Is there a way a new member automatically cannot post for critique until they have fulfilled the criteria for such? It seams almost rude telling new members to come back when they have read the rules.
I agree that this should be done, if indeed it can. I've seen many members posting writing projects before meeting the criteria, and as you say, it can get both repetitive for us and rude to them to tell them so.
As I recall, I could not post for critique when I first joined. The writing workshop doesn't have a Post New Thread option until after you have met the criteria -- there were several posts, in fact, about members inquiring about this, because they had, in fact, filled the criteria, yet still could not post. Where I see this as more of a problem is when new members attempt to post something for critique in areas outside the writing workshop. This shouldn't be done at all, whether by new members or by old timers. That's why there are different sections. When I joined, the rules seemed pretty clear to me, and I didn't go hunting for them, and wouldn't say that I spent really any time reading and pondering them. They're not that hard. So, when people post something that is clearly in violation of the rules, I don't see it as rude for someone to point the rule out to them and call them out on the violation.
i don't see it as rude in any way, to politely tell new members they're not allowed to post till they've fulfilled the site requirements... to 'call them out on the violation' seems on the rude side, to me, though...
It's also difficult to prevent them from asking for critique when they post outside of the writing workshop.
This is the issue, as I understand it, I could be wrong. When people post something better suited for critique (i.e. more than a question and an example) in the general writing sub-forum a polite, "this is the wrong sub-forum," with a brief explanation doesn't have to sound condescending. Who reads all the rules? You sometimes learn as you go.
I'm going back to telling them to read the rules. I think, since we all stopped, more or less, there's been an obvious escalation in this sort of behaviour. Does anyone know whether new members get an automated message with all the info when they join? I forgot
It comes in the form of a mod or Cog posting a short summary in the intro thread. I think when a problem keeps recurring it means another approach may be useful to try, that is if the problem is worth solving, which would depend on the difficulty of implementing alternate solutions. The forum is fast nearing the major format change over so perhaps after we all settle in to the change a thread could be used to brainstorm a solution.
[MENTION=53143]GingerCoffee[/MENTION]: I think we need an automatic pm to all new members. Most forums have something similar, it might do the trick.
Is there a way that people could be prompted to read the rules when they register? Like, after you confirm your e-mail or something it takes you to a "READ THIS FIRST" screen? Even a PM would be good, but some people seem to join, and immediately post their stuff, before they have even had a chance to check their PM's.
I have never really ever bothered to read all the rules of any forum I have joined. Morally I have no problem with this just as I have no problem with someone telling me I have done something wrong. Frankly I think most people glaze over when they see that sort of thing on the internet because the internet is usually somewhere people go to escape rules and regulations. Maybe it is just me though.
an automatic "IMPORTANT: Read this before posting' notice either during the registration process or emailed to every new member would help matters, imo... daniel... is that doable?
You could emboss the message backwards on their foreheads (so they could read it in the mirror) with a red-hot cast iron impact stamp, and a good number of them still would manage to overlook the message. Sound cynical? Not if you've ever been a mod here.
It actually used to be much, much, much worse in the past. The time constraint for posting in the Workshop seems to have cleared out the ones just looking for a refrigerator door upon which to hang their county fair ribbons. The occasional person posting outside of that area for not realizing what goes where doesn't seem that big a deal to me. Worse is when people respond to such posts. That's the issue to me. So much better to just report the post and let the mods either move it to the correct area or close the thread with a message to the member. It's when people start getting into comments and responses and retorts in those threads that things start to get unnecessarily unpleasant.
