What can we non experts do to make beta successful?

Question

Since I am novice to MMA, what can I do to help mathematica.stackexchange.com in this beta version?

I mean is it better to ask pre-intermediate or intermediate level question, or not to ask a question at all.

Or is there any other way we can help?

This has become more of an issue as we grow - we probably need more intermediate users. Incidentally balboa still visits the site regularly and was last seen two days ago (on mma.SE not on meta). — Verbeia, May 22, 2012 at 23:05

tlehman · Accepted Answer · 2012-01-17 22:33:37Z

33

In my opinion, it's better to ask real questions that you have about mathematica, not worrying about the level of expertise.

answered Jan 17, 2012 at 22:33

tlehman

2,12411 silver badges5 bronze badges

1

I must second this, and I'd third it, if I had the votes.
– rcollyer
Jan 17, 2012 at 22:49
9

And please...let's remember to upvote the questions, not just the answers!
– whuber
Jan 17, 2012 at 23:24
6

Agreed. Even veterans can learn from solutions given to naive pre-intermediate questions. Many professional programmers have bad habits and fossilized methods which they are reluctant to change until facing the optimal solution.
– István Zachar
Jan 17, 2012 at 23:36
1

Agree with both the answer and all comments. The best question is a real question you have. No need to make up questions just to push the site, as you can see we're not short on them at all :-)
– Szabolcs
Jan 18, 2012 at 1:13
@IstvánZachar +1 on the "bad habits" issues. See this question of mine where I learned about my own.
– Verbeia
Jan 18, 2012 at 5:41
My impression is that "easy" or "general" questions receive many varied answers, which is excellent if you're learning (like me). There is no substitute for effort, but there's no point in reinventing the wheel...
– CHM
Feb 12, 2012 at 2:52

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David · Accepted Answer · 2012-01-18 04:28:04Z

12

If your question isn't answered by typing it into a search engine or in the Mathematica help, it's probably intermediate enough to be asked here.

answered Jan 18, 2012 at 4:28

David

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Some of the shorthand notations, like @ and /@ are impossible to search for.
– rcollyer
Jan 18, 2012 at 14:50
Searching for @//@ yields one result each, which is the help page for Prefix/Map.
– David
Jan 18, 2012 at 15:32
Sorry, I meant searchable in Google. Of course they're searchable in the help.
– rcollyer
Jan 20, 2012 at 19:03

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2 Answers 2