Should I make a forum 4 CSS & HTML Help?

[Dr.CSS]

To keep the noise level down in the forum, general CSS & HTML questions, 'how to center a div' 'how to change font color' etc..., are being mmmm...... discouraged...

The developers are getting overwhelmed just trying to keep up with the work they have especially with 2.0 just around the corner and having regular paying jobs etc..., remember this is open source "free" software they are developing and doing a hell of a job IMnsHO
Keep up the good work...

I was wondering how many ppl. would want me to start a forum for generic/general CSS & HTML questions...

EDIT: I would host this site elsewhere...

[kermit]

'bout time, mark!   please do. it is, perhaps, the biggest "non cmsms" issue people have once they get the software going. having a place for those types of questions here is better than turning them away... not just from these forums for their question, but from the project entirely. i suspect that most of those who read and assist in the current forum on that topic (don't forget to rename it so it says it is for 'cmsms specific' template help) would also participate in your new one.

[lollipop27]

Ya sure, I think this is a great idea, I can help you with the new forum, if you need some...

I'm usually checking the HTML and CSS forums quite frequently and would love to give a hand to this geat OpenSource Project...

[calguy1000]

'bout time, mark!   please do. it is, perhaps, the biggest "non cmsms" issue people have once they get the software going. having a place for those types of questions here is better than turning them away... not just from these forums for their question, but from the project entirely. i suspect that most of those who read and assist in the current forum on that topic (don't forget to rename it so it says it is for 'cmsms specific' template help) would also participate in your new one.

I don't think that this forum should be setup on www.cmsmadesimple.org..... a place for generic CSS/HTML questions would be best hosted elsewhere.

[lollipop27]

Perhaps hosted elsewhere, but a link from the CMSms formu would be quite reasonable so that they don't post here, and still don't loose the connection to CMSms. no?
Advantage of hosting it here, is to use the same user account, otherwise they'll have to register here and there....

Well, thats my opinion, I understand you, calguy,  getting fed up with the questions having nothing to do with CMSms, but they often somehow connect to the CMS and then a seperate forum in this page would be useful....

[nuno]

OPS , SORRY, SORRY and mor SORRY
Understand everything wrong (it is the poor English) thought that the mark wanted to create a forum to help these issues so tell i want help.

It is clear that we can not teach anyone in such basic tasks of CSS and html course!!

A hug

[kermit]

you don't have to respond to a post you don't want to.  replying, even just to say 'no soup for you', takes longer than simply ignoring a post (or perhaps even just answering the question in the first place); and continually doing so will just increase your frustration over time.

with a separate area for "community-based" (vs 'official') support boards... if you don't want to be a part of that community; you don't have to go there! (although i suspect you'd be in a small minority) there's even mods for smf to completely hide (ignore) user-defined boards so you don't even have to look at them (which would also be welcomed by most to hide the irrelevant-to-the-user language-specific boards).

cmsms is a small project with a small community, compared to the 'big boys' of open source content management. turning people off to the project, for whatever reason, is not good for the project as a whole. the current 'trend' in forum moderation is also starting to do just that with some of our "regulars".. the long-standing members who are the heart-and-soul of the project community.. and we cannot afford to lose any of those folks.

putting the desired-by-most, relevant-but-not-"cmsms specific"-enough topics on a different site, different forum, different domain, different login credentials.. isn't really any better than just turning people away as some users are currently doing.

i am not advocating that we openly promote the availability of 'general' web site support -- but those who use cmsms should be able to seek, and receive (as available from the community), help for their cmsms-powered web site in one place. we may be a small community, but it is one that has (with very few exceptions) a history of willingness to help someone out.  the extra referrals from search engines due to the extra (relevant to web site development) content can't hurt either.... and will introduce the project to more people who have not heard of it before (again, we are not a large project.. every little bit helps).

the old saying 'give the man a fish, he eats for a day.. teach him to fish and he eats for a lifetime' applies here..  do we continue the current trend among a few users here and just turn people away hungry? or do we do some teaching (with a little feeding mixed in)? cms made simple is easy to use and easy to learn from.... i'd say it makes pretty good bait...

[calguy1000]

with a separate area for "community-based" (vs 'official') support boards... if you don't want to be a part of that community; you don't have to go there! (although i suspect you'd be in a small minority) there's even mods for smf to completely hide (ignore) user-defined boards so you don't even have to look at them (which would also be welcomed by most to hide the irrelevant-to-the-user language-specific boards).

Kermit... I did an extensive search through the SMF addons and couldn't find anything that would allow me to 'ignore' certain boards... I'd love this, and I would recommend its installation into our site so that maybe the core developers would start reading the forums again because the 'noise' ratio would be somewhat lower..... the first board (but not the last) I'd ignore is the 'Layout and Design' one... then I'd delete topics that weren't relevant to certain boards.... no problem.  But I didn't find a mod that would do that for me.  If such an addon exists, I want to see it.  The lack of finding one is a large portion of the reason for much of this 'poiice work'.

Also, keep in mind, this IS a small community, but it's a community with a purpose.  We are not here to teach everybody how to develop websites, about Unix, about how to 'redirect one url to another, about 'how to create a database', or a thousand other things.  We don't have the resources for it.  And surprisingly enough, some of the community get rather rude when they don't get the support they expect.  Also, too many people are posting questions in here, because it is an easy solution rather than spending an hour or so with google to find the solution themselves.  Rather we are here to teach people how to use our package, and to help them with the difficulties they have that are specific to the package. 

To finish: I firmly believe in the 'Give a man a fish...' axiom.... but the man first has to know what a 'rod' is, and what it is for.

[calguy1000]

Addendum:

Even if such an addon exists for SMF, I would still not recommend that we create a 'beginners HTML and CSS' forum on this website....  in my oppinion, it would still be deprecating from the feedback that our 'primary target' could be receiving.

[nuno]

you don't have to respond to a post you don't want to.  replying, even just to say 'no soup for you', takes longer than simply ignoring a post (or perhaps even just answering the question in the first place); and continually doing so will just increase your frustration over time.

with a separate area for "community-based" (vs 'official') support boards... if you don't want to be a part of that community; you don't have to go there! (although i suspect you'd be in a small minority) there's even mods for smf to completely hide (ignore) user-defined boards so you don't even have to look at them (which would also be welcomed by most to hide the irrelevant-to-the-user language-specific boards).

cmsms is a small project with a small community, compared to the 'big boys' of open source content management. turning people off to the project, for whatever reason, is not good for the project as a whole. the current 'trend' in forum moderation is also starting to do just that with some of our "regulars".. the long-standing members who are the heart-and-soul of the project community.. and we cannot afford to lose any of those folks.

putting the desired-by-most, relevant-but-not-"cmsms specific"-enough topics on a different site, different forum, different domain, different login credentials.. isn't really any better than just turning people away as some users are currently doing.

i am not advocating that we openly promote the availability of 'general' web site support -- but those who use cmsms should be able to seek, and receive (as available from the community), help for their cmsms-powered web site in one place. we may be a small community, but it is one that has (with very few exceptions) a history of willingness to help someone out.  the extra referrals from search engines due to the extra (relevant to web site development) content can't hurt either.... and will introduce the project to more people who have not heard of it before (again, we are not a large project.. every little bit helps).

the old saying 'give the man a fish, he eats for a day.. teach him to fish and he eats for a lifetime' applies here..  do we continue the current trend among a few users here and just turn people away hungry? or do we do some teaching (with a little feeding mixed in)? cms made simple is easy to use and easy to learn from.... i'd say it makes pretty good bait...

OPS , SORRY, SORRY and mor SORY
Understand everything wrong (it is the poor English) thought that the mark wanted to create a forum to help these issues so tell i want help.

It is clear that we can not teach anyone in such basic tasks of CSS and html course!!
Ok, in view of the previous comment I withdraw my help, I do not want to in any way be guilty of some of the community's oldest someone leave (which I do not believe) that they do.

If the comment earlier was because of my humble willingness to help, I apologize, but help the next is not a defect!
And also understand the point of view


I love this community

[kermit]

Kermit... I did an extensive search through the SMF addons and couldn't find anything that would allow me to 'ignore' certain boards... I'd love this, and I would recommend its installation

did you try google?
http://www.google.com/search?q=ignore+boards+smf
iirc, j00m!a's forum uses the mod and they're running 1.1.4

i want it for the other reason i mentioned (hiding irrelevant-to-me language boards)

Even if such an addon exists for SMF, I would still not recommend that we create a 'beginners HTML and CSS' forum on this website....

you don't have to like the idea.. but can you support what the community seems to want? or at least loosen your 'total topic relevance or else' approach?

and i don't think mark's intent is to create 'xhtml for dummies' either... but maybe 'xhtml and css for people who can read a faq, use google, and try things for themselves first' board.

[Ted]

Given the re-org announced here, I'm going to leave it up to you guys to create the forums that you see are necessary.  As long as it lives in the Community area and it makes your life easier, then by all means, go for it.

I have no issue with the boards being a place for off-topic discussion, as long as I can filter it out enough to be able to stay on top of the CMSMS related boards (which I haven't been because it's a very daunting task lately).

Thanks!

[calguy1000]

Now that the re-organization of the forums has been done, and roles and responsibilities clearly laid out, I can easily change the topic description on the 'Layout' forum to be a bit more 'pleasing' to some users.... and we wouldn't need 'yet another forum'.

[KO]

Maybe there should be couple of sticky FAQ's that might? help people read before posting question. Collection of typical problems,  solutions and links to other websites that allready exists and explain bugs, solutions etc. more thoroughly.

[calguy1000]

KO.... you're nominated.

If you can create such a post.... I'll make it sticky.  it should post some 'introduction to HTML/CSS/ stuff' as well as 'seperating content from design, and a few other sources that people should read if they don't know nothing about developing websites.....

Maybe some 'beginner', and 'intermediate' sections

and then we'd expect people to already have read that post and all those links when they're posting a generic HTML/CSS question.

They won't read it anyways, but at least the groundwork would have been done.