Properly Posting New Threads and Questions (Etiquette 101)

Slowhand

I've been a member of TechExams.net for a while, a denizen of the internet even longer, and I've seen quite a few threads in my time get abandoned or go awry for all the wrong reasons. In that time, however, there have been a great number of threads which have brought up the same set of issues, so I thought I'd address some of those issues here.


Thread Topics
Be explicit and be descriptive. I once saw a quote on another forum, stating that "your thread should have a topic so descriptive that other posters will be able to begin thinking about your question even before they've clicked to read your posting". It not only helps the rest of us to know what your thread is about, but it also helps you to be as descriptive as possible. I know a great deal about Windows installation, for example, and when I see a thread with something about installing Windows in the title, I click on it because I know it's a thread that may be interesting to me, or one that actually has something to do with my knowledge. Let's try an example; which thread draws your attention more?

"Exchange 2003 Mailboxes Corrupted When Recovered w/ BackupExec 9.1"

or "How Do I Prevent Users in AD From Chatting in Forums on Company Time?"

Then there's things like "Question"

or how about "I have a problem!"

or the best one yet, "HELP!!!"

Posting a thread with a title that is the name of the cert isn't very helpful, either. I'm not sure how many threads out there are called "CCNA", but I'm sure it's more than two. Be descriptive, it will attract more readers and raise your chances of finding answers to questions.


Thread Content
This is going to be pretty much the same idea. Be as explicit with your problem as you can, if you're posting a question. If you're posting a rant or comment, be clear what you're writing about and think about what you want to write before beginning to type. I am no stranger to rambling, and oftentimes thoughts get lost, or you simply begin to say things that you may regret later. (I've been down this road, myself.)

For questions, be sure to include screenshots, exact error messages, what OS/platform you're running, and describe any and all elements of the enviroment you're working in/using so that we have a clear picture of what's happened and understand all the variables. Saying, "My server crashed, what do I do?" doesn't give enough information to help you find a solution. Give model numbers, OS versions, anything you can think of. It's better to post too much, than not enough. And please, as a common courtesy to other TE members, do the due diligence of putting your question into Google, at least, before posting to the forum. It's very frustrating for a lot of people to see questions that are quite literally answered by putting the term or the name of the product into Google and having the first page on the list contain the answer.

A reasonable approach is to type your question into Google (or your favorite browser) and see what you can find. Next, see if there is any help from the vendor of the product you're having an issue with. Microsoft has TechNet, Google has a pretty sizable help page, as does Red Hat, Juniper, and others. A good idea is to do a quick search of TechExams.net to see if your question has already been asked, or if there are other threads in relation to your issue. If nothing comes up, then ask away. If you find some information, you may need some more guidance on an advanced issue, having already learned a little bit about the question. Remember, someone answering a question isn't as powerful as learning by doing. The more you understand before you ask a question, the better you'll understand the answer.


Reading and Replying to Other Posters
Be professional, be rational, and be polite. When reading through answers to your thread, try to take everything with a grain of salt. There will be criticism, there will be oddball comments, and even the reasonable-sounding answers will need to be confirmed before you truly believe them. Take what you can from the answers, ask follow-up questions, and be sure to give a nod to people who helped you out in particular. On the same note, don't take things to personally. There are jerks on the internet, just as there are helpful individuals, and the best way to avoid a flame-war is to let nasty comments and baiting roll off your back and rise above it. If your thread doesn't get answered, or if you're put off by the answers you do get, definitely don't take it personally. You can bump your thread by replying to it yourself, (ideally with more information on the topic,) and you can try to zero in on members that may have given you more constructive answers and try to get them to elaborate on what they're telling you. Don't let the trolls get you, and don't be discouraged by silence. Remember, you're a professional too, and rising above the bickering helps you get your job or studying done more effectively.

On another note, I can say that I'm very proud of TechExams.net in being a very professional place to both read and participate in threads. It's rare to see flaming, name-calling, and the general immaturity so many other boards on the internet are plagued by. There have been, unfortunately, a few times when comments or replies have been made in order to jab or put down other members. It's very inappropriate to simply say "that's stupid" in response to someone's question or request for assistance with their resume. If you don't like what someone's putting up, and they're neither breaking rules or being rude, then simply ignore it. Trying to prove one's superiority by making snarky comments or going out of one's way to make them feel bad isn't professional, isn't appropriate, and definitely doesn't help anyone. (And honestly, most people who've had a history of being confrontational and negative have gotten a lot of flack for it in the end, so it's really not worth it.) If you can't be constructive, move on to another thread, (or start one of your own,) and don't let it degrade into a flame-war.


Epilogue
So, to wrap it up. TechExams.net is a great forum for discussing both the certification-game and the IT industry in general. We have a lot of fun here, there's a lot of great discussions, and we generally avoid most of the ugliness we've grown accustomed to on other forums and discussion groups on the internet. Let's remember that we're professionals, students, and general representatives of the IT industry. Let's keep having fun, let's keep sharing those ideas and having those great discussions. With a little common courtesy and common sense, I think we can keep TE the first-class forum it's always been.

BeaverC32

Nice post...

If I could add to the "rules of the road", it destroys a thread when a long post is typed by one member and then someone else quotes it in it's entirety.

Also, posts in ALL CAPS IS VERY ANNOYING.

JDMurray

You're attempting to establish de facto TechExams.net policy without running it by this site's owner first? This post should have been a PM to Webmaster first.

dynamik

Slowhand: How about posting in the correct forum? Isn't there a comments / suggestions forum

Beaver: That was a setup, right?

JD: I saw that as his perspective on basic forum etiquette, not an official policy. I don't take him too seriously though

Andretii

Do we lose internets if we don't follow the rules?

HeroPsycho

Andretii wrote:

Do we lose internets if we don't follow the rules?

Potentially. Not following these basic suggestions tends to result in additional posts, often times because it degenerated into a flame war. As we all know, the internet isn't just a **** truck that you can just put stuff on.

It's a series of tubes!!!

And when you put on enormous amounts of materials, enormous amounts of materials, like in a flame war, you can clog the tubes. Then we'd have to blast a round lottery ball through the tube to unclog it.

Hope this helps...

Ahriakin

I don't think he was trying to state policy but better give users some etiquette tips.
I'd also add that posters should reply to responses to their own questions. Besides simply being polite to someone who has taken the time to try and help you it provides more detail for someone who may stumble on the post later. A pet hate of mine is searching on a problem and finding posts that just end in "Nm. Fixed it".....er....how?

royal

I'll agree with others that it's more etiquette than policy.

cisco_trooper

Dang, if only I would quit kicking pesty CENSORED in the junk I'd be good to go.....

Slowhand

Yup, just trying for some etiquette, not attempting to dictate policy. I've been seeing a lot of "I'm too lazy to search Google, what's the answer to <blank>" or "Help me" threads lately, and it's been driving me nuts.

Slowhand

dynamik wrote:

I don't take him too seriously though

Good lord, I didn't think anyone took me seriously around here.

I added the etiquette bit to the thread-title, so we won't have any confusion. Wouldn't want to go against my own advice.

GT-Rob

You think people who are too lazy to google something will take the time to read this? :P

Good post though

Sie

I found this post via google does that count?

Good ideas but different people have different ways of working i guess.

undomiel

Slowhand wrote:

Yup, just trying for some etiquette, not attempting to dictate policy. I've been seeing a lot of "I'm too lazy to search Google, what's the answer to <blank>" or "Help me" threads lately, and it's been driving me nuts.

Yeah they drive me batty as well. Of course I don't expect this post to have much impact upon them either sadly enough! It'll probably be a glance at it, decide it is too much text to read, and move on.

HeroPsycho

Man, no one's gonna laugh at my joke?

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6006726482756052027&ei=DmwMSYD8CYLi2gKjofi-CQ&q=ted+stevens+no

Alrighty then!

Slowhand

undomiel wrote:

It'll probably be a glance at it, decide it is too much text to read, and move on.

I thought that was the case with all of my posts?

HeroPsycho wrote:

Man, no one's gonna laugh at my joke?

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6006726482756052027&ei=DmwMSYD8CYLi2gKjofi-CQ&q=ted+stevens+no

Alrighty then!

Heh, heh. I got it, I remember Jon Stewart's bit about the tubes, and the only way to unclog them would be to shoot a lottery-ball down the pipe. And hey, Ted Stevens is always right. He even changed the judicial system so that "guilty" means "pending".

sprkymrk

How do I make a post? Please help!

Edit - Nvm, figured it out.

vsmith3rd

sprkymrk wrote:

How do I make a post? Please help!

Edit - Nvm, figured it out.

Hilarious!!!

I think all forms of communication can benefit from etiquette, or some form of loose rule, that isn't quite policy, but is generally a social acceptance. Good post. I try to follow some etiquette already, but I can learn to be better from this.

dynamik

sprkymrk wrote:

How do I make a post? Please help!

Edit - Nvm, figured it out.

To appease Ahriakin, could you please share the solution with us?

tiersten

Sie wrote:

I found this post via google does that count?

Speaking of which, Google seems to index this site very often. You can post and it'll appear in Google within minutes.

Slowhand

sprkymrk wrote:

How do I make a post? Please help!

Edit - Nvm, figured it out.

That's it! sprkymrk: [BANNED]

sprkymrk

Slowhand wrote:

sprkymrk wrote:

How do I make a post? Please help!

Edit - Nvm, figured it out.

That's it! sprkymrk: [BANNED]

{Flame by sprkymrk against Slowhand has been edited by Moderator sprkymrk}

sprkymrk

dynamik wrote:

sprkymrk wrote:

How do I make a post? Please help!

Edit - Nvm, figured it out.

To appease Ahriakin, could you please share the solution with us?

Yes, I downloaded some pdf's on the Internet that gave me all the answers. I can email them to you. :P