Format to follow, or not? YOU decide

[Akasha]

So it's been brought up recently that the whole 'requiring a format to follow and needing the posts to be approved' is too much for some people. This applies to any Talent Build/Gear "help me" threads.

So, I'm leaving it up to you guys. Doesn't really concern me either way anymore since I've stopped even reading them after seeing so many for so long. So it's you guys that read them, you decide.

Do you want the talent build and gear help threads to follow a format or not?

Poll is open for 30 days...

*edit*
I've approved everything under the Pimp my Gear section regardless of formatting or not to give you an idea of what people post when they don't use the format. So you can be aware of what to expect.

*edit 2*
If the majority of the votes are #3 "I don't care", then I will probably drop the requirement for the formatting. Saves me time, saves people waiting, and stops people being upset when they don't get their thread approved and either a) sending nasty/crying emails or b) not coming back.

[El Tanakh]

Yes, as of why:

It's been a while since i visited the Talent Build/Gear section, too many asking more or less the same stuff for me to care, but the format required is useful for the people that actually take time to replay with worthy information and i think taking it away will result in loss of quality for the forum.

Besides, i really don't think it's too much to ask to comply to the format, maybe 3 or 5 minutes?

Then again, as i stated at the begging, i don't answer those threads anymore and i don't think ill start doing it again, so maybe this is best decided by the people that actually take time and efforth to help in those sections.

The only advantage i see into removing it is that you (mods) will have to devote less time to it.


Still luve you Aka, wink.

[Vaell]

I don't think it can be any simpler in my eyes. The Format is there to make everyone's life easier, including those that pose the questions.

The Format gives the poster the ideal opportunity to break down all the separate elements that make their character, so the question they are asking can be answered more completely, without the need to ask further questions to the OP, or without fishing or guessing at things.

It comes down to this: is the poster prepared to make the effort to help the forum answer their question? Or is it a matter of wanting to put as little effort as possible in, and get people to give up a much larger portion or *their* time to get to the bottom of it and help them?

It's a two way street. This community is as much as a resource as the members make it. Drain the resource without putting anything back and we end up worse off for it.

Akasha, your huge reply to this issue astonished me. I have not found the time to read it in it's entirety, and I don't have a kid to bring up or a website to run. Respect to you, lady.

I just wish all of the Naysayers could appreciate just how much you care and sacrifice to make this place so awesome.

[The_Torch]

Personally, I want to see people follow a format. I think it will help people include all the information needed for a complete and thorough assessment in their initial post.

But slightly more important, if someone follows a format they are likely to be genuinely interested in improving their toon since they have taken the time to format their post. (As opposed to now when someone can post a simple sentence question and their armory link and be done with it.)

However this falls, I'll still be here, lurking every day.

[Aldgit]

Absolutely should be a format.

The format makes it easy for any potential responders to quickly see the information they need.

If the requester can't be bothered to follow the format, then why should anyone take the time and effort to reply?

[Soulzar]

I agree that you want some sort of location people can go to look for the information they have come for, however not everybody has the time to read through 100 pages worth of information between 4 threads associated with the specific topic to sift out the exact data they need.

The advantages of a community like this is the ability have your peers express their experiences and knowledge. Now dont get me wrong, the last thing I want to see is every new topic be "how should I spec and gear" but there has to be some level of tolorance for people who need to ask a direct question and get a direct answer without being given links to 4 threads by a moderator and have their thread locked.

[Marsyx]

Format is the way to go for many reasons. First, all relevant information gets provided right off the bat so every post after the OP is concerned with answering the question(s). Second, it just makes the post easier to read. Finally, it provides a definite information base for those with similar or identical questions and allows for easy reading to see if the OP is asking the same question someone else might have.

[lolotov]

Here's the deal for me: I don't really care if you follow the format. However, there's a 99.5% chance that I'll completely ignore the thread if there is critical information missing.

edit: To be clear, I voted for Yes, requiring the formatting.

[Costell]

add a "I need help section" and just leave it at that. You can have gear and talent sections still where people can discuss which is better hear and there. But when people need help with gearing and talents for themselves they can post in the I need help section

[DrkSnpr14]

Some people just aren't as forum savoy as others. Your first forum experience is one of exploration and confusion most likely, and forcing a format on top of that is not so very user friendly to people who have enver seen a forum before