129 replies to this topic

[Daemonj]

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The removal of the Believers ranking title is a temporary measure and is not performed to insult those ranked appropriately. A ranking system can be attached well to the number of posts displayed on user profiles - we look forward to introducing a refreshed ranking system as soon as one is agreed on.

Why even have a ranking system? Everyone's post count is plainly visible under their name. That in itself should be more than enough.

[loxly]

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Now the posters above hardly post and some of them have degenerated. Probably due to burn out but then why come here if they are?

Some of us have elected not to come here on a regular basis any longer. Not due to burn out, due to attitude towards the people that try to help.

Helping doesn't always mean handing over the answers on a silver platter, if you go through the unanswered topics, you will find MANY questions posted by me. I am insulted, ridiculed and harrased if I don't know the answer to a question that gets pm'd or emailed to me.

If you want to use OSC you have to learn php. Period. And that takes effort.

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I personally do not want to be associated with the “Believer” thread. I understand the humor behind it all but it is out of place and not needed.

Ah, you didn't read much of it and that is OK, but do not speak of what you do not know. Humor spurs creativity spurs brainstorming spurs solutions. If solutions are not needed, then you are correct that humor is not needed. However, solutions are always needed and humor is always needed as well. If these boards had more humor perhaps the sarcasm would go away.

However, a positive attitude and a helping hand aren't enough here, if you reach out a hand, you get pulled down into the mire.

Enough said for now. I am disappointed and am moving on. I will pop in and help if I can, but I need to concentrate on myself for a change. There are places where you can have a positive attitude and contribute to making positive changes without suffering through the insults that abound here.

A closed mind is a wasted mind.

[shaky]

Personally I have found plp here extremely helpfull, advice or criticism is always appreciated on all levels. The more I learn from my mistakes the more I can give back to the community. MY2C.

[loxly]

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Personally I have found plp here extremely helpfull, advice or criticism is always appreciated on all levels. The more I learn from my mistakes the more I can give back to the community. MY2C.

And that is as it should be, and as it was for a while.

Hopefully we can change the attitude back to positive assistance and creative ideas to further all of our learning.

[john77]

i agree this forum has fallen apart. something has to be done i fear without this forum OSC will die. although some questions still get unanswered most questions go unanswered. i posted a problem i was having and i got a response a wek later well by that time i have already figured it out for my self. it does sem like if people can take the extra time out of there busy schedual and nit pick about certain issues and demand that they make a contribution for this and that. i would thing they could answer a quick question here and there. i may not be an expert at OSC but i try to help people when i can. if everyone can do this we might have a chance of getting the forum quality back up.

[bluephoenix]

Well,
I think people are not as prompt to answer because - most of the questions being asked HAVE aslready been asked and answered. It seems most people do not want to bother to search and read anymore.
When I return here after a few days away, I always just read some posts and answer questions if I can help.
I think unfortunately a lot of folks just come to ask for help and then leave without ever contributing back.
To keep the spirit of open source alive we ALL have to be willing to help each other. Not just take, take, take.
Also, I have noticed a trand where some folks come and ask for input in developing a really needed mod. They will then put out a few editions of that mod and after the bugs are worked out, will start charging for te mod. That is not right. Using us a guinea pigs to finetune the code and then refusing to open source the rest is not really honest. (IMHO)

[jchasick]

while i dont want to keep this thread alive, it is good to see that people are seeing for themselves what has been happening and the changes that need to occur.

where have all the people gone - on vacation.. a long, much needed vacation (and rest...)

Benjamin, you are seeing the tip of the iceburg, but you are seeing what has driven a lot of people away from being here full time they way they used to be

it would be wonderful if people would learn how the use the search function (and yes, the search function has its limitations), but except for questions in the 'contributions' thread, i would guess about 99% of the questions being asked everyday have been answered numerous times and people are either not searching or do not know how to get around the limitations of the search functions (such as, do not search for a 3 letter word, search for multi word strings, use * as part of the search string, click the search for all terms checkbox, etc)

but then we start going round and round...

[ElLeonBlanco]

Hello All:

I was reading and learning about OsCommerce LONG before I ever became a forum memeber. When I was getting more familiar with Linux and would seek advice on IRC the standard answer ALWAYS was GOOGLE. That sure wasn't much assistance because most likely I had already looked there and come up empty handed. I also READ, READ, READ, here in the forums for a possible solution B4 asking some most likely answered B4 question.

Most times when I ask something here another member will offer advice or post a link where I can find my answer. There are also those times when you innocently ask a question for an idea on where to look to modify something to work with a new CVS of MS2 or a bug in a contrib for MS1 and the author of the contrib snubbs you like you were a 5 year old child.

That in my opinion IS NOT community spirit or support. It also completely debases the basic purpose of Open Source developmnet. To me Open Source is far more than a licensing agreement. It is a valuable means for other minds to contribute knowledge and share ideas to make something better and more useful for everyone.

Up until a couple of months ago OSC had that contributed by all knowledge feeling. Now it seems that there are still a few out there willing to lend assistance to those that sometimes seem to ask the stupidest of questions. I have also noticed that as in the Linux world many have become aloof, snobbish, and even outright rude to people seeking assistance.

Ever since these attitude changes have occurred I follow the same procedures listed below as when needing Linux assistance.

First: GOOGLE, if it's not there then you may be digging a while.

Second: Look for online tutorials relating to what you need to accomplsh. Many of them can teach you exactly what you need and how to iplement it.

Third: Look for another site that has the feature you need. Under certain circumstances this might boarder on plagerism. However if you give appropriate credit where it is due you will generally have few or no problems. (Please don't steal other people's graphics. It's far more original to create your own.)

Fourth: If you have or have access to them? Books. I know just how costly these can be as I have purchased several that cost well over $50. I also find the books to be one of the least useful items in my reference toolbox.

Fifth: "This is the most dangerous tool in the box so be careful." Ask for advice in a forum relating to your project. CAUTION: Purchase flame retardent suit before attempting this operation.

Sixth: Last recourse! Contract the services of a designer that is qualified to perform the services you need. In other words: Don't hire an Ecommerce specialist to author a website that doesn't sell anything.

Getting back on FORUM TOPIC!

I would like to suggest a page be displayed at the top of the categories list containing recently placed questions from those unfamiliar with the project. Something like a prescreeniing area that would retain the questions for a day or two so those willing to be of assistance could view them easier. After a specified time based on posting content be sorted to their appropriate topics under the forums. Also don't forget to mail a note to the poster where to look.

I have also noticed several of the topics have become quite LARGE, unfollowable, and many of the postings contain the same or similarly related solutions. These could be combined into a solution archive website with better search and retreival functions.

Just my thoughts. Will help with any of this if I can. All you need do is ask. :wink:

[martyjoe]

i'm a newbie and learn both the hard way ("do this and it breaks") or the easy way (wonderful advice from the community). the latter being the 1st choice.

personally, i don't have any answers, but i would hate to see intellegent members leave for reasons stated in the original post. (please don't leave - newbies need you!) i have been helped so much my so many wonderful people. my only regret is that i cannot buy them a drink and peronsally say "thank you".

[JanSomen]

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To get the thread back on topic, I'd suggest a move away from phpBB;

- its bandwidth heavy compared to other boards
- its difficult to search unless you know the correct tricks to do so

Perhaps not being on phpBB (or updating the search facility at least - IIRC there is a module for a better search facility) would help immensely with people asking the same questions day in, day out ?

I would suggest replacing phpBB with Invision Board .. it has a wonderful, user friendly interface and it has a hack to convert current phpBB too!

HTH

Jan