TeX.SX has this welcome post which nicely summarizes the guidelines for writing questions and answers on a Stack Exchange site. They usually link to it when greeting new members. Should we copy it over (with the required adjustments) and do the same? It might be a nice nudge for new members who haven't read the help pages before posting.
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2$\begingroup$ Note: We already have the tour page. But this seems like a good idea too :) $\endgroup$– ManishEarthAug 29, 2013 at 6:16
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$\begingroup$ To my shame, I have to confess that I've never looked at the tour page. This might indeed be the better (and fancier) official alternative. Thanks for reminding me of its existence. $\endgroup$– PhilippAug 29, 2013 at 12:43
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$\begingroup$ Open the site in a browser when you're not logged in (Incognito mode is how you can do it without logging out). There's a banner shown to new users pointing to this page :) $\endgroup$– ManishEarthAug 29, 2013 at 12:45
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$\begingroup$ Also, this about page and the accompanying changes are quite recent (3-4 months). Before that the about page was pretty boring. $\endgroup$– ManishEarthAug 29, 2013 at 12:46
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$\begingroup$ @ManishEarth Ok, I have to feel only slightly ashamed then :) $\endgroup$– PhilippAug 29, 2013 at 12:47
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2$\begingroup$ @ManishEarth True, but should we as a community really support the starvation of unicorns by preventing access to their favorite food? $\endgroup$– bobthechemistAug 31, 2013 at 11:50
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2 Answers
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I think that linking to the new help pages (by using the shorthand [help] in the comments) and their various subtopics is probably sufficient.
As long as the people on TeX don't consider it a problem, I would not be opposed to you making a new meta post with specific details that may not be covered in their post, but we already have some "faq" questions on here pertaining to homework, etc.
E.g., How do I ask homework questions on Chemistry Stack Exchange?
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$\begingroup$ The help pages are definitely fine. I just thought, since they are quite extensive and maybe daunting at the first sight, that a short summary of some important points might give new members a more lightweight heads up. $\endgroup$– PhilippAug 28, 2013 at 23:45
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1$\begingroup$ If you'd like to aggregate the TeX high points along with some of the faq posts that Manish has kindly provided, I think that would be fine, then. $\endgroup$– jonscaAug 28, 2013 at 23:49
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$\begingroup$ Note that the
[about]page is also very helpful for those that don't quite understand how the system works. $\endgroup$– Tim PostSep 10, 2013 at 16:40
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I think that this is a good idea.
Unlike what the others have said, I think the tour and help centers aren't quite enough to guide the new users. There's a lot of things going in the minds of the newbies. They need to informed about how voting works, how to not get disappointed at downvotes. They should also get to know how to react to posts put on hold. It's a common misconception among newbies that we close their questions because we cannot solve them. This is not the case and it should be notified to the OP.
I'm all in it for writing a welcoming page, let's see what the others think.
answered Jun 7, 2017 at 3:23
Pritt says Reinstate MonicaPritt says Reinstate Monica
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1$\begingroup$ There's definitely too much to absorb in Chem.SE, and I think most of it will be learned by the user as they get used to the site, asking and answering questions, and interacting with others. Telling them everything they will ever need to know at once in a single post is a bad idea in my humble opinion. They'll probably forget half of the advice, and misunderstand the other half. Experience is the best teacher, let them use our site, we're here to help whenever they stumble :) $\endgroup$ Mar 19, 2018 at 11:18