Colleen
Did you know we will get people who do not know how to use their search engine (some of our daily members do not even know how to do this)? Did you know we are a help site and that akaQA exists to help people who do not know how to search for an answer? Did you know akaQA has no rules about what questions can be asked (other than no x-rated stuff and no sexist or prejudice ones). Did you know there is no rule stating that people must speak English here? Some of us do not mind using Google translate to answer these questions when possible. Did you know akaQA was created with the intent to help people (no matter where they live in the world) and not chase them away by leaving snarky comments to GOOGLE IT or SPEAK ENGLISH if you want us to answer your question? Did you know that akaQA was designed to be a help forum more than it was to be a discussion forum on what you bought when you went out grocery shopping today? Not saying that those discussion are not allowed but they are not the focus of akaQA and it's true intent.
Why do I write this? Because I'm seeing complaints crop up again about the questions being asked and I'm also seeing some inappropriate comments being left in the blue area or even as a comment trying to chase people away who ask questions that someone has decided do not belong here. Mainly directions questions and questions in a foreign language. These questions do belong here as we are a help forum and a worldwide one to boot. The administration will decide which questions can be asked, not the members. Please refrain from being rude to people who come here and ask real questions, though the question may not seem real to you, it is real to them. There are certain questions that make no sense at all, I agree, those you can have fun with. But I am also seeing serious questions being abused with jokes and funnies. This is not what the admin envisioned for akaQA as a help site. Please keep your humor where it belongs and answer the real questions seriously. If there are questions that are not up to your standards or taste, pass by them without leaving a rude comment. Someone else will answer them or they will be removed by a moderator if they truly do not belong here.
So, why are you here? This is a help forum. Please help when you can. If you can not offer help, then ignore the question. It's that simple.
25 Answers
pythonlover
Best answer!
Colleens question here seems to be misunderstood by a lot of members, this is not a personal attack on anyone here, it is just letting us know, that to keep this site user friendly, members should answer questions with respect to the author in which of course the majority of us do.If the foreign language ones come through, don't answer if you don't want to, or if you think you can help just direct them to Google translate.Snidey comments are uncalled for here, as it gives us a bad name.
| 12 years ago. Rating: 11 | |
If this is still not good enough for some of you, then sue me. I'm not a paid professional moderator. This I say to the person who reported me for this question. You know who you are.
Jenn
I agree wholeheartedly. I avoid questions I know I will be no help to. As well as Political and religious questions. I am not here to argue. If I see I can add something to the answers already given, I will. If the question is answered in the way I would answer it, I leave it (normally) .
I think it is best to show respect to all of the questioners. Unless it is a foolish question to begin with...
| 12 years ago. Rating: 20 | |
ROMOS
I,m trying my best, weepsy weep, but I must agree, answer the serious with respect, answer the humourous with humour ( if possible ) don,t answer what you can,t answer, don,t answer if you don,t understand the language,this is a Worldwide site and I love and respect (mostly) all of it ....KOTF.
| 12 years ago. Rating: 19 | |
Tommyh
Hey I do the best I can with foreign language questions & directions.I have fun where I can & if I can't have some fun I might as well not be here.I know that I might have upset a couple of people in my time here but it is all intended as entertainment & not intended to get a rise out of anyone.
| 12 years ago. Rating: 19 | |
Thanks for the comment and your opinions. I appreciate it.
daren1
I'm her for the beer and lobsters i was promised...lol
| 12 years ago. Rating: 17 | |
I can't eat anyone who may or may not be related.
doolittle
I had no idea the Q's posed in other languages made people pissy. I am guilty of suggesting websites such as googlemaps, rand mcnally, or, for homework Q's telling them a site I found when I googled. Is that ok??
| 12 years ago. Rating: 15 | |
Ann
robertgrist
Colleen...
Folk who use their computers to write in spanish or japanese get translated into english here? Is this an automatic function?
| 12 years ago. Rating: 13 | |
melandrupert
WoW Colleen I feel I have just come out of the headmistress room for being a naughty ....I read all the answers and the comments yes I can see where you are coming from and yes I have been one of those people who will add funnies on the site and yes i an listening to what you have said and ok I wont put funnies on again I only just learned how to paste from the web as you have probley notised I am answering alot of questions now and i really enjoy doing this now + I also learn from this questions which is what its all about....I feel that you have recieved a lot of stick from all the complaints that you have recieved an sorry that you have got this in the neck .....thats all I have to say ( sorry sounds like Forest Gump) ......................
| 12 years ago. Rating: 12 | |
itsmee
After all this conversation, I’m still confused. I usually avoid religious discussions and questions about sexual orientation, These questions can cause anger and can possibly divide the members into camps.
Occasionally I see people writing whose anger toward others spills onto the site and this makes me sad. There is joy here. There is laughter here. There are answers to real questions. I have rarely seen people putting down others for their remarks. (People jolt over spelling errors and this causes much discussions.)
How am I doing Colleen? Should I leave? Should I stay?
itsmee
| 12 years ago. Rating: 12 | |
If I come here with pain in my back and ask a question or make a comment, very often someone will come back with “a joke or funny.” For me this is a real answer from a real person on a help forum. I forget to take a pill even!
I will not comment on this subject any more and I won’t ask but this one last question: Do you consider humor as a way of helping?
Wildly Off The Mark,
itsmee
PEOPLELOVER
I have no intention of having a slanging match with anyone but I must protest that as I know I am probably the worst offender at the foreign language people that annoy me no end.
They must have enough English to access the site so why the foreign stuff?
Now here is the hard bit some people get all uppity if their sexual preference is questioned or if someone uses what is believed to be inappropriate. I refer to phrases such as "Homos".
This is not one I would not use myself but others do.
Sauce for the Goose sauce for the Gander.
If this offends anybody of ANY sexual persuasion I say this if you can`t take it don`t hand it out.
Finaly two things one Don`t piss off a Aussie unless you are willing to accept the consequences and two let me know how you feel about this tirade and I will reluctantly click "LOG OUT"
| 12 years ago. Rating: 12 | |
Can`t have one lot of acceptable references for one group and another for others.
I enjoy the interaction with others on here and the friendly banter but I take real offence at the tone of the message.
I will post my Email address so those that wish to continue contact may.
Hope it does not come to that but if it does "another colour on the canvass of life".
By the way, the whole language thing has been complained about by many people. This question is in response to quite a few threads and comments I have seen posted lately about the type of questions we get here. Don't take it so personally. Water off the back mate.
If you feel I can no longer contribute to this site a simple yes or no will suffice.
I have my opinions regard the use of foreign languge and I do not see this changing.
I have after your earlier reminder stopped answering the foreign questions, in fact if you care to look you will see I congratulated one person for their use of, all be it broken, English.
Over to you.
As for whether you can continue contributing to this site, that is solely up to you.
Ducky
Okay, I have just read through all of this (twice) and now I will comment. I do notice that some of our "regular members" are not here today, at a time when they usually are. I suspect, due to hurt feelings? As for myself, I believe that this forum is, and can be, BOTH HELPFUL AND FUN. I see lots of members who are involved in those ways. I only hope that I am considered to be one of them!
| 12 years ago. Rating: 11 | |
FISH-O
I honestly don't see all that many foreign questions or should i say questions that are written in sandscript ,granted we do get a few that are hard to understand, i do my best t to try to decipher it's meaning and give a good proper answer , i know at times i can be a wiseinheimar ( smart a**), but i think some question are here just for the shock value, ask a dumb question and get what you expect..I can see you do have you hands full as moderator which i can respect..
| 12 years ago. Rating: 11 | |
Yesterday I got called a mouthy, big nosed, dirt bag. I'm suppose to just let continued insults like this against me to just slide off. Would anyone put up with these kinds of insults at a job they got paid for? I doubt it yet I'm suppose to just take them while I do this job for free and "just have thick skin and not let it get to me."
Such is the life of a forum moderator.
Headless Man
I think it would be a good idea to have the flag of the country by a persons name, this would help understand a language problem some.
| 12 years ago. Rating: 10 | |
bluesman1951
There is a huge disparity in the skill levels of computer users. Add to that the cultural differences ,languages ,and life experiences,its amazing its not complete chaos here. Compassion ,and kindness should be the order of the day . Treat others as you wish to be treated. I understand not knowing something . What I have a hard time with is being lazy ,I am not someone's free research flunky. I ll look something up if I am curious about the answer and it adds to my knowledge base ,but not to be just used . I wonder all the time : How did you arrive at what ever age you are and not have accumulated that knowledge . Were you raised in a underground bunker ? All that can be done is try for polite and be kind and deal with one question at a time . Quality and not quantity in regards to answering questions should be the goal . I intend to answer what I can, ignore what I can not until it no longer amuses me .Thats my position on this . We should all act like we were raised with some class.
| 12 years ago. Rating: 10 | |
Colleen
I just wanted to give a big thank you to the people who have understood the intent of this question and not taken it personally and used it as a reason to come at me. I've added a comment to what Pytonlover said for those of you who may still be feeling wounded by the question. This includes the ones who have not commented here. I apologize to those people I made feel bad. This was not the intent of the question.
| 12 years ago. Rating: 9 | |
bulletman
zorro
Absolutely . the moderators should set a good example for the rest of us to follow.
| 12 years ago. Rating: 8 | |
Zorro I cuss more than Colleen. I have never seen her cussing on this site. I have seen many ppl slip up in the heat of the moment but it is not their norm. Life happens to all of us... Enjoy the flavors.
Bob/PKB
All I saw was "Ask a question", and that's what I did. I just this very moment, read "About" and saw nothing to suggest akaQA was a "help" site. Over the past several months, I've enjoyed asking serious and "fluff" questions, responding to same, and establishing a few cyber- friendships along the way. Every now and then I look at the "top contributors" list and see how many names I recognize. There were, last week, over 75 that I "interact" with on a weekly basis. The number is growing. Those people aren't here just to ask or answer questions about what time it is in Kalamazoo or how to multiply fractions.
NO, I wasn't aware of the original intent of akaQA, and a bit more explanation in "About" would clear up the expectation. Language other than English doesn't upset me here. It upsets me when a co-worker is not able to ask a question of another co-worker in a language ALL of us can understand, though. Or answers her cell phone while with a client and starts talking in a foreign language. THAT bothers me.
It also bothers me that one of my comments was deleted this past week. It was not offensive nor rude. The comments that were hurtful and offensive to me were allowed to stand. Objective?
| 12 years ago. Rating: 7 | |
Look back on your own questions; many of them are not "help" oriented. No complaint or attack intended; this site has a "family" (community, per Colleen's comment), and you are part of it.
Foreign language on a worldwide website is different than foreign language at work or in a country.
I see a community. My family is who I am related to.
As for a comment of yours disappearing, I did not remove it. There are admin here and 2 other mods.
Click here to find answers. It`s Free & Simple, 100`s of comunity experts will answer your questions.
https://www.akaqa.com
Yes, it lies. We have comedians and people who want to know favorite cheese, cookies, pickles, colors, music, movies, books, snack foods, gotta haves when shopping.......etc. Fluff questions, things to not think by. Boring stuff but all are allowed, including foreign language, directions, computer, homework and whatever else gets "go away we don't answer that" comments when asked.
akaQA is more than a place where people can ask for information and advice. It's a place where people gather to relax and cut loose a little bit. Relationships and friendships have developed through the fluff and funny, through the hurts and tragedies.
The point has been well-made that rudeness, impatience, and intolerance is not appreciated at akaQA. I, for one, will adhere to those edicts as best I can (which will be far form perfect).
lambshank
Colleen, I know where you are coming from, and yes I do get abused in my job both verbally and physically (I work in a high challenge behavioral unit) but, I might add I am paid.I enjoy AKA and know I often ask questions particularly related to computer apps, I also know I can google the answers but find I get bogged down, and here people are (often you) can help me quickly in a way I can easily understand I also appreciate and enjoy the humorous banter between the members,but I do see your point about insensitive or insulting remarks or answers, but overall I think the members here are respectful, clever and witty, a shame to see the odd insulting comment that is absolutely uncalled for, and from what I've seen also not appreciated by most, thanks for doing a great job
| 12 years ago. Rating: 6 | |
The goal of this site is to get more people to come to it everyday. To get businesses to advertise . The more hits the better advertisers like it. Its all about the money , there in the BIG D.
| 12 years ago. Rating: 5 | |
February 12, 2012; 10:45 AM (PST) *If you "click" ABOUT at the bottom of this page, this is what akaQA is about:
"Here you can ask and answer questions, comment and vote for the questions of others and their answers. Both questions and answers can be revised and improved. Questions can be tagged with the relevant keywords to simplify future access and organize the accumulated material.
This Q&A site is moderated by its members, hopefully - including yourself! Moderation rights are gradually assigned to the site users based on the accumulated "karma" points. These points are added to the users account when others vote for his/her questions or answers. These points (very) roughly reflect the level of trust of the community.
No points are necessary to ask or answer the questions - so please - join us!"
| 12 years ago. Rating: 4 | |
Here is what the admin told me about the questions I presented here:
Hi Colleen,
You're absolutely right.
akaQA is a place where you can ask any question, as long as it's not hurtful towards other people (or in other words: as long as it doesn't contain nudity, violence, racism, religious preaching, etc.), and receive answers.
From now on, if you see an answer that goes like this: "do a google search" or "this is not a map forum for travelers" , please erase this answer.
Admin
The point of this question was to let people know we are a help forum and they do not choose which questions we help on or which ones are allowed. Why do I have to explain this in such detail?
On the internet, when you google akaQA, it reads:
Click here to find answers. It`s Free & Simple, 100`s of comunity experts will answer your questions.
https://www.akaqa.com
We answer questions aka help people searching for an answer aka help forum. We are listed as having experts. People can tell in a nano second there are no experts. Just comedians.
valR
