mercy for the n00bs

[FERGU$_MANERGU$]

nobody wants to search a forum for fear of repeated threads

 

[GT4_Rule]

....so, what's your point?

You have to search for it, it's the unsaid law around here. Either adapt or go "extinct" (natural selection). Search for it. Yeah, I've forgotten that before; everyone makes mistakes. What separates the good from the crowd is whether if you will learn from your mistakes.

This thread should be locked up.

 

[3-Wheel Drive]

What is this "mercy", you speak of? I am unaware of such a concept.

 

[MistaX]

What the hell is this crap?

We're not here to spoon feed you..

 

[G.T]

The staff of GTPlanet or anyone else here aren't going to give the answer for you - you need to search - it isn't too hard. Making multiple threads on subjects that have been made and discussed to death before just clutters up the forum and makes things harder to search for, thus why they are locked. Even pointless topics are locked as the discussion in the threads won't really be of good quality.

I do realise you are quite new and that you have many, many threads locked already, but what do you find so hard about searching now? Is it the search terms not coming up with what you want? Almost everyone I've known here manages to survive with it.

Just compalining about this matter will make things worse for yourself. If you need help, just ask.

 

[the Interceptor]

@ FERGU$ MANERGU$:

Especially you should have learned by now how a forum works. You know, there are good noobs and bad noobs. The good ones open one ore more threads, are being told to search rather than do that, apologise, and search. The bad noobs keep opening threads ignoring the facts they are presented when they are closed. That's not how a forum works, because it can't.
There are thousands of members here. Imagine every single one would open a few threads every day about a subject that has been covered before. Can you even imagine what it would look like here? It's fine for the newbies to have their first thread, cause I do understand it can be quite a thrill, but just ignoring the search function and every hint completely and keeping on opening threads is not an option. I know you're only 12, but this is the moment to learn that you can't do everything you like whereever you are and whenever you want to.

EDIT: by the way, I think this should not be locked up, cause maybe we can get Fergus to understand what's the problem here.

Regards
the Interceptor

 

[magburner]

Hmmm... The search feature... I've used it a couple of times, and found it to be of little, or no use as it is too specific, and not very logical.

For instance, I would imagine that if I was to enter my name 'magburner' in the search box and look it up, that It would find the name of my photomode thread first, as its title starts with the word 'magburner', but upon inspection, my photomode thread is actually 10th on the list even though it is the only thread on the page that actually starts with the letter 'M'. I also tried searching on the the words 'incisions beyond motion', a string of words I know that only I use, and logically my photomode thread should be the first result returned, but it wasn't even returned in any of the results!

On a similar search for the word 'photomode competitions', I was presented with a screen of results that (if I had been a newbie) would be totally incomprehensible. There is no link on the first page for any of the current photomode competitions, in fact, after scanning through, there is no reference to them at all!

Do you see the problem with the search feature now? The seach feature need a massive overhaul as it is not fit for the purpose it was designed for. Its all well telling a newbie to use the search feature, but when they are presented with a myriad of results that often have little reference to the topic they were looking for, I can see where Fergus is coming from.

IMO it seems the search feature is only any use if you already know what you are looking for, and very little help to a newbie. Maybe its time for the search feature to be rewritten?

 

[Famine]

nobody wants to search a forum for fear of repeated threads

Actually, quite a lot of people manage to do it.

 

[the Interceptor]

The search feature does work very well if you use it properly. I know that especially the newbies need some practise, which is why I made a "how do to a proper search"-thread with pictures and detailed instructions and explanations in the GTRP forum. So, newbies can learn how to do it easily.
Anyway, this forum contains thousands of threads with millions of words. You really can't expect a simple software feature to guess what you want and find it for you without a single problem. The trick is to alter the settings and the terms you enter to specify it until you get something helpful. As long as you don't know what you're doing, the search won't return any helpful results.

And it always depends of what you expect from such a feature. In a professional software I probably payed a lot of money for, I'd also be unhappy to see the search we have here. In a free forum however, that's based on a given software and run by people in their spare time, I can live the search we have perfectly fine. And to put this in figures, maybe 1 out of 50 searches I do here does not return the results I was looking for. So, the search can't be that bad, can it?

Regards
the Interceptor

 

[a6m5]

IMO it seems the search feature is only any use if you already know what you are looking for, and very little help to a newbie. Maybe its time for the search feature to be rewritten?

I have issues with the search feature of gtplanet as well, but I feel that isn't the point of this thread. Also, it's not exactly rocket science. Most members have only minor issues with the current search engine system, if any at all.

I think the Interceptor explained it perfectly. Without the "search", I'm afraid it will look like this in the basketball subforum right about now.....

On 2006 NBA Basketball Playoffs:
Threads: 1)'06 NBA Championship Thread 2)Miami Heat in the NBA Finals 3)Who would you pick to win the NBA Finals? 4)Who are you rooting for in the Finals? 5)Shaq and Wade in Game 6 6)Detroit Pistons Meltdown! 7)Dallas or Phoenix? 8)Dirk's 50 Point Game 9)Problem with the Officiating 10)Avery Johnson's Wife in Trouble!? 11)Diaw saves the day for the Suns 12)What happend to the Spurs?

OK, this is over the top, but I think you can see that the list could pretty much go on forever. This can happen with any topic. Movies, races, Iraq War, whatever. Fortunately, moderation staff do keep all the forums organized by trimming down on any duplicated threads. I think we all notice how the mods let you derail little bit in certain threads sometimes too. Which, personally, I think it helps the forum stay tidy.

 

[Cosmic]

Noobs usually don't search, but why??!!!
I've used the search engine to find answers for my questions (mostly for GT games), when I didn't found it, I kept trying with new words. And it worked!
I suggest you to search before you make a new thread, since this is a huge forum, there are probably several threads about the same thing.

 

[the Interceptor]

Noobs usually don't search, but why??!!!

Cause it's much easier to open a new thread and ask your question right away. Even if some guys will tell you not to do so, at least one will come along and give you the answer or do the search you were supposed to do.
That's my main argument in the discussion about not allowing new members to open threads. The problem is that it wouldn't help either, cause then they'd just post their question in the first open thread they stumble across, and still wouldn't search.

Regards
the Interceptor

 

[Jondot]

nobody wants to search a forum for fear of repeated threads

Right

So, you're saying people are scare to use the search button because their question might have already been answered? That must be pure hell!

So what do you do if your question has been answered, then? Well, i think it's called being satisfied that you don't have to go waiting around for someone to answer.

You don't have to be the one who made the thread. Half the time, nobody cares who made the thread, it's what it's about and what people are posting in it that are important.

I suggest you take a break from this...

...and concentrate on posting in threads that already exist.

 

[Cosmic]

I suggest you take a break from this...

...and concentrate on posting in threads that already exist.

How did you manage that FERGU$_MANERGU$? OH, that's right, you didn't search

 

[guska]

I personally don't use the search very often, I do a manual search, as most, if not everthing I want to have something to say or ask about, is in the first 2 or 4 pages of the relevant sub-forum. Thats just the way i have always done it.

 

[Super T]

I'm the same as Gooseter. I'd much rather take the time to do a manual search. The search engine is a bit random and unhelpful at times but this site is huge.

It can be time consuming and boring looking through threads that have no relevance to what you're looking for but I think it's probably even more boring for mods/admin staff to have to keep closing threads that have been started a zillion times already by someone that expects to have all thier answers to come to them.

One more thing, advanced search.

 

[Scaff]

I personally find the search tool fine to use, once you get used to the manner in which its searches.

However the vast majority of the threads I have had to close in the last few weeks would not have even needed the search tool to get the answers.

Looking in the (normally very extensive) FAQ posts and stickied threads would have doen the job. Which is both easy and quick to do, for crying out loud its why they are kept at the top of the thread lists.

The GT4 forum is a classic example, the two FAQ threads alone contain information on practically every basic question that anyone would have.

I'm sorry but quite frankly I personally think that part of the problem here is not that the information is difficult to find, more that some people just can't be bothered.

Regards

Scaff

 

[FERGU$_MANERGU$]

alriht, alright, whatever!!!!!

 

[daan]

alriht, alright, whatever!!!!!

Not exactly the best response you could have given there, Fergus. Do you want to try again?

 

[ImprezaAddict]

alriht, alright, whatever!!!!!

You are making very little sense right now. You make a thread making no sense or a connection to the post, and now you say "whatever?"
And you have so many locked threads I would take Cosmics advice. 💡

 

[MistaX]

alriht, alright, whatever!!!!!

Wow. You spelled the same word so wrong it's unrecognizable, and then correct, right next to eachother. How'd you manage that?

 

[Duke]

nobody wants to search a forum for fear of repeated threads

What part do you not understand? Searching is what prevents repeated threads. Watch:

1) You search for something common like "world championship".

2) The search comes up with 19 or so threads.

3) You ignore the 10 or so that just answer "try searching!", and find one that has a useful discussion.

4) You read the useful thread and get your answer without having to post repeat thread #20. People are happy.

What's so hard about that?

 

[the Interceptor]

I'm starting to think that there's no hope for this member. Maybe he's just too young, or he doesn't want to understand. Would be a shame though...

Regards
the Interceptor

 

[Rogue Ssv]

And if you think that's unspecific or whatever, the 'ADVANCED SEARCH' option is quite specific, it's helped me loads of times.
Click 'advanced search' next to the search box, fill in the options that you want, and click. Takes 5 minutes, tops, and is much more specific, especially if you select 'title only'.
As for this 'mercy', it depends on why you want it.

EDIT--There's hope for him yet. Remember how bad I was as a n00b?
Hell, Im still getting multiple warnings, especially after my stupid actions and 81!!! consecutive posts yesterday.

 

[DuckRacer]

Rogue, at least you post good posts, and you search. Fangus doesn't want to search, and no offence, but all his posts are really low quality.

 

[Rogue Ssv]

Hehe, I post SOME good posts.
I try...
Fergu$ you really SHOULD get to know the search system.
Ill schedule you a blind date.

 

[Super T]

alriht, alright, whatever!!!!!

Nice comeback?

You'll go far here. I love sarcasm. 12 out of 13 threads locked, all for the same reason I assume, they already exist! We all make mistakes as "nOObs" but it's how we learn from them, with an attitude like that I wouldn't be surprised if you end up banned. Now that would be a shame. Oops there goes the sarcasm again.

 

[Duke]

Hehe, I post SOME good posts.
I try...
Fergu$ you really SHOULD get to know the search system.
Ill schedule you a blind date.

Resist... the urge...

 

[Rogue Ssv]

... I dont get it.
Dont schedusle him a date, or you have an urge to go on a date?

Anyway...

 

[Cosmic]

Well, searching was probably too much for his brain anyway.
I bet he won't come back.