Guidelines for Beginners

jbnbsn99

jbnbsn99

Well-Known Member
We've had a lot of new people join the site recently. Welcome! The more the merrier. The mods were doing some discussion, and we think it would be a good idea to put out of a guideline on how to have a good time on ZooChat.

  1. Be nice. This should be self-explanatory but sadly needs to be explained.
  2. When possible, use correct spelling and grammar. I know there are a lot of non-native English speaks here. My hat is doffed to you for speaking in a second tongue (or third or whatever ordinal). However, we all communicate best when we speak clearest. Google Chrome and Firefox have built-in spell-checkers. Also, I find the Google add-on Grammarly to be highly useful. We do have several English teachers on the site who are more than happy to do some extra grading (not really, no teacher wants extra grading).
  3. Before asking a question, try and find the answer yourself. Sadly, I've noticed this trend in my own teaching. Especially with younger people, they've lost the incentive to search for things on their own. This is a huge site that's been around for years. Please use the search bars at the top right of the screen to look for your answer. Older members do rather get tired of answering the same thing multiple times.
  4. Everyone on the internet gets treated exactly as they act. As this is a faceless medium, no one knows who you are, how old you are, or what you look like. We only know you as you present yourself. If you present yourself professionally, then you will be treated professionally in return.
  5. We welcome everyone and we want everyone to participate. Participating does not mean randomly sharing links to your blog of youtube channel and not doing anything else. In fact, these activities are considered rude acts of self-promotion and are usually deleted. If you want to share things, make sure you are also contributing to the community.

Remember, we are all here to share and learn. Don't be the troll that gets in the way of that.
 
6) Think before posting - hundreds (sometimes thousands) of people read threads and posts on Zoochat. If you wouldn't tell everyone something (ie: strangers, family, friends, neighbors, colleagues) then maybe it isn't a good idea to be put it on Zoochat
 
8) Do not act with aggression when corrected or questioned; nor should you assume that age and alleged experience means you cannot learn something from those younger than yourself. We have members in their teens who interact as equals with members in their fifties or sixties - this is how it should be. Respect is earned here, with no free points given merely because you are a few decades older than the person you disagree with!
 
With the new forum in place, it would be a good idea to bring this post back to the forefront.
 
9) Do not bump old threads. There are many threads that have been inactive for months or even years. If you do not have anything of value to add to the thread, then don't post it. I have seen this with many new members lately. In my case (on this thread), than I am adding value, as I am pointing out some mistakes new members make by not reading the forum rules. If you are updating on a news thread, or updating a project, than it is considered a thing of value, but a random question or statement is considered bumping the thread, which is not adding a thing of value.
 
ZooBinh said:
9) Do not bump old threads. There are many threads that have been inactive for months or even years. If you do not have anything of value to add to the thread, then don't post it. I have seen this with many new members lately. In my case (on this thread), than I am adding value, as I am pointing out some mistakes new members make by not reading the forum rules. If you are updating on a news thread, or updating a project, than it is considered a thing of value, but a random question or statement is considered bumping the thread, which is not adding a thing of value.
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I absolutely love the irony here :D. It's one of the funniest things I've read on ZooChat in ages. You seem completely serious about it, and you also clearly have noticed that this thread hasn't been updated in over a year.
 
LaughingDove said:
I absolutely love the irony here :D. It's one of the funniest things I've read on ZooChat in ages. You seem completely serious about it, and you also clearly have noticed that this thread hasn't been updated in over a year.
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I don't know, should I thank you, or laugh with you? :rolleyes:
 
ZooBinh said:
9) Do not bump old threads. There are many threads that have been inactive for months or even years. If you do not have anything of value to add to the thread, then don't post it. I have seen this with many new members lately. In my case (on this thread), than I am adding value, as I am pointing out some mistakes new members make by not reading the forum rules. If you are updating on a news thread, or updating a project, than it is considered a thing of value, but a random question or statement is considered bumping the thread, which is not adding a thing of value.
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Just taking the time to remember this comedy gold :D
 
ZooBinh said:
9) Do not bump old threads. There are many threads that have been inactive for months or even years. If you do not have anything of value to add to the thread, then don't post it. I have seen this with many new members lately. In my case (on this thread), than I am adding value, as I am pointing out some mistakes new members make by not reading the forum rules. If you are updating on a news thread, or updating a project, than it is considered a thing of value, but a random question or statement is considered bumping the thread, which is not adding a thing of value.
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So, if I have any question in threads that are old, can I write them down or not?
Thank you so much, I am learning how does this work:)
 
I would try to find an updated thread where it's also appropriate to post. If there is no active threads then post, but maybe add some resources with it that could possibly be helpful if possible. I would really try to do the first option though.
 
Cova_wildvet said:
So, if I have any question in threads that are old, can I write them down or not?
Thank you so much, I am learning how does this work:)
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I don't have a problem with someone posting in an old thread - but only if what you post genuinely adds value to the discussion.

Posting something which effectively equates to "I agree" in an old thread does NOT add value.

The older the thread, the more important this becomes and the more strict we would be in our definition of "adding value".

If it's a really old thread - it would want to be something pretty significant and directly related to the thread to justify posting in it - and in many cases there is likely a newer thread that would be a better place to post.

Similarly, it is almost always better to start a new thread to ask a question rather than post it in an older thread. Again, the only way I would really consider it justified is if it was a question specifically related to the discussion in the old thread - had not been discussed more recently in a newer thread - and would not work just as well asking the question in its own thread.

At the end of the day - if you genuinely feel that your post adds value to the discussion in the old thread, feel free to post it - the moderators will clean it up or move it if its problematic. If you're still unsure, just start a new thread with your question - perhaps linking to the original thread for reference.
 
Simon Hampel said:
I don't have a problem with someone posting in an old thread - but only if what you post genuinely adds value to the discussion.

Posting something which effectively equates to "I agree" in an old thread does NOT add value.

The older the thread, the more important this becomes and the more strict we would be in our definition of "adding value".

If it's a really old thread - it would want to be something pretty significant and directly related to the thread to justify posting in it - and in many cases there is likely a newer thread that would be a better place to post.

Similarly, it is almost always better to start a new thread to ask a question rather than post it in an older thread. Again, the only way I would really consider it justified is if it was a question specifically related to the discussion in the old thread - had not been discussed more recently in a newer thread - and would not work just as well asking the question in its own thread.

At the end of the day - if you genuinely feel that your post adds value to the discussion in the old thread, feel free to post it - the moderators will clean it up or move it if its problematic. If you're still unsure, just start a new thread with your question - perhaps linking to the original thread for reference.
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Sorry to bump a year-old post but I'd like to know the rules regarding extremely short posts (e.g. "Hi", "I agree', "That's nice"). Would they be the same as bumping into an old thread using the same short format?

Also, if anyone is interested in doing a database kind of thread but doesn't have the power to edit the initial post after an hour, can they ask the moderators to update it? I am interested in starting a few threads (and restart an old one) on the Brazilian forum.
 
Enzo said:
Sorry to bump a year-old post but I'd like to know the rules regarding extremely short posts (e.g. "Hi", "I agree', "That's nice"). Would they be the same as bumping into an old thread using the same short format?
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Those sorts of comment also come under "no value added" and will be deleted whenever/wherever the moderation team finds them.
 
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