21
votes
Is "english stackexchange" full of downvoting trolls?
English Language & Usage attracts many different types of participants, including hundreds of regular and semi-regular contributors who have accumulated enough reputation to be entitled to upvote ...
- 166k
12
votes
I am worried about being off-topic
I'm a reader and a rare asker, not an answerer, so basically I'm one of those "eternal newbie" types.
I feel the problem that you brought up is pertinent to any Stackexchange subforum, not this one ...
- 554
12
votes
I am worried about being off-topic
Like you, I stumbled on this site by accident. My own first interactions were less than felicitous: I was chastized (rightly, as I see it now) for a sloppy answer, and never officially "on-boarded". I ...
11
votes
How can the Tour screenshot be updated to reflect current standards for questions (and answers)?
The Tour page describes editing others' questions and answers, but it doesn't mention one of the most important editing functions: editing your own post, especially to incorporate suggestions in the ...
- 3,202
11
votes
Becoming more welcoming to new users, how?
While there is the occasional rude individual, perceived but unintended slight, or even an otherwise polite user acting out of frustration, I suspect that the lion's share of the tension comes from a ...
- 38.9k
11
votes
Accepted
We need a site specific message for our advice page
In EL&U, the problem is not that the standard Stack Exchange advice for writing good questions isn't appropriate. It's that some visitors don't have enough patience or enough facility with the ...
- 38.9k
10
votes
Accepted
Becoming more welcoming to new users, how?
(I'm not sure that this'll count as an answer. Or even be useful. It's just my ramblings based on the question.)
Yep, I totally agree that experienced users commenting can come across as ...
- 14.9k
10
votes
Are low quality questions and answers here to stay?
In my opinion a video wouldn't help. I think the real problem is there is no indication on the way to posting a low quality question that indicates exactly that fact to a new user.
I agree with P. ...
- 5,447
9
votes
Are low quality questions and answers here to stay?
I'm opposed to it being a compulsory video. Some people may lack the bandwidth or technology to play a video, or may have difficulties being verified as watching the video. Also, some users may have ...
- 18.2k
8
votes
Hoop-jumping for new users: multiple choice quiz!
I like the spirit of your idea, but I don't know how effective it would be.
It's not hard to imagine users checking ‘Yes’ to the first question, even if their questions are very scant on details. (...
- 59k
8
votes
Accepted
Are low quality questions and answers here to stay?
I upvoted the question because (1) I appreciate your continuing effort to improve the quality of questions and answers around here, and (2) I think a short video presentation might work with drive-by ...
- 166k
6
votes
Is "english stackexchange" full of downvoting trolls?
In short, No.
But this deserves some explanation.
English actually should properly be called Advanced English. Because of the nature of the site there are rules to follow for a correct question. Not ...
- 7,233
6
votes
Should we change the default suggested tags?
single-word-requests
This tag is for questions seeking a single word that fits a meaning. To ensure that your question is not closed as off-topic, please be specific about the intended use of the ...
Andrew LeachMod
- 103k
5
votes
Becoming more welcoming to new users, how?
SO could help with setting an expectation of required editing of OP:
?"We understand that if you are confused or stuck it might be hard to word your problem on your first attempt (but please try!...
- 5,774
5
votes
Becoming more welcoming to new users, how?
This is the first introduction to your pages. Pretty nice, right? Nowhere does it say "Please begin your tour by looking at our standards for answers and questions. Then dive in. You will be ...
- 370
5
votes
Becoming more welcoming to new users, how?
It is undeniable that the minimum site expectations of an acceptable answer must be clearly explained to the new member:
(1) it should answer the question as asked by OP
(2) it should be adequately ...
- 7,382
5
votes
Should we change the default suggested tags?
I would keep word-choice, the explanation is short and it tells the author to use SWR if they don't know the word they're looking for.
- 92.3k
3
votes
Repository of polite responses
Lack of reasonable research
Have you thoroughly searched for an answer before asking your
question? Sharing your research helps everyone. Tell us what you found
and why it didn’t meet your ...
3
votes
Repository of polite responses
Requests for candidate words or novel expressions
I'm afraid I have to vote to close this question as off-topic. If a question asks about a recent neologism that thousands of other
people can ...
3
votes
I am worried about being off-topic
The two pages you found you took as representative of the site as a whole. I get that. Yours is not so much a question as it is a bug report on the English Language & Usage community, or at least ...
- 28.6k
3
votes
We need a site specific message for our advice page
Here's my suggested text:
If you're learning English as a second language, please go to English Language Learners [provide link].
Before you ask a question, search for an answer on this site, ...
- 16k
3
votes
Should we change the default suggested tags?
tenses
A set of forms taken by a verb to indicate the time and/or completeness and continuance of the action in relation to the time of the utterance.
Andrew LeachMod
- 103k
2
votes
Should we change the default suggested tags?
prepositions
Prepositions are function words like "to", "over", "through", "in". The meaning of a sentence can be dramatically altered by choosing the wrong ...
Andrew LeachMod
- 103k
2
votes
Repository of polite responses
Proof-reading questions
As English is currently the international language of business and cross-language communication generally, many new users, both non-native and native speakers, desire a ...
2
votes
Becoming more welcoming to new users, how?
I consider this the most important part of the blog post:
Too often, someone comes here to ask a question, only to be told that
they did it wrong. They get snarky or condescending comments for ...
- 16k
2
votes
Are low quality questions and answers here to stay?
There'S a far simpler way to weed out low quality Q&A by indicating clearly what this site is about: chose the right title.
Most people ( I don't remember the exact figures but we're talking 95% ...
- 4,106
2
votes
Accepted
How to prevent automatic downvotes on an answer after editing it?
Thanks to Andrew Leach ♦ for the link to Shog9 ♦'s answer on MSE, part of which is applicable here also. Emphasis added.
The system will now revoke the automatic downvote if, after the [VLQ] flag is ...
NVZMod
- 22.6k
1
vote
Writing a better help page on "How do I write a good answer" [updated]
How do I write a good answer?
Thanks for taking the time to contribute an answer. It’s because of helpful peers like yourself that we’re able to learn together as a community. Here are a few tips on ...
1
vote
I am worried about being off-topic
Years ago I used to participate in Usenet discussions, which routinely degenerated into "flame wars" and other silly useless stuff. And I see the good in the Stack Exchange ambition to set aside this ...
- 3,015
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible