Rant about "searching"

[ashleynicole]

I am sorry but i just have to say this.. i have been to a lot of forums and this is the only one ive been to where people, instead of answering a question, they always tell the person to "search". The point of a forum is so you don't have to search.. its so you can ask a question and get answers. I have heard the argument "it takes just as much time to wait for answers as it does to search" but the point is, i can post a question before i go to work and come home and just check the answers.. plus i am getting detailed responses to my specific question. Sure the question may have been asked a million times before, but I personally don't read every forum i go to every day and may miss a lot of common questions.

Just curious as to why this forum has a trend towards that instead of answering the question tehy type "do a search"
It takes just as long to type "do a search" as it would to type a quick suggestion or response.

Honestly ive gotten very good responses to people here and i like this forum a lot, and since i did research i only had to ask a few specific questions and they were always answered, but some people do go out and buy pets before doing research.. Sad but true... and then they realized they need help and come here.. if we just tell them to "do a search" they may get frustrated and leave and then they won't take care of their pet very well... would'nt it be better to just answer the question OR post a link of where the question is answered?????

all opinions are welcome

 

[Serpwidgets]

Yeah. I think that, since all possible questions and answers have already been posted, that all users should be permanently banned from posting so that nothing is ever repeated again. Because that's what forums are for.

Matt Damon.



I still get a good belly laugh (at Joe's expense) every time questions from the FAQ are posted. :grin01:

 

[Clint Boyer]

Well, I'm not one to tell you to do a search but I have pretty much quit answering basic questions. I'm sure there are a bunch of things I've said over the years stashed away available only by search.
A search is a good idea and I'm sure you'll get a lot more info that way.

As to why people are adamant about telling you to do a search, beats me?

 

[ashleynicole]

I am not denying the value of searching, i am constantly searching for answers to my questions. First i start at yahoo and google, then when i can't find the answer there i will usually post in the relevant forum. Sometimes i will search the forum, but usually by the time i resort to posting to a forum, im sick of searching and just want a quick answer or personal advice.

I agree that some seem to have done ZERO research... and it can be frustrating to see something so "simple" asked. But wouldn't it be nicer just to post a link to a good care sheet? or even post a link to the FAQ section of the site? I mean maybe if they had that there they would click on it and be like OK thanks for the link... and then they would'nt feel like they have been shunned.

 

[ashleynicole]

Yeah. I think that, since all possible questions and answers have already been posted, that all users should be permanently banned from posting so that nothing is ever repeated again. Because that's what forums are for.

Matt Damon.



I still get a good belly laugh (at Joe's expense) every time questions from the FAQ are posted. :grin01:

sarcasm???? LOL :crazy02:

 

[Clint Boyer]

sarcasm????

Serp? Sarcasm? :eek1:

 

[ashleynicole]

Serp? Sarcasm? :eek1:

im totally lost...

 

[Clint Boyer]

If you do a search on sarcasm, you'll find Serp at the top of the list! :grin01:

 

[ashleynicole]

If you do a search on sarcasm, you'll find Serp at the top of the list! :grin01:

forgive my airheadedness.. i just spent 12 hours at the hospital doing clinicals and my head is all foggy... im sure im not the only person on here thats working and a full time student, so you probly know what i mean. sacasm is a GOOD thing, just hard to express online with typing.. LOL

 

[Serpwidgets]

Well, I'm not one to tell you to do a search but I have pretty much quit answering basic questions. I'm sure there are a bunch of things I've said over the years stashed away available only by search.
A search is a good idea and I'm sure you'll get a lot more info that way.

As to why people are adamant about telling you to do a search, beats me?

Yeah, if I were to write a non-sarcastic post (is that even possible?) then that would sum up everything I'd have to say.

Sarcasm is easy to express on this board. :wavey:

 

[carol]

The problem is, even if all you want is an easy answer, sometimes there just isn't one. Many questions have many variables. Many, many times I do not agree with something that has been posted, but I respect the opinion. If you do a search you automatically get all those opinions together to form you're own. Sometimes one question can lead to a book of answers and what is right for one person is not right for others. It gets tiring answering the same questions on a weekly basis, and there are many complicated questions that are pretty much asked over and over. I'm sure if you noticed that different people came up to you once a week and asked you why the sky is blue, you would be tempted to write a report and distribute "hand outs" everytime you are asked.
I guess you can look at it this way, saying "do a search" is a lot better than not responding at all, which is what many of us do when we are tired of answering the same question over and over.

Just curious, since you mentioned yahoo and google, are you aware that this site had it's own search function? I can see why you would not want to do a cornsnake info search on yahoo or google, that would be a big mess to sort through. However, if you searched on the subject you wanted to know about inside this very forum, you will get tons of information very easily.

I hope no one has been rude to you about this, we all try our best to answer questions the best we can. But if someone says "do a search" it probably means the answer is not as simple as you were expecting.

I have to admit will all due respect though, this sounds a lot like the pot calling the kettle black, "I'm too lazy to do a search, but you are too lazy to type me an answer". Good 'ol "I know you are but what am I" tactic. What's good for the goose?

 

[zwyatt]

I have to admit will all due respect though, this sounds a lot like the pot calling the kettle black, "I'm too lazy to do a search, but you are too lazy to type me an answer". Good 'ol "I know you are but what am I" tactic. What's good for the goose?

Oh, snap! Just kidding. I think Carol makes a good point. I have suggested to people to try doing a search before, but also try to give some info in my post as well. In fact, I replied to a post you made about powerfeeding. I tried to give a short answer to the question but also suggested a search for powerfeeding, which would yield many threads.

I think that many times it is much easier to suggest that someone do a search rather than spend your time typing out pages of information that is all contained within a number of threads that have previously been posted.

I also think that it seems that the more elementary the question is and the less thought that seems to go into it the more likely it is to get less of a response or a "try searching it" response. If someone takes time to post a good question giving plenty of details about their specific situation etc., even if it is a common question, there seem to be more/better answers to it.
:cheers:

 

[princess]

When the Noobs pop up at this site I'm happy to help them out with their questions (as I think we all are) but if they then continue to ask the most basic of questions, I think that's generally when they get directed to the search button.

The thing with doing a search and reading a number of threads on the topic you want to know about, is that you get a lot of background knowledge and other info as well and that really can't hurt.

If someone asks...'What does recessive mean?' and you tell them and then they ask...'What is in allele?' and then they ask more genetics questions... Wouldn't it have been better to directly send them to Serps genetics page rather than explain it yourself?

 

[Roy Munson]

I am a "Search Function Crusader", so I'd like to make some points.

-I have a slow dial-up connection at home, and I still find the search function to be quicker than waiting for responses.

-No offense to anyone, but why would you want to rely on the opinions of the well-intentioned, enthusiastic, but inexperienced guys/gals who've had one snake for two months when the people with tons of real experience have given dozens of opinions in a multitude of existing threads? I would venture to guess that many of the experienced keepers have stopped answering the twenty "substrate?" and "uth?" threads that pop up here every week.

-One thing I thought about when mulling this topic over is that it would be pretty easy to be a fake on this site. Maybe I'm a guy with zero real experience with corns, who's never even owned one. I throw a bunch of snakes in my sig line, and start using the search function to answer all these questions, and now I can pretend to be an expert. There's nothing really wrong with this, but why not do these searches yourself and cut this potential fake out of the equation, and become an expert YOURSELF?

-I get sick of this kind of opening thread: "Hi, I just bought a corn. He was so cute I couldn't resist. Can I feed him crickets? What do you use for substrate? Are under-tank heaters ok? Even though I know nothing about corns, I'm getting another next week- can I house them together?" I mean, c'mon, don't bring something home if you have done ZERO research first.

-I'm sure there are members here who get sick of the "my snake just shed for the second time!!1!!1" threads too. I don't have a problem with them, because these posters are obviously very enthusiastic about their pets, and there's nothing wrong with that. But asking a basic husbandry question that's already been answered thousands of times isn't enthusiasm, it's laziness.

-Carol made one of my points better than I could:

I have to admit will all due respect though, this sounds a lot like the pot calling the kettle black, "I'm too lazy to do a search, but you are too lazy to type me an answer". Good 'ol "I know you are but what am I" tactic. What's good for the goose?

-How about spending the 15 bucks to buy Kathy Love's Corn Snake Manual? If you won't invest a small amount of money in the research of your husbandry, why should I invest time in doing your research for you? As I said in another thread: Kathy's Book + Existing Threads = 99.999% Of All Husbandry Questions Answered.

-Why would you want to look like a desparate noob by asking simple questions that a hundred existing threads cover? I realize that many join this site for the social interaction, and that's cool, but there are a million more interesting things to discuss here than your un-researched basic husbandry questions. Everyone's a beginner at some point, no shame in that, but I suggest that you do some research first, then post the questions to which you could not find answers.

-Dean

 

[TrpnBils]

But wouldn't it be nicer just to post a link to a good care sheet? or even post a link to the FAQ section of the site? I mean maybe if they had that there they would click on it and be like OK thanks for the link... and then they would'nt feel like they have been shunned.

If I'm going to take the time to search for a link to post for somebody else, they should be willing to take that same amount of time and do their own search for the sake of their animal. Irresponsible pet owners frustrate the hell out of me, and if they're going to do something stupid like buy an animal that they know nothing about, the least they can do is take some responsibility for their actions. Maybe try to help themselves instead of always relying 100% on other, more responsible people.

 

[daisy]

If you've just stumbled on this site for the first time, the first page that you will see is the list of rooms. Not far down on that list is the 'FAQ development forum' .
I was new one too and asked some rediculous questions, but I looked around a little first to at least see if this was a place I even wanted to bother with. Seems to me, some of the noobs don't even look at the forum that they're posting in, they just go for the first one on the list.
I'm not suggesting that no one wants to help, I just think that IMHO, one would need to at least figure out the etiquette for the board before posting.
And as for the 'hi - I'm new" posts...bring em on...I for one love to see all of the new pictures and hear all of the stories that everyone has.
Just my 2 cents.

 

[ashleynicole]

well i am new to the board and new to the snake keeping hobby as well. As i have stated i did my research first so i knew i had the basic needs for my new snake. I didn't know what forumwould be the best so i found about 3 reptile forums and this one and just posted a general overview of what i had to start with, and this forum seemed to be the most active for corns and had some very sound information. the poeple over at reptileforums.com were total A-holes. I didn't have a problem with people telling me to search, i just noticed that in almost all the questions i see posted they tell the person to search. If you don't have the patience to give advice, then don't bother answering the thread. THats how i feel about it.

 

[TBurkeIII]

now that is what i call being "Munsoned"

who needs a clear bowling ball with a rose in it when ya got Roy around?

 

[TrpnBils]

the poeple over at reptileforums.com were total A-holes.

I'll echo that for the Kingsnake.com forums.

i just noticed that in almost all the questions i see posted they tell the person to search.

I have a feeling that may be a bit of an exaggeration. Up until about three weeks ago I very rarely saw anyone say that. It just so happened that over the past 3-4 weeks, there have been a lot of new people asking the exact same questions.

 

[carol]

If you don't have the patience to give advice, then don't bother answering the thread. THats how i feel about it.

So what you are saying is that if we can't give all, don't give anything? That's like saying don't do anything for the homeless unless you are willing to take them home with you.

If we all followed your given advice, some questions would go without getting ANY responses at all. There are some people out there that are not even aware this site has it's own search function until we point it out. I'm sure there are some people out there that would prefer to have someone point out there is a search function instead of having NO responses to their question. So I don't think it is fair for you to speak for all of them and say we might as well not post anything.

It's not that we don't have patience to give advice, it's we don't always have the patience to give the same advice over and over and over, when the answer is "already in print". I hope you realize that you are implying to everyone on this forum that your time is more important than everyone else's. With such an attitude not many people are now going to have the "patience" to give you good advice when they see that you don't respect their time and efforts. So you may want to do some more "searching" because I expect you may not get as many "experienced" responses to your questions now that people know that you do not respect their time and effort. What ever happened to "the best way to help a person is to teach them to help themself"?