Create a Forum for choosing PC parts

[iKingRPG]

The most common post i see, is someone looking for someone to send them a list of parts so they can build a pc for their dad or something. Please vote!

[colonel_mortis]

We already have that - https://linustechtips.com/main/forum/18-new-builds-and-planning/

[zombieshy_guy81]

Not really as there is already a forum on here for "New Builds And Planning"

[iKingRPG]

1 minute ago, zombieshy_guy81 said:

Not really as there is already a forum on here for "New Builds And Planning"

oh dang it! well no one ever posts there... it is always in general descusion...

 

1 minute ago, zombieshy_guy81 said:

Not really as there is already a forum on here for "New Builds And Planning"

 

[zombieshy_guy81]

Just now, iKingRPG said:

oh dang it! well no one ever posts there... it is always in general descusion...

 

 

They could always pin a post to the top of general discussion saying to put all "help me plan a build" posts in New Builds and Planning

[XR6]

33 minutes ago, iKingRPG said:

oh dang it! well no one ever posts there... it is always in general descusion...

Usually because they're new to the forum and they don't really know what all of the subforums are there for. I can't say I blame them tbh, I do think the forum needs a tutorial for newcomers.

[TempestCatto]

2 hours ago, colonel_mortis said:

We already have that - https://linustechtips.com/main/forum/18-new-builds-and-planning/

Why not have that closer to the top? Or is there perhaps a way to set it so certain sub-forums are at the top for new users (so they'd see them rather than just post wherever)? Just a thought.

[Crunchy Dragon]

4 hours ago, iKingRPG said:

oh dang it! well no one ever posts there... it is always in general descusion...

General Discussion seems to be where a lot of newcomers tend to post their threads.

 

Why they don't scroll down to find an appropriate subforum, nobody really knows.

[LogicalDrm]

6 hours ago, iKingRPG said:

oh dang it! well no one ever posts there... it is always in general descusion...

 

 

I'd say it's quite opposite. 70% posts to new builds, 25% to general and 5% to other sections. This includes PC Gaming which is located near bottom of the site.

[Semper]

5 hours ago, Crunchy Dragon said:

General Discussion seems to be where a lot of newcomers tend to post their threads.

 

Why they don't scroll down to find an appropriate subforum, nobody really knows.

I'm sure in some capacity, you've dealt with the public en masse, if not only on these forums, somewhere else.
It's said there's truths in life: Death and Taxes. I believe there's a third; people. People are incompetent, they see "general discussion" and go full stop there. It's all-encompassing, it suits their needs. Every profession or hobby has it's things that seem so overwhelmingly apparent to those involved in it, but to those on the outside, it's not quite so cut-and-dry. If you've ever asked a mechanic questions about "x" or "y", a doctor about why "z" is the way it is, you've shown a certain level of incompetence. We are all incompetent at something, some of us more than others though.

 

9 hours ago, 1kv said:

Usually because they're new to the forum and they don't really know what all of the subforums are there for. I can't say I blame them tbh, I do think the forum needs a tutorial for newcomers.

For the reasons outlined above, unfortunately, I feel tutorials on how to do something are ineffective. I don't know how many time over the years I've referenced the PSU tier list to people despite the fact that it's stickied right there (even though the stickied thread does need to be updated, the "outdated" one still provides excellent information). Same goes for the audio board's recommendation thread. I don't think I can count the number of tech news threads that have been closed off because they didn't follow the posting requirements.

You can only make things so easy, and then hope for the best. The LTT forums and subforums aren't particularly hard to navigate, i'd go so far as to say they're some of the easiest. A tutorial may help, but like everything else that's been done, it will only get you so far.

[colonel_mortis]

I don't think a tutorial would be the way to go, because the same people who dump their topics in General Discussion would also skip/ignore a tutorial. I would like to add more contextual hints (replying to a topic, it points out the quote button) and wizardy things (create topic -> "is it about new build/troubleshooting/...?" -> guide them to the right place), but neither of those are things that I expect to have a chance to implement for the foreseeable future unfortunately.

[Crunchy Dragon]

7 hours ago, Semper said:

I'm sure in some capacity, you've dealt with the public en masse, if not only on these forums, somewhere else.
It's said there's truths in life: Death and Taxes. I believe there's a third; people. People are incompetent, they see "general discussion" and go full stop there. It's all-encompassing, it suits their needs. Every profession or hobby has it's things that seem so overwhelmingly apparent to those involved in it, but to those on the outside, it's not quite so cut-and-dry. If you've ever asked a mechanic questions about "x" or "y", a doctor about why "z" is the way it is, you've shown a certain level of incompetence. We are all incompetent at something, some of us more than others though.

It's not too often we deal with GD getting flooded with questions, I think it's only happened once in the almost year I've been a mod here.

[Arika]

9 hours ago, colonel_mortis said:

I don't think a tutorial would be the way to go, because the same people who dump their topics in General Discussion would also skip/ignore a tutorial. I would like to add more contextual hints (replying to a topic, it points out the quote button) and wizardy things (create topic -> "is it about new build/troubleshooting/...?" -> guide them to the right place), but neither of those are things that I expect to have a chance to implement for the foreseeable future unfortunately.

not sure how easy it would be on the Invision forums (if at all possible) but some forum software (i think phpBB forums could do it) allows you to have a "post new topic" on the front page like

 

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and then will allow them to select the sub forum from a list, might make it a bit easier for them to see a concise list all sub-forums on one page instead of having to scroll down.

 

kind of like this

 

image removed

 

obviously make less crowded as desired

 

EDIT: actually, the mobile site has this option, can it be brought across to the desktop site?

 

 

[LogicalDrm]

8 hours ago, Arika S said:

EDIT: actually, the mobile site has this option, can it be brought across to the desktop site?

IIRC it was removed not so long ago because it wasn't used that much. And thought was that doing so would make new users look more at where they are posting.