To whom it may concern, your forum "Thanks" are kinda rude

Ask Dallas Makerspace
#1

" Welcome to Dallas Makerspace Talk — thanks for starting a new conversation!

  • Does the title sound interesting if you read it out loud? Is it a good summary?
  • Who would be interested in this? Why does it matter? What kind of responses do you want?
  • Include commonly used words in your topic so others can find it. To group your topic with related topics, select a category.

For more, see our community guidelines. This panel will only appear for your first 4 posts. "

Maybe i’m just already peeved (since i’m frustrated with a project and came to the makerspace to ask for help), but this block of text i’m welcomed with when trying to post on the forum seems at best trite, and in my current frustrated state, kinda offensive.

Maybe don’t flat out ask a paying member why my input or question matters? I would think it matters because I’m paying dues, thank you (especially now for no access). I would hope the people running things might be interested in this, and would hope that maybe someone comes up with a more courteous way of trying to be helpful than “why does it matter?”.

I’m sorry that i don’t have search engine optimization to make this easier to find.

1 Like
#2

I believe this is the default text the software uses for all new accounts. Was this a PM from @system?

Edit: Never mind, this is the new banner stuff they added inline for new accounts.

#3

You’re not a customer, you’re a member. That means being part of a community; you’re part of an organization that’s run by people giving back and following a set of basic courtesies. The moderation team is all volunteers, just like everyone else that makes this place run.

If we have a dozen posts just titled “help” rather than something descriptive like “I need help with surface finishing on Oak” no one would get anything done and no one would read it, and the moderation team’s role isn’t to write your titles for you.

The forum software gives that remark to everyone; we have many members for whom this is, in all seriousness, their first time using forum software and don’t use computers in their daily lives. If you’re so well versed in forums that you think a welcome notice like that is condescending, be glad we so far have not needed to go the XDA route and realize these are meant for the average member who may not have much experience on systems like Discourse.

#4

Perhaps the addition of a single line would help put this advice into a better context:

3 Likes
#5

? This post is vague at best.

#6

What do you want to know?

#7

Maybe someone with writing chops can spruce up the words? @uglyknees Nicole comes to mind, because, hilarious.

1 Like
#8

hell ya I’m hilarious - it’s my one good coping mechanism against the world!

6 Likes
#9

I can see how this post would be off-putting for some. I think adding some of what you said in the new-user post would be useful. It may even make the message more effective.

e.g:

Welcome to Dallas Makerspace Talk — thanks for starting a new conversation!

You’re part of an organization that’s run by people giving back and being courteous. The moderation team is all volunteers, just like everyone else that makes this place run. If we have a dozen posts just titled “help” rather than something descriptive like “I need help with surface finishing on Oak” no one would read it, no one would get anything done, and the forum would be much less useful. With that in mind, here are some questions to ask yourself when creating a new topic:

  • Is the title an interesting summary of the post?
  • Who is the target audience of the post? Why does it matter to them? What kind of responses do you want?
  • Include commonly used words in your topic so others can find it. To group your topic with related topics, select a category.
3 Likes