Technical Help Forum

It's so we can easily locate a member with which we often correspond with, have met, or have pages we particularly find of interest. Instead of trying to keep track of their member names or typing them into a search every time, a quick glance at our friends' pages allows us to locate by photo, show us if they're online, and enable the system to provide birthday reminders. Marking members as a friend used to automatically add them to your list: brand new members used to use it as a bookmarking function to remember members who had helped them, were from their city/region, had pages they wanted to find again, etc. The function has since been changed so that members are only added to your list if you reciprocate an invitation. It's not a 'who can amass the most friends' thing.

Sorry - could have explained that better: The function has since been changed so that members are only added to each other's lists list if the members receiving friending invitations agree to them.

... I am perfectly happy being notified of a friend's Birthday. PJ

If someone is your 'friend' it means you can see when they are online (in your friends list) and get birthday notifications for them. I don't think it needs changing.

More thoughts: We relate to lots of people on VT whom we may not add as friends. I've added friends literally years after we've been 'conversing'; it's not a big deal and I would not really like it to become a big deal. I view my VT friends in two groups: those who are real friends (many of whom I've met in real life) and those who have added me as a friend and with whom I have interacted with sufficiently for me to reciprocate, sometimes just out of courtesy. It has nothing to do with 'favourite members' as such. My VT friends are not my 'favourites' in that sense. They are simply people with whom I enjoy conversations, usually about anything but travel. Some new members, however, do seem to use the 'friend' thing as a sort of bookmark.

when you visit any member page and interest his/her page,simply click "add to your favoret list" and no response be required , and keep track the new tips and updates as much as you can ,,, * every member will know how much members interest and tracking his/her page "I view my VT friends in two groups: those who are real friends (many of whom I've met in real life) and those who have added me as a friend and with whom I have interacted with sufficiently for me to reciprocate, sometimes just out of courtesy" So let’s give this feature the correct naming/meaning

I don't know if staff are going to add a 'favourite member' button. I personally see no need for one. But, given that many Vt-ers are actively friends with their VT friends (be it only in virtuality or in real-life as well) what else would we call VT friends except 'friends'? Why do you think the word 'friend' needs changing?

for matching (function & name) of the feature

But the word 'friend' does match the function and the feature, in both UK and Us usage of English with regard to the internet and websites. Why do you think it does not?

I think you misunderstand the purpose of the 'friend' function. For those of us who have been on the site for a while, VT friends are people with whom you have fun, chat, send emails, sometimes phone, sometimes meet at meetings or at other times...a 'connection', if you like. They are, in the main, far more than just members in whose pages you have an interest, although I know new members do sometimes use the 'friend' function as a sort of bookmarking/favourites feature. So perhaps there is a place for a 'favourite' or 'follow' button as well. But the VT friend feature, as far as I know, was and is not intended as a bookmarking/favourite function. I would not like to lose it and consider it to be very appropriately named. Friend: 1. A person whom one knows, likes, and trusts. 2. A person whom one knows; an acquaintance. 3. A person with whom one is allied in a struggle or cause; a comrade. 4. One who supports, sympathizes with, or patronizes a group, cause, or movement. and 'a contact on a social networking website'.

Ok ,,, fine leics Let’s take an example you & me • Currently in public discussion • Chatting isn’t VT feature • Calls not VT feature • I can send an email to you • I can real "all" your pages and personal pages • I can write in your home page • I can meet personal /general So what is the special (technically, functionally ….. ect ) for your friends rather than me this is the opient

for me, i am rather selective regarding friends as they have to be someone who has helped or i have helped several times, or maybe someone of a similar age who lives where i used to live, or just someone who is living in the same country, but most important is that we have a lot in common. It would also be outstanding if VT managed to produce a "chat " option !!!

>So what is the special (technically, functionally ….. ect ) for your friends rather than me The photos under our Friends lists allows us to locate quickly those we communicate with frequently, and see at a glance if they're online. Even though I've been on VT for some years now, I still have trouble sometimes correctly spelling some member names in a search box; finding those people by photo rather than by name is helpful. The birthday notices function is nice too. No need to change the name of the feature, IMHO; there are other upgrades we're a bit more anxious to see.

Yes goodfish, but when this “friends” feature be more special by areal function at that time will match with the name “friends” Let’s say accessing the personal pages only for friends

As I've already explained, it already IS special because of the ease it provides in locating friends quickly and being alerted of their birthdays. We don't need for it to be any more special than that - especially not for something like restricting page access to just people on the list. We can communicate privately VT mail if need be.

Yes davidjo , if a need a quick help from someone online then chatting will be helpful “one to one “ and limited time but chatting in general I don’t know

goodfish if I send to you a friendship request so will accept or reject and why ? nothing to think about it yes, because there is no that much meaning for this feature with my respect to whom in my “friend group” I stop collecting a member

No, I wouldn't necessarily accept. In fact, I only accept/issue a very few number of requests these days, and those tend to be from members I've 'known' for quite some time. I think we have some brand new members who confuse our Friends function with that of FB- where people tend to collect a long, long list for whatever reason. And as mentioned, newbies also used to use the list as a bookmarking function for helpful members they wanted to easily find again; a click on "add as a friend" used to automatically add that person to your list. They've since changed that so that now BOTH members must agree before being added to a list. This eliminates some issues we were having with a few newbies who appeared to have no interest in the site other than amassing a collection of female 'friends' - who were not really 'friends' at all and had no wish to be added to those lists.

@S.VTM. i think it would be nice to have a chat room so a few people could join in a conversation on various subjects like Everest trek where VTers have trekked who would be discussing the pros and cons with a member who is considering trekking, so he or she can get everyone's opinion.

I only accept/issue a very few number of requests these days, and those tend to be from members I've 'known' for quite some time. • so what they have more than others .. I think we have some brand new members who confuse our Friends function with that of FB- where people tend to collect a long, long list for whatever reason • for me I know this is not social site and no comparison with FB or another ,but how to solve or eliminate the confuse They've since changed that so that now BOTH members must agree before being added to a list • To be real or virtual ;)

Absolutely agree with you S.VTM, as i am a member of FB and have many requests which i have turned down. I think there are less than 40 on my list, all relatives and people that i have known for up to 40 years. Basically i have no friends that have just popped up from nowhere, but wouldn't be nice to have this conversation on live chat instead of these laborious messages and having to check for notices.

I give up - not worth any further argument. Suffice it to say I think it's fine: no confusion and no need for a change. VT has bigger improvements that are being/preparing to be tackled, and have come a long way from where it was some years back. As a brand new member, it might be advisable to spend some time with the site and get comfortable with how it and many of the long term, more active members operate? I"m also not a proponent of live chat. The consensus among many here is that it would be difficult to virtually (no pun intended) impossible to moderate.

Later this year, you'll be able to follow and be notified of things that your friends do, like add new pages, create travelogues etc.

There will also be a messaging system with the facility to block members. Vt once had a chat room. I do not see the need for one now. Chatrooms are not only a total nightmare to moderate but, quite frankly, things have moved on since they were popular. The new IM system will be much quicker than Vtmails and (I think) enable real-time chat (if members wish), like the chat facility on FB and Skype. But when it comes to friends...well, let's just say that the term has been in use for many years and, from my experience, there really doesn't seem to be any issue with its meaning amongst the vast majority of members.

Sounds good Gampiero, and Leics i will be happy to have a message/talk facility like you are suggesting is on the way. good idea to be able to block members too.

You can already block a member, just not from messaging yet...just from comments and from friending you.

Gampiero, useful information, i did not know you could block members!

Hi...look at the bottom right of any member's profile page...:)