Genuinely I am interested in the comments being made as I think to a certain extent you have a point, but on the other hand... 1) People not posting, lurking etc. I mentioned this a long time ago and suggested that because someone hasn't made a contribution does not mean they have no value on AG, they really should be encouraged to come in from the cold and give their opinion. I know for a fact that there are those involved in the industry who keep a keen eye on this (and other) sites. In particular I know someone who is currently employed putting together a title for the Nintendo Wii. Given the nature of the job, the NDAs (which is NOT an excuse all of the time) and the fact that he doesn't want to be swamped with queries this particular guy prefers to speak directly to a few people he knows. He's not regular, but he has on several occasions asked that various information is NOT put on AG, which I have respected. There is nothing stopping anyone posting anything (unless illegal), so I'm sorry, but I disagree. If the site was of no interest to them they'd not visit, become or remain active members. Not everyone is interested in imparting information online for a variety of reasons. 2) AG is a community, not the be-all and end-all of the gaming industry. Holding the contributing members to account for that is a bit unfair, especially as it is linked to the fact that those who do not contribute are potentially of more interest lol. You can't just complain that you are not seeing what you want from the site, you've got to make the first step - which I guess you have done in pointing out your views - however content is provided by all of us, so contribute content! (Don't worry, I know you do as I have seen material you have posted). 3) Perhaps rewarding people for reaching particular posting stages (i.e. 5000) is the wrong attitude. Instead of being reward for saying lots (which is very tempting if you wanted a new avatar or to be seen to contribute regularly to the community), perhaps people should be rewarded whenever they contribute good, informative material to the site? Regular contributors might perhaps be viewed as more site supporters than someone who has perhaps just done a lot of posting about unrelated stuff. 4) It's a balancing act. I've seen good sites die because nobody wanted to post anything. You should allow in-depth and cardboard conversation in equal measure. It might be time however to review the way the threads sit side-by-side. 5) I hate elitist sites that remain closed doors to anyone who isn't perhaps as technically interested as those posting. I am NOT an expert, I class my self as an interested party and as such many of my threads are questions rather than answers. The responses are of course of great value to me (and perhaps others) because many of the contributors have really interesting facts and queries to throw back. IMHO that's a pretty good starting point. I know for a fact a lot of people are worried about asking questions because they fear being laughed at. I'm a noob and I don't mind admitting it. If this site ever became intolerant of new members or those who have perhaps less knowledge than the older members then I'd simply lose interest. The answers that you say people should seek for themselves might not be as readily available to people (like me) who have no idea where to begin. Being pointed in the right direction is very valuable and much appreciated.
in support of Parris' last comment, i feel that it should be reminded that everyone has to start somewhere (myself included) and without asking questions / reading other's quetsions i would not have learnt as much as i have from here... This site is a valuable resource for the members/lurkers/unregistered etc, just becuase some dont contribute as much as others, doesnt mean they are less valuable.... Off my soap box now.
i agree completely with Kev, and what i agree the most is: "If you want to see more quality posts, post some yourself and lead by example." i felt the need to give a better contribution on the forums even before this topic surfaced, and i wrote an article, hoping to "move" something. If people will keep posting better things, more informative articles and such, the general level of the forum will improve to excellence. so, not for boasting myself, but people should follow my lead for saying so and write about what they know about or what can be helpful. this is how the wiki started. karsten
I agree with Parris. @Parris: there is a rating system for users actually. You can rate users on specific posts. Maybe those should be used more and perhaps the score put in display next to the avatar. This way, a person could quantify how well-received or not a certain contribution is. That said, this could potentially scare users who lack confidence and give out the wrong meaning. We're here for a common purpose, it is true, but this doesn't mean that we can't further socialize as humans. I m glad I ve met plenty of interesting minds here on the boards, and we often discuss in private about other things besides gaming as well. I think the boards are ok the way they are in general, but more technical knowledge and details are always welcome subject to their availability of course.
I think what is clear to me is that a "Intro guide" to individual / specific development systems is long overdue. The information may already exist in chunks, comments, data or other threads spread across thousands of posts, but colating it into a coherent and downloadable guide per console would be a feat of work worthy of any site. The net benefit would be to halt the number of ''basic'' queries that longer established users feel keep cropping up time & time again. It might also be a means of generating further discussion. By ''guide'' I don't mean anything patronizing, however it could be sub-divided per unit. I.e. How to repair, how to install, What is required (software wise) and ultimately a users guide. Whenever new or noob users (hello, that'll be me then) come to AG they can access a large batch of easily followed material and then when they are comfortable, start asking appropriate questions. It would shift a lot of the entry level questions that frustrate away from the main threads. I like the overall feel & look of AG, however for the more experienced user there might be a real need for a section where really it's more motorway traffic of in-depth discussion than pottering about at the shallow end (hello me again!) The material already exists elsewhere, or if it doesn't then Limey's idea of a Wiki is excellent. I loved Karstens recent article(s). More of this stuff please! UJ, Port and I (why me?) have discussed the possibility of writing a PS2 Tool guide that covers the above and I am all for it. It would make my life easier as it might explain some of the issues I keep finding with the unit. TBH, what prompted me to post a LOT of the questions I posted regarding the Tool was a fellow AG user who admitted to me that he'd owned one for ages, had asked questions, hadn't really understood or got the answers that came back and he ditched the unit for almost 2 years! That can't be good community cohesion! That dude knows his stuff, but felt out of his depths and couldn't find a means to ask without feeling in the spotlight! Noobs are great, they ask the questions you want to ask and are afraid too. So, it's a bit like that old Woody Allen film "All the questions you ever wanted to ask about development kits, but were too afraid to ask". If the answers are already there, then the chances are you'll actually find more people taking an interest and through time the level of debate will rise! Anyhoooooo, I'm teaching and the class are kind of looking at me like "What next?" so I'd better go.
thanks for appreciating my topic, but i'd like to point out that WE ALREADY have a wiki (i contributed quite a bit there too) it's here: http://assemblergames.com/wiki/dogatemysnes/pmwiki.php?n=Main.HomePage this one of my entries (vandalized): http://assemblergames.com/wiki/dogatemysnes/pmwiki.php?n=Topics.SNES-CD-ROM we have the tools but we lack the knowledge of them. maybe having a "PORTAL" (marshall is still loving me for this... check his quote) before entering the forums might be an help in organizing resources llike wiki, faqs, main topics, news and such. but right now we're about to move servers from what i understand so i guess everything is kept on hold.
Sorry Karsten, I was meaning in terms of us ALL using it and in particular me taking Limey's advice re the Tool thread.
hey, my friend don't feel pointed at! i didn't mean to sound harsh or anything, and i understood that you weren't referring to me. hey, parris, beside barcode the people here are a friendly bunch (barcode is becaming a scapegoat.. who stole my PS3 TEST? it was barcode! )
Barc0dio has a PS3 Test? :drool: Nice one mate! <Back on topic!> It's ok Karsten, I didn't feel under and particular pressure, just pointing out that I knew others have done some Wiki work. Didn't realise how much though.
Hey hey hey, back on topic guys. And boy do I try, even when they're intended for one person or they aren't the popular opinion. Definitely. *More rantage ahead*: If you really comb this board, you will find that 90% of the posts are one-liners and often they're just repeats of what other people have said and have no real value to people who started the thread or people who are reading the thread. Example responses to a FS thread: guy 1: "damn ______, now i don't have money" guy 2: "wow, great deal, too bad i'm broke" guy 3: "if only i didn't buy ______ ..." Example responses in a "can you help me with my project?" thread: guy 1: "i can't help, sorry" guy 2: "i wish i could help, but i don't know anything" guy 3: "i know someone who did something like that, hes dead though" Yeah, we all understand that everyone wants to contribute something but can you imagine if every member here posted responses like "i can't help"? Wouldn't it make more sense if only the people who can/will help posted? It seems that a lot of people don't get that a forum isn't like private email, when someone posts a thread, they generally aren't talking directly at you, so they aren't looking for your life-story unless it contributes to their thread.
It's so wrong to laugh, but that is some funny shit calpis; you hit that on the head as far as the sales responses lol.
I can't afford a PS3, let alone a TEST PS3 u knobs! maybe I should start a "Charity for XMAS" thread for myself and collect funds so I may justify your allegations of owning a Ps3 TEST though... hmm!
