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A quick count reveals no less than twelve of the Groups Forums are specifically dedicated to American History whilst half this number are available for non-American subjects.Just two forums serve 1,000 years of Medieval History, and the Renaissance is restricted to only one specific area. European History post French Revolution is simply ignored (apart from the two World Wars) and there is no area for subjects relating to Middle Eastern or Asian topics.How about a bit more choice?? 🙁
Interesting observation. The problem is that it is rather difficult to divide history into neat compartments for discussion. It can be divided strictly by date, but this can hinder discussion of events which last longer than the defined era. It can be divided by event, but this can hinder discussion of many things which don't fall strictly under those event topics. It can also be divided by nation or region, but there are plenty of events which span multiple geographic areas. My choice thus far has been to adopt a combination of all three, though obviously it has its weaknesses.Rather than simply expanding the number of topics, what if I were to consolidate some of them into broader topics? For example, rather than having top categories of "The Middle Ages", "The Renaissance", and "Early Modern Europe", I were to put them all under a "Europe" top category? I could then consolidate some of the second-level categories (e.g. combine "The Medieval World" with "The Crusades", etc.). This way we would be left with broader topics that cover more while allowing room for bringing in new categories as you requested.By the way, the category "The Industrial Revolution" is supposed to cover European history post-French Revolution. Also, I didn't include Asian or Middle Eastern topics because this forum is geared toward Western Civilization. However, I realize that those areas have also played some part in Western development (Avicenna influenced European philosophy, for example), so perhaps I could add a category for something like that. I'm willing to listen.
Does the forum software limit the number of different catagories you can use? Maybe Hobilar can be more specific as to what he is looking for. I think it's better to keep things seperated so posts can be more specific to their subject matter, but thats my own personal taste.
Alright Holibar, I've been thinking and I shall try to present more variety on this forum in terms of categories. And no, Stumpfoot – as far as I know, I can have as many categories as I want. The problem is that it's not good to have categories that are so narrow that few people post in them. Visitors tend not to like those as much as more “popular” boards.What I can do, for example, is to combine the top level European categories (e.g. The Middle Ages, Early Modern History, etc.) into one top-level "European History" category. Then, I can do things with the sub-categories like combine the French Revolution into The Enlightenment board; merge The Crusades with the Medieval World, etc. I will also have to add some other boards that would cover historical periods not currently covered by the forum. I'll probably implement it tomorrow (U.S. date).
Why not reorganize your board along the lines of a university curriculum catalogue?? For example:European HistoryEuropean History to 1492European History from 1492-presentColonialismWorld War IWorld War IICold WarMedieval StudiesLow Middle AgesHigh Middle AgesU.S. HistoryU.S. History to 1865U.S. History from 1865-presentWorld War IGreat Depression and World War IICold War/ KoreaVietnam EraAncient WorldMesopotamian WorldGreco-Roman WorldJudaic StudiesLatin American StudiesAncient American CivilizationsThe ConquistaLatin America in the Modern World
Why not reorganize your board along the lines of a university curriculum catalogue? For example:European HistoryEuropean History to 1492European History from 1492-presentColonialismWorld War IWorld War IICold WarMedieval StudiesLow Middle AgesHigh Middle AgesU.S. HistoryU.S. History to 1865U.S. History from 1865-presentWorld War IGreat Depression and World War IICold War/ KoreaVietnam EraAncient WorldMesopotamian WorldGreco-Roman WorldJudaic StudiesLatin American StudiesAncient American CivilizationsThe ConquistaLatin America in the Modern World
Donnie, thank you for the suggestion. The problem that I see with what you presented is that some of those topics overlap. For example, American History 1865-present would overlap with the World Wars, Cold War, etc. Also, I have to determine how many people would know or be interested enough in the Low Middle Ages compared to the High Middle Ages to make it worth it. That said, I do need a topic which covers the Early Christian to Medieval period (i.e. 400 A.D. to about 1000 A.D.). That's a lot of history that I'd be interested in discussing but I don't really have a category for it yet.Stumpfoot, thanks for your input. I don't think I'd change much around with the U.S. History area, except maybe one thing or so. The European area is now more problematic.
Well they overlap because some of the boards are more event specific….kinda like a seminar devoted to that one event because of its magnitude.? World War II is such a huge event, it has to be discussed from different perspectives.? America's involvement was a completely different experience than Russia's for example.? Of course I was just offering a guidline.? There is no perfect way to divide history.? You have to settle on a theme for the board and stick to it.
One thing I want to ask you is how you're defining “Low Middle Ages”. I'd like to add a board to cover events after the fall of Rome (~400 A.D.) until the Middle Ages (perhaps Charlemagne ~800 A.D., or perhaps later ~1000 A.D.). Is this what you're referring to with LMA?I'm also thinking I might want to put some dates in the board descriptions for periods which might be confusing to some (such as the Low Middle Age vs. High Middle Age distinction). In my opinion, there's a break around the time of Charlemagne, and then another break around 1400 which is near the time of the early Renaissance (at least in Italy). The Renaissance then lasts until approximately 1550 or so.Another thing, what topic would better fit European history from about 1750 to 1900? Right now we have that under the Industrial Revolution, but is that really the best fit? Is there anything more descriptive?Perhaps I should arrange some of this according to timeline, rather than eras which are too narrow. For example, the Enlightenment was more of a philosophical description, but I need an area where people can chat just about military or politics during that time if they want. Thanks for all your help.
I suppose the Low Middle Ages would be from 476 A.D. (the fall of the Western Roman Empire) to say 1066 A.D. with the Battle of Hastings. The High Middle Ages would be from 1066 A.D. to 1492 A.D. ending with the Battle of Granada and the beginning of the Age of Exploration. Of course if you want to make Charlemagne's coronation the cutoff of the Low Middle Ages you can, but then if you are going to do that, I would revert back to the “Dark Ages” stemming from 476-800 A.D., then have the Low Middle Ages range from 800 to 1066 A.D. and the High Middle Ages from 1066-1492 A.D. These are traditional cutoffs, but you can choose your own of course because you are the emperor! (lol)
Thanks….as you can see I did some research and added that section as “Dark Ages” from 476 to 1000, which were dates in something I read. However, I think that a better break might end at 1066 like you said with William the Conquerer.
Alright Donnie – a question for you. I'd like to get rid of the board on the French Revolution by combining it into the Enlightenment board. Would this be proper? What is your view on the years of the Enlightenment? Arguably it began with Descartes, and lasted until about the time of the French Revolution.I really want to be able to put the years into the board descriptions (or at least some of them), and I fear that I am missing some parts of history by using era titles which are specific to a particular region.
