Does anyone use google anymore??

I check the current threads daily on here and it seems like ppl just post up noob questions without googling anything first. I'm a noob myself ( 9 months brewing). It's annoying when trying to learn new info and someone post a basic question and you google that basic question and a million and one answers come up. Use google first before posting. I'm just sayin'.

hear, hear. usually the top 10 hits are on HBT anyway!

I agree. I will say though that I find the search feature of HBT to be cumbersome. I think people probably look around here for the info then search it and can't find anything so start a new thread. If you actually go to google it does a much better job of picking out useful threads from HBT than its own search feature.

orangemen5 said:

I check the current threads daily on here and it seems like ppl just post up noob questions without googling anything first. I'm a noob myself ( 9 months brewing). It's annoying when trying to learn new info and someone post a basic question and you google that basic question and a million and one answers come up. Use google first before posting. I'm just sayin'.

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then whats the point of a targeted active forum?
everything here was on rec.crafts.brewing anyways, but there is very little new blood there.
every one of your 22 thread start questions were answered 100's of time before. why didn't you google them? you'd probably also be the type to be the first to jump on someone if they posted are revived an old thread.

I have a dissenting opinion, actually, for a number of reasons:

1. People that are new to the site probably haven't seen the question and answer before (I'm talking about newbies other than the original poster), and it will do them good to see that basic information. If it's only buried in years of threads they'll never see it unless they have the same problem, and it's useful to know it before it becomes a problem.
2. The problems are often similar to, but not exactly the same as what's been posted before. I've had questions where I did google it, but wasn't sure that my problem was quite the same, or the thread died out without any clear sense of what the problem was and how to fix it.
3. Information and best practices change over time. John Palmer's "How to Brew" is up on the web, but it's an outdated version and nobody recommends using it as your primary source anymore. Why would I trust a several-year-old thread when brewing science is improving rapidly?
4. Search sucks. It's not easy to use. Even the original poster suggests using an outside site (google) over the forum tool.
5. Relying on somebody's old thread removes the ability to actually have a discussion with members here and explaining your unique circumstances, or answering questions they might have that might affect your situation.
6. Skipping over threads that appear to ask the same question that you've seen a thousand times doesn't cost you a damn thing. Just don't click the link.
7. Posts like this make the site appear very unfriendly to new members. It might keep them from asking the question, but it will be because they're thinking "am I going to get flamed for this?" rather than "has this already been answered?" This board caters to all its members, not just ones that have been around for a while. Just because you've seen the question a thousand times doesn't mean that new members have.
8. What you're basically saying is "rather than using this forum and participating in the community, we'd prefer you go elsewhere (google) and look it up." You're basically saying "you're not welcome here".

Protip: if you don't like seeing the same questions over and over, you'll want to avoid the Beginner's Beer Brewing Forum. That's sort of what it's here for.

I am relatively new here and love the forum. I know it can be a PITA to rehash old topics, but it is new to someone and they (me ) need help. It is like the old joke.
Patient : Doctor it hurts everytime I lift my arm over my head. What should I do?

Doctor: Stop lifting your arm.

Stop clicking on "those" threads and the pain will go away immediately if not sooner.

I like it both ways.
I mostly Google my questions, and find what I'm looking for. But sometimes I will ask here to see what kind of answers I get.
Sometimes a person who brews a lot but posts little will chime in with the best answer. It might not work for other posters but is great for you.

Like it's already been said, googling will usually bring you a bunch of HBT hits. And a lot of my questions get answered that way.

pb

Anyone that doesn't like the hbt search try:

"Site:homebrewtalk.com" and then your topic in the Google search box. This will focus the search only to homebrewtalk.com and give you results from hbt.

I like to add "site:homebrewtalk.com " to my google searches. It really helps on the HBT searches. Yes, the same questions get asked repeatedly. No it is not all that bad as you can ignore them, or contribute depending on your annoyance level. that is the beauty of the internet. you can lurk, contribute (or complain), etc to your hearts content.

Google Custom Search is already built in to the search feature. You just gotta hit the down-arrow.

I like the site specific search, message board filter. I like how the results are grouped and dated.

I also run my internet access through a SSL proxy thats tunneled to Cypress. I also have a bot set up that randomly crawls 5,000 politically correct leftist progressive websites to create a government friendly NSA profile and to obfuscate what im really doing.

amandabab said:

then whats the point of a targeted active forum?
everything here was on rec.crafts.brewing anyways, but there is very little new blood there.
every one of your 22 thread start questions were answered 100's of time before. why didn't you google them? you'd probably also be the type to be the first to jump on someone if they posted are revived an old thread.

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Actually I google all my questions endlessly before I post. That's why I only have 22 threads started. Would have a ton more if I didn't. Most of my question are specific to a batch I was making and not general beer making questions. By the way I love when 5 yr old threads start back up. I LOVE IT!!!!

Enoch52 said:

...The problems are often similar to, but not exactly the same as what's been posted before...

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This is what I've encountered and why I've posted some of the threads I have. As a new brewer you also may not know all the terminology so even if the issue addressed is the same as yours you may need some clarification to know that's the case.

Had you Googled before posting, you'd have seen that this is a common topic.

GilaMinumBeer said:

Had you Googled before posting, you'd have seen that this is a common topic.

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I did but couldnt find anything.

Of course ppl still have to post new questions it helps ppl who just joined. What I was more referring to is ppl who don't search questions at all. I know of ppl that do this. This is such a great site with a wealth of knowledge and great brewers willing to help out. But their are some ppl who just are to lazy to search and post up waiting for their question to be answered.

1 Google search uses enough electrcity to power a 100 watt light bulb for 11 seconds.

I personally enjoy reading new posts over an inactive archive forum.

orangemen5 said:

I check the current threads daily on here and it seems like ppl just post up noob questions without googling anything first. I'm a noob myself ( 9 months brewing). It's annoying when trying to learn new info and someone post a basic question and you google that basic question and a million and one answers come up. Use google first before posting. I'm just sayin'.

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Welcome to the Internet.

Seriously, that type of thing happens on every message board since message boards began. And really, I'd venture to guess that 99.9999% of relevant topics have already been covered here. If people stopped repeating themselves, the boards would grind to a halt.

Seems like I see this topic come up on every forum Ive ever been on and it generally turns out like this...

It would be nice if we didn't start duplicate threads but thats not really ever going to happen.
You cant control what other people post but you can control what you click on.
If its that annoying to you don't click on it.

My personal opinion is that Id rather has an active redundant forum than a stagnant but concise forum.
I come to a forum to be engaged with people who share the same interests and a lot of times that means we talk about a topic we have beaten to death just for fun. I cant tell you how many times my friends and I have ranked the top 10 rock bands of all time but we will definitely do it again. Likely before over a pitcher of my 5X5 American Pale later this evening. We do it because its fun.

I probably should but I like to attempt giving answers to questions that I think I can answer correctly. Then after giving my answer I realized I should have googled it first.

OP, why do you feel the need look at everyone's questions? If it annoys you to see a question that has already been asked, ignore it and move on.

I am pretty sure I've seen another, " These noobs bother me by asking questions that have already been answered" thread here. You've just annoyed that guy.

As a wise man once said, "Lighten Up, Francis."

the_trout said:

I come to a forum to be engaged with people who share the same interests and a lot of times that means we talk about a topic we have beaten to death just for fun. I cant tell you how many times my friends and I have ranked the top 10 rock bands of all time but we will definitely do it again. Likely before over a pitcher of my 5X5 American Pale later this evening. We do it because its fun.

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Just to derail the thread...why do you call it 5x5?

Enoch52 said:

Just to derail the thread...why do you call it 5x5?

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5 Grains and 5 Hops :rockin:

Gotcha. So it's like an anti-SMaSH!

It's the "kitchen sink" approach

I needed to use up some left overs. I think of it like the casserole my mother used to make with cream of mushroom soup and the contents of anything in Tupperware that was in the fridge. It kinda tastes about the same too. Its drinkable for sure but clearly not one of my better beers.

orangemen5 said:

I did but couldnt find anything.

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So you fail at search. And bigot yourself through hypocrisy.

grathan said:

1 Google search uses enough electrcity to power a 100 watt light bulb for 11 seconds.

I personally enjoy reading new posts over an inactive archive forum.

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I'd have to agree. I hate when I'm reading through the archives and good points are brought up and then the thread just ends without them getting answered.

What does RDWHAHB mean?

I never thought about it as keeping the forums active. Alot of good point made. Thanks guys I must have just had to many homebrews and got all in a tizzy.

Totes said:

What does RDWHAHB mean?

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Ha Ha LOL - that is exactly what this whole thread is about. But the answer would be :

Relax, Don't Worry, Have A Homebrew.

wahhhhhhhhhhh

No, they keep tryin to make me use bing