Just wanted to share a recent experience with Monastery.

IMHO, Rule Number One(tm) when joining a community such as the Monastery, is to RTFM. Rather, it's not just a rule but should be the supreme mantra.

It's simple, before you post spend some due diligence researching your question. For example, by researching I prevented embarassing myself to merlyn.

In this thread: Removing Control Characters, meryln makes this point: Re: Removing Control Characters. Well, I remember reading this node: Re: Re: extra options in tr/// and thinking, "oh the tr/// command is going to be removed from Perl."

I thought it was interesting that merlyn was promoting the use of tr/// even though it was going to be removed from Perl in future versions. I thought that I would add some value by pointing this out to merlyn

Heh... then I thought to myself, right... merlyn is way more plugged into the Perl scene than I am, maybe I should review that post a little closer.

Here's where the due diligence of spending time in Super Search paid off. Instead of running my mouth off and looking like a fool, Super Search turned up the node from chipmunk and this time I *read* the post. Upon further review I realized that tr/// was not going away, just the C and U options.... Duh!

So what is the moral of the story? All New monks, Repeat after me: Super Search before you post!

Go Ahead! Try it! It's massively addicting!! :)

P.S.: <rant>Stop asking questions about how to remove the ^M from DOS-mudged files. Take five seconds, go to Super Search and type ^M into the "Words in text box", hit search and bask in the enlightenment that follows...</rant>

Replies are listed 'Best First'.
Re: Super Searching before you post
by archon (Monk) on Feb 22, 2001 at 23:34 UTC
    i think this is an example of bad site design. a newcomer to perlmonks on their first visit most likely wants some help. what are the first things they see?

    yes, there is a giant search mechanism at the top, but where is the incentive or instruction to use it? so they're looking through the sections and find _Seekers of Perl Wisdom_. "Ah ha! That's just what I need!" One click and they see a list of questions and ready replies. They scroll to the bottom and see 'Add your question.' "Why, that's just what I'm going to do!"

    then come the flames... "how on earth could you miss Super Search? it's right there buried on the bottom right side of your screen in the 7th node down in a section called 'leftovers'!!!"

    can you understand why that's not the first place people check? granted, in a perfect world everyone would read every instruction before using the site. but let's face it, many people that come here haven't researched their question properly before they ask it. why do you expect that as soon as they get here they will suddenly realize the error of their ways?

    some solutions to the problem have been posted in this thread already, e.g. adding "search before you post" comments anywhere questions can be entered. a node in _New Meditations_ with this advice that's going to disappear from the front page really doesn't do any good. not that it's bad advice, but who is going to search for a node that tells them to do a search?

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Re: Super Searching before you post
by Blue (Hermit) on Feb 22, 2001 at 21:47 UTC
    I'm amused by this in a very meta way. To me, this is, at the core, a post that newbies should search before posting to avoid duplicate questions. The reason I'm amused is because this is a duplicate - there have been lots of posts recommending those new to PM to search first and ask questions later.

    Of course, IMHO, if any node needs to be duplicated avoid the dangers of duplication, it's a request to search first.

    Which this is.

    So it's good.

    So I'm amused.

    Definitely a step along the path to enlightenment.

    =Blue
    ...you might be eaten by a grue...

[reply]
      yes, I was very aware that this is a duplication of many other nodes directing new Monastery members to search before they post.

      I know that I ask palutry questions in the CB and to SOPW, check my previous questions here if you like as examples. I have just had enough of the ^M repeated questions and needed a rant... :)

      IMHO, I imagine that posting repeated concepts such as "search before you post" (a la look before you leap), are somehow required practice while following the unspoken guidelines on the neverending path towards mastery. :)

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Re: Super Searching before you post
by Danilo (Novice) on Feb 22, 2001 at 23:10 UTC
    This is the first time that I'm posting and have never asked a question before.
    That being said, would it be a "good idea" TM if when submitting a question that a search results page come up asking if the asker has checked out nodes related to the question before allowing the question to be "offically" submitted?
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      I'd reply telling you that if you had searched first, then you would have found that this has already been proposed a few times, but such a reply has already been given more than once and so my reply would be a repeat, so...

              - tye (but my friends call me "Tye")
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        If such a function is such a good idea, why not implement it?

        I know that it would take some work by those with higher reputations than I possess (0) but if those that complained so much about searching first would lend a hand I'm sure that such added functionallity would be useable in many other knowledge based systems.

        Thanks for taking me to task for not searching, I should have known better, but considering the nature of the non-searched posting, it now seems a little more appropriate.

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Re: Super Searching before you post
by mothra (Hermit) on Feb 22, 2001 at 21:38 UTC
    What we REALLY need is another question about compiling Perl. To say that this is an FAQ would be a bold understatement! :P
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