Is that the speech bubble with three apostrophes?
OK - or is that a confident speaker badge?
I think the bubble on Slack is to do with people you have had conversations with on a seperate thread - but Iām not sure, Iām still finding my way around it. The āon a callā icon is a little phone handset.
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The new Slack site is without question a fantastic site with great potential, and has attracted a whole new set of Welsh learners. But extending the point that @BronwenLewis makes here:-
I feel that there are two separate strands emerging (something Iāve also felt about this forum too, but the new site makes it more obvious). There are those whoāve reached a reasonable level of competence who want to chat with others at that reasonably competent level; and there are beginners or near-beginners who just want the opportunity to speak, perhaps slowly and hesitantly, with another speaker who is sympathetic and maybe not too far advanced.
I went on the first hangout with Milla the other evening, and despite the fact that it was supposed to be over-subscribed, most of the newbies did not in fact turn up. One learner who did disappeared again pretty quickly after introducing herself. So basically the hangout consisted of the more competent speakers who chatted away merrily to each other - and me. I think I just about held my own, but I felt slow and ponderous up against the rest of them, and a lot of it just washed over me.
I think Iām saying this tongue-in-cheek, @aran but we almost could do with a Beginnersā Corner on there. In the meantime, if you think itās of any use, I would be happy to do a post on there inviting any beginners, near-beginners etc to contact me for an introductory chat, in the hope of giving the āshyerā ones as Bronwen correctly identifies them, somewhere to start. A couple of the SSIWers I Skype with regularly tell me that theyāre not yet up to doing a chat with a more advanced speaker, let alone a group one! As you know, itās a long, slow process for me, but being somewhere between post-beginner and pre-intermediate, I do feel I have an understanding of how some of them feel. And I also need the practice - but at a level that I can cope with too! But I would only do so if you think itās a worthwhile idea.
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I guess itās similar to real life in that itās nice to start with just a sentence or two. Thatās what I do in the wild. Also more advanced speakers will generally slow down after a quick blast so that all can be involved.
Although I have completed the SSIW course I am fairly new to actual conversation so l will look out for you if you want to bounce the odd phrase off me and have one back any time. Cheers John.
Iām more than happy to do 1-1s with any level and to go at whatever pace the person Iām chatting to is at, and will be lurking on Slack most evenings and weekends for this.
I suspect that because we are all relatively new to this at the moment that the situation will eventually develop where there will be enough people confident enough to hold āgradedā (aimed at specific levels) hangouts as well as āopenā (for a mix of abilities) ones, but I agree it is very important to try and avoid giving anyone the feeling that theyāve been dropped into deep water from a great height. (Thatās what 5-day intensives are for! 
)
PS @AlanP, I thought you did very well in the hangout, and remember that although the group is called āspeaking practiceā, it also gives you ālistening practiceā, so even when youāre not talking youāre getting something of value 
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I think using Slack as a way of contacting people for conversations has huge potential. Iām becoming much more confident speaking Welsh now, though I still feel like a novice with hangouts or video chat in general, but when I feel more comfortable with the system, Iām happy to have short conversations with beginners who are just putting a toe into the water. New speakers probably need a bit more structure to the session than those of us who are happy to chat in a more wide ranging way.
The hangout I joined for a little while with Milla, Nicky and a few others turned into a conversation that was no doubt too fast for a novice, so I agree with Siaron that we probably need to have different hangouts for different levels. Though as Siaron also points out, sitting in on a hangout with more advanced speakers will give useful listening practice.
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Ok, so Nickyās hangout is happening right now on Slack, and I canāt see any little handset icons, so Iām guessing they only appear when people are calling on the actual Slack channel, not the google hangouts via Slack.
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Iāve seen just minority of handsets while circling around so I presume this is just like you say @siaronjames. Iāve also seen that after @Nickyās hangout was already finished, it appeared as if someone would open a new hangout or as if the Nickyās would start again despite Nicky finished it. Iāve checked the time about 3 times to see if itās in accordance with my on my computer and it was so. So, or hangout really started or thereās kind of error which reports about started hangout when it actually closes. There was no sign of Nickyās hangout being finished though (what would also be super useful to have).
I think what you might have seen was either Huwās test hangout with me or Nicky posting the new event for next weekās hangout
Thanks Nicky and all for the chats tonight. 2 hours of Cymreag (mostly) 7PM to 9PM, even if I did escape for a few minutes to answer a work phone call. Great stuff.
Just to say, Nicky & Milla: you are naturals at leading us with all this stuff, whilst still keeping us at our ease.
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Tjen it was @HuwJones test hangout because it said that the hangout has started and the link said ājoin hangoutā. Nothing strange then.
Click on āChannelsā, look for #beginners and your fatherās brother is Robertā¦
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Excellent, Aran! This should give a great lead-in for those who are faint of heart!
And you may not believe this, but Bob really WAS my uncle - he was my motherās brother and lived in Caerdydd!
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OK John, I will look out for you on Slack and maybe we can have a short chat. I also need to practise linking up!
Thank you for your kind words, Siaron, and I fully take on board your point about the importance of listening too. My concern was simply for some of those new learners who came on the new website very early on but with all the hustle and bustle on the site, may not know quite where to turn for their first, faltering few words. But Aran has solved it at a stroke by responding with the new Beginners channel - he really is a star!
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Iāve spent most of my life hoping one day that would be the caseā¦ 
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If you can email us at admin@saysomethingin.com with WSP in the title and your name in the email, that makes it fast/easy for us to get the invitation out to youā¦
Thanks for the positive feedback thus far.
The interesting challenge is finding that mix between leading the conversation and then letting conversation flow. I have found that after a round or two of questions, people generally loosen up a bit and the chatter amongst people starts flowing naturally - which is great.
Remember all of your Welsh flags/things next week!
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I have tried this email address but I am told that it does not exist. Can you send me an invitation to join SLACK please
Brian
Hi Brian - usually, when that happens, it means thereās a typo - you need to be particularly careful to make sure that you get the āINā as in admin@saysomethingIN.com Let me know if that solves it for youā¦
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