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Don't use Discord as your Q&A forum

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Re: Don't use Discord as your Q&A forum

#281

Post by [deleted] »

trvz wrote: post #202
TaylorAlexander wrote: post #167

I recently found a repo for an Xbox wireless controller kernel driver where the GitHub issues page was turned off and instead they used discord. I asked why they don’t have GitHub issues turned on and they said they “didn’t want it to become a support forum”. I couldn’t believe it. If there is a common issue, one person will ask about it on the issues page and then everyone else can benefit from that discussion. On d…

> If there is a common issue, one person will ask about it on the issues page and then everyone else can benefit from that discussion. Have you ever seen the GitHub issues of a halfway popular repo? Once a project is big enough to attract all the low quality users, the same question/problem will be asked/reported over and over again. The maintainers will have to deal with a mess either way. They might as well choose…

[deleted]

Re: Don't use Discord as your Q&A forum

#282

Post by DangitBobby »

OJFord wrote: post #190
jhanschoo wrote: post #183

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> On discord, I had to log in and join their group to ask about an error message, only to find it’s a common issue and there’s a few troubleshooting steps. Did you try searching for the error message on Discord? If so, what was the experience?

Not GP, but it's miserable. Discord, and to only a slightly lesser extent Reddit, is not built for that use, it doesn't drive engagement.

"It doesn't drive engagement" is overly cynical. Discord was designed for chat, not as a support forum, and the search is surprisingly functional for a chat client.

Re: Don't use Discord as your Q&A forum

#283

Post by MilStdJunkie »

PaulHoule wrote: post #27

One trouble w/ things like Discord and IRC for support or community building is that frequently you get somebody with nothing better to do who "leans in" and spends more time (all the time) logged in and ends up being the face of your forum for new users. (Full disclosure, I've been that guy )

That's being generous. "Nothing better to do" also translates as "works as sales / business development for the gigantic expensive legacy tool you're trying to work around". End of the day, when one guy is spending all their time on your Support, and you don't know why, and they're persistently nonconstructive or just plain making shit up[1], you have to start asking, "why does this guy care so much?". Shortest answer is often "Cuz he's paid to".

So yeah, moderation is great.

[1] "Not that I would ever use this tool in production, I use BRAND X"

Re: Don't use Discord as your Q&A forum

#284

Post by treyd »

pc86 wrote: post #255
inetknght wrote: post #251

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Once a project is big enough to attract all the low quality users, the same question/problem will be asked/reported over and over again. That's true for Discord too though.

> > They might as well choose the platform they themselves prefer. Nobody said Discord solved that problem, only that GitHub hasn't either.

Probably would be a problem that using LLMs to suggest related issues would help with.

Re: Don't use Discord as your Q&A forum

#286

Post by naniwaduni »

hutzlibu wrote: post #123
Operyl wrote: post #119

Earlier quoted context omitted.

From my experience it happens just as much on forums. Hell, just take a look at Stack Overflow! If someone is wanting to reanswer a question for the nth time, I have no problem with that, and the helpers in my community don't either. As another poster said, as well, sometimes "repeat questions" age out after a certain point, where a newer method is actually more appropriate than an older one anyway.

"As another poster said, as well, sometimes "repeat questions" age out after a certain point, where a newer method is actually more appropriate than an older one anyway." I rather like the approach of editing the original question/solution or posting the latest solution there as otherwise this just creates fragmention.

Editing is somehow even worse than doing support on Discord, where at least there is a history and the (bad!) search or one of the regulars might remember something to find it.

Re: Don't use Discord as your Q&A forum

#287

Post by saalweachter »

katbyte wrote: post #266
saalweachter wrote: post #248

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So I bought a six pack of socks off Amazon once. Seemed like a low risk purchase. They arrived looking like any other sock. New packaging, didn't see anything wrong with it. Socks looked new. They didn't feel new. You know that new sock feel you only get fresh from the package, before they've been washed? They didn't have that. I don't know if these were factory reject socks that failed QC after the fabric softener r…

That’s such an odd thing to hood on too, one ids socks, two you could have just returned it.

What is the most wonderful thing in the world?

Putting on a brand new pair of socks, fresh from the package.

They took that away.

It's like taking a bite of delicious cake only to find out it's shit. You can send it back to the kitchen, but it doesn't take away the whipsaw disappointment.

Re: Don't use Discord as your Q&A forum

#289

Post by esafak »

realPubkey wrote: post #275
esafak wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's because those platforms provide instant gratification, which attracts people with too much time. Busy, conscientious people are not going to loiter around and repeatedly answer questions that newbies ought to be able to solve on their own with proper tools (i.e., not Discord, Slack or IRC).

This sounds like a great deal for the maintainer, who is also a busy person and does not want to answer the noob questions.

Who's going to answer the questions if knowledgeable people are repelled? I don't engage with these platforms because, among other UX sins, I know that their poor discoverability means I will only be helping one person and not the legions of people in the future who will encounter the same problem.

Re: Don't use Discord as your Q&A forum

#290

Post by cgriswald »

Pannoniae wrote: post #260
cgriswald wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sometimes these people need a hard truth. I’d say most times. They usually won’t “get it” in the moment, but the only way they can ever get it is if someone respects them enough to say it. These sorts of bans aren’t just good for the community. They’re also good for the recipient. (I’d only say that in the short term, depending on the person, there could be a danger of self harm and people should always be kind and c…

"someone respects them enough to say it." "They’re also good for the recipient." I've never seen anyone learning anything from being permabanned from anywhere. This is just post-facto justification to make yourself feel better for removing those people - but don't believe it even for a second that you've helped them in any way. Helping the community? Could be. Helping the banned person? Hell no.

Is it your experience that the only party to benefit from ending a relationship is the one ending it?
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