Tip - we don't like to guess.

If you want more views/answers to your thread then give it a descriptive title.
People don't always like to open a tread to see what's in it. They'll just ignore it.
Also give enough information to be able to answer the question.

I agree and like to compare it to a doctor diagnosing your problems. The more info you give us, the more we can deduce down to the solutions

p.s. - I'm still a noob

same here. I've probably been guilty of it a time or two, but try to make an effort to put as much in my titles as I can.

I've gotten to the point where, unless I'm really bored, I won't even click on the "question..." or "I'm screwed..." titles.

Evan! said:

I've gotten to the point where, unless I'm really bored, I won't even click on the "question..." or "I'm screwed..." titles.

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ass....

While I agree with the general sentiment, I can see a quick preview of the thread (first paragraph or so) when I scroll over the link, so it's mostly a non-issue for me. That's one thing IE 7 does well.

the_bird said:

While I agree with the general sentiment, I can see a quick preview of the thread (first paragraph or so) when I scroll over the link, so it's mostly a non-issue for me. That's one thing IE 7 does well.

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that's pretty much what I do too!

Building on what Bird said about the mouse-over, I'll add to this suggestion: even if you have a nice clear title, state your question in the first sentence; THEN give all the details.

If I mouse-over the thread titles and don't see your question in the few seconds that pop-up stays open, I'm probably not going to open the thread.

So this (fictitiously quoted):

Why is my efficiency so low? I was brewing over the weekend with my...blah blah blah...and it was a nice day...blah blah blah...I had a few beers...blah blah blah...did you ever notice how...blah blah blah...and then I measured everythiing and my effciency is 22%!

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will likely get more responses than this (fictitiously quoted):

I was brewing over the weekend with my...blah blah blah...and it was a nice day...blah blah blah...I had a few beers...blah blah blah...did you ever notice how...blah blah blah...and then I measured everything and my effciiency is 22%!

Why is my efficiency so low?

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98EXL said:

that's pretty much what I do too!

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ditto. you can usually get the general idea from those first few sentences

You can always ask a mod to rename it if you mess up.

One specific example from yesterday, though; someone asked if there was anyone local, with the thread title "Anyone Local?"

If they put the actual location they were inquiring about in parentheses, they probably would have gotten a lot more responses, since we all tend to reply to people who are close by. Anything where location is critical - make that obvious in the title.

the_bird said:

One specific example from yesterday, though; someone asked if there was anyone local, with the thread title "Anyone Local?"

If they put the actual location they were inquiring about in parentheses, they probably would have gotten a lot more responses, since we all tend to reply to people who are close by. Anything where location is critical - make that obvious in the title.

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crap, I did that yesterday (checks thread) nope, I put Denver in

98EXL said:

crap, I did that yesterday (checks thread) nope, I put Denver in

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Nice Avatar. Wish I had one like that.

Bah Humbug said:

Nice Avatar. Wish I had one like that.

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Thanks!, I got it from some jerk on a forum on some elite interweb forum

98EXL said:

Thanks!, I got it from some jerk on a forum on some elite interweb forum

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I resemble that remark!

Bah Humbug said:

I resemble that remark!

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I know! That's why I said it

Giving recipe details is extremely useful for many of the questions. Include any associated hydrometer readings, temperatures, and details of your process.

If it is emergent (you need help or re-assurance immediately) make sure the title of the thread reflects that. The exclamation mark in the triangle is a good way to draw attention to the post.

If you are asking about a potential infection, pictures help.

98EXL said:

I know! That's why I said it

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I love you too.

As an aside... we love to guess, but we hate it when we are right.

Oh actually orf, I had thought about this a long time ago. It might be a good idea for your sticky thing you've got going on. Just make a sticky something like:

"Got Problems, we need this info" (etc)

Recipe
Temps
Hydro readings

etc.

Ya know, kind of like when you go to the doc's they still check your weight, bp, etc...

the_bird said:

While I agree with the general sentiment, I can see a quick preview of the thread (first paragraph or so) when I scroll over the link, so it's mostly a non-issue for me. That's one thing IE 7 does well.

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FF and opera do also, in fact there's an add on in FF that let you preview the whole page without clicking on it.

I <3 FF when I'm not forced to use exploder 7.....