The forum used to have a sticky with general knitting FAQs didn’t it? I don’t see it now on GK or How-to… maybe I’m getting confused with Craftster… either way, how about making one or adding more to the old one (if it’s here somewhere)? Any suggestions for topics that would be helpful as a sticky as they’re asked often? Some I think would be good/are often asked:
‘What is gauge?’
‘How do I cast on in the middle/beginning of a row?’
‘How do I knit flat on circs?’
‘What does knit the ks and purl the ps mean?’
‘How do I join a new strand or colour?’
'How do I pick up stitches?'
etc.
I have been looking around for the ‘What is gauge?’ But not the “What” But “How” to gauge? How to count the stitches and rows… to make sure your sweater or sock will fit.
I don 't want to post this question, because I am sure it has been asked over and over again. That I am sure if I keep looking around here I will find my answer.
Try Googling, I think you’ll find some good explanations of gauge, perhaps in Sara’s blog Let me Explaiknit, also knitty? Basically it’s all about how to account for the size of your stitches when thinking about the total measurements of a piece of fabric.
A lot of times, you could try entering those questions in the search box and the answer may pop up from a previous poster.
And don’t forget Amy’s videos show a lot of what you just asked (although, I know you were probably coming up with examples)
If I’m not mistaken, it’s probably been discussed before…I think sometimes we try not to overcrowd the announcements/stickies so people aren’t overwhelmed! :teehee:
That was actually the reason I have been given for not having more stickies or having an FAQs section.
To be honest I would rather answer the questions over and over again rather than make anybody feel like they can’t ask a question or that their question may be bothersome.
[color=gray][size=1]Though I could do without ever seeing the “knitting while flying” question again! [/size][/color]:teehee:
Those were not examples of questions that can’t be answered by searching online and looking at the videos, but examples of questions that are asked over and over. Some people don’t bother searching, but more often, the search feature won’t quite get what you’re looking for, especially depending on your search terms.
I don’t want to discourage people from asking questions when they are confused, but when I see two topics next to each other asking how to cast on in the middle of the row, and saw it at least once the day before as well, I can’t help but think that having a sticky with a few of the FAQs in it would help.
I am really happy to answer the most basic question if the query comes from someone who didn’t have any luck with searching the forum or Google. I even answer questions that would have been answered completely within 3 seconds on Google (e.g. what is xy stitch?). I don’t think having a sticky would make a person feel that their question is bothersome or like they can’t ask the question.
In fact, some (like Carla) already feel like such a question is bothersome and don’t ask for that reason. A sticky would answer some of these questions for those who do think it bothersome and therefore refrain from asking.
I just think it’s unnecessary to have multiple posts like that and a page for it could be more helpful to beginners and more advanced knitters alike. It would save time for both.
Sarah
I have been thinking about posting a similar idea. I agree about the common questions - easier to search and answer again. However I was wondering about a sticky containing the not-so-common tips that you might not know you were looking for. And for my example, I have Sarah’s idea at the bottom of this post
I’ve seen several others that I would like to remember for when I needed them, such as someone’s suggestion for avoiding ladders in socks by moving the stiches around the DPN’s.
So many forums with stickies end up becoming kind of unfriendly and most questions generate a whole bunch of “did you search first” replies and the poster has to end up defending themselves!
I like the basic question threads as they seem to generate conversation, which is really what I am here for. Even if I don’t learn something new when I click on one of these threads, I end up being part of a conversation about knitting.
I am not here to simply exchange information, I am here to “hang out” with other knitters, and these simple threads, IMHO, are part of that.
(1) some of the ones at the top of this forum are soooo long! I have trouble finding answers in them when there are dozens of pages to read. Opinion: Stickies should be locked!
(2) they do fill up the page so you have to scroll to get to the new posts. So lots of stickies take up room.
A FAQ webpage might be a good idea - especially if it also contains links to other posts where the topic was discussed. I agree with Deb’s sentiment that there are posts here that I wish I could remember - I have bookmarked some. Sometimes a post comes up with a topic I didn’t even know I WANTED to know!
IMO, if people aren’t noticing topics right on top of another, they’re not going to notice stickies. Plus, the more stickies there are, the harder it is to see them.
Also, part of why KH is so great is that it’s a welcoming community, without the usual Internet snarkiness of “Did you even try to do a search, God, there are sooooo many people who already asked that question.”
No kidding. If not locked, then someone should go through and delete all of the off-topic stuff. There is so much garbage in some of them, that it’s a pain to go through and read to get to the real stuff you want. For instance, the interchangable sets one. I read through 8 pages and most of it was fluff. I got so tired and I didn’t want to read anymore nor post about my question or concern because I was afraid it was already posted somewhere amongst the million posts I didn’t read.
Well I don’t know if I would want to be the one who had to do that on the current threads but I can certainly see what you are saying about them. I would never read them either if I were new… just not enough time for that!
One thing that COULD help with getting people to read those threads when their question applies, too, is shortening the subject of those threads. They all have such long names that they are easy to skip over!
You can search within topics to find material that is relevant to what you are trying to find out too - you don’t have to read through pages and pages of info if that’s not your thing.
i think it was suggested earlier (at least by me) of having a FAQ for the super common questions. and i agree with the poster that those should be locked so they don’t get lost in comments. just like the FAQs at forums like this one: http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/afrviolet/
I really do think a FAQ page would be a great idea… or FAQ tab at top… I remeber it coming up in the past as well… I know brendajos has recommended it…
One thing I have with the search and I do try to use it first… but I find if you don’t have the exact way it is found in a topic your gonna have to go through a lot of post first… that can be time consuming and overwhelming :wall: … one thing I really like about KH is how open it is and how friendly it is…plus its knitting help… helping others and remebering how I felt when I first began when I would drop a stitch and come flying in here in a panic… I wouldn’t think to even try search till after I posted …if you see a repeated question you don’t think you can answer again then pass it by and let someone else answer it…
I have posted on other boards before and if you asked a question that was repeated you got your head handed back to you on a platter… got to the point where many were to uncomfy to post… I just wanna keep KH nice and open… :teehee:
…if you see a repeated question you don’t think you can answer again then pass it by and let someone else answer it…