Re: Notes Status, 24899 total

> On Aug 15, 2020, at 13:43, Rowan Tommins <[email protected]> wrote:
> 
> On 15/08/2020 19:02, Ben Ramsey wrote:
>> Perhaps the time of user notes in the PHP manual has come and gone, and
>> maybe it would be best to direct folks with questions to the `[php]`
>> tag on Stack Overflow. Better yet (maybe), each manual page/section
>> could specify a unique tag for that part of the manual, which would
>> make it easier to link users to the answers they’re looking for.
> 
> 
> Hi Ben,
> 
> I would be very cautious about pushing Stack Overflow as a replacement for all user notes, rather than a supplement to them (or to something else). It's very easy to lead users into posting questions which are not welcome on Stack Overflow, leading to a lose-lose situation - the user is frustrated, Stack Overflow users have more moderation to do, and the blame falls on php.net. This is common enough that there is an official help page about it: https://stackoverflow.com/help/product-support
> 
> 
> I think there are two closely linked problems with user notes right now:
> 
> * It's not very clear what their purpose is. There is a long list of things _not_ to do when you enter one, but no summary of what they _should_ be for.
> * There is no active moderation. The rules on the submission page aren't enforced, suggestions aren't incorporated into the manual, and out-dated and massively downvoted comments are never deleted. I've actually no idea who has the ability to moderate them, or how that process is supposed to work.
> 
> 
> Rather than getting rid of notes, I think we should look at how to improve that process. For instance, as we move towards git for the manual itself, we could have a system where a PR could list the notes that it makes redundant, and automatically delete them once approved. Then we could embrace edit suggestions as comments (rather than directing people to the bug tracker), and encourage people to raise a PR incorporating those suggestions.


I think you’re right. User notes aren’t intended as a place to ask
questions and get answers. They are intended to supplement the examples
in the manual, and many of them are valuable for this reason. Perhaps
when we make it easier to contribute to the manual (through Git, etc.),
more users will be able to provide updates to the manual instead of
adding user notes.

Cheers,
Ben

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