I am in total agreement with Justin on this one. Many of the posters use "need help", "newbie needs help" , etc. We need to have some form of FAQ with detailed instructions on how to post so that I do not have to ask; "What OS are you using, what version of php, which database, etc" This gets tedious and time consuming. Not to mention the amount of posts.
I've been watching Rick Emery give out tons of help, but many of his first questions are about clarifications on what a users is needing help on. Some extra detail will provide faster and reliable help. Just some extra thoughts here... I now some mailing lists will not even reply if you do not follow specific criteria when you post... Thank you, Ray Hunter Firmware Engineer ENTERASYS NETWORKS > -----Original Message----- > From: Justin French [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] > Sent: Wednesday, April 03, 2002 5:58 AM > To: php > Subject: [PHP] PHP FAQ (again) > > > I saw this mentioned a few times recently, but I'd really > like to put out the call again. > > This group needs an FAQ *specific to this list* which helps > new members / posters integrate seamlessly... really, I'm > sick of seeing non specific subject lines like "please help", > and I'm sure we're all sick of typing replies to frequent > questions, usually with a response like "I think you should > check the manual before posting". > > I'm sure we're also sick of posts which don't ask specific > questions ("what's wrong with my 150 lines of code??"). > > > When I first joined this group, I too was unaware of what was > considered a "good post" (and perhaps still, I don't know!!), > but some form of welcome email when people join the group, or > a reminder email sent weekly which "keeps the peace" on this > list will not go astray. > > > Perhaps it could: > > - include some information on how to use the online > manual/website (and the simplicity of searching) > > - cover some frequently asked topics which can be summarised > with a link to a few manual pages or external references (how > many times do we see "user authentication", "sessions", "mail > attachments", "html email", "header redirect" and > "javascript" in the subject line???? Usually, the writer > asks a very generic question, seeks references and tutorials, > or doesn't know what function to search for in the manual, or > they're just lazy. A quick reference to these frequent > topics will save a heap of time for all concerned. > > - remind people that there is an archive to this list that > can be searched (and include the URL) > > > Some of the posts (including OT posts, ones with meaningless > subject lines, ones which ask insane questions, etc etc) in > this group would be laughed at by members of other > programming language groups (Perl for example). > > As PHP grows as a language, and as the community of users > grows with it, this list is going to become higher volume. > The FAQs are going to become more frequent, and the poor use > / misuse of this list will grow with it. > > I can already see frustration growing in this list. > > > I'd like to think that the list and it's standards can be > raised a little, to make it a more valuable resource for all > users, without the grief. > > I attach as a reference a text file FAQ which is posted > frequently to the newsgroup > comp.infosystems.www.authoring.stylesheets. It provided me > with an excellent resource when I first joined the group, and > does help the list stay somewhat moderated and "clean". > > I'm not saying it's exactly what we need, but I do feel it's > time we do something. > > > Sure, new users *could* find the archive by hunting, the > *could* get flammed for a bad post, poor question, or for not > checking the manual first, but wouldn't it be a smarter move > long term for some sort of guideline/FAQ to be incorporated > into the list upon subscription, and perhaps on a weekly basis?? > > > I'm happy to help in any way I can, but don't consider myself > "guru" enough to develop this from scratch. > > > Apologies for the long post, especially since this topic has > been kicked around before. > > > Regards, > > Justin French > -------------------- > Creative Director > http://Indent.com.au > -------------------- > >
