Repeat Of Same Questions...Look first!

[Snarkyone]

As you can see, I still answer questions. I have decided to just write up a few generic answers and save them in notepad or something and just copy and paste since I am answering the same questions all the time perhaps that will ease the frustration with people that can't seem to find the answers they seek, or more specifically those that are too lazy to look for themselves. I'm all about helping others, you people seem to miss that statement each time I make it for some reason, all you appear to see is that people asking questions that are easily answered if they just scrolled down the page are starting to annoy me.

If I didn't want to help I wouldn't bother trying to help or to get people to help themselves prior to asking someone for the answer. I guess what it boils down to is that you can't tell who is lazy and who is truly in need of help, those that truly have no clue I will spend hours with them if I need to in order to help them out. I have no problem helping those people out at all. The lazy one's just distract you and I from helping those that really need it, and that bugs me.

It's a confusing product, I understand that myself I researched brands, styles, sellers, shipping cost, cost of ownership over the life of the product, consumables cost over time, ease of refills, you name it if it's associated with E-Cigs I looked at it. It can be a real pain figuring out what model is what and what one is best suited to your smoking habits and on and on. I know it took me what seemed like forever to decide on a model and even then I wasn't too sure, lol! Trust yourself, put in the research and you should have a enjoyable and successful time quitting smoking with your E-Cig.

The shoutbox is a great place to get some real time information on just about any model E-Cig and suppliers, it's the first place I would suggest any person who has a question to go and ask it in there first. You stand a good chance of having someone there who can walk you through whatever you need to know in real time instead of having to wait and then wade through all the same replies as well. All of us that stay here after we have made our purchases do so because we do want to help and there is tons of info still to be learned and this is a great resource for sure. It just helps if you at least try to help yourself as well. I can be found in the forums trolling for people to help, Good luck to all in their quest to quit tobacco.

EDIT: Sure videos are great and there are some here, but it still boils down to people watching them first. I think we have a hard enough time getting people to read for 5 minutes prior to asking questions, I don't know how many will sit through a video although I do like think it's an excellent idea, it can't hurt and it will be more info out there for people to see. Anyway, I've said my piece, it don't matter what people say or do people will always look for the easy answer, it's in our dna.

 

[Crankyfuzz]

I watched spikeys video it was a sticky at the time in the new members forum and it did answer a lot of the questions I had but I do not see it now....

 

[HaploVoss]

I can completely understand the frustration, but at the same time - the basic forum search function - like most of them.... sucks. (Nothing personal towards the owners, etc. - this is just the way it is trust me. I've installed and moderated most of the currently available forum appilcations out there, and a mountain of them in the past.)

Try going up to the search tab, click it, then type in oh I don't know 'my atomizer tastes burnt'. Look at your result list. For someone who is not the most web savvy, it's a bit daunting wouldn't you say?

So first we have to teach them how to better use keywords, the advanced engine, which forum(s) best to limit it to, and then they will really get some results right? Either way you are going to end up with an endless stream of repetative questions from new incoming users.

Like I said I feel your pain - boy howdy you have no idea I live it daily - but it is part and parcel of someplace like this as well and I don't really think new members should necessarily be shunned for a repeat question.

Like you were saying, just make yourself up some canned answers and be done with it if that makes it better for you! I do that all the time in my many running support threads for clients!

Take care,
- Hap

 

[DC2]

I haven't read a single post in this thread that was not correct.
So let's go back to helping the newbies.


And yes, I have my own thread full of stock answers that I use.
Sometimes I point them to the thread, sometimes I just pull an answer from it.

Depends on if I think they have done any research of their own yet.

 

[Proverb]

I see I hit some buttons with some people, good, that was the reason for the post. To be clear, those that talked about man being social creatures did you skip that part about the shoutbox being an excellent source of both information and real-time info? Granted I didn't flat out state it like that but I did point it out that the shoutbox was an excellent source for noobs with questions as I did.

To those out there that aren't research specialist, and I am? It takes no special skill to use google, hell you can even misspell stuff and it still works and even offers suggestions! Once you find yourself here new to computers or not, if you speak English the word "search" should be self evident of what it does.

Many people got it, I don't mind answering questions, I come back everyday don't I? I don't even mind answering the occasional repeat question, or even the incredibly simple ones, none of that bothers me at all. What bothers me if is that if they had bothered to simply "scan" down the page where the clicked "start thread" 98% of the time they would see the answer to their "oh so special and unique to them" question somewhere on that page, especially if there weren't so many post asking the same thing over and over.

Long time PC and forum users will notice that I didn't bark about forum etiquette in regards to double post, and searching for the answer prior to wasting members time with repeat questions. I get the fact that the people that come here looking for answers are not always going to be up on that stuff, and I wouldn't expect them to be.

Questions are a part of life, we can't learn without asking questions. It is not my intent to stop the questions, but to perhaps educate some new person that reads this that much like the X-Files, the answers are out there, just look around. I can be found in the forums answering questions.

I'm assuming you're referring to my post as I was the only one to actually reference man as being a social creature. I didn't skip that part of your post, merely stating that I don't mind the repeat questions and gave my reasoning for it .

That being said, I think a lot of the whole repetitive posts and why we see them is because we don't see the posts by the people that HAVE used the search feature and done their research. I'd imagine there are quite a few newbies that come here, read through the mounds of information available and simply go about their business without asking a question that's been asked countless times before. I know they exist because I was in that category . Though I readily admit I didn't see the search button initially and just waded through countless posts about this thing or that thing. And as others have mentioned, it's a really cruddy search feature, though the google one down at the bottom makes up for it I suppose.

I still stand by my belief that the repeat questions aren't a bad thing and aside from my earlier statements about the social aspect. I mean one of the most common is "What type of eCig should I get?" or "What's the best eCig?" It's a question that's been asked countless times on these forums, and almost daily it seems. That's a good thing. New models come out and the answer to the question is very much a personal thing that needs to be tailored to the user. If someone were to come here and see that the only post about that was two years old (gross hyperbole) because no one was allowed to ask repeat questions, well, information gets old; it has a shelf-life, and they would be forming an opinion based upon incomplete data. Maybe at the time the NJoy Npro was the only big player and so no one would have bought a 510.

All of that being said, you yourself have answered your own question about why we see so many repeat posts. Information overload. There's so much of it out there from both people trying to inform and people trying to get into your wallet. I don't know about you, but it took me a good while to sift through a lot of it. Somewhere along the way the eCig went from some gimmicky product in my mind to a hobby of sorts. I know a lot of people don't WANT this as a hobby, they just want to get off of analogs. Of course there are also a lot of people who have made this a hobby of sorts .

Newbies also see brands rather than model numbers, the same is true with many, many other things - like laptops or PCs. People say things like "Hey, I got a new computer, it's a Dell!" not things like "Hey, I got a new computer! It's a 91000" but that's exactly how we refer to eCigs. I distinctly remember at one point trying to decide between a Joytech, a Janty Dura-C, and a TECC Titan or a TECC Yeti. Guess what? They're all (more or less) the same, and I found that out.

And even once you navigate through that labyrinth of decisions then comes the faithful time where you actually need to make the purchase. My first introduction to the existence of an eCig was inhaleaway.com. Go look at that site and tell me if you would buy some completely foreign concept from them. Instead of eCigs, pretend they were selling pills that eliminated the need to consume food. Would you trust a site like that; making such crazy claims as they are? The eCig is just as crazy of a claim. And that's the trouble. I support all the suppliers here and try to send business their way whenever I can, but many of them are NOT professional web-designers but rather running their sites themselves, and that can be a huge deterrent to the new user. Hell, I'm sure some people have chosen to buy their eJuice from heaven-gifts.com instead of healthcabin.net because heaven-gifts.com is more visually appealing; but they sell the same juice!

There are so many subtle nuances to the eCig, and such a sheer volume of data out there that I really can't fault the people that post repeats of the same old question.

 

[1inchgroup]

Idea that's worked on some other forums.

Sticky a "forum etiquette" guide in the newbie section. Maybe make that one of the first links that gets sent to the new user's email box...? Welcome, here's how it works...

"Suggest" that new members join so they can view the linked pics and videos, but might want to refrain from posting until they

"Lurk" for a while....to get to know what people are posting about...what not to post about...

How the "search" function works...and how to use it to get the answers to simple questions....

Mentioned in another post how good you guys seemed to be about answering the same questions over and over again...guess I spoke too soon?

New ecig users with tons of questions like myself...with maybe a little less exposure to forums and how to use them to get information...specifically the search function to hit keywords in posts.

 

[Porphy]

Try going up to the search tab, click it, then type in oh I don't know 'my atomizer tastes burnt'. Look at your result list. For someone who is not the most web savvy, it's a bit daunting wouldn't you say?

70% of the search results talk about the burnt taste and even have titles relating to "cleaning an atomizer"

I'm not saying it's a perfect system but you can tell when someone has actually looked for an answer or if they just bypass all self help and post in the newbie section wanting someone to give them their own personal counseling.

@ ladyraj - I have to pipe in here. You've been coming to the board for months, and by your own admission, you never noticed the word "search" on the front page at the very top of the board so that it is present anywhere you go in the forum? So for months and numerous visits you have failed to fully read the 35 to 50 words that are between the top most corner of the page and the word "search".

Sorry to highlight that failure but that is precisely why I rarely go the the new members forum anymore. It is disconcerting to read topics that say things to the effect of, "I was overwhelmed by the amount of information"... overwhelmed? Really? Reading and learning should never be an overwhelming process.

Sifting through 20 + posts a day to answer the same question isn't an effective way to help the community.

 

[Ez Duzit]

C'mon Porphy. Stop sugar coating it, and tell us how you really feel!

 

[SheerLuckHolmes]

Since e-cigs are growing exponentially (SP?) everyday, it is natural that there will be more and more newbee finding this forum. I believe there was a tutorial class sitcky thread in the modders forum. Didn't do into that one, but saw it. Maybe there can be created a newbee class section, E-cigs class 101, then 102, 103 and so on. Or maybe tutorial classes on specific topics one on each e-cig basic model the 510, the 901, the 801 and then the big bats - SD, SB, Prodigy... FAQ.

If Smokey Joe or the moderators want to put someting like this together and announce where they would like the class work or FAQ submitted, I am sure this community would inundate them with material.

 

[tiffytiff]

the more i read here the more frustrated it makes me really.....

i will help anyone and everyone i can with the little e-cig knowledge i have, and i do mean little.

guess if it bothers some of you so very much start your own forum for veteren vapors....no noobies allowed ..... then your elitist group can live happily ever after... and you no longer have to answer all the "stupid repetitive questions!"

geesh

oh yeah and i second every single word LADYRAJ said!


OH YEAH ONE MORE THING.....i did my homework logged so many hours/days researching and reading about e cigs that my husband threatened to have the internet shut off. but this is all very confusing to newbies from terminology to model numbers to dripping to carts. mods or not, hell it took me an hour to realize analog was a cig!!!!! arrrrhhhhgh. not to mention this was my first forum experience. . AND only used my kid's computer (this isnt mine, it's hers for homework and such) for checking email!...
i did watch spikeys video, and any other video i could find for that matter, but still some things needed clarification...must be nice being born knowing it all!

dunno why this thread makes me as angry as it does, but there it is anyway

I AM SO GLAD THIS WASNT THE FIRST THREAD I STUMBLED UPON AS A NEWBIE TALK ABOUT DISCOURAGING

 

[donareggio]

its been 2 weeks that I have been checking out this forum and I never asked a question although I have millions of them. the first 3 days I spent hours just to fugure out how the forum works. Then trying to sort through all the lingo about e-cig. Thanks to DonDaBoomVape and Everything You Wanted to Know About E-cigs, But Were Afraid To Ask forum got most of my questions answered, ok figured out what the heck is an e-cig which one is the best for a newbie etc.. but I am still soooooo confused I want to scream.... I thought maybe for once somethinhg was going to work and I could quit smoking.
bottomline what I am trying to get at is this is not like get a pack from the store light one and smoke it... No it has batteries and juice and cartilage and this gazillion e-juices.. Its like an information overload. I got the 510 and tried it now I have more questions then ever... and you know after hours and hours of searching you just get tired and just want to ask someone hoping you are not bothering anyone... and thanks for making me feel like I will definitely bore someone as they have answered those questions before....

 

[surbitonPete]

the more i read here the more frustrated it makes me really.....

i will help anyone and everyone i can with the little e-cig knowledge i have, and i do mean little.

guess if it bothers some of you so very much start your own forum for veteren vapors....no noobies allowed ..... then your elitist group can live happily ever after... and you no longer have to answer all the "stupid repetitive questions!"

geesh

oh yeah and i second every single word LADYRAJ said!


OH YEAH ONE MORE THING.....i did my homework logged so many hours/days researching and reading about e cigs that my husband threatened to have the internet shut off. but this is all very confusing to newbies from terminology to model numbers to dripping to carts. mods or not, hell it took me an hour to realize analog was a cig!!!!! arrrrhhhhgh. not to mention this was my first forum experience. . AND only used my kid's computer (this isnt mine, it's hers for homework and such) for checking email!...
i did watch spikeys video, and any other video i could find for that matter, but still some things needed clarification...must be nice being born knowing it all!

dunno why this thread makes me as angry as it does, but there it is anyway

I AM SO GLAD THIS WASNT THE FIRST THREAD I STUMBLED UPON AS A NEWBIE TALK ABOUT DISCOURAGING

Hey tiffy don't get upset, I certainly haven't forgotten when I first joined the forum, I wasn't interested in 'searching' old threads for my answers, I wanted to 'talk' to people, I hated anyone telling me to do a search if I asked a question. Plenty of the great people on here (especially Kate who was sadly banned) would pleasantly point me in the direction of a good thread or to a bit of information.....and that sure isn't the same as telling me to hit the search function. To me that's just like a grumpy old adult who tells an excited kid with a question to... 'go away and don't bother me with your stupid questions'.

 

[tiffytiff]

its been 2 weeks that I have been checking out this forum and I never asked a question although I have millions of them. the first 3 days I spent hours just to fugure out how the forum works. Then trying to sort through all the lingo about e-cig. Thanks to DonDaBoomVape and Everything You Wanted to Know About E-cigs, But Were Afraid To Ask forum got most of my questions answered, ok figured out what the heck is an e-cig which one is the best for a newbie etc.. but I am still soooooo confused I want to scream.... I thought maybe for once somethinhg was going to work and I could quit smoking. bottomline what I am trying to get at is this is not like get a pack from the store light one and smoke it... No it has batteries and juice and cartilage and this gazillion e-juices.. Its like an information overload. I got the 510 and tried it now I have more questions then ever... and you know after hours and hours of searching you just get tired and just want to ask someone hoping you are not bothering anyone... and thanks for making me feel like I will definitely bore someone as they have answered those questions before....

**there are more people on here than not that are willing to help....don't let this post deter you from asking any question you want to ask...please*i would be happy to help in anyway i can.* i've been vaping with my 510 for a minute and i love it.** pm me if you have any questions ......pete.... thanks man starting to calm down now lol, this post just really ticked me off

 

[Proverb]

its been 2 weeks that I have been checking out this forum and I never asked a question although I have millions of them. the first 3 days I spent hours just to fugure out how the forum works. Then trying to sort through all the lingo about e-cig. Thanks to DonDaBoomVape and Everything You Wanted to Know About E-cigs, But Were Afraid To Ask forum got most of my questions answered, ok figured out what the heck is an e-cig which one is the best for a newbie etc.. but I am still soooooo confused I want to scream.... I thought maybe for once somethinhg was going to work and I could quit smoking.
bottomline what I am trying to get at is this is not like get a pack from the store light one and smoke it... No it has batteries and juice and cartilage and this gazillion e-juices.. Its like an information overload. I got the 510 and tried it now I have more questions then ever... and you know after hours and hours of searching you just get tired and just want to ask someone hoping you are not bothering anyone... and thanks for making me feel like I will definitely bore someone as they have answered those questions before....

Don't apologize, you've nothing apologize for. And don't be afraid to ask questions. That's what the New Members section is for. Like I was saying, everyone's coming at the e-Cig from their own perspective and each needs an answer in his or her own way. I'm sure your question will bore someone out there, just like my banter is sure to bore others, but people choose to read what they will . Besides, I'm equally confident that your question will help someone else at some point down the road.

If this threads deterring you from posting in any way, but you have questions you're dying to ask but afraid to do so, feel free to PM me and I'll answer 'em as best I can. We're all in this together, and this forum's about the discussion of anything and everything, from the newcomer's question, to the dissection of really expensive mods, to why the FDA is evil .

EDIT:
Seems tiffy and I have the same thoughts, only I'm a slower poster

 

[HaploVoss]

70% of the search results talk about the burnt taste and even have titles relating to "cleaning an atomizer"

Exactly my point - the first page of those results have ONE post that actually says 'Cleaning an atomizer'. All the other titles - for someone who has never been here and does not know about cola cleansing, what a 510 is, etc. - the rest of the titles on the first page have no meaning to them.

Your 70% is only found by going through each and every post. Do you do that? probably. Do I do that? Sure. Have you, myself, and other people that do research before hand - been using the internet, forums, newsgroups, FIDONet, etc. ?? Most likely.

There is still room for maneuver for new people. I've been answering the same old questions since the first BBSs started coming online at 150bps. That is just the way it is and if you don't want to answer them... then just don't. Let the people that you have already taught take up the torch and pass it on to the next group of n00bs right? No problem. Again, I understand what you are saying and your frustration, but at the same time we were all there at some point.

Take care,
- Hap

 

[Porphy]

People are taking my statements to extremes, which I guess is to be expected in this world of overly dramatic expression and gestures (just watch prime time television). I'm not expressing a distaste for answering questions posed on the forums. I am expressing a distaste for answering the same questions, multiple times each day on this forum. (highlighted for distinction not for grand expression)

Is there no upper limit to redundancy? No point at which you have to say, "there is more of an issue here than just answering the same questions".

Just to be clear: It is in no way, shape or form difficult to use the internet. I teach 4 year old children that can navigate the web with a minimalistic grasp of the English language... Korean children. The internet would not be the valuable resource that it is today if it wasn't simplistic and easy to use.

Don't blame age. If your neurons are still firing you have the ability to learn. I have an 82 year young grandmother that just started using the internet this year and she's moderating a forum now for her church group. Her story isn't an exception to the rule it's normal.

As for being "overwhelmed" by information... please stop that excuse it gives people a totally different impression than you probably intend. I get a picture of someone in Barnes and Noble having a breakdown because the information is "too much".

I feel we've focused on the problem long enough. Some people have given quite good ideas for solutions and I think that's really where we'll find a balance in this argument. We can agree to disagree. The point I think is to find a solution and generating informative generalized posts and getting them stickied seems to be a good place to start. Perhaps even making some videos. The reality is; we had these already and are in the process of remaking some. The issue really cropped up and became out of hand when they were taken down for whatever reason.

So we can assume that an underlying issue isn't so much of getting informative posts up where newbies can see them but making sure they can remain there.

 

[surbitonPete]

A lot of us when we start vaping become like excited kids, it's a big thing for nearly all of us to be able to give up smoking tobacco and the questions aren't really the important part.... it's being able to 'talk' to someone else who is sharing in the same excitement. If you are so fed up with answering the same old questions.... it's very simple ...don't answer them, I am certain someone that 'hasn't' answered the question a thousand times will be more than happy to answer it 'and to have someone to chat to'. Perhaps you can wait and be the one who only ever answers the questions that haven't been asked over and over or something ........or perhaps only get involved when you don't even know the answer yourself.

 

[SudokuGal]

Yes, sometimes, I think "oh geez, have you read the forum yet?" Then, I remember how overwhelmed I was...I'm not new to forums, so it was strictly the wealth of information. I answer when I have the time...or when a newbie seems to be being ignored. When I don't have the time or I've already answered a few for the day, I figure there will be someone who comes along to answer.

I also agree that the forum would benefit from some structure to the info for newbies...the help and FAQ are bit lacking. That might reduce some of the repeat, common questions...yet, as surbitonPete said, some people are probably looking forward to introducing themselves and wanting interaction with people who have some experience. It's just not civil, my opinion, to make a newbie feel like they've come to the wrong place.

 

[trog100]

its a self perpetuating situation with busy forums..

new questions hide the old answers.. a forum has an ideal size.. too small and its aint got enough users.. too big and its got too many users..

and folks just like to post for the sake of posting.. give the world a place to waffle and waffle it will.. waffle is what makes this place popular.. he he

newbies love to ask the questions.. semi newbies love to answer em.. old hands soon get sick and tired of answering the same questions over and over again and stop doing it..

no real answer to it tho.. forums are forums and have a fixed kind of nature..

trog

ps.. bums on seats and waffle (hits) is what matter to forum owners.. they need all these useless questions and answers to get the hits..

 

[JeannieB360]

[Drum roll please] Um, I know this isn't the right place, but my atty tastes funny.
What should I do?

If it tastes funny, enjoy the laugh! But what store sells those funny atomizers, and are they legal, and will they do same day delivery?