Meta-Question about "TR Question" ......

we are not the ones usually asking the questions, so your list goes pretty much wasted here in the discussions.

But maybe I am wrong, just my thought though

I have been active in answering questions since the late fall of 2001. I have to say that the comments and complaints of those new to the forum have remained pretty much the same.

In fact, about the only thing that has changed is the increasing number of questions that read like first level help desk problems.

Often, even if I have the answer on the tips of my fingers, I will not answer a question when the person posting it is from some regions of the world.

We still get homework questions.
People trying to hack product keys, systems, and networks.

Vista has generated fewer questions than XP did. Which I attribute to low adaptation rates for Vista.

Even hardware is playing better these days so we get fewer hardware questions.

Several years ago, the thumbs system replaced an old points system. The points system fell out of favor because:
A. The points had no real value and were thus just a method of keeping score.
B. The points one earned often were based on the generosity of the peer who posted the question.
C. Peers were not rating the answers posted to questions so that they would not have to give up the points they offered.

True, the thumbs up is just a way of keeping score. But, why not keep score?

One thing I miss from the changes to the site over the years is that we used to be able to dig all the way back to the first question ever asked on the forum.

Welcome to TR and I hope you take the time to thoughtfully answer questions.

Chas

goes a long way to make up for the thumbs we should have got, but didn't. Thumbs are rather meaningless in either case. They might as well be meaningless with dimension.

I'm sure you've seen a few of these, even if you've only been here a month. To incur the wrath, ask how to circumvent a password protected system or OS. The sob stories get really involved and contrived but are met with the inevitable brick wall and refusals to provide the methods used to get past many protection schemes. As a hardware specialist, I have a large number of methods that will allow me to service any machine regardless of the protection implimented. I will never reveal my sources or methods to anyone but another knowledgeable tech, not even a software provider or user will ever learn the ways to get around what they think are the ultimate protection for their precious machines. Those of us who know how have finally reached the point where we don't even reply anymore to these requests, that's the job of the moderators to state that the forums purposes are in no way to provide others with methods to regain usage of possible stolen or illegally procurred hardware.

I have just noticed something that "The scummy one" has pointed out .. people who regularly post on the discussions are not usually the ones asking questions. No one is a walking encyclopedia so regular TR members must need assistance some time ... how exactly do you get your questions answered if not in the Questions section ?

I ask because if there is another alley in TR I have not discovered yet, that some of you folk ask your Q's and get some answers it must be a hell of a gold mine.

Some forums have rules .. that help in mitigating some of the junk we see in the questions section ... lets say there is a rule that anyone who asks a questions must at least have a 'Thumbs up' ... for newcomers who still have not earned a thumbs up will be allowed 1 question per month.

this would be tougher for newcomers but will most likely cut down on the "Password" and other BS that goes around.

has this already been tried out some time in the past ?

GK has some good advice about asking questions. We're not questioning his suggestions, just the value of posting them in the Discussions forum. Apparently we were wrong; they reached you, didn't they?

As to this being the appropriate place for you, I suspect it is. You've already demonstrated a willingness to try to solve a problem on your own. Most members (indeed, most forums) aren't receptive to those who's questions clearly demonstrate they've done nothing and expect the respondents to do all the work. You don't appear to be in that category. Welcome aboard.

There are members that spend the majority of their time in the Discussions and others that are more dedicated to Questions Forum.

It is often the newer members that will spend the majority of their time answering questions. Although if you watch closely, you'll find that the more common and the more trivial questions are typically answered by those more eager members. The more seasoned members are often the ones addressing the more unique or complex questions, specially ones concerning networks, programming, coding, or pointed IT administration. It therefore makes sense that there are many newer members that quickly accumulate thumbs.

It should also be noted that those answering the majority of the questions are often motivated by the thumb system. I do not see any problem with that. Additionally, I have personally found that the usual return rate of thumbs to questions answered correctly is approximately one to every three or four. With the return rate going down with the more questions you answer from new members out of Asia. I have not found any situations where a member didn't deserve their thumb count. If you don't see that, just simply compare the stats on number of monthly posts to number of thumbs earned per month over a period of several months (available on the TR Out Loud posts). Whereas many members make hundreds of posts in the Discussions forum and never earn a single thumb, I have never seen someone that earned a high thumb count without spending many many hours for many weeks answering hundreds of questions. Your reference to 'Thumb-wh0ring,' as you put it, is based on lack of sufficient observation or perhaps jealousy. I'm unsure at this point.

If you are looking for a secret 'other alley', your answer lies in the basic structure of TR. If we were looking for a place with a different structure, we'd probably go out and find it. Those that spend their time in the TR forums do so because they prefer (for the most part) the structure (or lack thereof) that it offers. That being about the only commonality among TR's diverse membership. That type of structure means that acceptance plays a key role and because acceptance only comes with time, there is no fast track here. If that is not pointed enough, think peer mail - knowing that very few will ever respond to an email from someone they don't know and trust.

That does not in any way mean we do not share knowledge or information in the general forums. All of us post questions in the forum when we believe it will have a better chance of speedy resolution by opening it up to the whole group. A question can also be posted even after it is resolved when the answer may be seen as being of benefit to others in the future. Although this can sometimes appear as a Discussion thread. Regardless, the information is shared.

I suspect that everyone who has been here for any period of time has spent time in the Questions Forum. To what extent depends more on their desire and personal preference than amount of knowledge. After all, the purpose of TechRepublic is not solely as a source of Q&As. It is a resource for all topics associated with computers and IT regardless whether it is through an article, a white paper, a general Discussion, a off-topic discussion, a Question or whatever.

Tech Republic has gone through its share of changes over the years. But, for the most part, it has remained the same. That being primarily due to the type of members it attracts and the ones that stay for more than two months.

;-)

Biggest agglomeration of sh*t you may ever meet.

Hmmm, I see now that I was in the wrong. I guess I gotta find a crack whore instead :0

just saying that the ... people asking the questions would probably get much better responses and the people answering would be more inclined to help them out.

I know TR is not only the Question part .. I do enjoy mixing it up in the off-topic discussions myself