How can we best HELP?

[dancingdoc2]

I would like your recommendations and advice.

A recent Board update included adding the Index to this Board Forum section in hopes that it would be read by new members to the community immediately after creating an account. This does not seem to be happening.

I am both frustrated and exasperated. Frustrated that people either do not know about the Index, or, they do not avail themselves of the resources in it. I am exasperated that I for one get p/m's and we read new threads asking questions that have been asked and answered in the articles.

Brandye, EEK, and I, have devoted many many hours to writing the information so it will be immediately and readily available at just a click or two away. I created the Index so that Sticky posts of a non medical nature could be found without searching through all of the Forums.

It is one thing to welcome a new person to the community and point out the benefits of the Index; it is quite another to remind people to search there for their answers so that people choosing to reply do not have to devote time retyping everything or go to the trouble of copy and pasting.

What do you suggest be done to make these articles stand out so that people will search there for answers, before asking yet another "me too" thread? How can we make the Index more "visible", either right after signing in, and/or much later when they have a question?

Does Board navigation need to be changed? If so, how do you suggest?

Any help or insight you care to provide will be greatly appreciated.

Thank you,
Doc

[nuttychick]

I wondered about this idea that has been used for gaming forums.
You sign up and can only access a public area ( This could be the index page, rules and maybe an introdution thread) for a certain amount of time untill you are then given full access
to post in the main forums.....

Would make it so the new ones have to actually read before jumping in and posting the same question that has been answered fully in Index

[LiL_TrUbLe]

that’s a good idea nutty chick

When you mention the index does that include the site map? I must say when I was new on here their was so much to read and did not know where to start so I just tried reading it all lol but once I went in the site map it was much better you pick the topic and well the info is their

[nuttychick]

http://www.sexinfo101.com/forum/inde...-board-topics/ here is where
the info is at lol

[LiL_TrUbLe]

I had not gone in their I just used the site map and picked from the topics depending on what info I was looking for .

You have a good idea that way new people read before asking questions that have been answered

[Pill]

I agree that that's a good idea. It does worry me a little bit that since (as has been pointed out elsewhere) many people who come here for information are not terribly mature, or possibly even very intelligent, they may be easily frustrated and may simply leave without getting their question answered if they can't post.

Make no mistake, this is by no means universally true, but there are bound to be at least SOME people who just have their hearts set on posting their questions and getting a response from a live human being. And I have to say that that's understandable; I know I hate calling someplace and getting an automated voice menu.

On the other hand, the people who do the answering probably get frustrated by those same repetitious questions, and NuttyChick's idea might be the best compromise.

Where possible, splash screens or pages which must be read in order to progress with registering / logging in might help.

In the context of an Internet that is chock full of disclaimers and TOSs and EULAs, it's kind of hard to actually get anyone to read any block of text that they don't want to read. As little text as possible is a good thing; it increases the likelihood that it will actually be read.