Scratchpad: A Better Way to Search Against Your Thread Idea (without getting villified)

[Tall Hobbit]

Have not seen this anywhere, which is actually the point of this thread:

I suggest the forums add the functionality of a 'scratchpad' section, where rough drafts of your thread idea can be posted, letting you see 'similar threads' below, but without members ragging on you for not properly using the search function. (which is a bit awkward depending) I have no need of posting a fresh thread on an old subject, do you?

These threads could have an expiration date, say 48 hours, and be excluded from search results by default. If there's a way for OP to delete your own threads, I haven't discovered it.

Thoughts, enhancements, complaints anyone?

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[RideSolo]

Excellent idea!

 

[Carlitos_92]

No objection, but it'd be even better if there was just a sticky or some sort of forum tutorial on using the search function. The search function needs some good PR.

I've heard complaints from others about how useless the search function is, yet I have no problem hunting things down... And no, I'm not bragging about that, but I do think there is a huge skillset gap in just "searching" (whether on the internet, or this forum, or in the owners manual) that does not automatically indict any of those search tools as being useless. The tool is there; some people get it, and some don't. Starting up the scratchpad is a fine idea, but then you've got to trust that people will make use of that and figure out how to use it... and I am not optimistic about that.

Anyway, I'm all for any attempt at improvement. The grand irony is that every time someone makes a new thread without searching for previous threads on the exact same topic, it makes the search function less and less useful. Making the haystack bigger is not a good strategy for finding the needle.

 

[Cancunbadlands]

I like to answer the same question over and over
That makes my brain feel better and useful

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