Who deserves a Gold Watch?

[Fandango 1,440]

One can also have boxes and hearts and not really be a part of the community - which goes back to the issue of where one "earned their stripes", if you like. LisaD mentioned that she sees them as a sign of how much time she has wasted on here - not everyone posts in the same places on the board. It is important IMO for people who don't venture into the more social places on the board (OT, for example) to have recognition as valuable members too, and to have a level of "immigration knowledge seniority", if you like, that the newer members can look up to.

I don't think hanging out in OT makes you 'not a part of the community'. There is a social aspect to it as well. OT/Polls/etc brings a little levity to this place...they make this place a bit less stressful and fun.

But I did mention the boxes as signs of how much time I'd wasted....speaking for myself only, because there was such a gap between joining here and filing...there was only so much real experience that I could bring to the other forums...and I kinda got stuck in at the GD forums. But I didn't mean it to sound like 'I wasted time with the people at VJ', more like 'I could have been doing something else home' and maybe limited my time in OT and the like by a little bit. What can I say, I'm a procrastinator with a lot of stuff

Don't get me wrong...I like OT. and I don't think there's anything wrong with the people who hang out there. They bring out the fun & silliness & that's a great stress reliever sometimes. And many times, there's interesting, informative, intelligent discussion there as well. It's good to not always have to think about 'MY VISA!!!!!!!!!!!!1'

I don't think the boxes and hearts show anything in terms of knowledge level....while they certainly point out the chattier members getting boxes and hearts even in places not in OT do not necessarily connotate an 'informed immigration' member. That would prolly be best decided by going through post history.

I think you misunderstood me a little, Lisa - what I meant was that there are people who don't play in OT at all but still have plenty of boxes and hearts, but because they don't hang around in OT they don't necessarily feel like they are part of the "established crew", if you like. I certainly believe that there is a wonderful social aspect to VJ, and since I'm now in the space between AOS of removal of conditions, I'm not nearly as active in the immigration side as I was. I'm just saying that maybe it would be better if OT/poll posts didn't count towards boxes and hearts, so that one could see how many posts were made out in the immigration forums as a measure of knowledge.

ITA...in fact I started a poll on that way back when...but not many agreed with me

And as far as the social aspect of it...you're right there as well...I think I did misunderstand what you were sayin. But we're on the same page now!

It's always going to be somewhat hit and miss, because as someone else mentioned, there are the "CONGRATS YOU ROCK LOL!!1!1!!1ONE!" posts that are still in the immigration sections. Checking post history is always going to be your best bet when deciding whether or not to take someone seriously. Yodrak, for example, is seen very rarely in OT, but because of the help he offers elsewhere he has the visual clout (boxes and hearts) to be seen as respectable. I've seen very few people poop on Yodrak.

Do you see what I'm getting at?

Yodrak rocks! And yeah, I do see what you're getting at. I'd be just as happy doing away with the hearts and boxes for everything....if one wants to see how knowledgeable a poster is, one would then HAVE to check post history.

Edited August 5, 2007 by LisaD

[Jamie76 0]

I'm a definite green horn. Our journey has really only started. I believe this forum is a place to exchange information. One thing that kind of bothers me is when someone asks a question and all they get is a "read the guides." That isn't the most friendly of hello's and welcome to the site in my opinion. It's a pretty good bet that a large majority of questions can be answered with the guides, but with that in mind, why have a forum? I've seen a question asked numerous times by numerous people and I still read the posts because I've actually learned something new many times.

If you know the answer, please answer it and then point them to the guides. Many already do this, but some don't. If you don't want to answer, then simply don't, I'm sure someone else will.

[Fandango 1,440]

I'm a definite green horn. Our journey has really only started. I believe this forum is a place to exchange information. One thing that kind of bothers me is when someone asks a question and all they get is a "read the guides." That isn't the most friendly of hello's and welcome to the site in my opinion. It's a pretty good bet that a large majority of questions can be answered with the guides, but with that in mind, why have a forum? I've seen a question asked numerous times by numerous people and I still read the posts because I've actually learned something new many times.

If you know the answer, please answer it and then point them to the guides. Many already do this, but some don't. If you don't want to answer, then simply don't, I'm sure someone else will.

I would normally be in huge agreement with you here, but I think I'm going to disagree and say that it depends on the thread.

I just saw a thread where in one post, the OP asked basically about the whole K-1 process. There's no way anyone here can adequately explain every aspect of this process in one reply. I did reply and point out that the guides would be helpful...only because it was clear....well I inferred...that the OP really didn't have a big grasp on the process, and imo extensive reading would benefit her.

[Jamie76 0]

I'm a definite green horn. Our journey has really only started. I believe this forum is a place to exchange information. One thing that kind of bothers me is when someone asks a question and all they get is a "read the guides." That isn't the most friendly of hello's and welcome to the site in my opinion. It's a pretty good bet that a large majority of questions can be answered with the guides, but with that in mind, why have a forum? I've seen a question asked numerous times by numerous people and I still read the posts because I've actually learned something new many times.

If you know the answer, please answer it and then point them to the guides. Many already do this, but some don't. If you don't want to answer, then simply don't, I'm sure someone else will.

I would normally be in huge agreement with you here, but I think I'm going to disagree and say that it depends on the thread.

I just saw a thread where in one post, the OP asked basically about the whole K-1 process. There's no way anyone here can adequately explain every aspect of this process in one reply. I did reply and point out that the guides would be helpful...only because it was clear....well I inferred...that the OP really didn't have a big grasp on the process, and imo extensive reading would benefit her.

I agree with you on that, but I'm talking general questions. If someone comes here asking about the whole process, then reading the guides would be most beneficial. General questions...I see if with new members all the time. It would make them feel more welcome if people would just answer them and point them in the right direction. If you can take the time to hit respond and put in your little emoticon that says "read the guides," surely you can take a few seconds to type out a sentence or two right? I sometimes wonder if people use the "read the guides" emoticon because they either want a post point or they don't know the answer themselves.

[Dr_LHA 3]

I agree the "read the guides" smiley thing is pretty annoying. If someone would really benefit from reading a guide, I at least point them to which guide they should read and polite suggest it, rather than just post that damn smiley.

[John & Annie 0]

I'm a definite green horn. Our journey has really only started. I believe this forum is a place to exchange information. One thing that kind of bothers me is when someone asks a question and all they get is a "read the guides." That isn't the most friendly of hello's and welcome to the site in my opinion. It's a pretty good bet that a large majority of questions can be answered with the guides, but with that in mind, why have a forum? I've seen a question asked numerous times by numerous people and I still read the posts because I've actually learned something new many times.

If you know the answer, please answer it and then point them to the guides. Many already do this, but some don't. If you don't want to answer, then simply don't, I'm sure someone else will.

I would normally be in huge agreement with you here, but I think I'm going to disagree and say that it depends on the thread.

I just saw a thread where in one post, the OP asked basically about the whole K-1 process. There's no way anyone here can adequately explain every aspect of this process in one reply. I did reply and point out that the guides would be helpful...only because it was clear....well I inferred...that the OP really didn't have a big grasp on the process, and imo extensive reading would benefit her.

I agree with you on that, but I'm talking general questions. If someone comes here asking about the whole process, then reading the guides would be most beneficial. General questions...I see if with new members all the time. It would make them feel more welcome if people would just answer them and point them in the right direction. If you can take the time to hit respond and put in your little emoticon that says "read the guides," surely you can take a few seconds to type out a sentence or two right? I sometimes wonder if people use the "read the guides" emoticon because they either want a post point or they don't know the answer themselves.

This is typically what I do. I usually answer the question, but also recommend reading the guides.

[Sinergy 3]

I'm a definite green horn. Our journey has really only started. I believe this forum is a place to exchange information. One thing that kind of bothers me is when someone asks a question and all they get is a "read the guides." That isn't the most friendly of hello's and welcome to the site in my opinion. It's a pretty good bet that a large majority of questions can be answered with the guides, but with that in mind, why have a forum? I've seen a question asked numerous times by numerous people and I still read the posts because I've actually learned something new many times.

If you know the answer, please answer it and then point them to the guides. Many already do this, but some don't. If you don't want to answer, then simply don't, I'm sure someone else will.

I would normally be in huge agreement with you here, but I think I'm going to disagree and say that it depends on the thread.

I just saw a thread where in one post, the OP asked basically about the whole K-1 process. There's no way anyone here can adequately explain every aspect of this process in one reply. I did reply and point out that the guides would be helpful...only because it was clear....well I inferred...that the OP really didn't have a big grasp on the process, and imo extensive reading would benefit her.

I agree with you on that, but I'm talking general questions. If someone comes here asking about the whole process, then reading the guides would be most beneficial. General questions...I see if with new members all the time. It would make them feel more welcome if people would just answer them and point them in the right direction. If you can take the time to hit respond and put in your little emoticon that says "read the guides," surely you can take a few seconds to type out a sentence or two right? I sometimes wonder if people use the "read the guides" emoticon because they either want a post point or they don't know the answer themselves.

This is typically what I do. I usually answer the question, but also recommend reading the guides.

same here