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View Full Version : A sticky subject, and a polite request (long)


PatioDaddio
12-01-2011, 02:00 PM
Brethren & Sistren,

I know that what I am about to say may be somewhat controversial, but I
sincerely put it forth in the spirit of improving this forum. I don't intend to
single out anyone, cast aspersions, point fingers, or at all hold myself up as
some great example or paragon of virtue.

We all know that there is a ton of very useful information exchanged here.
When I recommend this forum to others I often tell them that they will
learn more here in a day than they will in a month at other similar forums.
It's a wonderful resource, and I truly appreciate all of the individual and
collective contributions to it.

With that said, having a ton of information can quickly become very unruly
if you can't find what you're looking for. Some forums try to enforce
categories, while others, like this forum, provide a few broad categories. I
prefer the latter approach because it's simpler and doesn't require as much
filtering and policing. Many topics simply don't fall into nice neat
categories.

I'd like to politely request that we all make a conscious effort to provide
descriptive subjects for our posts so that others can get the gist without
having to open the post. This will also help folks more accurately search
for what they're after.

Posts with an uber-generic subject like "Chili?" (I just pulled that out of the
air) isn't at all helpful. Does that mean, "Should I make chili?", or does that
mean, "Does anyone have a good chili recipe?", or could it even mean, "I
can't believe they served chili!"? Instead, I'd suggest that we think about
using something short that truly summarizes what the post is about.

As a personal example, you may have noticed that I preface my recipe
posts with "Recipe:". I do that in an effort to help folks quickly see that it's
a recipe, and to make it easy to search.

In summary, I'm merely suggesting that we think intentionally about using
helpful subjects. I'd recommend putting yourself in the shoes of those
scanning the forum and ask, "How can I best describe this and make it
helpful for others?" Aside from helping others, compelling subjects make
others more likely to open the post and read what you have to say.

I apologize for the long post, but I thought it was worth mentioning.

Thanks for listening,
John

tdwalker
12-01-2011, 02:02 PM
Well said.

Gore
12-01-2011, 02:05 PM
Absolutely agreed! I hate "teaser" subject headings. That said, you could have been a bit more specific in yours. :becky:

Arlin_MacRae
12-01-2011, 02:06 PM
Thanks, John - great suggestion.

Writing from Mountain Home, Idaho...(waves)

Arlin

PatioDaddio
12-01-2011, 02:06 PM
Absolutely agreed! I hate "teaser" subject headings. That said, you could have been a bit more specific in yours. :becky:

I saw that coming a mile away. :-D I tried to make it cleverly descriptive,
helpful, and compelling. :wink:

John

smokeyw
12-01-2011, 02:10 PM
I agree 100%. I will do what I can.

tish
12-01-2011, 02:11 PM
I saw that coming a mile away. :-D I tried to make it cleverly descriptive,
helpful, and compelling. :wink:

John

It worked! :thumb: Thanks! :wink:

Bluehawg
12-01-2011, 02:12 PM
Excellent suggestion. I agree 100% with making the thread title more descriptive and try to do that on all forums I'm a member of because, frankly, sometimes I may want to search for a thread I started and have not always been able to find it on other forums and then I wanted to kick myself in the hind quarters because I couldn't remember what I had titled it.

that is all.

PatioDaddio
12-01-2011, 02:14 PM
Excellent suggestion. I agree 100% with making the thread title more descriptive and try to do that on all forums I'm a member of because, frankly, sometimes I may want to search for a thread I started and have not always been able to find it on other forums and then I wanted to kick myself in the hind quarters because I couldn't remember what I had titled it.

that is all.

Yup! I know all the words to that song.

John

Mo-Dave
12-01-2011, 02:14 PM
I saw that coming a mile away. :-D I tried to make it cleverly descriptive,
helpful, and compelling. :wink:

John

Can't always be done can it and yes I agree with your request, me of all people.:eusa_clap
Dave

Bbqin fool
12-01-2011, 02:16 PM
Very well put, John. I will take to heart and do my best to do my part of making our beloved forum easier to traverse. Thanks for the insightfulness :-D

wnkt
12-01-2011, 02:17 PM
Sounds like a good idea to me

Dale in GA
12-01-2011, 02:21 PM
Very solid suggestions PD. Thanks for taking time to make our forum even better.

timzcardz
12-01-2011, 02:27 PM
A sticky subject, and a polite request (long)


Now just WTF is that title supposed to mean?!?!


Would it have killed you to put . . .

Please Provide Descriptive Subjects for Your Posts


Sorry, but I couldn't resist.:-P


Oh, and nice way to make your point! :clap2:



Here are a few of my favorite recent titles from Q-Talk:

Gas

before

worth $50

Coming lineup

Have you seen this?

gtr
12-01-2011, 02:34 PM
Oh - I thought you were looking for agave nectar or something. :confused:

btw well said, sir :thumb:

Lake Dogs
12-01-2011, 02:36 PM
And here I thought this was going to be about putting too much honey in your sauce...

<sticky>

42BBQ
12-01-2011, 02:43 PM
Well said John, to me, you are one of the many here that I look up to as an aspiring pitmaster. Thank you for taking some time to make this a better place.

1FUNVET
12-01-2011, 02:48 PM
Sticky subject- I thought we were gonna be talking about duct tape :bow:

Lake Dogs
12-01-2011, 02:51 PM
Well said John, to me, you are one of the many here that I look up to as an aspiring pitmaster. Thank you for taking some time to make this a better place.


'Ya know.... This place is chock-full of suck-ups!


;-)

buccaneer
12-01-2011, 03:01 PM
I have a joke about the title but it is lewd, rude and crude.
I'll tell it to the Fabulous One instead.
:-D
I'll try to adopt this policy!

Divemaster
12-01-2011, 03:10 PM
Sticky subject- I thought we were gonna be talking about duct tape :bow:

Interesting.... I thought it was about caulking...

Big Ron
12-01-2011, 03:10 PM
I appreciate the mention of this and hope it does not get moved from the Q-Talk forum since it gets the most traffic.

Shooter1
12-01-2011, 03:28 PM
I think it's a great suggestion!

Pappy
12-01-2011, 03:28 PM
What about using the TAGS feature. I don't see a lot of people using it. Doesn't the TAGS feature help when doing a search for a certain subject, like Chili?

caseydog
12-01-2011, 03:33 PM
Did you notice that the tittle of this thread asking people to describe the content of their threads didn't describe the content of this thread? :becky:

CD

Babyboomerboy
12-01-2011, 03:33 PM
Thank you John. I think this is the greatest web site on the net and I have learned more here in one year than the 12 years I spent in college trying to get an AA. Your suggestion can only help this forum to be greater. Thanks again

caseydog
12-01-2011, 03:34 PM
Sticky subject- I thought we were gonna be talking about duct tape :bow:

Well, someone noticed. :laugh:

CD

Coldholler
12-01-2011, 03:34 PM
Good suggestion, and well-stated. I've been an admin and moderator on another active forum (not BBQ-related), and you folks have a very well-oiled machine here that's informative and fun and seems to police itself and maintain flexibility, too. Great community.

smokeacholic
12-01-2011, 03:34 PM
Very well said. I also look to see who posted it and when I see yours I always open it up because I know it will be informative. Thanks .

JD McGee
12-01-2011, 03:41 PM
Makes sense to me John...many a time I may have skipped over a killer thread simply because there wasn't enough title info to catch my interest. It's not a big deal on my laptop or pc because I can get the gist by hovering the cursor over the title. I am not able to do that on my mobile...that I'm aware of anyway.

captndan
12-02-2011, 06:46 AM
Got my attention. Excellent idea. I'll clean up my act.

bmarley5780
12-02-2011, 07:11 AM
I agree- Most of the time i do searches I only search "titles" only.....this would only help...

likeadeere
12-02-2011, 09:26 AM
I think having the little window pop up as my mouse hovers over the title at least gives a little more description and is helpful. The Barbecue Brethren threads are like 'a box of chocolates' you never.......I digress.

PatioDaddio
12-02-2011, 09:28 AM
I think having the little window pop up as my mouse hovers over the title at least gives a little more description and is helpful. The Barbecue Brethren threads are like 'a box of chocolates' you never.......I digress.

Yeah, the tooltip helps, but I don't have the time or inclination to hover over
each arcane and/or ambiguous title.

John

Midnight Smoke
12-02-2011, 10:08 AM
So a Thread title of "Anyone Want to See my Butt" is out? Just kidding, good idea, probably mostly for Q-Talk!

Sly-one
12-02-2011, 10:09 AM
I hafta agree!

KnucklHed BBQ
12-02-2011, 10:12 AM
Great suggestion John, thanks!

I also like the thought about adding tags to a thread, I often tag something when I want to be able to search for it again, but know I won't find it 6 months later. ...Now where was that "Perfect Prime Rib" recipe from 2 Christmases ago? Oh, there (http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=74822) it is!

Pappy
12-02-2011, 11:05 AM
I think having the little window pop up as my mouse hovers over the title at least gives a little more description and is helpful.

I wish the little window pop up would stay on a little longer. I don't read them that fast. I have to sometimes hover 3-4 times to catch it all.

Ron_L
12-02-2011, 11:13 AM
I wish the little window pop up would stay on a little longer. I don't read them that fast. I have to sometimes hover 3-4 times to catch it all.

Maybe this is browser dependent, but using Firefox on the Mac the tooltip will stay up as long as i don't move my cursor.

OutlawSwine
12-02-2011, 11:28 AM
So this ISN'T the thread for basket weaving secrets of the rich and famous????
I'm confused.

Mo-Dave
12-02-2011, 11:30 AM
Maybe this is browser dependent, but using Firefox on the Mac the tooltip will stay up as long as i don't move my cursor.


I use firefox and that is also how mine works. But yes if you move the cursor you will have to move it off and then back on for the box to come back on and stay on.
Dave

Big George's BBQ
12-02-2011, 11:31 AM
Thanks John