I most certainly don't want any Gaelic organisation to fail just so I can moan about it, or for any other reason. The more help available for pro-Gaelic-minded people, the better. This is a good-looking site with many useful features
. But it has to be accurately labelled, or clear on its home-page about its current range (including reasons if relevant).
I am just always wary of promising to be more than you can be (myGaelic.com is another one), and if that is - in this case - because there are other sections to come regarding (for example) resources for non-Scottish learners, it would be helpful and only sensible to have that mentioned right away on the home page.
I know Clì is a Scottish-funded organisation, so can't perhaps put too much into publicising what's available in other geographical areas, but the the description should then echo this - 'A one-stop-shop for Scottish learners of Gaelic' or something.
One danger I see is that the description ('a one-stop shop', no mention of Scotland) makes non-Scottish learners feel excluded when they find only Scottish courses and references, and that is a very, very dangerous thing, given the admirable work that is going on for the Gaelic cause in other places, especially Cape Breton, and the relatively large numbers involved world-wide. Even the arch-Conservative Mod is recognising non-Scots across the board this year. LearnGaelic should do the same. The Gaelic world has to get far, far away from any faint flavour of a clique (or mafia
).
I'm not complaining that every course isn't listed - its amazing what is already on there
, but that there is nothing to even suggest that there might be courses outside Scotland (which in fact might also be relevant even to Scottish learners, eg if distance, or for holidays combined with Gaelic in Canada etc) - when in fact it's common knowledge in the Gaelic learning/teaching scene that there are courses of various kinds in Canada, the USA, Germany, Australia etc. Links to them don't exactly take much hunting down, often being listed already on all the usual forums, Facebook sites etc. A few links would be enough for a start, no need for detailed breakdowns of courses.
The division on the LearnGaelic (and Clì) toolbar into different levels of learner for search purposes is also unhelpful, as it seems to mean that these more detailed breakdowns of courses are needed before they can be listed. It's also unhelpful as learners don't necessarily know their level, or they know they have different levels in different skills - especially as long as there is no general adoption of CEF levels etc to go on. In my experience people just need no-guarantee links to providers in specific areas, or for specific course-types (distance, full-time, part-time, short courses, etc) and can follow up what levels are available and possibly check themselves with the providers what their level system actually means.
And what about bookshops, online materials resources etc? Where do we look for them on the site? 'Worth a look' is too casual an area for important links. You can only find the page called 'Publishing' if you know it is there, or via a couple of different attempts via the search box for 'bookshops' (zero), then 'book shops' , for example. And the huge online world of Gaelic - forums, FBs, e-lists and the like? Where are they? Search: forum / fòram: 'cha do lorgar dad'. There is no site map that I have found.
The site is well-meaning, and has many good and potentially developable features (and does indeed take on board and utilise some good facilities, like Am Faclair Beag
), is also available in Gàidhlig
, and I trust will prove helpful and attractive to countless learners, but that doesn't mean we can't discuss improvements and give feedback.
Nobody every delivered my bicycle the way you describe too but anyway "A 21st century voice of Gaelic learners" would sound better to me. "The" just seems to claim the whole playing field. What I mean is isn't this place and others like it a sort of voice of Gaelic learners? More chaotic perhaps than a top-down organisation but it certainly attracts a stream of comment from learners, the patchwork quilt of all the input perhaps giving a flavour to a voice? The same with the like of this too perhaps
but it was one of the more inclusive Gaelic projects that I've worked on and I feel positive that if you write them an email with suggestions about links that are missing, classes abroad etc that they will take you seriously. As far as I know, phase 2 is still on the books. 
). So perhaps you're well-meant feedback is simply directed at the wrong person.
mo chreach, tha thu ro choibhneil!