Sometimes I need more then one question a week April 4, 2006 12:20 PM   Subscribe

Sometimes I need more then one question a week...

I'm thinking a feature would be nice where you could ask "4 questions a month" in stead of once a week.. or have unused questions (say you odnt ask a question on MeFi for a month) that would be "banked"?

alternately, I was thinking of "donate a question" or "extra questions dispensed" based on being selected as best answer?
posted by Izzmeister to Feature Requests at 12:20 PM (86 comments total)

How about making ppl pay for more than 1 question per week. First hit question is free, the next one will cost you $10?
posted by slater at 12:26 PM on April 4, 2006


Pay 5.00 for another account. Now you can ask 2 questions a week.
posted by iconomy at 12:28 PM on April 4, 2006


This has been asked and answered here many times. (The answer was no.)
posted by grouse at 12:29 PM on April 4, 2006


If all the possible questions got asked every week, there would be hundreds on the front page of AskMe a day. If you really want another question, pay another 5, like the iconomy suggested.
posted by OmieWise at 12:31 PM on April 4, 2006


The once a week limit is there to keep anyone from hogging a community resource that runs on everyone's goodwill, so no, I'm not interested in a system where a user could ask a bunch of questions in quick succession. I feel your pain on the once a week thing, I myself often wish I could drop another question, but to keep the questions from scrolling off the page faster than they already are, we have to put some limits in place so once a week it is.
posted by mathowie (staff) at 12:31 PM on April 4, 2006


And contrary to iconomy's suggestion, please don't purchase another account just to ask more questions.
posted by monju_bosatsu at 12:41 PM on April 4, 2006


I really can't imagine how you'd need to ask more than one AskMeFi question a week. (But then I often have to resist screeching, 'Have you not heard of Google?' or 'Ask your friends, for fuck's sake' on Ask, too.)
posted by jack_mo at 12:56 PM on April 4, 2006


yes, but if someone goes a month without a question, wouln'yt it be fair to allow the questions to be banked?

in a sense, if someone waits 9 days between questions, and then has another terribly important (to him) question 5 days later, he has to wait two days....

know what I mean?
posted by Izzmeister at 1:03 PM on April 4, 2006


I don't think anyone wants to be able to ask two questions every week. It's just that currently each time you ask a question you prevent yourself from asking another for 7 days. It's really inflexible. Someone who hasn't asked anything for months and suddenly has two questions to ask is not hogging the resource.

I'd be in favour of the allowed rate being 1/month if it was calculated over a long period of time.
posted by cillit bang at 1:03 PM on April 4, 2006


Dear AskMeFi,

How do I make friends?
posted by deadfather at 1:04 PM on April 4, 2006


Need is a very strong word, and I don't think it has much to do with asking strangers for advice.
posted by prostyle at 1:10 PM on April 4, 2006


Try paper mache and baby oil.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 1:11 PM on April 4, 2006


This reminds me of people who insist on ganking everything they possibly can from hotel rooms, even though they're never even going to use the stuff, because they have the mindset that they've paid for the room and everything in it, and by golly they're going to take the stuff in order to feel like they're getting full value for their dollar. Likewise, people "earn" the "right" to ask an AskMe question every week, and if they don't use it it's WASTED! WASTED! WASTED!
posted by Gator at 1:15 PM on April 4, 2006


If it is something compelling, something urgent and something that is likely to be useful to others, why not ask another user to post it on your behalf?
posted by cedar at 1:20 PM on April 4, 2006


I think there is something about the asking of a question that suddenly makes you think of all the other questions you want to ask. The seven day limit is there for a reason. There are ways around it if you really feel that you have some sort of life-or-death issue, but AskMe really isn't intended to be used that way for reasons other people have already mentioned.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 1:21 PM on April 4, 2006


yes, but if someone goes a month without a question, wouln'yt it be fair to allow the questions to be banked?
No.
posted by boo_radley at 1:22 PM on April 4, 2006


Under what circumstances does someone need to poll a mostly-anonymous internet message board for advice more frequently than once per week?
posted by cribcage at 1:26 PM on April 4, 2006




What cillit bang said.

I don't think anyone wants to be able to ask two questions every week. It's just that currently each time you ask a question you prevent yourself from asking another for 7 days. It's really inflexible. Someone who hasn't asked anything for months and suddenly has two questions to ask is not hogging the resource.

I'd be in favour of the allowed rate being 1/month if it was calculated over a long period of time.

why disagree with that?
posted by Izzmeister at 1:30 PM on April 4, 2006


yes, but if someone goes a month without a question, wouln'yt it be fair to allow the questions to be banked?

We should make them retroactive, too! Let's see: I've been here for 204 weeks and I've asked 24 questions, so I should have 180 questions banked.

I could start my own encyclopedia!
posted by timeistight at 1:33 PM on April 4, 2006


...So you only read comments from people who agree with you, or what?
posted by Gator at 1:33 PM on April 4, 2006


Yes, Gator.

(although in your case I have made an exception.)
posted by Izzmeister at 1:46 PM on April 4, 2006


yes, but if someone goes a month without a question, wouln'yt it be fair to allow the questions to be banked?

I think we should earn interest on them too and at a competitive rate.
posted by vacapinta at 1:47 PM on April 4, 2006


Someone who hasn't asked anything for months and suddenly has two questions to ask is not hogging the resource.

Everyone doing it at once is though. The rule was made because in the absence of the rule one or two people were asking multiple questions per day, and then the whole site was suffering from too many questions per day and people were answering less.

The rule is in place for a reason, to reduce the total questions and not let any one member take advantage of everyone's goodwill. Sorry the math works out where you have to wait a couple days sometimes, but I'm not changing how questions are doled out.
posted by mathowie (staff) at 1:52 PM on April 4, 2006


MeTa needs a sidebar showing all the topics that have been whipped on the kidneys with a big stick so often that they developed hematuria and coloured the probably original yellow background to an early blackwater fever murky drab.
posted by peacay at 1:54 PM on April 4, 2006


yes, but if someone goes a month without a question, wouln'yt it be fair to allow the questions to be banked?

Except the one-a-week limitation isn't purely for the benefit of the asker, it's also to help balance the flow on the site. Allowing 'banking' fundamentally alters that flow.

Or more likely, impacts nothing and is just a lot of work for matt for no appreciable purpose. How many questioners find themselves up against this limit at all, much less repeatedly?
posted by phearlez at 1:54 PM on April 4, 2006


Good idea peacay!
posted by dios at 1:55 PM on April 4, 2006


I just wanna ask where I can find a good meal in nyc.
posted by justgary at 1:59 PM on April 4, 2006


And I'm only gonna be there a day.
posted by justgary at 1:59 PM on April 4, 2006


I myself often wish I could drop another question

donate yourself five bucks!
posted by matteo at 2:04 PM on April 4, 2006


Damn, your gonna get hungry if you don't have a question banked.

There is always that guy in front of the library -- kickass meat on a stick. If he isn't open there is another a block or three down.
posted by cedar at 2:05 PM on April 4, 2006


jessamyn wrote...
I think there is something about the asking of a question that suddenly makes you think of all the other questions you want to ask.

Yes yes yes. The very predictable outcome of allowing people to bank up questions and use them all at once would be flurries of questions from different people every week.



slater wrote...
How about making ppl pay for more than 1 question per week. First hit question is free, the next one will cost you $10?

I think there's a business model for some enterprising young student here. Register a few MeFi accounts, and auction off the ability to ask extra questions in any given week. Of course, your accounts would get banned pretty quickly, but you can always register more...

Oops, did I type that in and hit "post comment"? I was just thinking to myself.
posted by tkolar at 2:14 PM on April 4, 2006


here's an idea:

open a text file when you come up with a question you can't ask.

type it there and save it your documents folder or whereever.

if you come up with another one before the week's out, add it to the file.

when you have the opportunity to post again, you can even *rank* the questions according to quality, so the overall quality of questions on the site improves!

that, and you might google them in the intervening week and save everybody a bunch of time and TOPICS LIKE THIS ONE BEING FLOGGED TO DEATH.
posted by spiderwire at 2:26 PM on April 4, 2006


MeTa needs a sidebar showing all the topics that have been whipped on the kidneys with a big stick so often that they developed hematuria and coloured the probably original yellow background to an early blackwater fever murky drab. - peacay

Or, ya know, an official FAQ. I've heard there's one in development. I look forward to its arrival.
posted by raedyn at 2:27 PM on April 4, 2006


How about Matt just fucking respond to user demands every now and then?

[THIS USER HAS BEEN DELETED]
posted by keswick at 2:28 PM on April 4, 2006


a nicer way of putting that is that you *remembering* your questions costs you very little (and like you say, this is only an occasional problem for you) whereas *any* relaxation of the multiple-questions rule inevitably means more noise. if AskMe is that valuable a resource to you, contribute a little.

also, jesus, why make the system any more complex? are you jonesing for JRun errors or something?
posted by spiderwire at 2:29 PM on April 4, 2006


Hmmm, okay, how about this: You get an "extra question" (two in a week) once or twice a year. When you exercise this option, you cannot ask a question at all the next week. The extra questions option does not bank or roll over from year to year. I think that this would be a good compromise between "I neeeed to ask more than one question a week, sometimes" and "We don't want AskMe swamped with a flurry of questions."

Just a suggestion. I haven't really been unhappy with the current way of doing things. A couple of times, I've wished I could have more than one question a week. I just waited, and by the time I was able to post another question, I had forgotten all about it, so it must not have been all that vital.
posted by Shoeburyness at 3:05 PM on April 4, 2006


Is deadfather jessamyn's sockpuppet?
posted by Kwantsar at 3:21 PM on April 4, 2006


I'm pretty glad I can't ask a question every time I think of one. If I could bank questions, there would be weeks with a variety of inane questions posted by yours truely.
posted by necessitas at 3:23 PM on April 4, 2006


no.

[close]
posted by scarabic at 3:46 PM on April 4, 2006


Concept: one question a week is a privilege, not an entitlement. With >35K members and posts not even lasting 12 hours before they scroll off of the AskMe front page, the last thing we need is more ways to ask more questions.

Or yet another split (groan):
- MetaGeek, for computer, internet, and technology topics (since "computers and internet" is by far the most popular topic);
- DearMeta, for personal problems, or most anything that'd probably want to be asked anonymously;
- reg'lar old AskMe, for everything else.

- maybe a another, for "good restaurants in New York/London/Tokyo/etc.": EatMe.
posted by hangashore at 3:47 PM on April 4, 2006


Is deadfather jessamyn's sockpuppet?

No. I have only one, completely transparent, sock puppet which I use for whining.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 3:47 PM on April 4, 2006


Well, how about this then: One question per week, with an additional five "extra" questions per three years which are exempt from this rule. The extra questions reset the one week counter to two weeks, or one week if the first question got no answers, unless it was deleted. The second extra question can not be asked within one month of the first, and the third can not be asked within six months of the second or twelve months from the first, unless it occurs during a leap year in which case it may be asked no less than eight months from the first question, unless that question had more than ten answers and the questioner answered at least one other question in the first extra question interval. That would be cool.
posted by sfenders at 3:47 PM on April 4, 2006


How about Matt just fucking respond to user demands every now and then?

"Give me another question a week, or the little girl gets it!" I think Matt responds better to user requests.
posted by Roger Dodger at 3:48 PM on April 4, 2006


Yeah, poor choice of words. I'd go back and edit it, but hey....
posted by keswick at 3:55 PM on April 4, 2006


unless it occurs during a leap year in which case it may be asked no less than eight months from the first question

Does this include century years which are not leap years? I admire the simplicity and transparency of your proposal.

That would be cool.

Yeah - I've never seen a JRun server go thermonuclear. Wonder if it'd take down just Portland or the whole Pacific Northwest?
posted by hangashore at 3:56 PM on April 4, 2006


hey buddy, wanna buy a question?

...want another?
posted by spiderwire at 3:57 PM on April 4, 2006


>>Is deadfather jessamyn's sockpuppet?

No. I have only one, completely transparent, sock puppet which I use for whining.


mathowie has one of those, too.
posted by timeistight at 4:12 PM on April 4, 2006


I'll sell anyone a question for 3 bucks. That's 2 dollars off.
posted by puke & cry at 4:12 PM on April 4, 2006


This thread has already caused me to waste a bunch of time looking for that Calvin & Hobbes strip where Calvin has the free advice stand. No luck.

...Possibly the most relevant commentary ever on all AskMe-related complaints. Stupid internet.
posted by spiderwire at 4:23 PM on April 4, 2006


Banking and trading questions will create an economy. Which will get gamed. So, no, please don't.

Meanwhile, if you need to ask an extra question, why not ask for help from one of the squillions of users who aren't using theirs?
posted by majick at 4:54 PM on April 4, 2006


so like the old isnoop gmail invite spooler, maybe there should be (or is) a place you can ask a fellow metafilterite post a question?
posted by Izzmeister at 5:01 PM on April 4, 2006


There are so many "Just Fucking Google it" questions on askme already. If anything I hope the allotment gets cut back to 1 a month.
posted by 517 at 5:03 PM on April 4, 2006


Judging from your tags, why don't you try the newsgroups? There are plenty of targeted groups that I'm sure would be happy to answer your questions.

Business and Finance Newsgroups
posted by Roger Dodger at 5:07 PM on April 4, 2006


Tangentially: have y'all seen this? Not sure if it's a digg outgrowth or a digg-alike, and it somewhat a lot noisier than AskMe at this point, but clearly Ask-ing is sweeping the nation(s).
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 5:16 PM on April 4, 2006


...and by somewhat a lot, I mean kind of extremely, of course.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 5:16 PM on April 4, 2006


If only there were a way to:

1. Bank 1/4 of a question per month, up to a maximum of 3 banked questions (basically, a year's supply), non transferrable.

2. Prevent/screen more and more duplicates/easily googleable queries on AskMe to prevent scrolling off. Mini-mods with an approval queue just sounds like a nightmare, though.
posted by Eideteker at 6:08 PM on April 4, 2006


It wouldn't really change the 'flow' of askme too much if you could post two questions every two weeks, rather then one question a week, but people would be more willing to part with their questions, and that would lead to more noise.

I'd rather see something like, you can post two questions every three weeks. More flexible, but slower as well.
posted by delmoi at 6:13 PM on April 4, 2006


Like Garth Brooks once said, "Thank God for unasked AskMes".

Or something. He's got friends in low places, too.
posted by mr_crash_davis at 6:14 PM on April 4, 2006


If you paypal me $6 right now, not only will I ask the question for you under any username you desire, I'll even answer it. I might even throw in a free google search if you ask nicely.
posted by blue_beetle at 6:23 PM on April 4, 2006


Sfenders— How convenient! That's already how we figure out when Easter is!
posted by klangklangston at 6:57 PM on April 4, 2006


Remember that guy who "needed" more AskMes so he could ask how to prepare a dead snake? I'm pretty sure he was going to eat it.
posted by LarryC at 7:30 PM on April 4, 2006


I remember a MeTa thread where someone was asking an "Emergancy Question" about whether or not he should make up false tax returns before a job interview.
posted by delmoi at 7:55 PM on April 4, 2006


It's true. Too many people post ridiculous questions to AskMe -- questions easily answered via google or a search of the AskMe archives -- and that thumb-sucking obliviousness makes the entire forum less useful.

But what if I post an AskMe about finding really good burritos plus a naturopath veterinarian who will declaw my obese uncircumcised cat while I'm in San Francisco for the weekend, and then two days later I'm chained to a ticking time bomb, which is why I'm compelled to ask immediately about my long-term relationship with a partner who's completely wonderful except they won't have sex with me except when they're demanding orifice penetration every hour on the hour, and they won't bathe or get a job and they want me to co-sign a loan on a new Ford Exploitation, just to find out if that might be a good idea and whether we need therapy and anti-depressants or if we're better off with milk thistle and Pilates, and also if it's okay to torture the known terrorist who is the only person who can defuse the time bomb? And googling sets off the bomb. And so does searching the AskMe archives. What then?

You'll all be sorry when it happens to you.
posted by vetiver at 8:10 PM on April 4, 2006


If i had my way you would have to be active on the blue to even get a chance to ask a question. Lucky for you i'm not Matt...

Though you could e-mail someone and ask them to post your question. The 2 questions i have asked have been for other users. I dont see what could be so damn important that you could not either google for, search newsgroups for, or ask a real live friend or family member. But hey that might take some actual work.
posted by Dreamghost at 8:37 PM on April 4, 2006


So much bloody whining and wheedling.

Does anyone fricken listen? Question limits are an inconvenience for you(Yeah, YOU!) but it's good for AskMe.

Do the goddam math.




What's good for AskMe is, in the end, good for users.

posted by Alvy Ampersand at 8:38 PM on April 4, 2006


what does "." mean?
posted by edgeways at 8:47 PM on April 4, 2006


what does "." mean?

Silent assent, basically. Sometimes somewhat sullen.

It's also a period, often used for ending sentences
posted by spiderwire at 8:51 PM on April 4, 2006


...he also added alliteratively.
posted by spiderwire at 8:52 PM on April 4, 2006


Silent assent, basically. Sometimes somewhat sullen.

I can't tell if this is funny on purpose or by accident.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 9:11 PM on April 4, 2006


No, I'm just stupid.
posted by spiderwire at 9:18 PM on April 4, 2006


...not that I was totally unaware, I just... blanked. That's not really a defense. I'm stupid.

In other news, um... when did the Wiki get spammed?
posted by spiderwire at 9:24 PM on April 4, 2006


another stupid question: Last edited April 5, 2006 2:58 am by ip72-192-217-139.dc.dc.cox.net
posted by spiderwire at 9:28 PM on April 4, 2006


When is it not getting spammed? The only difference now is that RichardP's anti-spambot has been AWOL for a week or so. Mentioned here and here; some of us still flounder around with manual reverts here and there but it seems increasingly pointless.
posted by Gator at 9:30 PM on April 4, 2006


Rhetorical question. I just happened to notice while being embarrassed.

Excuse for my post but I do not have money to buy meal to my children. Forgive me please.

Where is the quality control?

posted by spiderwire at 9:32 PM on April 4, 2006


Evil to make money from spams
posted by Gator at 9:37 PM on April 4, 2006


On a related note, I sometimes need to post more than one "OMG BUNNY!" thread in a 30-minute period. Does anyone know of any site anywhere that might meet my needs?
posted by scarabic at 9:45 PM on April 4, 2006


Little Green Bunnyballs?
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 9:50 PM on April 4, 2006


(delicious in a stir-fry, I hear)
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 9:51 PM on April 4, 2006


I haven't read this thread at all, but I wish I had more than one MeTa thread a week, because then I could point out the apparent (and much lamented-- at least by me) retirement of Pot and Kettle.
posted by dersins at 11:15 PM on April 4, 2006


Aw, man! I loved Pot!



Kettle was a real prick, though.
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 11:21 PM on April 4, 2006


Sometimes I need more then one question a week...

No, you don't. You just THINK you NEEED to.
posted by Witty at 6:22 AM on April 5, 2006


... and to think I havent asked a question in over a week.

(uh oh... my fingers are itching...)
posted by Izzmeister at 7:07 AM on April 5, 2006


Yeah - I've never seen a JRun server go thermonuclear. Wonder if it'd take down just Portland or the whole Pacific Northwest?

Actually, it would take down Dallas, if I'm not mistaken.
posted by SteveInMaine at 7:20 AM on April 5, 2006


Sometimes I think we should limit AskMe to one answer a week.
posted by TedW at 7:20 AM on April 5, 2006


Sometimes I think we should limit AskMe to one answer a week.

Why?
posted by necessitas at 8:32 AM on April 5, 2006


For some reason, people often answer a question other than the one which was asked.
posted by TedW at 8:49 AM on April 5, 2006


« Older identify this photo   |   An updstanding community member Newer »

You are not logged in, either login or create an account to post comments