Announcement Please Help & Reply To Unanswered Threads

[aart]

At it's most basic when a person hits the post button to start a new thread in any of the 11 sections a pop up would appear with a link to the relevant article section. The only way to close the pop up would be to click on the link to the article sections. This would need to be explained in the pop up box. The pop up closes after the person has visited the link.
This would at least get the OP to the relevant articles without having to use the search function which I still find difficult to use after almost five years.
Returning them to their original post might take some thought. The back button does it on my sites where the pop up doesn't auto close on a timer.

I think this would start folks posting questions in the articles...and them not getting answers.
Yes, the search function stinks. I use it from time to time, but usually know exactly what I'm looking for and am pretty good with keywords.

 

[Shadrach]

I think this would start folks posting questions in the articles...and them not getting answers.
Yes, the search function stinks. I use it from time to time, but usually know exactly what I'm looking for and am pretty good with keywords.

People already post questions in the articles section. I don't know if pushing them to that section would make this any worse. One can only do so much to cater for those not familier with internet boards and a well designed pop up might make navigation simpler than it is now.
People are presented with a pop up on arrival to this site regarding cookies. Most seem to understand that until they accept the terms they cant procede any further without clicking one of two options.
Depending on the sites software it may even be possible to prevent people posting in the articles until they posted on the forums when directed to the articles by the pop up.
I'm only considering the 11 main forum catagories, excluding Tudy Bot.
One advantage of the pop up is it can be locked so until an option is chosen there is no foreward progess on the site.
A few moments of locked out may just make people consider what they post and where.
The splitting of the article section while tedious is entirely possible. One could choose the first two or three pages of each section to make the task easier.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

I think Shadrach is on to something here, and not just because I log in to the "Unanswered Questions" search, and there's almost nothing there I can answer - and what I can answer (Feed, mostly) almost always has the same answers...

 

[Brooks_]

almost always has the same answers

It's a new answer to the questioner.

 

[Shadrach]

It should be possible to lock a section of the site; not being allowed to start a thread until the person has posted a number of times is a good example. This could be done for the article section.

 

[casportpony]

It should be possible to lock a section of the site; not being allowed to start a thread until the person has posted a number of times is a good example. This could be done for the article section.

Currently, one does not need to have a certain number of posts before they start a thread.

 

[Brooks_]

One does not need to have a certain number of posts before they start a thread.

I think he meant that it could be set that way.

 

[Party_Chicken]

I answered some breed and gender ID plus an incubation question.

 

[Shadrach]

Currently, one does not need to have a certain number of posts before they start a thread.

Yup, I know that, but that could be changed and most of those wrongly placed post wouldn't happen.

 

[aart]

People already post questions in the articles section.

Forcing them to go to articles instead of starting a thread would only make article questions/discussion increase exponentially.

There's no way to moderate and/or administer logic, common sense, integrity on a forum...
....or anywhere else.