WordPress.org

31. jonimueller
    Member
    Posted 7 years ago #
    

    I disagree about keeping strictly to WordPress. WordPress is a wonderful product, I'll be the first to say it, and it is more than the sum of its parts. But it also wouldn't be as popular as it is without the myriad toys (e.g., plugins and themes) that were created to work with it.

    I agree that the theme designer or plugin developer should be the first line of defense when a theme or design blows up in your face. But the fact of the matter is this is a support forum for and by the USERS. If I have been fiddling with a plugin and have figured out how to get it to work or get it to work BETTER, then I'm definitely going to pipe up when a cry for help about that particular plugin is heard.

    And yes, Podz, monosyllabic and one link responses are churlish and rude. Is this the picture we want to project of the WP community? Certainly not. However, people who come in here without having done a modicum of researh, but rather who sit, with their mouths open, like baby birds in a nest, waiting for the mother bird to drop a worm in, these people should not be countenanced.

    Why should I google links for you when you are too lazy to do it yourself? On the other hand, if you come here with a problem and have attempted to solve it yourself without any luck, or just plain got in over your head, then there's bound to be someone in this vast user base who can help you.

    Thing is, they may not help you this minute, or this hour, or even this day. Patience is indeed a virtue.

    I owe most of what I know about WP to what knowledge I've gleaned while here. And granted, I've had my toes stepped on and I'm sure I've done my share of stomping on toes as well. But I've met some really nice folks here and I sure would like to see it stay that way.

    My take on the "reasoning" for the mailing list wasn't so much to discuss "problems" and "issues" with WordPress, but rather to discuss HOW to address those problems and issues, how best to solve them when people come here asking for help. Maybe I'm wrong there, but that's what I read.

    And although I know a lot more about HTML and CSS and web design and WordPress than some others out there, something in me makes me reluctant to speak out unless I'm so darn sure about it that I'd be willing to bet my cat's life on it. This is a throwback to hanging out in Usenet in groups like alt.html.critique where no one's feelings are spared and your every word is torn apart by the wolverines hanging out there. Someday, maybe I'll get over this shyness!

    Peace out!

32. eragle
    Member
    Posted 7 years ago #
    

    I signed up and will be glad to help out. I'm not really an expert in anything in particular. If anything, I represent the average Joe Schmoe WordPress user. I'm been tearing apart, screwing up and otherwise mutilating WordPress now for about 3 years.

    I've gotten pretty good at making themes out of existing themes, but really I'm more experienced with the forum setting, having been an administrator on various forums now for about 8 years. :)

    I'm just here to help!

33. TechGnome
    Moderator
    Posted 7 years ago #
    

    Okay, podz.... jsut remember, you asked for it.

    Tg

34. skippy
    Member
    Posted 7 years ago #
    

    I see the forum mailing list as a meta-support option, and as such is strictly optional.

    There are a lot of people who only come here to get help. The mailing list is not for these people.

    There are a lot of people who come here to learn tips and tricks about WordPress and associated topics. The mailing list is not for them.

    There is an increasing number of people who are helping to answer questions here. The mailing list is for them. It's a chance for forum volunteers to have a discussion mechanism that is not (as easily) subject to hijackng as threads here.

    Because the support volunteers here vary wildly in their behavior, the mailing list can serve as an escalation resource for really hard problems.

    For example, I rarely look at threads with more than two posts in them, assuming (perhaps naively) that someone's engaged the issue and is working it through. If someone works through to the best of their ability and still can't solve the problem, they could post to the mailing list asking for others to review the issue. This sort of thing happens on the hackers mailing list with some regularity.

    The mailing list is also an opportunity for those of us using the forums on a regular basis to float practical ideas for improvement. I don't think it's elitist at all to say that we, the dedicated volunteers, have a slightly more balanced perspective on what works and does not work with the forum software, and as such we should have an outlet for recommending modest incremental improvements.

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