Use the Search Function is not the answer

[J Teezy]

Ok, now peoples opinions on this will vary but here is mine.

I visit a lot of different forums on a daily basis. And some have people that always reply with "use the search function" more than some of the others.

Now, i know about search functions on forums. Yes, i know some questions have probably been answered before. But sometimes all my the questions asked are not found in just one topic. Now i dont know about you but 17 years of school was enough for me. I did enough digging through books and internet resources and etc to find bits and pieces of information on stuff for a paper or whatever. Now you may like taking hours or what not to search out your answers using the search function but i dont. I got other things to do also and i am sure others feel the same way. Now here is my point

If someone makes a post and all you are going to say to them is, "this topic has been discussed before. Please use the search function" How about you not post at all. Yeah i know what you are going to say, "Well this person wasted my time by making a post to something that is already covered." Well, you didnt have to look at the thread first off, and second, you wasted even more of YOUR time by replying back to them telling them to use the search. So, i dont see the big deal. If the question has been asked before, and you dont want to answer the question then how about not replying with USE THE SEARCH FUNCTION. Some people, including myself like to make a post and sometimes only have time to do so, and then come back and see what people said about it. We dont like to come back to USE THE SEARCH FUNCTION. Sifting through previous threads and posts take more time that some people dont have time to do.

Thank you

P.S. This is not a rant or flame towards anyone, just my opinion.

[Grease Man]

I think its ok to say "use the search function" as long as you attempt to help the person out. A good example i've seen of this is in Agent 47's posts (i think) He usually says use the search function, but then answers all the questions needed. I think this is the best way to do it.

The thing i hate is when people just post "search" Like you said that is no kind of post, and does not solve anything.

[necronomicon]

The search button is quite useful. However, I do agree with you when I see responses to questions with only "Use the Search Button". Telling someone to search is ok, but at least point them to a thread or help answer the question if you are going to say so.

If you say that redundant topics are a waste of your time, why did you type a response in the first place? Its seems kind of hypocritical when someone says something they choose by their own free will to do is a waste of their time. Unless you try to be constructive in a thread, you are at your own fault for wasting time.

I dont know about the majority here, but I enjoy answering or trying to help people answer their questions, no matter how redundant they are. I am not the most experienced player, but I try to share what wisdom I have in Airsoft with those first entering it, and those who have been with us for a while. It makes me feel like I have purpose in something I enjoy.

Besides, even with new topics covering the same question as before, it gives newer members and other people a chance to put their input in. New information is always nice.

Teezy: I think you brought up this question in an honest and mature manner. Although I am betting this thread will be locked, I felt I had to voice my words.

Peace everyone,

Necro

[Darkstar]

I don't think this thread will get locked. At least I hope not.

I've been into airsoft for a few years and I run a business. I can't even begin to try to put a number on how many times I've heard the "whats the best gun" question, or the many other newbie questions. I bet if had a nickel for every time I heard a redundant question, I'd never have to work again in my life (or maybe not), but I realize that no matter what I do, there will always be the customer who walks into the store with no realization what-so-ever as to what Airsoft is.

There are always going to be newbies and there are always going to be the newbie questions and an endless flood of people who will ask them.

There will always be similar questions that pop up asked in different ways from time to time. Some people may just want some human interaction to their own personal question, instead of reading other answers. Maybe their question was only answer to 60% of their satisfaction level. Its one thing for someone to ask what the best gun is only to hear "there really is no 'best' gun", compared to "Well, there are many great guns, bad guns, and in-between guns, but here is what you want to look for in a gun.... blah blah". If you take the extra time to help answer someone's questions or help point them in the right direction, they'll be much more likely to be friendly about it.

I, for one, have always ben frustrated about the "use the friggen search function you retarded space pee-pole newbie!!!!!" Space pee-pole (http://www.ebaumsworld.com/spacepeople.shtml) That actually REALLY pisses me off when someone says that and then makes the person asking the question angry. I mean, I can understand why the person gets upset at this. Sometimes you just can't find the questions you're looking for by searching. I know, I've tried.

In my opinion, if you're not willing to help someone, its probably better to move into the next topic and not say a word. I'd rather help someone and have more people to play with at games than to make a bunch of people mad and turning them away to the horrible sport of paintball, or even worse, LASER TAG!!! ARGH!!!

LoL, anyway, be nice to the newbies. And if you're not willing to help, just don't say anything.

Thats my time.

Darkstar out.

[J Teezy]

well, thanks for the back up guys. Looks like you feel the same way i do. I have no problem with people saying "here is the answer to your question or the knowledge i can provide about your question and then at the end saying: use the search function" But answering a question with, "this has been asked many times, use the search button." That is a good way, like darkstar said, to make people mad and even turn people away. The reason we all come to these forums is to get answers to our questions, and USE the search button is not the answer people are looking for. If you don't want to help the person out or answer their question, how about we just not post a reply. Sounds pretty simple right?

Anyway, thanks to Darkstar i am very interested in getting an AEG. He has answered countless questions i have asked him even though he has probably answered them plenty of times and is sick of answering them. LOL.

Well with all that said, anyone want to buy my paintball equipment or a pretty big comic book collection so i can get an AEG

[Soultek]

What i usually do if a see a thread that has almost definatly been posted before, or see a question like ICS or TM, I simply do a quick search myself, and link it to the person or find a particulary relevant thread and link that, and tell them in the future to try searching beforehand.

I think the least you can do is atleast give them the search terms you used to find results, cause one could easily search differently and find very different results than another.

While other people think this is acceptable or not, I think its a happy medium between typing out a huge response and just saying newb use search, I have a decent knowledge of airsoft, but if something has been hit before, i think directing them to it is a much better use of space and time for all.

I think the biggest problem with this forum currently is the amount of spam found in "newb question" posts and just generally, i know personally i directed someone to search results i recieved and a few days later someone said "use search dummy" and thats just completely unnessecary and the definition of spam. Discussions and stuff are great, but simply repeating what has already been said, or 5 posts simply talking about how the guy asked a stupid question is completely unnessecary IMHO.

[Locutus2999]

Darkstar may not feel that way if he has spent years on this forum answering the same question over and over. It easy to say people should provide answers to all the same redundant questions over and over when they are not the ones who answer them. If you don't have time to look for an answer to a question that has been asked a thousand times, then I don't have time to answer the same question over and over. This sport requires a lot of time and a lot of research, if you don't have time to look for the answers to your questions then you should probably take up a different hobby.

The best way to handle this is to tell the person to use the search function in the future, and provide them with some example links that you were able to find using the search function regarding the topic. Anything more than a quick short and to the point answer is really a disservice to the user and these forums.

It is like the old saying, "Give a man some fish and he will eat for a day, teach a man how to fish and he will eat for life".

So don't just spoon feed people answers, help educate them on how to use the search function.

[Squirl]

Honestly, if I have time to make a topic asking something simple, than I've got time to type it in and wait the 3 seconds for it to search. It's not even like you have to dig a lot, usually there's only one page of results, and on most forums, keywords are bolded or highlighted for you.

[Tripod]

Here is my philosophy:

If you are too lazy to search the forums then I am too lazy to answer your question.

Some more of my philosophy:

Life's tough, wear a helmet.


Basicly I feel it's rude and immature to post 1 sentence questions that are in the forums (most people know what questions have been covered) and you just blowing off the search function. If you keep getting the replies "Use the flashing red search button" then my advice to you is to use the flashing red search button. It's flashing red for a purpose, to make you use it. Some questions are not answered on these forums, if that's the case then dont be afraid to ask. Then that topic will be (hopefully) stored in the database for future reference in case someone else needs to ask the same question.

I hope you understand and get my drift.

just my 2 cents.

[J Teezy]

my major point is this. If all you are going to reply with is Use the Search button or whatever variation to that phrase you want to use, then i would say just dont reply at all.

I would much rather see no response then

USE THE SEARCH BUTTON

it could scare off people who are wanting to get in the sport. And as far as i see it you want more people to get active in the sport not chase people away. If the person doesnt get any responses they will probably end up using the search button anyway so replies of USE THE SEARCH BUTTON could be done without

[Texx]

I, too, ran across this same complaint last spring.

I am not the smartest guy in the world, nor did I ever really remotely intend to learn as much about airsoft as I do now:
The Super 9 is a good gun;
Cybergun will never control the US Airsoft Market because all they sell is cheap worthless crap;
The best gun is the Academy FAMAS as it is easy to retrofit TM parts to upgrade; Fox luvs him sum AK;
DumboRAT is gone but not forgotten;
The easiest way to load a hicap with the new TM loader is to open the bay on the Hicap and lid on the mag loader and pour the BBs into the hicap;
The easiest way to irritate Wallace is to "photoshop" one of his AEGs into a freakish breakfast set before a horrific paradoxical disaster.
When asking Frank if he can order a part, always ask for parts that can only be found by referring to the owners manual;
Don't ever ask Loki about Tech Airsoft;
Don't ever ask Fox about anything related to Kalashnikov.

The one thing I did learn from AO was how to create lists, how to post pictures, and how to generally irritate everyone.

The way I see it, and this is just me, is that I took the time to look up, search, and learn what I know and what I wanted to know because knowledge learned is knowledge gained. These forums and others are a literal corniacopia airsoft-related ..for lack of better term...CRAP! I did it, and so can you.

The first way to get help from me is to ask an intelligent question. If a person wants to be taken seriously, you need little details like sentence structure, complete thoughts, and the ability for us as readers to understand what you want to know.

I spend time with my children enough to know the difference between a serious question and a stupid question.

A serious question shows that there was legitimate thought and that the person has taken the time think about and look for themself.

A stupid question is usually just used to annoy, the person isn't listening or doesn't really care enough about the answer, and/or it is just used to satisfy the "Look at me, I'm here" ploy for attention.

The stupid question is easiest to answer by sending the kid to the dictionary to learn more. If they aren't willing to look it up, then they don't really want tto know. I know its terribly inconsiderate to take that same attitude with adults and the most responsible and mature adolescents, but again, Locutus' answer of having to repeat myself over and over is something I just will not tolerate.

If you are serious about learning something from me, show me that you are first serious. If I point you to a source where I learned what it is I wanted to know, it isn't because I'm lazy, its because if you are really serious about learning, you will take the time to learn for yourself. I garantee you will retain that information more and find it far more rewarding having attained the knowledge for yourself than by trying to get someone to simply give you what you want.

If you can't see the value in earning something for yourself, you have much more maturity to gain. You are already surfing on the "Information Super Highway." If you aren't willing to learn the ropes, you're not going to get very much out of it.

Finally, think of it this way. By not searching and re-searching, and Googling and surfing, you're cheating yourself out of the usefulness of the internet, akin to limiting yourself to only reading magazines from the library. Think of how limited your life would be if you only got your knowledge from magazines...

[Locutus2999]

Originally posted by J Teezy
my major point is this. If all you are going to reply with is Use the Search button or whatever variation to that phrase you want to use, then i would say just dont reply at all.

I would much rather see no response then

USE THE SEARCH BUTTON


Well, if its a repetative question, then I would rather not see the post at all. I would rather it not take up space in the database, causing performance degradation, and mucking up the searches for those who actually want to use the forums properly by using the search function. This expectation is not unique to Airsoft Ohio or airsoft forums in general, it has pretty much been considered proper nettiquite for forum or newsgroup use for about as long as I can remember.

Another benefit of doing research is that you will LEARN much MORE while searching than just the answer to your original question, after awhile, you will be suprised how much you learned without even seeking that particular knowledge out. This keeps you from having to ask for the answer of every question you think of, and create a lot less "work" for all of us.

Researching answers is good for you, Airsoft Ohio, and the entire airsoft community.

[Blade]

While I do agree with what everybody said, One thing have to be added;
As tripod said, if you are too lazy too search, we might be to tired to answer.

You see J Teezy, Maybe you got 17 yrs of school under the belt but for some of us, we got about 22yrs old of school, couples years complying to our boss request and now, 3-5 years to answer newbie questions over and over. Again though, there is few questions, even if they have been answered in the past, might have been forgotten or just left behind. those answer are always good to be brought back up to date.

Beside that (I'm sorry if it sounds rude) but I pretty much agree with Locutus says about Darkstar. Why? because first of all, there is a difference between helping newbies and trying to sell your business. Locutus is also in business and as far as I can remember, he was answering questions even before that business. So yes, some of us will answer because they enjoy doing so. Others are just too tired to repeat over and over and there is few that have business to take care of...

[Bobby]

So is there any way to make it so when a newb creates their first profile on here they first have to read something that tells them what dumb newb questions are and what the search button is for? Just an idea.

[Squirl]

You'd think the blinking red and yellow SEARCH button at the top would be enough...

[Fox]

I will admit, there has been times where I've said please use the search button instead of giving the answer. Though, I've been trying recently to more or less 'grow up' in my posts by doing almost a dumborat method (though, not nearly as long. Im sure in almost every one of those posts he related it to every, and the kitchen sink.)

I know people are some time just blatnet ******** (I admit and many people will agree with me, that I am one.) and some newbies are too. (Quiet a few times have I've been mention [note: tex is my friend] in a bad way. But most of those times, those few were insulting the many, and many important airsofters.) Also, some people are just lazy, and blatent ******** as well, which is a bad combination. The search button is there for a reason, I beleive I've been on this form for 2 1/2 to 3 years now, and for the first 6months I did nothing but read, then after that I started to respond, and I will admit, I wasn't very nice in my posts and I got flamed often by at the time, the 'vets'. Every one has their rough starts, and should once in a while see 'USE THE SEARCH BUTTON' posts, mainly to show them that this thread has been covered, and in the future, use the damned search button. :D

The problem is though, there is so much clutter that you litterarly have to do 3-4 hours of searching for one small question, which could often be answered in private, very quickly. Alot of people, and I could see why, don't want to do this much work. So I can feel their pain, and I can see why alot of newbies think low of the veterns because they do "use the search button posts". Well, in about 6 months from now, Ill contact you in a PM, and I'll ask you how many times you've seen the thread 'Which gun is better?' Or 'Which is the best gun out there' threads. Really, theres about one every week or so. And after some people have been around and posted these forums for oh, let say 3-4 years, we've all had discussions and flame wars on which gun is really best, and the conclusion is there isn't. This is just one example though, there are many others out there over the same type of questions.

Basiclly, what im try to say there is it gets annoying to type, and answer the same question over and over again. But at the same time, the person asking just wants an answer, and I can see both sides of the field right now, but to agree with locutus, the threads need to be deleted, and the person needs to do a search because it just makes more clutter for us to read through.

As for a solution of this? there really isn't one for this exact problem. Though heres what I would recomend, and maybe it's an idea that we could do since there is not a whole lot of people on this forum really. Try asking what people would say is a veteran in private. Either PM, or maybe a simple AIM/MSN/ICQ/YIM message, even an e-mail would be fine. I'm not sure about most other veterans, but the ones I know are happy to answer an E-mail, PM, or AIM message about a gun, or what top upgrade, or help because their gun is broke, plus its alot faster for us to do, and you can even get to know the the person on each end more, making friends.

I probably get at least 10-20 people a week asking me airsoft questions on AIM/MSN, etc. Ranging from whats wrong with my gun, to is this package good, and at a decent price. Now, the down side of this is these people are only getting my opinion, my experiances, and what I've researched my self over the past years of airsoft playing and reading. They are not getting a combined community answer/discussion. Which can either be an upside, if I, or the person whos giving the answer is right, or a down side, if I, or the person giving the answer is wrong.

But heres my idea, that im giving to locutus right now: maybe have a group of willing veterans that would welcome people to the forums via PM to help them get started, and for any future questions which are pretty simple. I.e. What is the best gun? Where should I buy from? Etc. The questions that are not complicated, but take along time to search through to find an exact and answer spec for spec (i.e. best gun answer.). This would also give the people who respond to these newbies almost a personal relationship if they met at/in an event one day, or some thing like that. I remember when I first met Army Hummer, and Delta Sniper, etc. So it gives you friends in the battle field almost one could say.

But, only my ideas and opinions again, as well as being something to think about.

To any one, Feel free to PM, E-mail, or AIM me any time. Im pretty much always on, and Ill help out any one who asks -kindly- for it. If your not a nice person, please -don't- do any of those. Mean people suck :p

Cheers
Fox

[Bobby]

Newbs just don't know any better, they don't realize how annoying they can be. Remember, the're NEW and they don't understand this forums customs. So try not to be too mean to the lil guys, lets not get them turned off of airsoft. everyone help keep our sport growing by educating a newb.

[Grease Man]

Booby,

Honeslt noobs have the choice to get yelled at or not, and Texx explained it really well. If a noob chooses to ask a very broad/dumb (we need to establish what "dumb" is) questions, write horribly phrased questions, and just try to get themselves known/get attention, then people are always going to be rude to newbs.

Its common sense, if your not mature enough to check your spelling, formulate well rounded questions, and are only trying to get attention, then don't expect a very nice answer.

[J Teezy]

Quoting foxtrot here

The problem is though, there is so much clutter that you litterarly have to do 3-4 hours of searching for one small question, which could often be answered in private, very quickly. Alot of people, and I could see why, don't want to do this much work. So I can feel their pain, and I can see why alot of newbies think low of the veterns because they do "use the search button posts". Well, in about 6 months from now, Ill contact you in a PM, and I'll ask you how many times you've seen the thread 'Which gun is better?' Or 'Which is the best gun out there' threads. Really, theres about one every week or so. And after some people have been around and posted these forums for oh, let say 3-4 years, we've all had discussions and flame wars on which gun is really best, and the conclusion is there isn't. This is just one example though, there are many others out there over the same type of questions.

I know what you are saying and i have been there and still go through it on a fish forum i go to. We constantly see the question: "What filter should i use, or is this filtration adequate for my size tank and fish" True i posts seen a lot can get irritating and could be found in a search, but like you said, some of these questions take hours of sifting through previous threads to find exactly what you are looking for. Some people like to have someone respond to their particular thread. I guess it makes them feel like they are being helped in a more personal kind of way.

But anyway, i try to use the search to find what i want, if i cant find it then i am going to post it myself even though the question may have already been asked but i couldnt find it in a search or the ones i found help a little but not enough.

Maybe i am different than some others but on forums that i visit, if i feel i can answer someones question no matter how many other times it has been asked, i will answer it to my best. I will then also do a quick search and add the links to help the person even more. People different searches on different terms, so maybe they couldnt find a topic in a search but i could. So in that way i am helping them to the best of ability. I feel its kind of a duty that if you use forums to give back to someone as much as you can in return for the knowledge that people give you about your questions and the things you have found out. Telling people USE THE SEARCH BUTTON is not helping. Now if you want to just reply like that how bout doing a quick search for them and providing some links that you found and then you can say something along the lines of "I found these topics that may help you out. I found them buy using the Search function on this site"

[Night]

Originally posted by Bobby
Newbs just don't know any better, they don't realize how annoying they can be. Remember, the're NEW and they don't understand this forums customs. So try not to be too mean to the lil guys, lets not get them turned off of airsoft. everyone help keep our sport growing by educating a newb.

Now that is what rung true with me, ive been parts of many forums, but each one is different, and the rules/acceptable things/customs of each are different, THAT is the key to things i think.

[necronomicon]

I cant say I disagree with any of the posts made on this thread so far. Some people like helping others while some have been doing it for years, and get tired of answering the same questions over and over.

If someone asks a stupid question like "Iz tEH SUPAR 9 shUUT Far?LOL!!11one" then I simply wont post an answer. If someone is asking in a respectful and serious matter, I will try to answer their question if I am able to do so. A lot of the "newbs" on here have contacted me via PM or messenger and most of the time they are very thankful for helping them out. A couple have even asked to come try out their first gun at one of the games I have hosted. That, in the long run, is what makes me happy. Another player not turned away is another player in the community.

I spend a lot of time searching before I ask a question. I sometimes look back on when I started posting here about half a year ago and see clearly that I did ask some dumb questions and say a lot of dumb things. Everyone in their first few posts does. After reading the forum daily for new information and posting over 350 times, I would say (not bragging) that I have earned respect of some of the veterans here.

Adjusting takes time, AO is not like most other message boards. It is well moderated and most, if not all of the veterans here are as good as gold. Some of them PMed me and informed me when I was in the wrong. People like that serve good in the community and have helped me and many others understand what AO is all about.

I have moderated a few forums before coming here. AO is the most respectable forum I have posted on. Try looking through posts of a computer game forum and you will get my point :)

Keep up the good work guys, we have built a respectable community. Lets keep it this way :D

[DeltaSniper]

I’m going to make a nice long post from a veteran member’s perspective, and now a new moderator. This is not directed at anyone in specific, mind you. When I say you, I'm using it generically.

I like Fox's idea of pm’ing in 6 months and asking how many times you see the "what is best," and "what do i do to my gun to make it uber cool." See how annoyed you get. You may say, "Hey I love answering questions, no matter how redundant." Good for you, you’re a better man than I. See how long that lasts, and many others do not care to see it. On top of it, there’s the issue of space on the forums, plus ease of search. When I type in TM m16a2 in the search engine, I don’t want 200 posts on it, many of which ask for what is best and is it a good AEG to buy.

Here is my advice:

“The Newbie FAQ's” and the “What AEG is Best,” stickies are good places to start. Your own opinion is what is cool too. Sometimes common sense needs to prevail as well.

Another thing that is not stressed enough is check retailers out, and other sites. The ones in the links, like airsoft players, airsoft retreat, Arnie’s airsoft, are all excellent sources. Retailers can often answer many of your questions, though keep in mind subjective stuff needs to be taken with a grain of salt from them.

Here are a few AO rules that some people ignore. For one, intentional duplicate posts are bad. If your stuff gets locked, dont open it again with a new post. We are trying to tell you something. Post in the right forums too.

I completely agree with Fox. For those of you who do not know, Foxtrot was a long time member, but never posted. He gathered info. then he started posting. on occasion, he made newb posts, incorrect assumptions. He got bashed. He learned. I now consider him a really respectable member of this community. I think the same sort of thing goes for ArmyHummer. If you get bashed, don’t run away from it. Brush it off. I was a total newb about 2 years ago. I got reprimanded. I lived. Now, I am a moderator and somewhat respected in the community.

That being said, it is COMPLETELY unacceptable as a mod or otherwise, to lambaste someone in the forums publicly. As a mod, notice I simply say why it is locked, and move on. No "you’re a moron, etc." members need to do that as well when you tell someone to search. There should be no personal attacks, and if you have a problem, a PM is in order, not a public post. I like to think AO doesnt do many perosnal attacks these days.

While some say giving solutions is okay, yeah it is. However, I subscribe to the idea that if I tell you what’s up, you’ll just ignore my suggestion to research the next time you have a question.

Maybe in my own methods of posting as a member and now a mod, I am nostalgic for the old AO. The old AO was, IMHO a better source for info and it was better regulated. It was tragic loss when it was hacked. This site is making a comeback for sure, but I tell you... i know many veterans who will not frequent this site anymore, because for a while, there weren’t many people able to mod. Some L33t Newbs, and petty fights got out of hand. I applaud punisher for looking for some new mods, and as one, I intend to fully clean up my sections.

In regards to that, this post made me think some. Maybe I will take a thing or two from it.

[Agent 47]

my standpoint is that of locutus', texx's, and Calabreses'

I have been a member of airsoft ohio, for a long *** time. pre hack days as a matter of fact. And I have always been the same old guy. I think i have earned respect as a semi-intelligent guy, with decent knowledge on AEG's (in close lines with texx on g3 series knowledge, and on par with wallace with the PSG-1), a wealth of knowledge on gas guns, and I tell great war stories. I have also been known to be a jokester, an ***, and probably the most sarchastic person you will ever meet. I will flame you if you post something incredibly stupid, the gramatic antichrist, or ask which gun is the best. I will also try to point you in the right direction, if i think theres hope for you (you arent the gramatical antichrist, and you have an IQ higher than a bag of hammers). Anyways, i miss the OLD AO, but this is the new one, so lets keep it clean, civil (lol, coming from.....nevermind), and most importantly, lets use the search function.


Drew

[Lynx]

I might not have been around as some members on here (although its been atleast 2 or 3 years) but in the time I have been on Airsoft Ohio I have seen how this kind of stuff we are talking about right now (insulting posts, stupid repeating questions, etc etc) has been degrading the quality of this site. Something clearly needs to be done about this.

I have been following this thread, and it is probably good that this problem of redundant and stupid posts is being addressed in a discussion manner with all sides being taken into account. What we need now is a solution that would be beneficial to everyone. Fox has already started along this route with some of what he said in his post in regards to having some of these very easy to answer (but annoying in their time and space consuming way) questions that many (mostly younger) newbies ask about once every week over and over.

My idea of how to solve this problem is a mentorship program for "young guns" and those who just need a simple question answered in a simple way (without having to sift through tons and tons of crap posts in the database for the 1 good one)

The way that this proposed mentorship program would work is this:

First, ask for experienced airsofters to volunteer to be a mentor for their geographical area. Once the list is compiled and the mentors are given geographic areas of responsibility according to where they are from, post this list of mentors somewhere in the Newbie FAQ or some such so that new younger players can see who they would have to contact depending on where they are from. If the new player has a question, he could then have this option to contact his mentor and get the answer. Also, if circumstances permit, the new players would be encouraged to arrange for attending a team practice with the mentor's team, or some such meeting so they can be properly shown airsoft safety procedures, how we play the game, and all kinds of other things that would help them for the future.

In my opinion, a system like this would be good for everyone involved. Mentors would also be able to recruit younger players for their team, or help the younger players form teams of their own so they have people to play with. It would also be good if mentors could act as the "adult supervision" for the younger players. We all know airsoft is supposed to be for responsible people, and should have adult supervision when younger kids are getting into this game because of safety reasons and the realism of the guns themselves. Leaving the younger players to their own devices might be asking for trouble.

As for the insulting posts and the posts just made to get attention, and newbie-bashing, so on and so forth kind of crap.. These people need to be given strong warnings of some sort and then if this does not fix the problem simply remove their account. This of course is just my opinion however, and neither am I a moderator or anything like that.

What do you guys think of this mentorship idea?

[Steamer]

This is a really good thread, I havent been around that long so I cant comment on any AO history, but I did feel there are more than a few members that seem pretty standoff'ish which puzzled me. Nice to hear some of older members views on all this.

BTW Foxtrot, you fell into that category untill recently. I noticed a change a week or so ago where you became more open, and helpful. I've been learning from your posts, and thanks for that!

(Please no offense, I was not trying to single you out, I was responding to the fact that I noticed the change that you mentioned in this thread, and when I say thankyou I mean it)

Tom

[J Teezy]

i have idea. How about a forum section titled, Airsoft Newbies and in that forum you could have a couple different areas like AEGs, GBB, springers, etc. This way newbies can post a question here are not be worried about getting flamed or their question being deemed stupid or newbish. Then if the thread turns into a good one it could be stickied or moved to one of the other categories that it would fall into.

For instance say i want to know about the G36. I can post in the newbie section and then veterans who want to help out the newcommers could come in that thread knowing what kind of question to expect. Then could post their reply helping out a newbie. This would also keep newb questions out of the other forum sections. If a thread turns into crap after a week or so it could be deleted.

What do you guys think?

It would also be helpful if people put in their signatures what kind of guns they have that way if i saw someone that owned a G36 i could contact them with a PM instead of on the forums.

I think these ideas could be a big help

[Locutus2999]

Why would I, or any other member, want to go into a forum to answer stupid questions that they don't want to answer in the normal forums?

You would just end up with a forum that no one but newbies go into. Airsoft Zone had a forum like this, and I took a look one time out of curiosity, all you had was newbies answering other newbies with incorrect information, and because no veteren members wanted anything to do with tha forum, there was no one there to correct the misinformation. Then when people want to do a search, this irrefuted misinformation comes up and newbies would not even know it was wrong information.

We have been doing this for many years, all of these complaints and suggestions have been made at one point, and most tried on various forums. Not all problems have a simple solution, the solution in this case is to educate newbies on how to find their own information instead of being waited on by the other members. Rarely will anyone be flamed if they show that they made a genuine effort to find the answer for themselves prior to asking.

[Texx]

As interesting as J teezy's "solution" to the "USE THE SEARCH FUNCTION" -- quagmire seems, it too has been discussed before. I would post a link, but using the search function will find it much quicker.;)

[Lynx]

Texx and Locutus:

You both said all of these ideas that were brought forward (on how to solve this problem) were discussed in the past.. Well I did do a search for "mentorship" and I could not find anything really.. So if this was discussed before, maybe it was before the last hack or whatever.. Anyway, I would like to know if there would be interest in setting up a volunteer mentorship program along the lines of what I propose.. Some other members of this forum, including Foxtrot and Spook have expressed some interest and support so far..

J Teezy (and all other newbs in general):

I have sent you a PM but I might as well say this for the future too... You have to understand that the purpose of this forum is not to serve you, and its not the purpose of the forum just to answer questions for newbs. Like others have pointed out, if you are serious about airsoft, and want to learn more, then put some effort into it and don't expect everything brought on a silver platter. This website has become more and more degraded in the eyes of some airsofters who have been around for a while (administrators, mods, etc, please do not take offense, its not for your lack of trying). Helping newbies is just a part of what people go here to do. Nobody is being paid to do this so don't expect it as some kind of service you are entitled to. Some people are actually beginning to question whether the rapid growth of airsoft is a good thing or not, because as its been growing there has also been an influx of younger kids who don't know what they are doing and are probably not mature enough to be in airsoft (not that you are necessarily) or just plain stupid people who we would all rather do without. This is a problem we face as airsoft becomes more mainstream. So please if you are going to post, be mindful of all of these things, and don't put yourself into the position where people see you as being one of those who are bringing this site, or airsoft in general, down. I hope you will become a contributing and active member of the community and a better example for newbies in the future.

[J Teezy]

yeah i understand. I have been using the search button a lot now. I have talked to some really cool people on AIM now. DeltaSniper and i chatted for a bit and he even sent me to one of his teammates who owns the gun i am about to get who also was very helpful.

One more thing. I am not going to respond to this thread anymore. Going to let it die off. It can be deleted for all i am concerned. I do think the mentorship would be a good thing. Maybe just a list of names of people willing to help out new people to the sport could be comprised that way we know who to contact

I would also like to say that some people are treating some others like children. I am not a child. I am an adult and feel that i should be treated as one. Now with that said, i am done with this topic and moving on. Hope to see you all on the playing fields soon. To all those who have been helping me through PM and AIM and here, i thank you. Some of those being DeltaSniper, his teammate, and Darkstar. Grunt also who sent me a PM offering his help.

[Code3 From Co.C]

This topic gets discussed every six weeks or so. Ironically if you used the search button on top you would have found pages of discussion about how people are frustrated over the "USE THE SEARCH FUNCTION" reply.