Dedicated Sub-Forum For Newbies ?

I den forbindelse didnt read one sound comment against the idea in this thread. "Feasibility" -Come on! Strange like some longtime users sees the forum as their own private that should only satisfy their own needs. All these comments against it mostly come from spammers who cant keep their hands of their keyboards. Just look at their comment counts! Some knowledgeable but..
Good idea OP
Cheers!
 
diyAudio is such a great forum, so many knowledgeable and helpful members here. As an electronics newbie, I often feel a bit intimidated when posting a question in a forum where mostly experienced members participate in. I don't know if this is feasible but it would be nice if there were a sub-form where newbies can go to ask questions and read other newbies posts and the responses by experienced members. Threads started by experienced members geared towards newbies would also be very useful. Having all of this basic knowledge in one place would be a great asset in my opinion.

Any thoughts?

It already exists, it is called AudioKarma or Audiosciencereview !
 
I just was laughing 🙂 . I think it is ok to post here as a beginner. I am a perpetual hifi diy beginner enthusiast, often helped by others and the very few I know, I try to give back the time to help others that know less than I. People are free to help or not, in the whole there will be always someone glad to help you... sometimes you need to sort out as some advices are less good than others but it is not so people fault as you noticed it : some know more than others but the same enthusiasm to help is shared. People more experienced can correct an advice you kindly gave or add to it for the best of the original thread poster.
 
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You did. You chose not to accept them.
What sounds good on paper does not reflect the reality of implementation and maintenance.
Not sure that's a very friendly and welcoming sounding response, coming from a site administrator. Isn't that sort of to the OP's point?

Last I checked this site is called "DIY" isn't it? Not "experts congratulating one another on their vast expertise." All posts on this site are pretty much asking others for guidance -- look at the list of threads on the landing page --it's only a matter of degree. It would seem that questions on novice DIY projects is more on topic than Do you own an Exercise Bike? And what do you do with it? and Wordle and The food thread.

It could be called No, I Do Not Own an Oscilloscope.
 
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Maybe an entrance exam for members, like a grade?

Do you own a meter?
Soldering Iron?
Scope?
Experience in electronics?
Education?
How many circuits have you repaired?
Designed?
Built from scratch?
How many PCB have you made?
How many speakers have you made or repaired?...This will be very low scores, most of us have not done so.

Or a sort of 'new to this' badge.

That can be displayed next to the member's name?

I am not very serious about this.

Specialty?...I am clueless about Class D and valves, so I do not visit those areas. That is also an issue.

I got suspended once for asking a poster, who was not telling which amp was the problem, if female...got reported for being sexist.
Some people do not like personal questions, and sometimes the mistakes they make are about using the equipment in a wrong way...how do you deal with that?

Yes, maybe a sand box / KG grade forum for the new persons, or a sort of beginner's library could be done, but search engines and the rest of the internet are already there for that.

We recently had a post where the poster was not telling the details of transformer he wanted to test.
Turned out it was imaginary, and he is an old member....roll eyes is all you can do, human behavior is unpredictable at times.
 
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Just my two cents. Seems like the biggest new person stumbling block is how to trouble shoot electronics. Most new DIYers build something.

If it works first time they learned how to build something, but if it does not work, they then have a chance to learn how to trouble shoot.
This is a good way to learn. Many of the kits from the store are simple circuits and can be worked through with simple test equipment.

Sometimes the new person begins their journey trying to repair a commercial product. This path is more difficult and will highlight the new persons lack of trouble shooting skills. Many on here have been developing those skills for decades. To me, I still struggle with complex circuits. Maybe this area is what you are asking about.
 
Not sure that's a very friendly and welcoming sounding response, coming from a site administrator.
That was not the intent.
Although the comment was not directed at you, I don't mind answering your response.
Member Guerilla suggested there were no sound comments against the idea and further went on to mock the feasibility issue.
I take exception to that.
Before the post I responded to, posts 2, 5, 7, 11, 13 and 16 offer some suggestions are as to why it's not required, and from a feasibility standpoint I will suggest it's not good to pass judgement on issues one is not well versed.
I am concerned there are items not considered by all members, who think this would be nothing more than pushing a few buttons.
 
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I also agree it would probably not work. The big weakness is that you are creating a duplicate place to post. So if you have a speaker question, if you're a newbie you post in one forum but if you're not you post in a different forum? Problematic from the start.

What I have seen in other forums that is successful are these complete digest threads where a mod or dedicated knowledgeable member has created a huge cross reference of good posts or threads in one place. But that would take a tremendous effort in person hours and I do not see anybody willing to step up to do that.
 
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Not sure that's a very friendly and welcoming sounding response, coming from a site administrator. Isn't that sort of to the OP's point?
I read Cal's response as direct but not rude. There are many things that could be implemented. That doesn't mean they should be implemented. Admins and moderators are volunteers. Their time should be spent in useful and productive ways.

Last I checked this site is called "DIY" isn't it? Not "experts congratulating one another on their vast expertise."
Is that what you think is currently going on? I help DIYers of all kinds on a daily basis here. I don't see how that's self-congratulatory. Experts DIY too...

Instead of a beginner forum one idea could be a beginner badge or tag. If the idea is to attract beginners to a certain thread, you could just start the thread with the tag [BEGINNERS].

It already exists, it is called AudioKarma or Audiosciencereview !
I wouldn't recommend ASR to anyone trying to learn about DIY audio or maybe even anyone trying to learn about audio in general. I think there was a point in time where ASR made sense. They posted measurements of gear so consumers could see what they were buying and to hold manufacturers accountable to the published specs. Great! But in the past few years the culture there has turned almost militant or dogmatic, including with Amir engaging in video peeing matches with owners of/designers at audio companies. Any attempt of critique of his measurements (some are actually invalid or draw the wrong conclusion because of lack of understanding of how the test works) are always shut down. Amir is always right. The End. All that's missing is a stacked ranking of equipment measured in dB SINAD per dollar paid and it would be complete. I think there's room for more nuance than that.

This forum is much better suited for DIYers as DIY is the focus and not a sub-forum on a larger forum.

Tom
 
I also agree it would probably not work. The big weakness is that you are creating a duplicate place to post. So if you have a speaker question, if you're a newbie you post in one forum but if you're not you post in a different forum? Problematic from the start.
I'm an expert in analog design but know hardly anything about speaker design. Where should I post if I have a speaker question? In the Speakers forum or in the Beginners forum?

Tom
 
The problem I have is that things can go from 0 to 100 very quickly in a thread. I may need help seeing things at level 2 or 3 and when I go back to check, it might already be into the 90s.

If it's a newbie thread, and strays from newbie level advice, it is absolutely ok for OP to ask for more explanation and even call out threadjacking. I realize newbies are intimidated to do this, but is what ideally should happen.