New Xenforo v2 feature: "question" type threads

[The_J]

Right now "question" type threads are only activated in this forum, to gather your opinion.

Differences between a "question" and a normal "discussion" thread:
- everyone may give an upvote to any answer in the thread (this is e.g. similar to stack overflow, or also reddit)
- you may sort answers by most upvotes
- the OP may designate one answer as the "correct" answer, which will be displayed directly under the question.

Please let us know what you think about this feature.

 

[The_J]

Personally I think this could be a useful feature.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

Let me see if I understand this. Is this a new category of threads, to join things like Red Diamond, Polls, etc.? And they will be available in every forum if this experiment here works or if enough people say they think it's a great idea?

I could see it working if the answers must be objective and factual and can be verified, or if they're testable answers to problems (ie. "what is the best way to microwave _____" - questions I seek answers to often, as I have a microwave but not a stove) or "recommend the best brand of ______" for people who are thinking of making a specific purchase and want feedback to help them decide.

But you and some other staff have been around OT enough to know that some people insist that it's objective fact that pineapple does or does not belong on pizza (depending on where you stand personally), or that ketchup-flavored potato chips are great or sound disgusting (it's usually folks who have never tried them who express the latter opinion), and we've had multiple threads about these topics over the years. This is a recipe to foster more arguments since open-ended opinion questions can't have a "right" or "wrong" answer and if the OP declares one opinion as the RIGHT one, I foresee more arguing.

 

[Synobun]

Presumably its use is most relevant to the Civilization sections and not the seedy bar in the corner of the site.

 

[The_J]

Yes, we could have them everywhere, but could do this on a forum-by-forum basis too.
I guess this type of thread might not be particularly relevant for OT, but for the civ sections I could see it.

For testing purposes, I've upvoted Valka's post, and marked Syn's as solution (despite me also downvoting it). Just so that you can see how it works.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

not the seedy bar in the corner of the site.

The Tavern hasn't existed for years.

Yes, we could have them everywhere, but could do this on a forum-by-forum basis too.
I guess this type of thread might not be particularly relevant for OT, but for the civ sections I could see it.

For testing purposes, I've upvoted Valka's post, and marked Syn's as solution (despite me also downvoting it). Just so that you can see how it works.

Hm. It looks... very large, and rather intrusive, honestly. I can't see it as being beneficial in the Colosseum forums, except maybe in the Computer forum where people do ask questions that need a definitive answer.

So if you're going to do it, I don't recommend it for the Colosseum area. I'm trying to think where it might be useful elsewhere that we don't already have the ability to post threads asking for answers, or polls.

 

[Birdjaguar]

I like the idea and in the civ forums; it would be nice. For OT it would likely work only if monitored closely and folks were serious about their efforts to provide ideas. Focused questions would be important to begin.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

I like the idea and in the civ forums; it would be nice. For OT it would likely work only if monitored closely and folks were serious about their efforts to provide ideas. Focused questions would be important to begin.

We already have a perfectly adequate questions thread in OT, and if memory serves, most people take it seriously enough to provide answers that are at least somewhat researched or based on genuine experience with whatever question the person has asked about.

I see that these things can be either upvoted or downvoted. I'm not in favor of anything that can be downvoted. I've related how downvoting can become a way to bully and harass people, if a poster is unpopular.

Based on experience on other sites, I really, seriously do NOT recommend adopting this feature in the Colosseum. If the admins think it would be genuinely useful in the Civ sections and will complement/replace what might already exist there, I won't venture any further opinion since I only post occasionally in Civ II.

 

[Aiken_Drumn]

I don't think this really works here. Looks messy.

 

[racha]

I don't think this really works here. Looks messy.

I could see it being useful in the modding sub-fora for iterations of Civ that support modding.

 

[Kyriakos]

Yes, we could have them everywhere, but could do this on a forum-by-forum basis too.
I guess this type of thread might not be particularly relevant for OT, but for the civ sections I could see it.

For testing purposes, I've upvoted Valka's post, and marked Syn's as solution (despite me also downvoting it). Just so that you can see how it works.

Maybe better to use it in creation forums, instead of OT. The "solution" highlighting one post will be another weapon for good there

 

[Noble Zarkon]

I'm definitely interested in this for the Civ forums e.g. what is the best Leader trait in Civ IV might be a good one.

 

[The_J]

I don't think there's a single answer for this ^^.

Just to note, there's also an auto-generated overview who has the most "answers", see https://forums.civfanatics.com/members/?key=most_solutions .

I would right now tend to allow them over the forums.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

I'm definitely interested in this for the Civ forums e.g. what is the best Leader trait in Civ IV might be a good one.

Actually, this might make a good article. It allows for research and setting out an argument, rather than a popularity contest. There are pros and cons for every Civ leader, no matter which version, and of course there are the unexpected traits.

 

[Aiken_Drumn]

Irritatingly people used the Like feature rather than upvote my answer. I think this is a useful solution to the OP