Why don't people post ? are they afraid of posting ?

rcpilotacro · July 07, 2012, 08:16:36 PM

There are so many members on RC India but very few posters. Is this because people are unsure of their posting skills or perhaps unwilling to risk getting bashed, flamed, corrected, or lectured? Some senior aeromodellors are amongst them, who too are guilty as charged (And some wannabes too).

Some real cheap ones only surface here for selling stuff. if you look at their posts, 90% (More than that probably) of the time it is to sell something. even though these guys have the kowledge and expertise, they dont want to share or find time to share. (Give it a try, 'Predominant Sellers' you will find time)

Then there are these guests, who visit as guests take the knowledge/read the post (They don't care about pics probably, that's why the first pics is most hit (Cos they cant see subsequent pics i guess)

Obviously it helps to be a good writer, or to be an expert, but I actually think that internet posting is a skill that can be learned.

So my question is: (a) Can the average person learn to write better posts? (b) Can these Predominant Sellers contribute ?

(Like Sanjay Thumma says in Vahrehvah.com) RCI is all about teaching and learning, so I wonder if some of the more frequent posters would we willing to share their secrets, Tricks and Tips, Experiences?

Should there be a Cap on the percentage of 'For Sale' threads so that these 'Predominant Sellers' don't show up only to palm off their New/Used/Refurbished stuff?

PS
Have i stirred the Hornet's Nest

VC · July 07, 2012, 08:21:02 PM

Good one Gusty! Yes I've noticed that many veterans have drastically cut down their contributions and have left us much the poorer. Just last evening I missed Izmile a lot.

Btw, I am a HUGE fan of Sanjay Thumma!

rcpilotacro · July 07, 2012, 08:41:20 PM

In these years, I have gone through a lot of different phases. There are some topics I avoid because I have been through them all too often, in spite of Anwar Bhai's intervention on telling them to use search function, I know nothing is going to change.

I think I can offer the following tips to the general population that will be helpful.

1. If you see that a newbie has asked a question. You may find that your very accurate response was already offered 10 times, and the thread has moved on, in which case your response will come across as being foolishly redundant. Worse, your response might not have been as accurate as you thought, and you might see that it has already been thoroughly refuted, in which case you will look like a jackass if you post it.

2. Please check the date of an old thread before responding.

3. Read carefully to see what a poster has said. Dont embarrass yourself by skimming a post and responding to something thought was said rather than what was actually said.

4. If someone asks a question that is in the gray area of your knowledge, read the posts from knowledgeable people before jumping in. You might learn something valuable in that process that you will miss out on otherwise, and you might save yourself from an embarrassing post.

5. OK, you did respond to a post with what you thought was accurate information, but other posts responded to yours by telling you that you were wrong. There's nothing wrong with that, unless you don't handle it well. The right thing to do is to read those responses carefully. If you don't understand them, ask for clarification. If you think you are still right, be very careful and make sure you present firm evidence in your next response. If you realize you were wrong and say so, you will get major respect from everyone. in the same breath i would say, euphemistically put take criticism (Constructive or otherwise) (Blatantly ? Develop Thick Skin). The mistake would be digging a hole by insisting you are right when you really don't have anything to go on.

6. There is nothing wrong with being unaware of something, and there is nothing wrong with asking the most basic questions. people will generally be happy to respond to you in the manner in which you post. I for one enjoy helping out in those situations, and there are many more people like that. The rare "any idiot should know this already" poster is not worthy of you and should be ignored.

7. Please don't join mindless bandwagons.

8. English isn't our mother tongue, it is OK if there are some grammatical errors and regional English, as long as it is not SMS language, it is fine as long as you are communicating clearly to all and sundry. I think just about everyone overlooks obvious typos. I depend heavily upon such forgiveness because my typing skills are so very poor. I think just about everyone overlooks it when someone is struggling with English as a second language. if your message is riddled with errors, especially to the point that it becomes difficult to understand what you are saying, that is another thing altogether. At the very least it tells your readers that you don't care. When it appears that those error-riddled, confusing sentences are the very best you can do, it suggests(Unfortunately) that you are less educated, and it casts doubt on the quality of your overall understanding of any issue on which you may be commenting.

rcpilotacro · July 07, 2012, 08:47:49 PM

In this regard Please read this wonderful article passed on by a buddy

Participation Inequality: Encouraging More Users to Contribute

and this Wiki Entry on Who a Lurker is

iamahuman · July 07, 2012, 09:18:19 PM

I would love to see a cap on 'For sale' threads. On one of the car forums I'm active on, you can't sell unless you're 6 months old to the forum.

My posting activity has gone down since there aren't many car threads and I know I'll make a fool out of myself if I try to say anything on the aero modelling threads.

Reply #2 spoke what was in my mind. Especially point #8....

rcpilotacro · July 08, 2012, 06:04:01 AM

i sent a SMS to one guy to read and may be contribute to a particular post, he had the cheek to tell me. "i only visit the forum to sell my old stuff, like an online garage sale," that's when it occurred to me blokes like him are plenty, they all can be requested to contribute, help out guys

iamahuman · July 08, 2012, 08:23:10 AM

Human nature, isn't it?

vineet · July 08, 2012, 11:09:41 AM

nice topic

i never forget when i joined this forum for the first time a got lots of information about the things which i think suits me best

the moment i fed up from breaking props i try to sell my all stuff and then i got a blasting counseling from 100 of members with there views when they started rc and that encouraged me a lot , many of them offer me free goods , that was the last time i saw members of the forum came out in large for any topic i have posted after that .as i thing that was the common topic and people are very sure about it .

the reason i think the people not post is

1 bad writing skills ( i am one of them).and some times i scared to make fool of myself by positing some things on a x thread in front of some english expert (some time i have to use google translate to understand the meaning of there posted words

)

2 may be they are interested in some particular topics , i can tell the name of guys who are posting on car thread only , or plane thread only or diy thread only etc etc

3 people are lazy i think the do not want to use search , and one more thing when i tried to search for the first time i was not getting the things i want ,rather similar thing , like suppose i want to connect an esc with a motor that can be easily understood by viewing a video rather than reading a text , and realized that our forum should have a separate tab for videos also .

4 yes i saw people come here only for a specific purpose , i even know some guys who have an experience of more then 10 years in rc but there is only an average of post is very poor

sushil_anand · July 09, 2012, 11:05:16 AM

Here is a good link to forum etiquette.

I find suggestion #22 very relevant to our forum and have said so more than once.

http://forum-services-review.toptenreviews.com/25-forum-posting-etiquette-tips.html/

Everyone needs to be encouraged to contribute, but do keep the guidelines in mind.

rcpilotacro · July 09, 2012, 11:18:20 AM

nice one sir, since the site takes time to open and with lot of ads, posting those 'Golden 25' verbatim. Point #25 is most neglected i guess.

1.   Read the forums rules and guidelines before posting for the first time.

2.   Search the other posts to see if your topic is already covered.

3.   Use a meaningful title for your thread.

4.   Do not use a forum to promote your product, service or business. (this you could in our forum, there is place for this)

5.   Be civil. Personal differences should be handled through email or PM and not through posts displayed to everyone.

6.   Stay on the topic.

7.   Ignore spammers, respond to them personally and not through the board, or report them.

8.   Do not submit a post that requires readers to download a large attachment. Either explain the attachment or, better yet, provide a link to the information.

9.   Use plain text over HTML if you want your post to be readable by everyone.

10.   In order to be understood by most people, use correct spelling, grammar and avoid slang unless you know the word or phrase will be understood by other members.

11.   Do not double post (post the same message twice in one thread) or cross post.

12.   Act in a give and take manner; help others as often as or more than you ask for help.

13.   Do not use all caps or SHOUT in your posts. In addition, one exclamation point is enough.

14.   When replying to a post, do not quote more from the previous post than you have to.

15.   Do not post new problems on someone else's thread and interrupt a topic of discussion. (Loosely called Hijacking)

16.   Do not use someone else's thread for a private conversation.

17.   Most forums prohibit warez, cracks, torrents or illegal downloading of software and similar topics.

18.   Watch your sense of humor, posts may be read by people from a variety of backgrounds and ages.

19.   Do not use a huge and annoying signature, a modest signature is fine, moderators may remove large ones anyway.

20.   Do not post any information that you want private. Posts should not contain personal, identifiable information or content embarrassing to others.

21.   Do not post content that violates a copyright.

22.   Do not post "empty" or useless responses, such as just "lol" or "cool." Only post responses when you have something to contribute.

23.   Write concisely and do not ramble.

24.   Do not use words like "urgent" or "important" in your subject line, be patient.

25.   Do not chastise newbies.

amit_delhi · July 09, 2012, 12:32:48 PM

Quote from: rcpilotacro on July 07, 2012, 08:16:36 PM
unwilling to risk getting bashed, flamed

I sincerely believe this might be one of the main reasons. I have seen bashing of members just because they are associated to one particular member.

Quote from: rcpilotacro on July 07, 2012, 08:16:36 PM
Have I stirred the Hornet's Nest

Yes Sir! but for the sake of forum's good.

Can we have some directives about how to address another members? Address by First Name does not work here. A newcomer to the forum can not judge seniority or age of another member.

sushil_anand · July 09, 2012, 12:44:00 PM

There is no need to "judge" age if one's public profile is complete and up to date.

VC · July 09, 2012, 01:02:33 PM

I guess it is alright to refer to everyone by their handle (adopted name on the forum) without adding prefixes or suffixes such as 'Sir' etc. I know it is a bit awkward to refer to someone as simply 'rcpilotacro' once his credentials have been established.

However, a PM to the person requesting him for his approval for the acceptable salutation should solve the issue. Just because someone is twice your age doesn't make the salutation 'Sir' mandatory. Here again is a paradox, if you really, really, really respect a person from your heart go ahead and call him 'Sir' by all means. I couldn't refer to Ashta Sir by any other name.

Someone talked about promoting equality on the forum and I think none of the seniors would object to being referred to / addressed by their handles. I have personally requested members to stop calling me VC Sir. Some refrained, most continue. I find it claustrophobic. It creates boundaries and hierarchies and, as a Trainer, I get enough of that in my professional life. Further, I am truly a novice RC'er and/or flyer and don't deserve that epithet. At the same time I wouldn't like to be called Vikram (that is NOT my name), or Dude or Bro.

I do agree that with our society and system of education yet being British oriented and not American, we feel more comfortable by referring to elders in an exalted manner. It has been ingrained in us. Wake up guys, smell the coffee. Our education may have been in 'British' schools, but most of our careers are going to be modelled on the American system - unless you choose to spend your life in the archaic Government services. That too is changing s-l-o-w-l-y. Just because you call someone by his first name doesn't mean that you disrespect him or take liberties with the person. Ah then, there's the rub - who will draw the line and where? That will happen with experience and learn we shall, in time.

IMHO it would be a GREAT idea to make this topic one of the forum rules.

rcpilotacro · July 09, 2012, 02:18:57 PM

Quote from: amit_delhi on July 09, 2012, 12:32:48 PM
Can we have some directives about how to address another members?

IMHO

we all are equals in cyberspace. to me, there are no directives, only guidelines, which anwar bhai has clearly specified, we need to try to follow that, Admins, Mods and Members ensure we follow it.

me particularly, Gusty is just fine, will i do that to seniors members? absolutely not, i guess 25 years of indoctrination won't go away ! bottom line, i guess whatever you are comfortable with

Hellyflyer · July 09, 2012, 08:28:25 PM

I think one more reason for many people to not post anymore can be because of people not acknowledgeing if the solution worked for them and not even thanking the person who made an effort to type the huge answer.

Hellyflyer

sushil_anand · July 09, 2012, 09:08:15 PM

What you have said is very true. On a personal level, I have experienced "being used" often enough, in a more direct way.

But, albeit slightly more wary, I would not hesitate to be of help, despite the above. And that includes posts.

What is much more "putting off" are the absolutely empty, frivolous, posts. And, I repeat what I have said often enough, that the moderators DO need to act on these. See #22 in the guidelines of which I sent the link and Gusty has, sensibly, posted the actual content. I would also add that a limit to one one emoticon be added to the exclamation mark suggestion.

Less is often more!

VC · July 09, 2012, 10:07:13 PM

If empty, frivolous posts are pointed out directly or indirectly, they can sometimes be 'sickening' for the poster as well.

rcpilotacro · July 09, 2012, 10:14:44 PM

in this regard VC, developing thick skin helps. irksome posts does annoy you, then thick skin, if developed, takes care of it

VC · July 09, 2012, 10:24:41 PM

I suffer from an affliction called sensiderma and I'm trying to procure a bottle of 'Rhinoderm' lotion from FK. Exorbitant prices and what they are actually selling is a 1ml tester bottle, whilst the picture is that of a 1 litre crystal decanter. You wouldn't have any used Kevlar suits that you want to dispose off, do you?

sushil_anand · July 10, 2012, 01:52:02 PM

Quote from: VC on July 09, 2012, 10:07:13 PM
If empty, frivolous posts are pointed out directly or indirectly, they can sometimes be 'sickening' for the poster as well.

Been there, done that. Blow one horn or two, impossible to penetrate rhinoceros hide.

rcpilotacro · July 10, 2012, 02:00:03 PM

Sushil Sir, in aerial communication we follow 4Cs, clear concise crisp and correct , your one liners are so crisp that sometimes i wonder whom is it directed to

VC · July 10, 2012, 02:04:30 PM

Rhinos sometimes go into hibernation. They surface yet again.

L'esprit de l'escalier : Sushil Sir, that's where you are going wrong ......err going right. You don't have to blow horns, whistles do a better job at stopping rhinos dead on their tracks.......temporarily. I think we all need to be whistleblowers.

sushil_anand · July 10, 2012, 02:23:07 PM

The "one horn or two" was a pun w.r.t the rhino part.

And Gusty, I think it was concise, crisp, correct, but the "point" got a bit blunted. Am I clear on that?

amit_delhi · July 10, 2012, 02:28:11 PM

How do we figure out "absolutely empty, frivolous, posts."

A newbie has just posted his newly made scratch built first model, and another member posted on his thread "well made, great going !". Though it is not adding any value whatsoever to the thread but for that newbie it is a great motivation and encouragement getting a comment from a senior member.

I am really not able to understand what are "absolutely empty, frivolous, posts."

SideWinder · July 10, 2012, 02:43:24 PM

Amit may be a pm would accomplish the same purpose of motivation and encouragement.

And with resp. to topic, Im a noob n Im really hesitant to reply to any posts, even if i have an idea on whats been talked about, just so that i dont tick of anyone. Not just the seniors but some juniors too as far as i have seen on this forum.

I dont even ask my own doubts just becoz the first reply i expect would be "search the forum" (which i did and couldnt understand or was not exactly related to issues faced by me)

lol been following this thread since the beginning but couldnt respond till now.