Can we "Infract" people who dont use SEARCH feature?
- Thread starter madbullram
- Start date
KonfuSed
Active Member
Hi MBR, the title still says "Can we "Infract" people who dont use SEARCH feature?", only the first post title is changed not the thread title. You might need to change the thread title.
I would suggest going with option 2 (with 30 posts minimum). But it still doesn't stop people from asking questions without using search inside an existing thread. But, something is better than nothing.
I also have serious concerns about threads that are not related to AV topics at all. Some of these threads have been started by well heeled members, and I must confess I have participated in some of them.
Regarding newbies, my concern is with people who become a member, create a thread with some silly question and the not participate at all. That was the suggestion of 50 or 100 threads minimum before you can create a thread is good. 30 posts is too little. Many people can do that easily by one liners that have no relevance and/or are related to some brand / product that they repeat again and again like a parrot - case in point SunTV HD.
Cheers
Regarding newbies, my concern is with people who become a member, create a thread with some silly question and the not participate at all. That was the suggestion of 50 or 100 threads minimum before you can create a thread is good. 30 posts is too little. Many people can do that easily by one liners that have no relevance and/or are related to some brand / product that they repeat again and again like a parrot - case in point SunTV HD.
Cheers
sam9s
Well-Known Member
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Even I go with option 2 ...... as we can see most of the opinion is anti infraction, two options seems worth while ....
First as you said ... restrict free posting till 30/50 posts.......but by restricting I suppose we mean moderated .....
but with this option the moderation work anyhow would be there so your purpose of that extra unnecessary effort of merging threads is not exactly solved ....... ... just my thought
Second as @hitensitapara said putting up a check-mark option that the user has searched the forum before posting ..... without the option checked the forum should simply not post a new thread.....
svenkateshsmart
Well-Known Member
Hi,
Regarding opening threads that are not related to AV, I have opened a few on several topics, you can close the entire general chit chat section and let us have more generic sections as suggested by Ram, which will take care majority of this. However, I cannot agree more on some of them being useful and rest of them being crappy, because it depends on lot of factors. So, letz have more generic sections! At least I will refrain from doing so henceforth, but you cannot expect new members to do that!
Some other members have expressed their views on showcasing setup, posting our purchase, etc., I am sure we are not going to bury whatever we buy so that no one sees it! There are some good threads that are partially related to AV. If some members have a problem with that, they need to refrain from those threads, as I am sure they are not as annoying as pop-ups ads!
Cheers!
Regarding opening threads that are not related to AV, I have opened a few on several topics, you can close the entire general chit chat section and let us have more generic sections as suggested by Ram, which will take care majority of this. However, I cannot agree more on some of them being useful and rest of them being crappy, because it depends on lot of factors. So, letz have more generic sections! At least I will refrain from doing so henceforth, but you cannot expect new members to do that!
Some other members have expressed their views on showcasing setup, posting our purchase, etc., I am sure we are not going to bury whatever we buy so that no one sees it! There are some good threads that are partially related to AV. If some members have a problem with that, they need to refrain from those threads, as I am sure they are not as annoying as pop-ups ads!
Cheers!
Thad E Ginathom
Well-Known Member
Not only can we strive to be better, but we can also nudge newcomers .Yes Thad we have all done, but that doesnt mean we can't strive to make it better, isnt it
In a way, it is those who answer these questions that are just as much as fault. the answer should be something like, "have you seen thread xyz; it contains all the information you need", or even, more curtly, "this is often asked: please search!".
By the way: I prefer people who ask FAQs in a new thread to those who drop them in the middle of a thread about something else entirely!
iaudio
Well-Known Member
Infracting a member for starting a new thread will lead to problems, as someone pointed out , it might be newbies in a hurry who do it most often. Even if they are not in a hurry to get the info, they might not be familiar enough to know where to look or may miss the pl use the search function thread. So a sticky: pl use search function should show up at the top of each page and like Hitensitapara said, members should be asked to tick a box that says they are starting the thread as they couldnt find similar one despite searching. After this, if they start a new thread which is redundant/repetitive they are eligible for infraction.
I know ultimately, this is a huge task for mods,as there are just a handful, so we can have more mods, or atleast assistants, who are not exactly mods, but direct their attention where needed and reduce their burden.
I know ultimately, this is a huge task for mods,as there are just a handful, so we can have more mods, or atleast assistants, who are not exactly mods, but direct their attention where needed and reduce their burden.
Thad E Ginathom
Well-Known Member
Infraction carries an implication of punishment. On a site where I was a mod for a while (a vBulletin site) we implemented the concept of "messages" that worked the same way, carried neither infraction points or a heavy title, and were the easiest way for the mods to quickly convey a point to a member.
rydhun
New Member
While Option #2 (Min number of posts required to start a Thread) seems like an acceptable solution which seems to address the long tail, I must say that attaining the minimum post bar is not difficult to workaround, one just needs to go on posting random comments on random posts. I think with a rule like that introduced, we'd soon be struggling with a different problem due to irrelevant posts.
Cheers!
Cheers!
rydhun
New Member
Had some other thoughts too, not sure if the forum software supports this kind of configuration though. But here it goes ...
The problem statement is too many repetitive threads (#1), but actual problem is difficulty in browsing Forum and find information (#2). We should attempt to address both, as they are related.
I feel that #1 can be best addressed by a manual process (what's being done now). Yes, there will be more work, but that can be addressed by having more category-wise admins. Only the process can be made clearer, something like:
1. Members advised to not reply to repetitive Threads
2. A button for members to flag/report Threads as Repetitive
3. Members issues Warnings by Mods for threads found repetitive, along with links to at least one existing Thread/Post on same topic. Each Warnings automatically revoked 1 week/month after being issued
4. Mods delete full thread so it no longer appears in Forum
5. Members who cross a certain number of warnings (3) get Banned for some duration.
Of course, the above doesn't address repetitive questions being asked on existing threads. But I think that follows the natural course of a conversation and can be addressed in conversation itself. I think we can & should live with it!
Now to problem #2 (easy navigation and information retrieval, weeding), some ideas...
a. I'm of the opinion that the "General Chitchat" section needs to be excluded somehow from "New Posts" search and "Unread posts since last visit", as it has too many un-categorized threads. But the section is quite a friendly area and I suggest it be allowed to live
b. Some way for Admins to mark individual Posts as Sticky & tag with keywords. Enhance Search feature to allow Tag search. This will help people find information easily before starting a new Thread
c. Some way for members to mark individual posts as Useful, so they go back and refer to it. Support for tagging in this feature also.
d. In each subforum, display Tag cloud that allows users to quickly view Sticky posts for popular Tags.
e. While creating new Thread, ask for at least 3 tags to be entered. System searches against tag cloud and suggests existing posts with similar tags. User can still go ahead and create the thread if they want.
f. Some way to mark threads as "Not Useful". Threads that are marked as Not Useful by at least 50/75/X people don't get shown in forum and search by default. But they can be searched for, using Advanced Search feature. This will help weed out threads and make sure they don't get in the way.
Sorry, it's a long Post, Thanks for your patience.
Cheers!
The problem statement is too many repetitive threads (#1), but actual problem is difficulty in browsing Forum and find information (#2). We should attempt to address both, as they are related.
I feel that #1 can be best addressed by a manual process (what's being done now). Yes, there will be more work, but that can be addressed by having more category-wise admins. Only the process can be made clearer, something like:
1. Members advised to not reply to repetitive Threads
2. A button for members to flag/report Threads as Repetitive
3. Members issues Warnings by Mods for threads found repetitive, along with links to at least one existing Thread/Post on same topic. Each Warnings automatically revoked 1 week/month after being issued
4. Mods delete full thread so it no longer appears in Forum
5. Members who cross a certain number of warnings (3) get Banned for some duration.
Of course, the above doesn't address repetitive questions being asked on existing threads. But I think that follows the natural course of a conversation and can be addressed in conversation itself. I think we can & should live with it!
Now to problem #2 (easy navigation and information retrieval, weeding), some ideas...
a. I'm of the opinion that the "General Chitchat" section needs to be excluded somehow from "New Posts" search and "Unread posts since last visit", as it has too many un-categorized threads. But the section is quite a friendly area and I suggest it be allowed to live
b. Some way for Admins to mark individual Posts as Sticky & tag with keywords. Enhance Search feature to allow Tag search. This will help people find information easily before starting a new Thread
c. Some way for members to mark individual posts as Useful, so they go back and refer to it. Support for tagging in this feature also.
d. In each subforum, display Tag cloud that allows users to quickly view Sticky posts for popular Tags.
e. While creating new Thread, ask for at least 3 tags to be entered. System searches against tag cloud and suggests existing posts with similar tags. User can still go ahead and create the thread if they want.
f. Some way to mark threads as "Not Useful". Threads that are marked as Not Useful by at least 50/75/X people don't get shown in forum and search by default. But they can be searched for, using Advanced Search feature. This will help weed out threads and make sure they don't get in the way.
Sorry, it's a long Post, Thanks for your patience.
Cheers!
kindofblue
New Member
To some extent, the forum software can help in eliminating redundant threads. Some forums I've seen have a "related threads" feature that pops up based on the content of post. In one particular case(I think it was StackOverflow.com, which uses a software that's proprietary), I was asked if I had already looked at the "following threads" before starting a new one.
Incidentally, on a specialist forum like this, I don't feel post count has much to do with your newbie-ness(except the initial few posts) or can give a fair measure of your contribution. For example, if someone asks you an opinion about amp X or Y, you may have no idea of how it works unless you've used it/auditioned it yourself.
Incidentally, on a specialist forum like this, I don't feel post count has much to do with your newbie-ness(except the initial few posts) or can give a fair measure of your contribution. For example, if someone asks you an opinion about amp X or Y, you may have no idea of how it works unless you've used it/auditioned it yourself.
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