Homeless

Good evening.
My first visit ever to a web forum.

Looking through the various categories under Shopping: Health: Alternative I am unable to find a subcategory that fits our product and would like to ask for some assistance - I hope this question falls within the guidelines.

Charcoal therapy is not something new but it is little known, certainly in North America. Medicinal charcoal cannot be correctly classified as an herb, nor as a supplement. It is not folk medicine since there is extensive scientific research on its application and benefits. It is used by allopathic, homeopathic, and naturopathic practitioners alike. It is a natural remedy in the classic sense but until recent times it has been a proverbial black sheep as far as the healthcare community is concerned. It is more tolerated than accepted in spite of its prolific use. It is a simple natural remedy without a home of its own. It is only a matter of time until the term "Charcoal Therapy", or some such phrase catches hold, but until then can someone help me choose a category to submit to?

In suggesting a site is it permissable to suggest a new subcategory?

Thank you for your help!

charcoal

Hello, and welcome to Resource-Zone.

New categories are created by editors when there are enough sites to justify one, and after discussion in the internal forums, so I'm afraid it isn't possible for a non-editor to suggest a new category with just one site. However if you could find several other unrelated sites on the same topic and suggest them along with yours, it is possible an editor might consider a new category at some stage.

As for choosing a category, the general rule is that you find the one most specific to the site, and if there isn't one, then choose the next level up. So if your site sells alternative health products, http://dmoz.org/Shopping/Health/Alternative/ is the correct place to be looking. If you feel the site does not fit any of the existing subcategories, just suggest it to that main category after the Announcement advises that the current technical problems are fixed. When a volunteer editor reviews your site (and there is no knowing when this may happen, as outlined in the FAQ), if he or she feels it belongs somewhere else, it will be moved there.
Editors do that all the time, so as long as you try to find the correct category, that is the best you can do to help us. Thank you.

Perfect! Thank you for your help. As soon as the "doors are open" I will follow your suggestion.

When you mention finding several other unrelated sites on the same topic and suggest them along with mine you are probably refering to sites on dmoz.com. Does it do any good to mention sites not listed with dmoz.com? There are several oriental sites but they are not listed with dmoz.com.

thanks again for the help

charcoal

In fact I was referring to sites which are not listed in the directory yet. That is precisely what editors do - we look for sites which will add value to the directory, and non-editors are very welcome to help by suggesting sites for us to review.
There is no point in suggesting sites which are already listed, because those have been found already.

So if you know of good unlisted sites on any topic, please suggest them to the appropriate category. Thank you.