******Thread Titles - make 'em descriptive*****

[Frets]

8 pages

what am I missing out on
for me it's only 2

[Damaso]

[bump]Do you have another teaser for SWiSH 2.5, Mr. Petley?[/bump]

[KLTdesigns5869]

Originally posted by Frets
8 pages

what am I missing out on
for me it's only 2

Frets, I said "who let this get 8 pages deep"...I meant when I went to locate it (to bump it), it was back on page 8 of this forum.

[bluepdoo]

...you are keeping in mind, of course, that most newbies to this type of forum come here - with me being no exception - asking themselves "what the hell is a thread? a sprite? load movie, tell target, goto next frame if frame loaded preload content fs command...?" and so on. Like the majority of people who take their car to a mechanic and say "i have a rattle in the thing-a-majigger under the whatcha-ma-callit". Why? Because they dont know what the thing-a-majigger and whatcha-ma-callit IS or what its supposed to do, so they cant explain it any better than that.

...unelightened? nice. And whats a snert, troll, and what does *bump* mean?
[Edited by bluepdoo on 04-24-2002 at 12:15 AM]

[Frets]

Snert- A person who enjoys causing havoc And will falsify information to attack another. Generally more concerned with garnering attention twards oneself then seeking knowledge. Also known as an instigator or a pest. Many of these are want to be hackers.

Troll- to dig deep within a site or forums threads into a distant past.

Bump- When a topic is replied to it returns to the top of the forum. The top is obviously more visible then the bottom or several pages back.

As far as what is a sprite that's a valid question.
a much better topic starter then Help.
How do I put a movie into a movie is also a well thought out question.

Taking time to read someone elses question may not answer yours but. It can help you to formulate a question for better results. Also on any given day if you follow the threads here you'll see three to four that cover the same topic sometimes right on top of each other.

Nobody expects anyone to master the threads in a day or two but when a member who has been one for awhile. and is to lazy to view the posts on the first page to see if someone has already asked a question on the same subject it becomes a burden on the server. And an annoyance to those who serve the community.

This post created generated to enlighten members on methodology and ediquitte. Not to persecute someone for being a newbie.

[aabirnisar]

David a Suggestion , wouldnt it be better if u put that Help thread again on the very top as it was here in this forum a year back , if u can remember it was quite helpful for the new comers , well it was to me when i joined this forum . it was good with some good points like how to search , some good links , links to resources and others , dont u think it will be better if u put that again .

[Off Top]

just a suggestion...

when you guys upgrade to vBulletin 2, there's a hack that only allows users to post new threads after they reach a minimum number of replies. This is great for forcing newbies to read & participate in a few other threads, before making their own. It's done wonders on my forum (I have my minimum set to 50 posts, but you could try much lower here).

[Frets]

Or make them feel shut out.

[Off Top]

there aren't any other forums like this one. they'd get over it very quickly

[david petley]

Originally posted by Off Top
just a suggestion...

when you guys upgrade to vBulletin 2, there's a hack that only allows users to post new threads after they reach a minimum number of replies. This is great for forcing newbies to read & participate in a few other threads, before making their own. It's done wonders on my forum (I have my minimum set to 50 posts, but you could try much lower here).

but it's not about forcing people to do anything. It is really simple.....
If I can't see what a thread will contain when I am looking at the forum, I won't be bothered to offer any answer as I am not going to open a thread titled "help me", I don't have the time to open every thread on the off chance that it is something i might be able to help with.

So if people want answers from other busy people, they have to help us to help them, it is a two-way street.

You want my help, let me know in the title what your problem is.

david p.

[Frets]

A few suggestions to those who reply.

Carefully read what has already been written you don't gain any ground by repeating the same information nor do you help the thread starter.

Do not turn the topic into a slamming zone. No one is impressed with flamers. If you disagree with an answer say
I disagree and keep the focus on what your answer is why it works. The most respected swish help members are those who focus first on the answer. Some have been here for a long time some have not.

Do not change the subject If the material supplied does not answer your question there are plenty of threads to find the information you require. Also you can always post a new topic as your asking a new question. Changing the subject can be very confusing to the original thread starter, trying to weed out information that doesn't apply to them.

Do not restate the question.

The swish forums at flashkit are a paradise compared to some of the other forums. And for that matter many other discussion boards on the net.
It is made a paradise by the members who contribute positive content and treat each other and themselves with respect.

Frets

[SSC Cosmic]

This forum once had a WELCOME thread that was always at the top of the page.. set out some friendly suggestions however only put a small dent into issues like Descriptive Thread titles..

I'd recommend re-instating something like this. At Custom Signatures we do free Flashy signatures (footers) for fellow gamers and such who request them. The first post pinned to the top of the forum is "How to request a sig". Many read it, many don't. Often someone's request will say "make me something cool, c-ya!", to which I reply "Poof, you're something cool!". Then I gently direct them to the How To thread, and the good info starts flowing the right way.

You could easily do the same. If it cures half of the HelpmeHelpme!'s it will be worth it. If it had a title such as "The Best Way to Get Help" or "Help us help You: read this if you're new here" it would do much better than "All Who Cometh here must read the following diatribe". You've seen those types, who would read that? J/k, but you know what I mean.

I would also recommend something there that says : "Want an instant answer? Go to Advanced Search at the top right of this page and search by Keyword, Swish Help Forum, Topic only. You should have your answer instantly.


Thanks for reading.


[Edited by SSC Cosmic on 06-19-2002 at 08:37 PM]

[Frets]

While I enjoy the humour in that, others may not.
We get the timid and the brazen both here.

Either way some may see it as a slap in the face.

The goal of the swish help forum is to help members with swish related issues. Granted we can't save the world.
And some members confuse a helping hand with a hand out.

One unique thing about the swish communtiy in general is the sincere desire to help others as expressed through many of it's members. Sincerity gets lost in the shuffle when mixed with sarcasm. The challenge becomes then to present the information in a non adversalial context. Sometimes it's more of a challenge then others.

[Labyrinth]

As a Newbie I'm probably about to ask one of those dumb questions....

Why can't you stick some sort of Information for Newbies Thread at the very top?

A message which is locked so can't have comments added to it. So it won't go off topic and also set it so that it won't go down the list and require people to send "bumping" replies.

I'm new to Flash Animations, SWiSH and I've never been on a forum of any kind before. That doesn't make me an idiot. It just means I need to learn the ropes. It's kind of hard to learn the correct things to do when those who know how forums work don't seem to be following any rules. Yet I as a Newbie am supposed to know what I should and shouldn't do.

[Frets]

You raise very good points.

In fact at one time we had a sticky closed thread called Please Read First, covering much of the information expressed in this thread.
(sticky threads stay at the top)

It was rarely if at all read by members. As a matter of fact inside the thread was a link to the unoffical frequently asked questions page where a former moderator in hopes of cutting down repeated questions had a guide to the most popular and insightful threads.

When people need answers in a forum they need an answer to there specific question and rarely have the time/patience to track down the question via a faq.
As well we have an the advanced search engine that will help locate a topic by keyword/forum/member/day granted it's a little off to the side for those who surf with 800 x 600 resolution.
Instead they opt for posting a new topic. Which is of course the reason this is a forum instead of a simple database.
When I first came to flashkit I was a newbie to forums and swish as well. Knowing David Petley then swish moderator now super moderator his reason for starting this thread was to enlighten not scold members both new and old.

[Digizone]

ahinalu had a good suggestion, if it's not already in place. If it is already in place, make it more conspicuous. And put it at the top of each topic page as a "Forum Rule," in big red letters...LOL

Perhaps upon sign-up, a statement could be visible that says something like,'for best response time, please be descriptive in your post's title." And list the brief explanation why -- moderators can easily tell if they can help without having to read the post itself, which is simply being considerate of their time.

Digizone

[Labyrinth]

Okay I know this one would create extra work for the moderators but I reckon if I posted something as a new thread and then had the title changed for usefulness I would certainly stop and think about my next thread title.

Yes I did notice that people take some suggestions/helpful comments as scolding and that turns the threads into a bit of a fight rather than a useful source of information.

To me it's not the initial suggestions of doing the right thing which appear as scolding but the way the thread progresses the minute someone takes a general comment personally.

[KLTdesigns5869]

Labyrinth,

Occasionally, the mods here will edit a thread title, usually after it was suggested the poster be more descriptive....but it is a bit of work, and waste of time for them. A lot of people will also take offense to it if it's just done automatically, and this forum, and this thread too, doesn't mean to shun anyone, or turn them away for something rather insignificant like this.
As I stated in this thread earlier, I too, agree a "sticky" thread/announcement at the top would be of help. I also sort of agree with what Frets said, in that it is largely unread. Thats exactly the same reason this thread's purpose serves: The old announcement title at the top didn't really say much...but when people see the title of this thread, they do seem to act on it. (without ever reading it).
I myself have bumped this thread a number of times...usually when I come here, and see half the page full of "help me" or "how do I do this" titles...I will go locate this thread, bump it...and things do seem to improve after that. I also delete my post after bumping it, as there's no need to have numerous "bump" replies on this or any thread.

"Help me help you" would be a perfect description of what this thread was intended for...people will almost always get help anyways, but by being specific, they will probably get the help a lot sooner, as their thread will inevitably get more views by people who can actually help them.

[jofta]

To bump this thread than go through the "considerate moderator" role of editing the title, advising the poster, discussing the actions.

This thread has been more constructive/effective than the previous "sticky" note referred to ever was.

I simply have the "link" in fav's and bring it back up

You can put up "dont walk on the grass" signs till the cows come home. It will still get walked on.

Jofta

[Frets]

I try to restrain myself from editing a thread title.
occasionally the restraints break free.

I don't feel I should have to follow behind members who haven't or won't get the message. On occasions it is neccesary for me to edit a thread where the material is inapropriate.

We mod's do more behind the scenes then many see on the surface. We aren't glory hogs we do check for credibility
and of course we are members too. We are highly active in the swish community both inside and out of fk. We also enjoy reading well written responses to threads that we might not take part in.

Frets