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.
Second pass at: I joined for one answer and stayed for a year — what changed my mind — setting out what I have, and where I think it stops being reliable.
Question in the title and the context underneath, in the order the how-to-ask page suggests.
What I have read: the maintained document, the two topics it links, and the tag page. What I could not find is my specific case, which may simply mean it is uncommon.
Happy to be pointed at an existing answer if there is one.
Helpful, and short, which on this subject is harder than long.
Welcome. The orientation materials are pinned at the top of this category and they take about an hour. They answer most of the questions a new member has and they save time in the longer run.
I am confident about the direction and much less about the magnitude.
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.
If this contradicts something upthread, the upthread version may well be the better one.
| Topic | Participants | Replies | Views | Activity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Introducing myself and asking whether my planned first topic belongs anywhere — does this still hold?
Introducing myself and asking whether my planned first topic belongs anywhere — does this still hold? — that is the question, and I have not found it answered plainly anywhere I have looked. Checking my…
|
2 | 36k | 2mo | |
|
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 |
|
[2026 update] Are there stupid questions here? A staff answer, at length
Are there stupid questions here? A staff answer, at length — that is the question, and I have not found it answered plainly anywhere I have looked. Counting it rather than describing it, because the count is…
|
+36 | 40 | 2.4k | 1mo |
|
Revisiting: Reading order for a first week here, and what to skip until later
Posting this under the heading it deserves: Revisiting: Reading order for a first week here, and what to skip until later Everything below is what sits behind that. Trying to work out what would count as…
|
2 | 60k | 4mo | |
|
Introducing myself and asking whether my planned first topic belongs anywhere
Introducing myself and asking whether my planned first topic belongs anywhere Writing it up because I had to work it out twice and would rather nobody else did. Checking my reasoning rather than asking for a…
|
+13 | 18 | 4.2k | 16mo |
| Topic | Participants | Replies | Views | Activity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
What to include when your question involves a chromatogram — one year on
Asking directly, because I could not find a straight answer: What to include when your question involves a chromatogram — one year on Question in the title. Context below, and I have tried to include the…
|
+69 | 75 | 862 | 14d |
|
Body image changing more slowly than the body
Body image changing more slowly than the body — setting out what I have, and where I think it stops being reliable. I was wrong about body image in a thread last spring and I would like to correct it publicly…
|
+118 | 136 | 1.5k | 19mo |
|
How to ask for a dose change without antagonising anyone
The question in the title: How to ask for a dose change without antagonising anyone I will give what I have already checked below so nobody repeats it. A question about how to describe something to a…
|
+19 | 23 | 2.9k | 23mo |
|
The anatomy of a question that gets answered within an hour
The anatomy of a question that gets answered within an hour — setting out what I have, and where I think it stops being reliable. Question in the title. Context below, and I have tried to include the things…
|
+114 | 127 | 2.7k | 13h |
|
When to stop reading forums, including this one — the long version
Asking directly, because I could not find a straight answer: When to stop reading forums, including this one — the long version Something that has come up for me and that I suspect is more common than the…
|
+23 | 27 | 8.3k | 14mo |