsofrockyglen.o rg/gallery/

@RambleOn
That info is great @RambleOn - It's kind of crazy people get cliquish or meanspirited on here sometimes, it's so destructive to the community.

@Whit I don't think there was any problem with the thread from the newcomer...people just didn't know the answer, right? Can't force people to answer if they can't help.

@PeoriaDotCom You have many talented members here that are very good at finding proper links. I unfortunately, am not. The two replies I saw just seemed to dig at the term "Viking" and I think both of them are MUCH more knowledgeable to answer his question.
I feel confident others will.

@PeoriaDotCom : You just nailed it right there.

Sooooo.....The solution is, to make sure the ratio of useful / friendly / helpful posts, -to- snarky / aggressive / absolve posts, be what...at least 10 to 1......You can't force niceness or helpfulness on any crowd, but if the good stuff can greatly outnumber the bad stuff, you can create a real community and useful site...

@PeoriaDotCom As a relatively new member, I never saw your old format....but, breaking up topics seems like a solution . Kind of like when we sometimes click on the headline of an article just to be disappointed, there seem to be a lot of those here.

Someone said they sent me a pm but I didnt get it. Is that function working?

@Whit
I've been fighting the "categories vs no categories" battle for many years, I've spent a lot of time going back and forth, and experimenting with and without them. I just have to resolutely say that I don't want categories on the forums. I run a number of other forums that do incredibly well without them. That said, I know a number of people feel as you do, and it's a legitimate viewpoint.

You also have MANY helpful members here. I have seen countless threads where members have reached out to assist and help each other.

@Whit -- Yes!! We do have a lot of great people here.