Review of Posting Guidelines on Askaboutmoney

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Again Thanks to all who keep the site going. My points are that if los and the craic as they say are not about finacial issues then you will have to put up with some of the postings on it. and thats the joy of a community what really annoys me is somebody elses pleasure.... i would suggest that a review of the non-financial questions section in dont ask about money should be removed as it provides confusion for people as to what can be posted there when everyother section of the site caters for peoples needs and generally people without enough posts for los and the craic post there with the result that it just gets moved on them. I do believe that the mods come in for a tuff time every now and again but i suppose thats part and parcel of volunteering your time you will never keep everybody happy
 
Upsidedown said


That sounds like a good idea. A new name springs to mind, but I am trying to remain constructive.

We can't be totally unmoderated, as there are defamation issues which we need to keep an eye on.

Brendan
 
Can't stand thread titles like "Does anyone know..." with the rest of the question in the thread itself.
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I fully agree with Janet on that point - it is extremely annoying having completely generic thread titles - and equally gratifying when they are subsequently made more relevant by a mod.

I feel don't aam is a useful resource - one can easily see how Homes & Gardens or IT, Broadband etc. can link into the general purpose of a personal finance site such as AAM. I'm not so sure about 'The Depths' in particular - Letting Off Steam is getting a real feel of some of the sillier parts of Boards.ie since Christmas, and I have been in the Craic about twice in the past year.

On a more ranty note, I wish people would make more use of the search function before they ask a question that has been asked a hundred times before - perhaps a banner could be placed across the top asking people to please use the search facility to check whether their question has already been answered before they go ahead and post it?

While on the topic of using searches, people seem to be getting a bit lazy and using AAM as a first port of call for queries that really, they could answer themselves by using Google, or having even a cursory look around Revenue.ie etc.
 
Sherman said:
people seem to be getting a bit lazy and using AAM as a first port of call for queries that really, they could answer themselves by using Google, or having even a cursory look around Revenue.ie etc.
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I definitely second this complaint. It never ceases to amaze me how people see somewhere like here as a first port of call for a question like "I woke up this morning and only had 3 wheels on my car. Is this right?".
 
Well if you're one of the trotters, it is right
Totallly agree with all the above points, especially about the search, I honestly didn't even know how to use it till Clubman pointed it out to me. Another thing, I promise this is my last stupid question today, where exactly are the posting guidelines kept, I only notice them when a Mod posts a link
 
It never ceases to amaze me how people see somewhere like here as a first port of call for a question like "I woke up this morning and only had 3 wheels on my car. Is this right?".
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But remember what seems an obvious answer to one person may not be to another. Some people are newbies where the internet is concerned so may not have heard of or www.revenue.ie or other sites and there are plenty of others like this I think in this instance a question is not silly if you don't know they answer! This is especially true for people who may have limited IT knowledge. I never mind directing someone to a website if an honest question is asked.

Do think however the search facilty should be highlighted to prompt people to use it and this is when the title of threads is most relevant when searching for a previous answer.
 
The issue is the editorial/moderation policies and the real or perceived problems with these as they stand
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From my perspective there is no problem. Some people will be unhappy from time to time but as far as I am concerned this is inevitable. They should just live with it. Do people really expect volunteer moderators on a free site to write them a little note of explanation every time they do their job, just in case they hurt the feelings of a poster? I think that the growth of AAM is a sign that the moderators are doing things right. Can I suggest that moderators might answer fewer posts asking direct questions about their editorial decisions and just stick to the standard (rainyday) response referring to the editorial policy? I find that posters of these threads just get wound up and it can get a bit heated on both sides.
 
Click on the Links & About Askaboutmoney link near the top of the page and there is a link to the posting guidelines in there.
 
I've noticed that poor or non existant punctuation is starting to creep into AAM and some of the posts can be pretty difficult to read as a result...I don't want to name names but...
 
Agree with sherman re ;lazyness, , people forget that there is a search function and google does work.
DAM was set up for all the non financial posts, out of that the holiday section started, likewise the cars, IT etc etc.
letting off steam has had a few names but was basically for what the name says. Personall I would be against closing down the likes of dam , the craic and los. however I am in favour of far higher/harder moderating of the below the line posts.
 
Carpenter said:
I've noticed that poor or non existant punctuation is starting to creep into AAM and some of the posts can be pretty difficult to read as a result...I don't want to name names but...
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Poor spelling, grammar, punctuation seems to be worryingly prevalent both on AAM and in the real world in general in my experience. Some people have an excuse (e.g. dyslexia) but at least some of it seems to be down to laziness or poor levels of basic literacy.
 
One important point about moderation:

It is a judgement call whether to moderate something or not.

Many decisions are very clear - e.g. advertising.

If a mod is unsure, they usually move the post to the Mods forum and ask a second opinion. Opinion is often divided on the decision.

But in general, if a moderator is unhappy with a post and the post adds nothing, then it is left deleted.

We are simply too busy to enter into discussions or even to send PMs every time we delete posts. Most people know why their post was deleted.

Brendan
 
This is one of the best sites around & one I visit as often as I am able. I would certainly hope that a decision is NOT arrived at here which will just limit the nature of all posts to Financial related topics only. The Good/Deals Bad Deals, It, Phone, H&G forums are quite good.

For the most part the forums are quite descriptive & if people stick to the general headings then great. However it might be beneficial to quite clearly plant a link which states....

- For Health & Diet related topics click here (which links to vhi or irishhealth.com (for example)
- likewise as Clubman pointed out... to direct people to oasis.ie or revenue.ie etc etc

.... if these are clearly displayed on the home page then it may deflect some of the creme egg & porridge type topics

So where does one draw the line....I don't know... that's for Brendan to decide ultimately ...but perhaps the above might be a start.

(As for the Poor spelling, grammar, punctuation....)...I don't think it is 'worrying' as such!
 
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Ok.....getting very paranoid as people keep referring to the creme egg post which was started by myself.

Sorry if this upset people but this stuff appeals to me and I think when you look at the actual size of aam and the amount of posts it gets each day the likes of the porridge and egg posts are extremely minimal and do obviously provided a element of relief for other members.
 

I believe that the forum headings in AAM represent a continuum ranging from highly relevant to not relevant at all.

I agree with Legend that some the current category and forum titles can be confusing. I think more use should be made of the by line to shape and define each category and forum title.

I think that the title Don’tAskAboutMoney is very clever that has out lived its usefulness.

I have listed and scored each forum below using a five star rating system.

***** Direct and unambiguous relevance to personal finance in Ireland
() No relevance to finance whatsoever

I have included the ‘by line’ and have added my rational for the rating in a different colour.

Best Buys Tables *****
The cheapest mortgage, best deposit rate etc.
Direct and unambiguous relevance to personal finance in Ireland
Index/ How to Use Askaboutmoney/Suggestions *
This should be an essential housekeeping item.
Budget 2006 *****
Direct and unambiguous relevance to personal finance in Ireland.
Mortgages and Home Buying *****
This is for home related issues only. Ask about investment properties in the Investment Property forum.
Direct and unambiguous relevance to personal finance in Ireland..
Location, Location, Location ***
Discuss particular Irish locations for buying homes. Discuss overseas in Investment Property forum.
Lively discussion but fairly tenuous connection with personal finance.
Savings and Investments *****
Direct and unambiguous relevance to personal finance in Ireland
Banking, Borrowing and Credit Cards *****
Direct and unambiguous relevance to personal finance in Ireland
Taxation *****
Please note: business tax queries go in the Askaboutbusiness Forum; property tax queries go in the Property Investment Forum.
Direct and unambiguous relevance to personal finance in Ireland
PRSAs and Pensions *****
Direct and unambiguous relevance to personal finance in Ireland
Other Financial Issues ****
Miscellaneous Financial items
Demutualisation Issues ****
Irish Nationwide/Caledonian/Std Life
Limited interest but relevant to personal finance in Ireland
Insurance (13 Viewing) *****
Life, Health & Motor Insurance
Direct and unambiguous relevance to personal finance in Ireland
Legal & Financial issues ****
Probate/Small Claims Court
Covering that grey area between the legal system and personal finance
Car related issues (21 Viewing) **
A big spend item
Property Investment (40 Viewing) ****
With the proliferation of amateur property investors this has direct relevance to personal finance
Askaboutbusiness ****
Has relevance for those starting up small businesses
The Great Financial Debates ***
Recurring debates on financial topics
Useful discussion often relating economics which have an indirect impact on personal finance
Miscellaneous Non-financial Questions *
Please keep general discussions and opinions in Letting Off Steam
Perhaps this should be relegated to the Depths?
Careers, Employment/Unemployment, Further Education/Training ***/(****)
Since this forum primarily deals with income from employment and social welfare, employee rights and training and development it has a direct impact on personal finance.
I.T., Broadband and Digital Cameras (24 Viewing) **
Including: email, browsers, viruses, PDAs, MP3 players
Significant spend item of interest to browsers
Phones, DVDs, TVs, Audio/Visual (18 Viewing) **
Significant spend item
Homes and Gardens (60 Viewing) **
Home/garden improvements, maintenance, DIY etc.
Significant spend item
Holidays,Travel,Hotels & Airlines (26 Viewing) **
Significant spend item
Good Deals,Bad Deals & Consumer Issues ****
Consumer rights and Good deals have direct relevance to personal finance in Ireland.
Letting Off Steam ()
For discussing current affairs, sports etc. Please try to keep it rational/polite though.
No direct relevance
The Craic ()
Jokes and other funny stuff - please try to keep it reasonable and inoffensive.
No direct relevance

I suggest categorising the forums according to agreed relevance to the primary aim of AAM

ajapale
 
We started off with a pure financial website.
The information was good and people started asking non-financial questions.
We were a bit reluctant to promote non-financial questions, but it has been a huge success. Good questions and good answers. I would not see any merit in "demoting" forums such as homes & gardens because of their lower relevance to the original purposes.

What is unique about Askaboutmoney is that people can ask a serious question and they will get a serious and well informed factual answer. If the answer is wrong, it will usually be corrected quickly.

p45.net serves a different purpose. It is primarily "I am bored at work and I want a bit of diversion". That is fine, but it is not what we are about.

If it is ok to ask a serious question about where to buy a kitchen or how to find a hotel in Bulgaria, then it is ok to ask a serious question about a non-financial issue which does not fall into one of the existing categories.

That does not mean it is ok to use the Miscellaneous Non-financial Forums for a bit of diversion. I have looked at the first two pages of these and they are a mixed bag in terms of seriousness. Some are of the Creme Egg variety and should be deleted or moved to the Craic if that is what we decide. Some were more appropriate elsewhere and have already been moved. But there are good questions there which don't really belong anywhere else e.g. I have got good value of the "Interesting lectures on in Dublin" thread.

As the non-financial questions have become such an integral part of the site, I don't think it would be right to restrict them to Frequent Posters.

Brendan
 
ClubMan said:
poor levels of basic literacy.
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Is there a basic level required before posting on AAM?!





I agree - I thought that was the beauty of AAM - get some serious info, give some serious info, and maybe have a laugh while browsing. What's wrong with mixing business with pleasure?
 

Would have to agree whole heartedly with this - I visit AAM far more often than any other web site. (Ratio of about 10:1!!!). Although some threads are frivolous in nature they are in the very small minority - when one takes into account the vastly increased popularity recently of AAM such posts are inevitable. (I have posted on sites such as p45 previously and believe you me AAM is not going down that route).

[Isnt p45 getting a lot of advertising in this thread!]

The other non-financial threads (e.g. sport, careers, holidays) are generally discussed in a candid and interesting manner with the aim of helping out / offering genuine opinions to other members. Although not directly related to finance I, and I am sure others, have found many emensely beneficial.

Finally, i first came across AAM roughly 15 months ago when i was living abroad and picked up a copy of the Irish Independent on a flight to UK. I saw a recommendation for AAM and out of curiousity I gave it a browse. Now, only a short time later, my knowledge of all things financial has exploded.......I am gone to the stage now where I take it as given that people know the stamp duty thresholds, deposit account interest rates, your rights as a tenant etc..... People don't, and i wouldnt either only for AAM.
 
I have been reading the posts and I think I feel that the confusion with mainly the "non-finanical questions" section is that it has carried a number of posts recently that where not actually questions but rather requests for opinions

This has crept in unintenionally and some have taken the interest of some of the mods and others haven't and have been moved due to their lack of content

I don't think the mods have set out to edit/move/lock some threads but rather that they have not appealed to their sense of what AAM stands for and have acted in good faith
Some may disagree but unless it is patently obvious then they should really let it go or contact the mod by PM themselves

I know I have had posts edited and moved and not once moaned (I think) as I do beleive that the mods are operating in good faith as I stated above

Maybe the more general "porridge" questions could be carried in a "Depths Forum" and that forum be cleaned up once a week as their is very likely to be anything there that will be referred or be of any use later on

This "chat" forum could be limited to frequesnt posters
As if it is required as a sense of community then the poster should be a regular user to feel part of a community
How many posts needed to become a frequesnt poster could be reviewed as 50 is a large number of posts for someone to make who has come to AAM looking for info initially

And I'd be surprised if there would ever need to be a search on how to eat a chochlate egg required in the future
No offence Rrasco

I know this is making the depths larger but it should give an outlet for less serious questions that are not resuests for specific information

That's my lot
But for all those who feel hard done by in the non-financial forums, do as I do from time to time, get fed up with the non-financial forum bickering and give those a break for a while

It works

stuart@buyingtolet.ie
 
Warren Buffett said:

[Isnt p45 getting a lot of advertising in this thread!]

Indeed it is and it richly deserves it! www.p45.net is a really great site which has forums dedicated to the following subjects, among others:

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With whole forums dealing with these topics, how on earth can Askaboutmoney compete?
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AS the radio ads often say, give me that name again:
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www.p45.net
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Brendan
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p.s. Just in case anyone is colour blind - that address again is www.p45.net
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