Recurring threads bringin' ya down?? (1st uke, Strings, LowG etc)

• What kind of ukulele should I buy?
• What are the best strings?
• Re-entrant or LowG tuning?
• Is NotoriousMOK really THAT notorious?

We've all seen threads with the above (and similar) titles, and I've noticed a colorful mix of responses when they come about. Some who have been around a while have commented on this redundancy with varying levels of concern or even frustration, so I thought I'd stand on the box for a moment and express a few thoughts on this subject.

This site and this forum exist to encourage people to recognize the ukulele as a serious and versatile musical instrument AND to help those same people establish and hone their playing skills. WE ALL SHARE a common love for this 4ish-stringed little wonder, and have a desire to express ourselves through the music an ukulele will help us create. So please remember that this is why we are here and why Ukulele Underground has been and will continue to be successful to this end.

Okay, so Joe FirstUke (our model for this thread) starts a thread with a question that has been 'done before'. He searched the web, found our site and even survived the registration process. Our boy Joe has demonstrated an ability to navigate the web and use some form of search tool. If, or more importantly, HOW we respond to this first(ish) post will form the BASIS of Joe's opinion of our community.

"BUT we could well end up with lots of these types of posts!!" -- SO WHAT? Really now, what is the worst that could happen here (be realistic)? I guess what I'm trying to say is if you don't have something constructive to offer or new friend, Joe FirstUke, to greet him by making him feel like a jerk for asking question #1 does NOTHING for you, and tells poor, vulnerable Joe and his delicate feelings to go piss himself. He certainly does not refer Jane FirstUke to come check us out either (and rumor has it that she's pretty HOT).

-OR-

You can choose not to respond at all. This saves Joe's feelings and allows you to get on with your day. We are 2000+ registered users strong now. 'Fret' not, somebody here will help quench Joe's thirst, and the world will continue to spin.

-OR-

You can greet Joe with a hearty welcome and help him. Often times, people don't even know their needs and need somebody to help them discover what they are. Joe's happy and well on his way to ukulele greatness (just like me), you get a warm-fuzzy for helping somebody, Joe FirstUke goes on to refer all his friends and the forum continues to grow like crazy, producing the next generation of people who can answer these types of questions so you can take a break.

A really cool evolution that I have noticed within this phenomenon is that, with this practice, we as a group are becoming much more efficient and informative as the forum grows. Joe FirstUke can be referred to a wide variety of past threads, uke reviews, or even our own videos that cover these subjects in great detail, or he can get the input from somebody with a fresh and exciting spin on what seemed 'old hat' to others. I think this is awesome! Through sharing, we are becoming better musicians, better educators, and better representatives of this exciting community.

UU is a very inviting environment, people want to join in, and in some cases I'm sure this type of question can just be their way to stand up and say hello, reaching out to engage in any form of conversation with this wonderful group.

Again, this is why we are here, this is why we are successful, and this is what turns 'guests' into 'registered users'. I'm happy to have found this site, and proud to be a part of this community.

SPREAD THE LOVE - REPRESENT :rock:

I feel that just giving the new member the link to the previous thread will help them go in the right direction and get them lots of useful info on topics such as strings and first uke advice..

gonna start seeing the big forum problems if this keeps up.....

ie. mass spam ads and p*** links.

This forum has so much less activity and so many fewer new threads than the other (non ukulele) forums I frequent, that it doesn't seem to be that much of a problem to me. New threads are easy to ignore or take a quick look at and respond to if so inclined.

I am glad I got some friendly answers the first time I came around. :music:

UKESTAR said:

I feel that just giving the new member the link to the previous thread will help them go in the right direction and get them lots of useful info on topics such as strings and first uke advice..

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I'm still new and still have a ton to learn so I know what it's like having a ton of questions but....

If it's a very specific question - how would a 1993 Kamaka Soprano with a tenor neck sound with Aquilas on the first two strings and Worths on the the bottom two string, played lefty, in the rain, on a roller coaster, then it's ok.

Questions shouldn't be too general - what ukulele should I get? That's too general. How about some parameters - size preference, price range, do you need electronics, etc.

JoeFirstPost - Anyone have tabs for the following 85 songs? Google is a wonderful tool. Sites like chordie actually convert guitar chords to ukulele chords. seeso should get paid for every tab he does.

A bigger "big forum" problem are the typical trolls and 13-year olds at heart. Those are tougher to deal with than just deleting spam posts and auto-banning those spammers. My original "home" forum is overrun with them.

This isn't said as nicely as it was in the OP, but here's the ever-classic Posting and You flash that was made for another forum, that just seems applicable to forums everywhere.

Posting and You.

Plainsong - That's an awesome link!!!!

BWAHAHAHA!! Plainsong that was hilarious!! Good find!

BTW - here's a pretty good one too.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=4Xs8HWN6UyE

I've been wondering this for a while.

If the regulars are so sick of answering the same questions over and over. Why don't we make a sticky thread called "FAQ"?

It could include a general buyers guide to ukes (a bit about different sizes, the importants of trying before you can buy whenever possible, MGM as an alternative for those who can't try before buying, and a link to our review section.) Then there could be similar breakdowns for strings (which are brighter, which more mellow and discovering via trial and error which work best for your particular tastes... etc. etc. etc.)

Other than that, I think another common post is "What do you think about this uke?" Why not make a sticky call: "What do you think about this uke? POST QUESTIONS HERE." and have people post links and get feedback all in one place?

All in all, I've nothing against multiple posts. But I am also against snarky remarks from fed up people.

So... that's my two cent idea of a solution.

Valerie - great suggestions.

Sorry about my snarky remarks, I can't help it, I'm a snarky kinda guy.

Stickies FTW

With YMMV disclaimers all around because 9/10ths of choices in ukuleles and strings and scale size and tuning and the rest of the whole nine yards of Ukuleledom is entirely subjective and what works for one might not for somebody else.

Stickies as a resource for people to refer to in order to make their own informed decisions.

What's interesting to me is that the same questions often end in very different discussions...

Not to say that recommending the Kala KA-S over and over again (just 'cause it was my first, and I think it's a good beginner instrument...) doesn't get old...

But-- in academics, people always worry about getting "scooped"-- if you find out there's another academic at a university across the country working on the same topic as you, you tend to panic, and think you can't work on it anymore, or that if they get theirs published before yours, you'll be dead in the water.

But the thing is, no two people, even if they're looking at all the same data, will come to the exact same conclusion. Plus, they'll probably be working with some data you don't have, and vice versa. The end results will be pretty different, and as long as that's the case, the argument that what you're doing is relevant will only be helped if there's other people working on the same thing.

This is all long and tangential, but the thing is, while "what's a good ukulele" is a pretty broad and oft-repeated question, once you coax a bit more information out of them, it can go in 1000 different directions-- how much are you willing to spend? What size appeals to you, and why? What kind of music are you looking to play?

It would be nice if we could get people to just start out with that information, but even if you post an FAQ, it's not always going to help. New members are the hardest to train-- they don't always have a sense of forum etiquette, a good idea of what questions have been asked a million times, etc.

I understand the frustration, but I hope we don't become a place that's hostile to newcomers...

(This is what I said in the post about the new beginner's section, and I hope it doesn't upset or offend...)

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How many mods are there? Given UU's near-exponential growth, might it be a good idea to add a couple more, so as to lessen the load of those who currently (and capably) perform the task, moving threads, etc.?

Plainsong – LOL. That should be required viewing for EVERYONE new to forums.

My only cautionary note is that when anything gets too big it becomes unmanageable. like the trade deficit. We will just have to see where the UU Kingdom leads.

As to the OP, UU is very active and with time zone differences there is always something/someone new popping up. So, many noob's will be answering the newer noob's questions. That's great and allows everyone to feel involved.

But if you have an insight, even tho you've got 23,248 posts to your credit, it's always a pleasure to help where and when you can. Afterall, that's why we're here.

tad said:

How many mods are there? Given UU's near-exponential growth, might it be a good idea to add a couple more, so as to lessen the load of those who currently (and capably) perform the task, moving threads, etc.?

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Volunteers? All management has to do is say the word and I'm sure they'd get some "air" support.

Is it that hard to just link the person asking the question to the appropriate thread? I'll probably end up making a "Buyers Guide" Board so people can ask their uke buying questions but until then, be gently with the people new to the board. We were all newbies here at one time.

rayan said:

Is it that hard to just link the person asking the question to the appropriate thread? I'll probably end up making a "Buyers Guide" Board so people can ask their uke buying questions but until then, be gently with the people new to the board. We were all newbies here at one time.

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this seems to be a better option, rather than sending links to something different... I been here for like 5 months and i still ask the same stuff because i either forget or sick of looking for the thread for an hour and loose my temper -.- still improving

i agree in saying that people should search before they ask questions, but the minimum 4 letter search requirement makes it a smidge difficult.

Oh yeah, I agree. So many forums using the same software with that limitation.

Also, if we all posted reviews of our ukes in the Reviews section of the website, we could post links to them when anyone asks about that particular uke instead of having to write about it again and again. I noticed when I posted my second review that there aren't many there yet, and that section would be so helpful for new players.