I was speaking of change, wasn’t I?
This weekend, I am completing some changes being made at MT Desk and MT Chat. There are also going to be changes involving MT Reference, but the impact will be felt less. Some people have received e-mails about the changes, some have seen my post at MT Chat. It’s a huge change, however, and I want to make sure as many people as possible are aware of it.
MT Chat is a discussion forum for medical transcriptionists. Originally, it was part of MT Desk. I imagine the owner at that time had good reasons for making it two different names and websites, but after a lot of consideration by me, I feel it’s time to marry them back together and put the whole kit and caboodle under one roof.
Changes at MT Chat
Regular users at MT Chat will feel the change most acutely. This is a very big change for anyone who participates regularly there.
Because the software that runs the wiki at MT Desk includes a forum, I’m going to be making MT Chat a read-only forum and ask that everyone start posting in the MT Desk forums. The look and feel of the wiki forums is very different from MT Chat. However, it’s still a forum. And the plus is that if you’re already a registered user at MT Desk, then you are able to use the forums without a separate registration and login.
The forums at MT Chat will remain available for people to view while I move the most-viewed posts to the articles section of MT Desk. At some point, MT Chat will just be redirected to the forums at MT Desk.
If you are a registered user of MT Chat and you have logged in at any time this year, you will be manually added to MT Desk. When that happens, you’ll receive an e-mail asking you to validate your registration at MT Desk; once you do, you can set a password and you’ll be good to go. If you registered at MT Desk with the same e-mail you used at MT Chat, you won’t receive an e-mail.
Changes at MT Reference
The directory listings at MT Reference are being moved to the new directory at MT Desk. When that’s complete, MT Reference will be forwarded to the directory at MT Desk, and it will be effectively closed.
Changes at MT Desk
The wiki software at MT Desk has been upgraded to better handle all these changes, and the forums and directory have been added.
The biggest impact is to registered users who have never logged in or have not logged in recently. Those registrations have all been suspended. Suspended users can log in but most of the functions allowed active users have been suspended. If you log in and you cannot post in the forums, suggest a link for the directory or comment on a wiki page, most likely your registration is in this category. All you need to do is send an e-mail through the MT Desk contact form or to the MT Desk admin, requesting that your account be reactivated. If you use the contact form, please provide the e-mail address you used for the registration. If you send e-mail, please use the e-mail account you used for your registration.
MT Desk is temporarily closed to new registrations until MT Chat is closed. You can still view the wiki pages, the directory and the forums if you aren’t logged in, but you won’t be able to post anything.
There is an internal messaging system at MT Desk that allows registered users to network with one another privately. However, this feature is only available to regular forum users. There’s been a lot of complaints about spamming going on through private messaging at MT Chat. Once a user has established himself or herself as a trusted user, they will be allowed access to this feature.
Registered users will have full access to their personal bookmarks feature, which allows them to create a list of favorite websites. There is also a mini calendar.
Why the changes?
In spite of the big change for MT Chat users, having everything at one site is much better for everyone. It means I only have one site to administer. It also makes people more aware of what is available at the MT Desk reference and style guide. There isn’t a lot of cross-over between the two sites, even though they were originally the same site. There is also some confusion, with people e-mailing me about MT Desk when they actually mean MT Chat. It also seems there are a lot of MT Chat users who aren’t even ware of the style guide at MT Desk. Having everything together gives me a better opportunity to complete the style guide and start working on additional services to offer medical transcriptionists at MT Desk. MT Reference is also an oft-overlooked resource in the medical transcription community. Even though these sites all share links with one another, my research shows there isn’t much crossover between them. I hope by integrating them all, everyone will make better use of the available resources.
I’m excited about these changes. I hope everyone embraces them and participates and provides feedback. So – see you at MT Desk!
Very disappointed in your multiple changes. Who has time to research numerous addys and emails as far back as 2009 and earlier when all we need is a quick response to an inquiry? I remember when this site was simple and extremely helpful. I’m outta here!