Other active Excel message boards

[RoryA]

ozgrid is not too bad either btw.

Unless it's changed a lot recently, I'd disagree with that. Unless you happen to like really strict rule enforcement.

 

[Jon von der Heyden]

For VBA, I recommend Xtreme VB Talk and VBAX.

But for me MrExcel is where it really happens. The traffic here is huge and I don't tend to have much more time for the other forums. I'm not going to say anything specifically negative about Ozgrid, but I will say that it wouldn't feature in my top10 favourites!

 

[SydneyGeek]

I'm not going to say anything specifically negative about Ozgrid, but I will say that it wouldn't feature in my top10 favourites!

...and it's quite a lot smaller. Much less traffic than here.

Denis

 

[JamesW]

I wouldn't recommend ExpertSexchange (How dare they add a hyphen!). Had nothing but problems there, plus it's full of adverts and you have to sign up to view the answers! My own opinion though

MrExcel is by far the best one imo.

 

[MrExcel]

Any ideas on how we can help those first-time posters do a better job of posting questions?

I did a small test on Weds night to pop-over a form to get new people to sign up for a newsletter. Maybe a better use is a pop-over form that gives them 3 quick suggestions of how to help us help them. Something that they can read in 14 seconds as they reach for the mouse and click the "X" to close the form.

That is one idea. I am sure there are better ones out there.

Bill

 

[RoryA]

One of the things I find useful at ExcelForum is that the user's profile specifies what version they are using. It's not always accurate, but it does help tailor your responses quite a lot.
I don't think I've ever really seen any good ways of getting first timers to post clearer questions: when the questions are really unclear, it's more often than not because the user is trying to phrase things according to the way they think Excel might work, when they don't really know. Perhaps something to suggest they explain in simple terms what they are trying to achieve, as well as how they are attempting it?

 

[JamesW]

Maybe a sticky with an 'example post' would help? Nothing fancy. I think it will saves everyones time as you won't get responses such as "Can you post example code" and "Please explain what you mean".

I have also seen forums where new users are sent directly to the 'Guidelines' sticky before they do anything. Can't remember if it's on this forum, but it's a nice touch.

Speaking about 'Guidelines' the one's here, I feel, can seem very intimidating to a new user. I see it as a wall of text and most users will attempt to read them and give up!

My 2 pence.

 

[MrKowz]

Edit: I'm going to start a new topic on the lounge forums here so we can further discuss the issue Bill brought up.

New topic can be found here: http://www.mrexcel.com/forum/showthread.php?t=514659

 

[Joe4]

I wouldn't recommend ExpertSexchange (How dare they add a hyphen!). Had nothing but problems there, plus it's full of adverts and you have to sign up to view the answers! My own opinion though

ExpertsExchange is a different kind of forum. Its more of a "pay-to-play", where you can award points. Because we have a company wide license with an unlimited amount of points, we can get some REALLY good help when we need it. We don't use it for Excel though, mostly for SQL stuff. And it seems to be pretty good for that.

Speaking about 'Guidelines' the one's here, I feel, can seem very intimidating to a new user. I see it as a wall of text and most users will attempt to read them and give up!

Unfortunately, they are necessary. With all the traffic we get, the rules really need to be spelled out. Trust me, every one of those rules is there because that particular situation has come up numerous times. And there are many other circumstances that aren't covered that come up.

It is valuable to us Moderators, else some people think we are just making up rules "willy nilly" as we go along, being inconsistent, they may think we are just picking on them for no good reason.

We try to word the rules so we don't come off being "too harsh", but at the same time need to be clear and concise. It can be a fine line...

 

[RoryA]

EE is actually very good for Excel too, and you don't have to "pay to play" in spite of what they may lead you to believe (I never have).