Discord brings back old-school message boards to help organize messy channels
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What was old is now new again: social messaging platform disagreement adds a feature very similar to classic Internet forums; the appropriately named Forum Channels.
Discord functions as a free chat room; people enter a channel to talk about whatever they want, with some moderation to keep things on topic. But the tricky part about this way of chatting is that it can be quite difficult to jump into a wildlife sanctuary because you have no idea where to start. The food rushes through you in a disorganized mess.
Now with forum channels (opens in new tab)Discord tries to dominate that clutter by offering specialized channels on a specific topic. The feature appears as a list of large subject messages with a subject title in bold. Click on one and you will be taken to that chat room where the comments will be placed in chronological order. Anyone can create these rooms, but only server administrators can create the forum channels themselves.
It’s basically like old-school forums. And it’s a bit ironic that Discord is adding forums while effectively replacing that way of communicating online.
Setting up
Discord states that the feature is currently rolling out to both the desktop and mobile app, so if you want to create one for your server, make sure to install the update when it arrives. It will roll out in waves over time. The company has a set of instructions for creating forum channels (opens in new tab) on her website. The gist is that you first create a new channel, select the Forum option, create some guidelines, set user permissions and you’re good to go.
The feature also comes with a search bar if you can’t find what you’re looking for and it supports AutoMod. One of the problems with old-school forums is moderation. Forums can get out of hand as people drift off topic and create posts hundreds of pages long with all kinds of content. AutoMod is a moderation tool that automatically cleans up Discord channels. For example, you can configure the tool to zoom in on derogatory words or off-topic discussions and block people who break the rules.
Discord’s API documentation has also been updated (opens in new tab) to include information on Forum Channels for anyone who wants to create bots for their channel.
When it first launched, Discord was seen as an alternative to online forums where you and your friends can have a private chat room. It is widely used by gaming communities as a way for fans to come together around their favorite titles. But as time went on, Discord grew to gargantuan proportions, so features have been steadily added to help manage the platform.
In addition to the aforementioned AutoMod, Discord recently released the introduction of text chats in voice channels (opens in new tab) allowing users to paste links, add reaction GIFs, or enter a message. The purpose of this update, according to Discord, was to take discussions away from the main channel by keeping it uncluttered. In addition, the platform recently expanded its Nitro offering with a basic plan that increases file upload, among other things.
If you’re a budding Discord moderator, Ditching has a range of guides to help you learn the tools of the trade, including how to manage emojis.