Dabombster
03-01-2009, 02:56 PM
Greetings. Today's lesson will be on how to make a good post, and even a good thread. Follow this helpful guide, and you shouldn't have any problems with the staff about your posting abilities in the future. So, let's get started.
How to make a good post
The purpose of being at a forum, or a community, is not to just get tons and tons of posts, but to contribute something to the conversation. A good post doesn't have to be deep, or incredibly long, but it should be well thought out and add something more to the conversation. Below is an example of what a good post would look like if we were discussing Ocarina of Time being the best Zelda game in the series.
Ocarina of Time was a great game and had a nice story to it. But for me, Ocarina of Time will never be the greatest Zelda game. It didn't add a whole lot to the series, and I feel that most people only enjoyed it because it was the first 3D Zelda game made, instead of valuing the actual game play or what it brought to the series. A Link to the Past will always hold the spot of best Zelda game for me because of what it's done for the rest of the series and for the mere fact that it was the first Zelda game I ever played.
Now keep in mind, a post doesn't have to be that long, but the longer the post is, the better it looks. I could have also easily said that Ocarina of Time was a good game but not the best in the series and that I preferred A Link to the Past better, but you can go into more detail like that if you like as well.
When you're posting, you want it to be something that keeps people's interest. It shouldn't be boring or simply quoting someone and typing "I agree" after it. You should say what you feel. If you think that what you were going to say has already been said, you can add more detail to it, or just not post. It's better to have 10 good posts than 100 bad ones.
Say that we were discussing the same topic of whether or not Ocarina of Time was the greatest game ever. Below is an example of a post that would not be considered good.
OMG! Ocarina of Time was the greatest game EVAH!
That type of post doesn't contribute anything to the conversation. Most people do not enjoy reading these kinds of posts, and immediately dismiss them because it makes you look like you don't know what you're talking about.
General Rules for Posting
A good post should be well structured. It should not have entire words capitalized, and it shouldn't have a lot of spelling errors and grammatical mistakes. We here at Zelda Dungeon understand that you are human just as much as we are, so we aren't going to get upset over a few spelling mistakes here and there, but if you're doing it all the time, it makes it so nobody wants to read what you're saying because it can be difficult to read.
How to Create a New Thread
Have something that you want to talk about? Well go ahead! Make a new thread! But before you do, there are a few things you should check for first.
Is there a thread like this one already? - If you want to talk about something, it's always a good idea to make sure there's not already an existing thread discussing it. At the top of the forums there is a Search Option. Simply click the down arrow next to the word search and type in what you're looking for. Look over the results page to make sure there's nothing already talking about what you would like to talk about. If there is, just post in that thread, if there isn't, go ahead and start a new thread. Always check to make sure there isn't an existing thread before making a new one.
Now if you checked to make sure there wasn't already a thread and want to post your topic, be sure it is in the proper forum. If I wanted to talk about Ocarina of Time being the greatest Zelda Game ever, I would post it in the 64-Bit Zelda forum, since that is where Ocarina of Time fits in. Simply click the text to get to that forum, then at the top and bottom of the page you should find a button that looks like this.
http://www.zeldadungeon.net/forum/images/Darkness/buttons/newthread.gif
When you click that button you will be brought to the 'Post New Thread' page. Where it says Title, type in what you want the thread to be called. If there is a prefix that fits the topic, you can choose one of those as well, but they're not required. In the large message box, you type what you want to say. Be sure to talk about what you're discussing, as well as what you think on the subject. Underneath the message box there is another smaller box for tags. Here you can add words to make it easier to find threads. This is recommended, but not required.
If you want to add a poll to the thread, under 'Additional Options' check where it says Post a Poll and be sure to adjust the number of options you're including with it. Once you're all set, click the 'Submit New Thread' button, and people will most likely post in the thread at a later time.
Good luck, and remember to make good, quality posts!
How to make a good post
The purpose of being at a forum, or a community, is not to just get tons and tons of posts, but to contribute something to the conversation. A good post doesn't have to be deep, or incredibly long, but it should be well thought out and add something more to the conversation. Below is an example of what a good post would look like if we were discussing Ocarina of Time being the best Zelda game in the series.
Ocarina of Time was a great game and had a nice story to it. But for me, Ocarina of Time will never be the greatest Zelda game. It didn't add a whole lot to the series, and I feel that most people only enjoyed it because it was the first 3D Zelda game made, instead of valuing the actual game play or what it brought to the series. A Link to the Past will always hold the spot of best Zelda game for me because of what it's done for the rest of the series and for the mere fact that it was the first Zelda game I ever played.
Now keep in mind, a post doesn't have to be that long, but the longer the post is, the better it looks. I could have also easily said that Ocarina of Time was a good game but not the best in the series and that I preferred A Link to the Past better, but you can go into more detail like that if you like as well.
When you're posting, you want it to be something that keeps people's interest. It shouldn't be boring or simply quoting someone and typing "I agree" after it. You should say what you feel. If you think that what you were going to say has already been said, you can add more detail to it, or just not post. It's better to have 10 good posts than 100 bad ones.
Say that we were discussing the same topic of whether or not Ocarina of Time was the greatest game ever. Below is an example of a post that would not be considered good.
OMG! Ocarina of Time was the greatest game EVAH!
That type of post doesn't contribute anything to the conversation. Most people do not enjoy reading these kinds of posts, and immediately dismiss them because it makes you look like you don't know what you're talking about.
General Rules for Posting
A good post should be well structured. It should not have entire words capitalized, and it shouldn't have a lot of spelling errors and grammatical mistakes. We here at Zelda Dungeon understand that you are human just as much as we are, so we aren't going to get upset over a few spelling mistakes here and there, but if you're doing it all the time, it makes it so nobody wants to read what you're saying because it can be difficult to read.
How to Create a New Thread
Have something that you want to talk about? Well go ahead! Make a new thread! But before you do, there are a few things you should check for first.
Is there a thread like this one already? - If you want to talk about something, it's always a good idea to make sure there's not already an existing thread discussing it. At the top of the forums there is a Search Option. Simply click the down arrow next to the word search and type in what you're looking for. Look over the results page to make sure there's nothing already talking about what you would like to talk about. If there is, just post in that thread, if there isn't, go ahead and start a new thread. Always check to make sure there isn't an existing thread before making a new one.
Now if you checked to make sure there wasn't already a thread and want to post your topic, be sure it is in the proper forum. If I wanted to talk about Ocarina of Time being the greatest Zelda Game ever, I would post it in the 64-Bit Zelda forum, since that is where Ocarina of Time fits in. Simply click the text to get to that forum, then at the top and bottom of the page you should find a button that looks like this.
http://www.zeldadungeon.net/forum/images/Darkness/buttons/newthread.gif
When you click that button you will be brought to the 'Post New Thread' page. Where it says Title, type in what you want the thread to be called. If there is a prefix that fits the topic, you can choose one of those as well, but they're not required. In the large message box, you type what you want to say. Be sure to talk about what you're discussing, as well as what you think on the subject. Underneath the message box there is another smaller box for tags. Here you can add words to make it easier to find threads. This is recommended, but not required.
If you want to add a poll to the thread, under 'Additional Options' check where it says Post a Poll and be sure to adjust the number of options you're including with it. Once you're all set, click the 'Submit New Thread' button, and people will most likely post in the thread at a later time.
Good luck, and remember to make good, quality posts!