Sean, I think it is a good idea. In the archives though, the off topic and batting back and forth stuff should get removed. That might sound like censorship, but when you are going through archives to get useful information, having that stuff in the way is like trying to make time on a highway with speed bumps. Doing that takes time and likely sponsorship. As I said, I'm willing as a manufacturer to sponsor an archival section (pending pricing of course) to support the resources to manage and post it. I do think it would help if we users suggest the threads that need to get into the archives.
Compiling info for Audiogon FAQ's
Given the fact that many questions are asked and discussed over and over again in these and other audio forums, i thought it might be a good idea if Audiogon developed a Frequently Asked Questions section.
We could do this by selecting common topics and then selecting individual responses or entire threads to reference for that subject. Since some threads may not be as "good" as others yet may contain VERY useful info hidden in a dozen posts, i think that being able to pick and choose the highlights of each subject and responses from the archives would be the best way to go. My thoughts are that an individual collection of "pearls of wisdom" that forum users find useful on individual subject might be better than listing an entire thread(s). Obviously, this would have to be done at Audiogon's discretion, but i don't think that they have a problem with making this a more user-friendly site and cutting down on the number of posts to moderate : )
This would allow people interested in a subject a quick way to find answers to the majority of questions without having to dig through the archives. On top of this, it may streamline the forums a bit, resulting in fewer "generic" questions being asked. This may open up the doors for both greater participation and diversity of questions since the basics will have been pretty well covered in the FAQ's.
With that in mind, let's open the forum up to suggestions on topics that should be "FAQ'ed" and how we can go about submitting threads / posts to be contained under those subject titles. While i've got a few suggestions of my own ( as usual : ) i'd like to see what you folks as end users want included and what Audiogon thinks about the subject. There have been some very helpful suggestions that i've found when doing searches and i'm sure that others would like to have their "quick picks" made available for others to learn from also. Sound like a plan ??? Sean
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We could do this by selecting common topics and then selecting individual responses or entire threads to reference for that subject. Since some threads may not be as "good" as others yet may contain VERY useful info hidden in a dozen posts, i think that being able to pick and choose the highlights of each subject and responses from the archives would be the best way to go. My thoughts are that an individual collection of "pearls of wisdom" that forum users find useful on individual subject might be better than listing an entire thread(s). Obviously, this would have to be done at Audiogon's discretion, but i don't think that they have a problem with making this a more user-friendly site and cutting down on the number of posts to moderate : )
This would allow people interested in a subject a quick way to find answers to the majority of questions without having to dig through the archives. On top of this, it may streamline the forums a bit, resulting in fewer "generic" questions being asked. This may open up the doors for both greater participation and diversity of questions since the basics will have been pretty well covered in the FAQ's.
With that in mind, let's open the forum up to suggestions on topics that should be "FAQ'ed" and how we can go about submitting threads / posts to be contained under those subject titles. While i've got a few suggestions of my own ( as usual : ) i'd like to see what you folks as end users want included and what Audiogon thinks about the subject. There have been some very helpful suggestions that i've found when doing searches and i'm sure that others would like to have their "quick picks" made available for others to learn from also. Sound like a plan ??? Sean
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- 17 posts total
Another feature that would be nice, is the ability to have a poll with choices set- members could vote(anonmyously) for choices pre selected by the originator of the thread. The poll would tell percentage who vote for any given topic and the total votes for each topic. Surely audiogon could handle that in short order! If they could implement the voting system many of us remember and hated this should be a piece of cake. Perhaps this belongs under a seperate thread, but its an idea I have had running around in my head for quiet some time now. I do like the idea of FAQ's how ever it may be impossible where to draw the line and what subjects are to be included and further more how to keep them on track- as we all know tangents do tend to fill up the 'gon a lot. Not that I think that's a bad thing just doesn't belong in the FAQ section. |
Good idea Sean. We at Audiogon have considered this off and on, and debated various mechanisms with which to build such a knowledge base. We had gotten so far as to list some of the "Questions", which can be viewed at this link: Audio FAQ's The above is just a static list, and doesn't actually lead anywhere other than to show the questions we had in mind. If there is sufficient interest/volunteers to work on an FAQ, we could implement a first step which would be for members to suggest Questions. Once there is a solid list of questions, the next step could be addressed at that time. |
Arnie(and crew)- Looks great! You guys don't waste any time that's for sure!!! Seems like you are off to a good start, and the topics seem very basic yet allow users to find great amounts of information by specific catagory. I would be willing to offer as much time as I can spare to do anything that would help in this effort. The one thing I would add to the digital catagory is the query- CD players with variable level outputs(volume controls). That question is asked at least once a month and it would be nice to have a reference thread to point folks to. |
Thanks Tireguy, for your kind words and for your volunteering to help. We will add the question you mention, because it does seem to be common. Perhaps something like "Can a CD player with Variable out run an amp?". Others reading this thread should go ahead and post candidates for Questions right in this thread, which will then serve as a reference for building the "final" set of questions to throw up there. Once we have a set of questions, we can make them into "threads", and members could add links to previous posts, or actually write out a comprehensive but general answer under a particular question. We (me and other staff) could then filter the answers and then post the threads as the FAQ. Once they are actually posted, any new answers to those questions would be highly scrutinized by moderators before posting, thus limiting the answers to just a few comprehensive ones per question. |
- 17 posts total