Got an idea or tactic you want to share? Think you have a wonderful idea that we could all benefit from? Now's your time!
In the folder for the Bartertown Watch (our super-secret, now hidden [again] forum), I posed a question to Lin. Basically, I asked about a forum where users could post tutorials and articles about things they think they have good advice/tactics/etc. on.
Lin thought it was a good idea and wanted me to submit some articles for approval. I've submitted one already, and I'm tapping you, the Bartertown Member base for more.
Here is an edited copy of the original message I posted to give you an idea of what we're looking for (there's more after the quote):
So, here it is. We're asking you to write something, if you feel the muse descend upon you.So, I've been thinking lately about what I can do to make Bartertown a better place.
The best two options aren't possible. I can't fix the ITL, and I won't leave.
So, I got to thinking that I DO have a lot of ideas/advice rolling around in my head. I'd love to write some BTown specific articles and tutorials. Everything from... "How to write a BTR" article... to "How to write a good trade ad" and all sorts of other ideas that have come to me at some point or another than I never bothered to write anything on.
I know that there are plenty of others who have ideas that are just as good that would be more than happy to share them.
The problem, though, is that we don't have anywhere that is "friendly" to them to place them. If we put them in the "Messages & Misc" or "Need Help" forums, they'll quickly get drowned down to the second, third, etc. pages and into oblivion. If we "Sticky" them all, then the first few pages of the forums would be nothing but stickied topics.
So, I was wondering if we could create a forum JUST for tutorials and articles. Anyone who had an idea to share could submit one. We'd hammer out some sort of guideline (certain length requirement, etc) and post it as the first topic (stickied) in the new forum.
One of the specifics could be that new articles don't automatically show up. They have to be approved. Mods, Admin and Watchmen could all be allowed to approve an article. Essentially, we'd just be looking it over to ensure that it met specs and that it had good punctuation, capitalization, etc. If it's good, it's approved. If it's not, then it gets sent back to have the errors fixed. We can overlook simple stuff (a few spelling errors, capitalization problems, etc) but would return it for "too many" of them.
If the idea seems to have merit, but you're worried about the potential amount of time it would take to approve articles, I'll be happy to take the helm and do the majority of the approval work. I have plenty of time to spare during the day (as my post count will attest to), and I don't mind doing it.
We could even recruit people and ask them to write articles/tutorials.
What does everyone think?
Eric
For now, let's just focus on a few basics:
Spell Checker - Run your article through one.
Capitalization - It's not just for grade school.
Punctuation - Show us where one sentence ends and the next begins.
Language - Do we really need to cuss in these? Also; English (no "chat-speak").
Length - Keep it as long as you need to, in order to get your point across, but not too long. Not too short, either, of course (there are no other, more specific, length requirements at this time).
Subject - Something apropriate. How to build "XYZ" army, good skil combinations in D&D 4.0, How to paint ultramarines fast and easy, bartering related articles, etc. Keep it trade or gaming related. That's about the main limitation. Though many of us could benefit from an article on how to change the oil in our car, it isn't really appropriate for the site.
Images - Images are WONDERFUL when appropriate. Links to pictures at hosting sites are fine, but uploaded to the BTown system would be better, as image hosting sites are often blocked on users computers when they're not at home.
I look forward to seeing some articles from you guys!
Eric
