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Jafo
Jafo
Join Date 03/2001
+1845 sdemployee

Making the Message Board work.........

June 27, 2002 9:13:54 AM from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
When people browse this board they are confronted with a list of thread topics, which, if they spark an interest/curiosity, will be clicked-on and read.

Makes sense, don't it?

Now, what strikes me as odd/strange/weird/pointless are the thread 'topics' such as....

'Help'...[that's a given]

'I have a question'.....[obviously]

'A little help'....[not TOO much]

'how to do it'....[we talkin' sex, again?]

or

'stupid newbie question'...[a question FOR a 'stupid newbie' perhaps?]

These, and several others probably really don't attract the attention that is 'wanted', because they aren't even lead-ins to the problem, except maybe to show a poor handling of a request for assistance....[so THAT'S the problem]...

It would be cleverererer to clarify the 'subject'....like...."Help, WB won't auto-load"....then in the body of the thread go into more detail.
As is the case with some of these threads, you 'almost' expect....
'Help!!!!'
[then in the thread]
'I'm being held captive by three-toed sloths in the Amazon rain-forest....who won the Soccer?'

I think you get my drift....
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Jafo
craeonics
Join Date 03/2001
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Reply #1 June 27, 2002 9:23:11 AM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
Listen to Jafo's drift. I completely ignore all threads with "help" or "newbie" in them.
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Jafo
craeonics
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Reply #2 June 27, 2002 9:23:54 AM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
By the way, Jafoman, perhaps you should have titled this thread: "clueless newbies read this"?
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Jafo
craeonics
Join Date 03/2001
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Reply #3 June 27, 2002 9:26:08 AM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
Um, make that "clueless newbies: read these board guidelines"
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Jafo
Doreen
Join Date 03/2001
+26
Reply #4 June 27, 2002 9:33:41 AM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
hehe
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Jafo
MikeB314
Join Date 07/2001
+40
Reply #5 June 27, 2002 9:39:05 AM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
Hehe. I couldn't agree more. Also, it wouldn't hurt to actually read some of the previous posts before asking a question that has already been answered 5 times that day.

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Jafo
Chris
Join Date 03/2001
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Reply #6 June 27, 2002 9:40:23 AM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
The problem is that this seems to be human nature that occurs on every board and newsgroup. I'm not sure what you can do about it though.

When you post a nondescriptive subject like: "HELP! WHADDA I DO?" your basically at the mercy of my boredom level: Do I click that intriguing message or do I continue my current task of cleaning the fuzz out of my navel?

On the other hand, its important that every sincere newbie question get answered with a genuine attempt to help them. Otherwise, the growth of this place will ultimately stagnate.

It would be nice if, on the main web page, at the top, there was a permanent section that said something like "Welcome to WinCustomize. If you're new to this place, why don't you click the link below to learn more about what this place is about".

Then have not only ettiquete suggestions, but real simple newbie FAQ items like:

What's WindowBlinds?
How to I install a skin?
Why doen't WiindowBlinds change my Start Menu?

What's LightSTEP?

How do I upload a file? (underwhich you gently outline the upload rules)

This info already exists in bits and pieces in the skinning primer, at the top of each section, and so on. But it needs to be tied together and presented in such a way to make it easily visible and accessible to newbies.


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Jafo
craeonics
Join Date 03/2001
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Reply #7 June 27, 2002 9:55:58 AM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
Chris you no0b, it's LiteStep. And speaking about faqs, I've got this on the shelf: http://www.teknidermy.com/faq/
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Chris
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Reply #8 June 27, 2002 10:02:51 AM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
My bad. I thought it was 7iT3$t3P
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Jafo
Koasati
Join Date 07/2001
+21
Reply #9 June 27, 2002 10:09:16 AM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
If they're unable to see the info in the section, how would they find the link on the main page? I have suggested a sticky thread, here in the forum, with newbie info, but never received a reply.

crae..nice job!
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Jafo
Transmutate
Join Date 03/2001
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Reply #10 June 27, 2002 10:29:25 AM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
I thought that a 'newbie' was a secret new skinning application....damn

BTW - GREAT job, Crae !
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Jafo
craeonics
Join Date 03/2001
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Reply #11 June 27, 2002 10:32:01 AM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
(Unfinished job. I'll elaborate on this faq in Tek's next issue (if I ever get those damn bunnies drawn))
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Jafo
TasT
Join Date 03/2001
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Reply #12 June 27, 2002 10:38:44 AM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
How bout a link at the top of the page that goes to a page that has FAQ's for each of the programs listed on WInC.

We could assign volunteers to answer the common questions for each program and place the Q&A in the FAQ within a few weeks most of the redundant stuff should be taken care of.

Also a "newbie/Help thread in the forum that simply points them to the INdex of FAQ's..
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Jafo
TasT
Join Date 03/2001
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Reply #13 June 27, 2002 10:40:06 AM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
WE could call it "The Idiots guide to skinning"
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Jafo
Jafo
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Reply #14 June 27, 2002 10:41:52 AM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
Glimmers for dimmer skinners...
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Jafo
craeonics
Join Date 03/2001
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Reply #15 June 27, 2002 10:43:32 AM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
Seeing the number of repetitive questions _and_ answers I see, it wouldn't be too hard to put something like that together. Keeping it up to date would be a bit more work though.
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Jafo
Fuzzy Logic
Join Date 05/2002
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Reply #16 June 27, 2002 11:40:40 AM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
Help! Stupid newbie question... ...where's the FAQ?

Everywhere else you go these days has a FAQ. Seems sensible to have one here given the large number of simple questions asked repetitively.

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Jafo
KarmaGirl
Join Date 03/2001
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Reply #17 June 27, 2002 11:51:42 AM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
WinCustomize is a community and is run by the community (and we want it to be run more and more by the community) SO, how about somebody making a faq and sending it to T-Man or Alexandrie? I'm sure that if it is good, they will put a link to it. We are working on a Stardock faq, but it does not cover much of WC. The Stardock faq (work still being done to it daily) is located off the support page at: www.stardock.com/support
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Jafo
Fuzzy Logic
Join Date 05/2002
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Reply #18 June 27, 2002 12:08:03 PM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
Is there any one person you know who could answer all questions on all areas? I think not. Having someone in the community submit a FAQ sounds like a good idea, but in practise it would need a commitee. Perhaps volunteers for each specialist area?

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Jafo
Jafo
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Reply #19 June 29, 2002 8:47:42 PM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
Bump.....[another way to make it work]..
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Jafo
Ande
Join Date 02/2002
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Reply #20 June 30, 2002 6:11:41 AM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
I'm an inexperienced newbie and will attempt to be more exact when posting a thread question in the future.
However, reading many of the threads over the past couple of months makes me wonder if the Message Board is not a vehicle for the experienced to engage in one-upmanship in the joke department.
Perhaps it should be renamed "Chat Room for the Experienced" and links put on the Web Site directing all the Stupid Newbies with idiotic questions to to the appropriate Newsgroup Maze.
Just a thought from an idiot newbie dimmmer skinner. Ops I'm not smart enough to have designed a skin yet.
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Jafo
Jafo
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Reply #21 June 30, 2002 9:35:23 AM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
Ande...we are all 'idiots' here...just some are newer at it than others...
What may appear like one-upmanship to some is really light-hearted banter and social interaction to others.
Just join in and be counted....

[If truth be known, what you WILL get here is help from the very people who write these proggies and those who skin for them....something invaluable to both the 'newbie' and the 'experienced' alike]...
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Jafo
Koasati
Join Date 07/2001
+21
Reply #22 June 30, 2002 9:57:53 AM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
Ande.....Don't hate us just coz we're nutZ..........
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Jafo
feline
Join Date 04/2001
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Reply #23 July 1, 2002 10:09:46 AM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
Ande, most sensible questions get sensible answers.

however, do remember that the more silly or just incomprihensible the question, the stranger the answers will be.

also, a lot of the people who have been here a while worked out a lot of the basics themselves, though simply reading everything they could find, a touch of common sense, and some experimentation.

at times we feel it would be nice if others would think a little before simply asking.

as for one upman ship, some of us have low bordom threasholds (mine is in the pecosecond range), combined with an off the wall sense of humor, so the banter umung us can get a bit serreal.

note to self - try to stop using words i know i cannot spell, like umung
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Jafo
Jafo
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Reply #24 May 12, 2003 3:01:25 PM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
It's maybe 12 months old...but still relevant...
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Jafo
DarkMist
Join Date 02/2003
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Reply #25 May 12, 2003 3:07:54 PM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
Hum
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