This is a continuation of a long topic, addressed by post number rather than by page. Start at post 1.
The Lounge is a real category rather than a dumping ground. The sourcing rule still applies there, which surprises people, but the register is looser and nobody minds a digression.
Small point, but it is the one that usually catches people.
Joining rather than answering. I have read the orientation set twice and the thing that finally made it click was realising the documentation pages are the destination and topics are how they get written.
It is one reading of the data and not the only reasonable one.
The Lounge is a real category rather than a dumping ground. The sourcing rule still applies there, which surprises people, but the register is looser and nobody minds a digression.
Trust levels accumulate over time and they give you access to small things like the ability to edit your own posts without a timestamp. They are not a status symbol and they do not make you more right. Someone at trust level zero with a good question gets better answers than someone at trust level four with a bad one.
Marked solutions are the site's way of saying that someone asked a good question and someone else gave an answer that actually worked. It is not a competition and it does not appear on your record — it is just how the site learns which topics stay useful six months later.
If you are not sure which subcategory a question belongs in, post it in the closest one. A moderator will move it, the move is logged, and nothing bad happens to you.
The Lounge is a real category rather than a dumping ground. The sourcing rule still applies there, which surprises people, but the register is looser and nobody minds a digression.
Not disagreeing with anyone above, just adding the bit I keep having to look up.
The compound and evidence pages are updated regularly and they are worth reading when you are new. They answer the meta questions like "do we have data on this" and "what do the trials actually show" before you ask them.
Somebody will have a better source than mine, and I hope they post it.
Thank you for taking the time. That was more work than a reply usually is.
The tag pages are usually a better entry point than the categories for a first read. A tag cuts across categories, so following one shows you how the same subject is treated by the analytical people and the practical people at once.
Same experience here, different supplier, so it is at least not unique to one of them.
If you want a fast orientation, read three solved topics in the subcategory you care about. Solved means somebody said the answer worked, which is more signal than reply count.
The strength of my opinion here exceeds the strength of my evidence.
First week here. The thing I would tell someone arriving behind me is that the answers are slower and much better than anywhere else I have looked, and that trying to hurry one does not work.
Caveat: everything above assumes the paperwork is what it says it is.
One small courtesy that makes a large difference: put the specific question in the title. It is the single thing that most changes how quickly you get a useful reply.
That distinction has done more work for me than anything else in this category.
Nothing here requires expertise. The experienced members here got that way by posting questions, not by knowing the answer before they showed up. If you know something useful, post it. If you do not, ask.
I would treat that as a working assumption and revisit it.
The Lounge is a real category rather than a dumping ground. The sourcing rule still applies there, which surprises people, but the register is looser and nobody minds a digression.
On balance I think that is right, and I would not bet much on it.
On the reading order question specifically: start with the how-to-ask materials in this category, then read the one to three subcategories where your main questions live. The rest will be discoverable by tag once you understand the structure.
Reading it again, the caveat matters more than the finding.
Nothing here requires expertise. The experienced members here got that way by posting questions, not by knowing the answer before they showed up. If you know something useful, post it. If you do not, ask.
Marked solutions are the site's way of saying that someone asked a good question and someone else gave an answer that actually worked. It is not a competition and it does not appear on your record — it is just how the site learns which topics stay useful six months later.
Happy to be corrected if someone holds better data than mine.
| Topic | Participants | Replies | Views | Activity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Reading order for a first week here, and what to skip until later
Reading order for a first week here, and what to skip until later Writing it up because I had to work it out twice and would rather nobody else did. Trying to work out what would count as evidence on reading…
|
+111 | 117 | 3.1k | 15mo |
|
Which categories are strict and which are relaxed, honestly
Which categories are strict and which are relaxed, honestly I have a specific reason for asking rather than idle curiosity, and the context is below. I want to check my reasoning rather than get a conclusion.…
|
+46 | 53 | 1.8k | 2d |
|
How to tell whether your question is already answered on a maintained page
How to tell whether your question is already answered on a maintained page — that is the question, and I have not found it answered plainly anywhere I have looked. Question in the title. Context below, and I…
|
+5 | 9 | 30k | 3mo |
|
Coming back to: Lurking for two months before posting: was that the right call?
The question in the title: Lurking for two months before posting: was that the right call? I will give what I have already checked below so nobody repeats it. Checking my reasoning rather than asking for a…
|
+28 | 32 | 3.3k | 11mo |
|
Follow-up: I have no scientific background — can I still follow the analytics categories?
Asking directly, because I could not find a straight answer: I have no scientific background — can I still follow the analytics categories? Counting it rather than describing it, because the count is the part…
|
+15 | 19 | 15k | 1mo |
| Topic | Participants | Replies | Views | Activity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Titles that describe the question, not the situation — what changed since
Posting this under the heading it deserves: Titles that describe the question, not the situation — what changed since Everything below is what sits behind that. What changes if the standard account of Titles…
|
+29 | 33 | 29k | 10mo |
|
Scheduled maintenance and what will be unavailable
Scheduled maintenance and what will be unavailable Writing it up because I had to work it out twice and would rather nobody else did. Collecting what is known about scheduled maintenance in one place, because…
|
+120 | 128 | 25k | 15mo |
|
Asking a follow-up: new topic or new reply?
Asking a follow-up: new topic or new reply? — that is the question, and I have not found it answered plainly anywhere I have looked. Collecting what is known about asking a follow-up in one place, because it…
|
+68 | 73 | 40k | 1d |
|
How to ask about something you suspect is a bad idea — a second dataset
How to ask about something you suspect is a bad idea — a second dataset — that is the question, and I have not found it answered plainly anywhere I have looked. Counting it rather than describing it, because…
|
2 | 3.3k | 4h | |
|
What this community means by "a source", in practical terms
Asking directly, because I could not find a straight answer: What this community means by "a source", in practical terms Counting it rather than describing it, because the count is the part that can be argued…
|
+104 | 122 | 1.9k | 10mo |