Help the newbies!

[MobileSuit]

People ask questions on this board and they always get told to quit asking dumb questions and search! research!

thats what they are doing! If you're going to tell them to search at least give them some idea of what to search.

and if they arent being specific enough thats because they dont know!

GIVE US A BREAK!

[osirisdon]

ahhaha give US a break and do your homework before asking questions.

its our way of saying welcome aboard. Dont get all mad about some posts.

[Telek]

MobileSuit:

Take a look at most questions that newbies get flamed for. They are things that demonstrate that the asker did absolutely nothing to try to figure out the answer for themselves. Really just about any question that a newby can ask is either (a) documented thouroughly in mp3car.com threads, or (b) easily accessible through your favorite search engine. Questions like "what type of computer do I need" or "where should I mount it" or "how do I hook it up to my stereo" demonstrate that they didn't even try to look for themselves.

I do understand that it's not easy, but let me show you similar questions that wouldn't get flamed:

(a) Hi, I looked around and I saw that people are discussing using P4/2.4GHz computers for their car, is this really necessary? I'm new to the scene and I want to use my old Celeron 500, and PCI crapola video card with 64MB. Will this do or should I upgrade? I really don't have a lot of money so I'd like to know what I can use this for, and what wouldn't be possible.

(b) I have a Datsun with a hatchback, so I can't really mount the computer in the trunk without it being easily visible. I was thinking of mounting it under the seat but my computer is too big to fit there. Can you think of any other creative places to put it where it wouldn't be visible? Theft is a problem in my area which is why I ask.

(c) I have an old 8-track and my dad won't let me replace it with a newer stereo (which is the main reason why I want an mp3computer to begin with!) Unfortunately I don't have a clue how I can hook into it. Does anyone have any clues or experience on how I can do this?

----

At least these questions show that you have thought about it and possibly researched the question before you just blurted it out. I try not to cut up people too much, but the majority of the time the answer is easily accessible by the search button at the top of this page. Not only does it save you time by not having to wait, but you can learn a lot more in the process by reading about what other people have done. Even if you have to wade through a lot of unrelated posts, you can still pick up quite a bit.

[frodobaggins]

I'll help out. But it'll be a week or two because I'm remodeling my office and building a large deck for a friend.

What I will do is start an all-emcompassing FAQ.
I will take questions and submissions.
I will host it so it never goes down.
I will maintain it at least on a monthly basis.

I will also borrow from other peoples faqs, but remember to give credit from where it is due.

I have no doubt this will be a huge project, so bear with me.

[Rob Withey]

Just a suggestions, but perhaps the FAQ should include search page hyperlinks with search terms already entered. That way it wouldn't need to be updated much, and the newbies would be able to find common questions and search the messages more easily to find answers. Also the FAQ answers would not be a single answer, but a broad collection of opinions, such as the discussion on what the best way to mount a hard drive is (or maybe newbies don't want that, perhaps they just wanna be told what to do).


Rob

[ShinkunoNamida]

It's the spoon fed generation. We don't want people thinking for themselves, it's dangerous. Since they can't think for themselves, when their question is answered with a selection of posibilites they are confused. "How should I act? I need to make a decision? Can't some one tell me? That's it! Excuse me, could you please tell me?"

I don't mean this as an attack on anyone in particular.. this is just a commentary on the developement of our society.

[frodobaggins]

Originally posted by Rob Withey
Just a suggestions, but perhaps the FAQ should include search page hyperlinks with search terms already entered. That way it wouldn't need to be updated much, and the newbies would be able to find common questions and search the messages more easily to find answers. Also the FAQ answers would not be a single answer, but a broad collection of opinions, such as the discussion on what the best way to mount a hard drive is (or maybe newbies don't want that, perhaps they just wanna be told what to do).


Rob

I plan on linking to the forum as well as standard answers

[MobileSuit]

How about stickying a thread at the top of the forum with links to the FAQ and like... the power requirements site, along with some answers for simple questions, or a quideline for newbies on how to ask a good question?

[Zip-Lock]

Maybe a newbie section?

[DodgeCummins]

Maybe a newbie section?

Is that like daycare or a playpen?