Collings Social Group

[Sherry Cadenhead]

I had planned to post a question in the Collings Social Group, but saw the last post was in October. Do those of you who are members check for new posts from time to time?

[F-2 Dave]

I joined the group when I bought my Collings a few years ago. I think that was the last time I checked in.

[Ray(T)]

Like many of the Social Groups, it seems to be irregularly frequented by its members. I joined the Collings group 11 months ago, when I bought my Collings mandola, asked a question but nobody has since troubled themselves to show the slightest interest.

[Mark Gunter]

It’s not a very active group, but yes Sherry, if you post you’ll get a response. Some of us get notifications when you post to groups we belong to.

[Rodney Riley]

And sometimes you catch a post cause it’s active in the news feed. I’m not a member of the group. Come close though, wife asked me if I was interested in this https://www.mandolincafe.com/ads/120112#120112 I’m interested of course, but can’t justify spending that much. Took my Weber out last Thursday for the first time since having a neck replacement a couple years ago. ‘Fraid the Collings would sit at home a lot too.

[Sherry Cadenhead]

Mark, can any of us receive those notifications?

[Sherry Cadenhead]

Like many of the Social Groups, it seems to be irregularly frequented by its members. I joined the Collings group 11 months ago, when I bought my Collings mandola, asked a question but nobody has since troubled themselves to show the slightest interest.

There's no reason Ray and I can't post our questions in the Forum, correct?

[HonketyHank]

Even if it is a question that is of unique interest to Collings owners, it makes sense to me to ask it in both the social group and out here in the open. I am a Collings owner who does not frequent the Collings social group; I suspect there are more. I don't belong to any of the brand specific groups but I do enjoy reading and participating in discussions that I would never see if they went on in a brand name social group.

[Jess L.]

... Some of us get notifications when you post to groups we belong to.

How do you set it up to get notifications? In the groups, I can find no way whatsoever to get any notifications of any kind, of new posts. The groups seem to be running on different software (or something) than the main forums here. It would be very helpful to get notifications for both the Song-a-Week and Newbies groups, but I don't see any way to do that. I've probably missed a ton of posts there, because of that. Thanks in advance for any info.

[Sherry Cadenhead]

I've now joined the group and posted my question there.

[Ray(T)]

It’s not a very active group, but yes Sherry, if you post you’ll get a response. Some of us get notifications when you post to groups we belong to.

My emphasis - Oh really!?

[Ray(T)]

There's no reason Ray and I can't post our questions in the Forum, correct?

No reason at all, Sherry, but you'd think that asking what strings people used on their Collings mandola would elicit the best response from the Collings group. Perhaps it would be better for me to leave it.

[Mandobar]

No reason at all, Sherry, but you'd think that asking what strings people used on their Collings mandola would elicit the best response from the Collings group. Perhaps it would be better for me to leave it.

Ray, I posted a response to your question. Also you might do a search on the forum about mandola strings. Lots of good info in a few threads.

[Sherry Cadenhead]

No reason at all, Sherry, but you'd think that asking what strings people used on their Collings mandola would elicit the best response from the Collings group. Perhaps it would be better for me to leave it.

I agree this group doesn't seem very "social," but no doubt there'd be a lot of traffic if members were notified of posts. I joined the TEXANS group months ago and mine is still the latest post. I probably go there once a month now and nothing has changed.

[Russ Jordan]

There is also a Collings forum with a mando section:
http://collingsforum.com/groupee/forums

[Sherry Cadenhead]

There is also a Collings forum with a mando section:
http://collingsforum.com/groupee/forums

Thanks, Russ. It's now on my Android home page!

[Russ Jordan]

How do you set it up to get notifications? In the groups, I can find no way whatsoever to get any notifications of any kind, of new posts. .........

When you are in the group page, go to Group Tools in upper right hand corner, then Subscribe To This Group, then you can choose daily or weekly notification by email.

[Caleb]

I always forget about the social group section and figure others do the same. Too much other stuff to see in the regular forums.

[Jess L.]

When you are in the group page, go to Group Tools in upper right hand corner, then Subscribe To This Group, then you can choose daily or weekly notification by email.

Russ, you're awesome! Thank you! I didn't know that was there. I just took a screenshot of it, I added the red circle:



Thanks again!

[Ray(T)]

Ray, I posted a response to your question. Also you might do a search on the forum about mandola strings. Lots of good info in a few threads.

Thanks for the reply. The reason I didn't rely on the main fora was because, if you ask for a string recommendation you're likely to get as many recommendations as there are makes of strings. I was specifically interested in what people were using on a particular mandola.

Unfortunately, on a brand new mandola, the sound of the instrument itself is likely to change faster than someone is able to compare string types.

[Sherry Cadenhead]

When you are in the group page, go to Group Tools in upper right hand corner, then Subscribe To This Group, then you can choose daily or weekly notification by email.

I did this also. I think I'll start a new thread to let folks know about it.

[Mark Gunter]

RayT - sorry, I didn't intend to say that everyone will always get a response on any possible question in that or any other social group. I know Sherry pretty well from the Newbies group and could anticipate her questions as a non-Collings owner. I saw your question in the Collings group before, but I do not own or have any info on a mandola (as yet).

So far as receiving notifications, simple, Russ has answered in post #17.

Regarding Social Groups in general, they are an extracurricular resource this site provides. Any member can start one. The amount of interest and traffic these groups get depends on how much interest the members have in socializing there and on promotion of the group I suppose. I belong to the Washburn group and to the Collings group, both of which are pretty much inactive. Other groups can be pretty active, for example the Newbies Group and the Song A Week Social.

Any question asked in a social group could be asked in the general forum instead, to be seen by a wider audience. There is some small art to asking a question in any forum; mainly, give your post a good title so folk will have some inkling what the post is about before they open it. Most forum users of any forum come to understand the importance of things like that in time.

Likewise, the social group feature of this forum has value, and for people who are members of the groups it becomes obvious that some are way more active than others. There is no need to join a group just because you own the instrument that the group is supposed to be about. And you can leave any group at any time.

[Ray(T)]

The trouble with asking a "What strings should I use?" or "What mandolin should I buy?" question on the general boards is that the answers tend towards a popularity contest. I wasn't really interested in what someone prefers on mandola x or y but specifically on a Collings. I assumed, perhaps wrongly, that several people in the Collings social group would have a mandola!

I would agree that some groups are more active than others. I joined the Holoubek group purely because I am one of the few people who own a Holoubek mandolin and that group maxed out at a total of 6 posts and nobody has posted anything since 2015.