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People who answer questions


Fujai

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A thought I've had for a while is having a group of people who are available for new nations to ask whatever random question to, be it called a Board of Questions, Questions Committee, or Propeller Hat Society.

The members of it would act as a channel for new nations to ask questions without cluttering up the RMB. They would primarily work here on the forums, but could also be telegrammed for specific questions, and could try to steer things off the RMB. They would have to be players who have been around for a while and know their stuff, as we wouldn't want any false information going out.

By answering the questions, mostly by pointing people to the correct information, we can hopefully get them to know us a bit and maybe stick around.

This could also be combined with a sort of mentor program. I like Lamb's idea, but maybe a little more toned down, for instance, when someone applies for citizenship, they could specifically request a mentor. Otherwise, they could simply watch and intervene if they spot someone in need of a little guidance.

Suggestions on the topic are very welcome, please.

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I think this is quite ingenious. It's like an Information Booth, where people can get information on something. I also agree on adding a mentor program to teach the new people our customs. Perhaps we should have a list of FAQs so that people will have to wait less for their questions, which probably are FAQs, to be solved.

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I, for one, believe that this is an absolutely phenomenal idea! :) As specified in our current welcome telegram (Which may be subject to change soon?! *Hint hint*) we have newcomers being directed to Badger and Davelands. I think that if we were to establish said "Board Of Questions" newbies and returning players alike would be quickly integrated into the NationStates world in a much more efficient fashion. As I write this message it actually just triggered one of my first memories of being on NationStates in my very early days on the site. I would highly doubt that he remembers me, or even knows who I am and was for that matter, but I just thought back to my second or third day playing when I was telegramming Guardian Mediobogdum with newbie-ish questions and concerns. Sure, it was probably annoying, him being labeled as the grumpy old sage and all, but I learned from what he said to me and I found it helpful. :P If it was able to help me some three years ago then I'm sure there are many newcomers it could also help and make an impact upon. I shall strongly advocate for the creation of said booth, and I would be more than happy to serve on it when and if the time comes. This s a wonderful suggestion, great work Fujai and Lamb! 

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18 hours ago, Arthur Draig Kirkland Vasentius said:

I, for one, believe that this is an absolutely phenomenal idea! :) As specified in our current welcome telegram (Which may be subject to change soon?! *Hint hint*) we have newcomers being directed to Badger and Davelands. I think that if we were to establish said "Board Of Questions" newbies and returning players alike would be quickly integrated into the NationStates world in a much more efficient fashion. As I write this message it actually just triggered one of my first memories of being on NationStates in my very early days on the site. I would highly doubt that he remembers me, or even knows who I am and was for that matter, but I just thought back to my second or third day playing when I was telegramming Guardian Mediobogdum with newbie-ish questions and concerns. Sure, it was probably annoying, him being labeled as the grumpy old sage and all, but I learned from what he said to me and I found it helpful. :P If it was able to help me some three years ago then I'm sure there are many newcomers it could also help and make an impact upon. I shall strongly advocate for the creation of said booth, and I would be more than happy to serve on it when and if the time comes. This s a wonderful suggestion, great work Fujai and Lamb! 

That time should be coming very soon. :)

I was thinking about putting it in its own subforum for ease of access. With some pinned posts about how it works and FAQs and links and such. I think that's the best way to get the information up front and easy to get to.

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On 4/10/2017 at 2:45 PM, Fujai said:

That time should be coming very soon. :)

I was thinking about putting it in its own subforum for ease of access. With some pinned posts about how it works and FAQs and links and such. I think that's the best way to get the information up front and easy to get to.

I quite agree 

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3 minutes ago, Far Rivia Hilolak said:

Just one question how many people will be able to sign up to be apart of the committee?

For now, I'm planning on hand picking the members so that we can get started on a really strong foot, but in the future, I'll take volunteers. I think around five is a good number. Edit: I have three people with a solid yes lined up, and two maybes right now.

The next step would be getting some sort of mentor program going, and that would be more based on people volunteering for it.

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Two things come to my mind:

How are the members of this program distributed regarding timezones? TWP and I imagine Nationstates itself (and funnily enough the posters in this thread) has quite a large portion of players coming from the US. Still the rest of the world is not completely negligible in numbers. I personally see this in the morning hours here in Europe, when America is sleeping and BBD does most of the moderation work on the RMB (at least that is my impression). So including one or two members from outside the mainland US timezones might be a good idea.

Second thing is a language question: How often do we have new players that are not native English speakers and could be helped to a certain degree by someone who speaks their native language to understand some of the minutae of the game? If this basically doesn't occur at all - one fewer thing to worry about. If it does - refer them to regions dedicated to their language or perhaps keep an internal list of people who speak certain languages and would be willing to assist in understanding? Really no idea how much this is an issue at all.

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Those are some points I hadn't much considered.

I don't think the timezone issue is too much of a worry, because it isn't like we get responses horribly quick as it is. The current membership is US based for now, but many of us are night owls or early risers, so I think there should only be a couple hours in the middle where there might not be a prompt response. Once we get going, we'll see how much of an issue it is, I think and then address it accordingly.

As for languages, I really hadn't thought of that. We don't get many people who can't speak English at all, and on the Board we have a couple who are at least proficient in other languages. Past that we can direct people to others who do speak that language should the need arise as you suggest. I think keeping a list of regions dedicated to a certain language is a fantastic idea. We've had it come up on occasion that I've seen.

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