New users being directed to 'search' before the rest of the site.....?

[Zacs-Master]

As many people seem to ignore or forget that this sites name is AnswerBANK and consequestly post questions to which there have already been valid answers, would it be better to 'present' new users with a search page only for their first question to enable them to check, rather than the whole site? If they didn't find what they were looking for (why has a U2 song just popped into my head?) they could then be presented with a notice asking 'Did you find your answer and if they click 'NO' they would then be directed to the rest of the site. Just a thought.

I appreciate that some topics have answers which change as technology or discoveries etc develop.

Ed - I'm sure you could still have adverts on it, if this was an issue.

[ChuckFickens]

There used to be a prompt when you entered a question asking "are you looking for this" and then a list of possible previous questions was displayed.

The list was normally wildly inaccurate though.

[Bazile]

Supermarkets , dont want people just to go in and go straight to the product they want and then leave - rather they want people to go in and wander around the store during which you will end up buying a basket full of products , rather than just the one item you originally intended to buy.

Similarilly in a way , those in AB towers want the new user to stay longer on the site - and hopefully will then likely to remain a regular user

[factor-fiction]

Yes it would help declutter AB a bit, especially at weekends where the same crossword clues crop up repeatedly, if more people used the search box, but that applies to existing users too.

I joined AB to ask a query and may never have returned if I hadn't interacted with others on my first few visits and explored what was available

[vivandorron]

I regularly use the search box. However, sometimes there are not any answers from ABers but a list of other sites is displayed; some of which are identified by my 'WOT add-on' as "This site has a poor reputation".

Ron.

[Lie-in King]

I tend to stay mainly in "Crosswords" & "Q & P" & have frankly never understood why this seems to be such a problem for people.

"Oh no, the Search Box has been ignored! This foul desecrater of the Holy Writ must be put in their place with a firm reminder!"

Losing "Use the Search facility", "Already answered many times", "Google it yourself", "Have you never heard of Google?" etc would de-clutter the place nicely IMO.

Oh & AB opens the front page with -

"Ask questions and get real answers from real people. Whether practical or just for fun get answers to your questions."

You can't get interaction from a Search Box...

[mike11111]

When I first joined this site some users would reply to a question with a mini screen shot which began: "Let me Google that for you, how hard was that?"
Although never on the receiving end of it I would have been less than chuffed if I had been.

[Zacs-Master]

Steady on Lie-in-King, it was just a 'suggestion'.

You can't get interaction from a Search Box...
No but you might get the answer to your question much faster. Not everyone want's to 'interact'.

People would still be getting answers from 'real people' just not in 'real time'.

[Mamyalynne]

I can see where you are coming from, and think that type of thing works fine on a purely technical or practical site. However the site is so much more 'rounded' than that, a lot of questions attract conversation and chat and people get to understand each other.
From the Ed's point of view, if someone just happened by the site and the search solved their query, they may not return and members is what keeps this going.

As for 'Q&P' - I have to agree with Maj (am sure it was not pointed at you personally Zacs) - the constant.....'asked and answered, use search' etc. can get irritating. I sometimes reply 'Answered earlier as blah blah' or give a link, simply to give the original solver the credit.

[boxtops]

I do what you do, mamya, provide the link to earlier answers - if you're on here often enough, you pick up what's been answered already.

[Lie-in King]

Hi Zacs-Master - of course I know it was only a suggestion, my reply was not aimed at you & I'm quite steady, thanks :-)

My point is that I don't like the kind of responses I quoted above & feel that a new user being directed to a search page as their introduction to AB would amount to much the same thing.

There also exists the problem of a new user placing their first Q in say, "Chatterbank", where the problem of duplication is rare, frankly. I'm far from qualified to say with certainty, but doubt it would be easy for the techs to install your proposal on a "per topic" basis.

As I'm only speaking with regard to "Q & P" & "Crosswords", as to the user getting a (possibly) faster response, I'm convinced that AB'ers are unbeatable when it comes to a speedy reply!

mamya & boxy - fair enough, but I just find it easier to retype the answer than to hunt for a previous example :-)

"As many people seem to ignore or forget that this sites name is AnswerBANK..."

Don't most banks insist on a deposit before one can make a withdrawal?