Hello, seekers of good answers to burning questions! It has come to my attention that an official guide to using the new Answers feature is necessary in order to prevent abuse of this fabulous new fun feature.
I stumbled across fanfly's question about the link for this feature and answered the question with a list of five things I think are the most important to keep in mind. Urged by germany123 to make it into a soapbox, I present to you the Official Rules of the Fanpop Answers Feature.
1) If you know the answer to the question, don't ask. This should be fairly clear already, but answers are for questions you NEED ANSWERING, not ones that you already know and want to quiz others. In fact, believe it or not, we already have a place where you can do that! It's called the "quiz" section.
2) If you're asking an opinion, make a pick instead. I've already seen some opinion related "Answers" questions. I'm not talking about, "What's the best way to make mac and cheese" kind of opinions (those can be "Answers" questions), I'm talking, "Did you know that the actress who plays Sharon appears in two episodes after her character's death?" These are not "Answers" questions because there is no question being asked. All a fan can do is say, "Yeah, I noticed," or "No, I didn't." This is probably better served as a pick question, when there aren't multiple answers or explanations that can be employed.
3) If you don't know the answer, don't answer the question. Responding just to say, "Oooh, I was wondering that, too!" or "Oh, I don't know, but I hope you figure it out" are not helpful to the asker, or anyone else for that matter. Either add your own answer to the question, or add on to what someone has previously said.
4) If it's been said, don't be a broken record. If a question has been sufficiently answered, and you agree with that answer, instead of answering again, VOTE FOR THAT AS THE BEST ANSWER. Makes sense, doesn't it? You agree, and it probably is the best answer. Don't be a glory whore and repeat what someone's already said.
5) If you think someone has it wrong, correct them. Just because a question has been answered several times doesn't mean it's necessarily been CORRECTLY answered. Feel free to add on to other people's answers or to correct someone whose answered incorrectly. It's OK to politely say, "Actually, the film was released in June, not October." Or, "In addition to what amazondebs said, this actor can also be seen in this series of movies." People won't beat you with a stick. I promise.
So there you have it, the five main guidelines to stick to when asking questions in the Answers feature. What do you think? Do you agree? Disagree? Do you have any rules you'd like to add?
I stumbled across fanfly's question about the link for this feature and answered the question with a list of five things I think are the most important to keep in mind. Urged by germany123 to make it into a soapbox, I present to you the Official Rules of the Fanpop Answers Feature.
1) If you know the answer to the question, don't ask. This should be fairly clear already, but answers are for questions you NEED ANSWERING, not ones that you already know and want to quiz others. In fact, believe it or not, we already have a place where you can do that! It's called the "quiz" section.
2) If you're asking an opinion, make a pick instead. I've already seen some opinion related "Answers" questions. I'm not talking about, "What's the best way to make mac and cheese" kind of opinions (those can be "Answers" questions), I'm talking, "Did you know that the actress who plays Sharon appears in two episodes after her character's death?" These are not "Answers" questions because there is no question being asked. All a fan can do is say, "Yeah, I noticed," or "No, I didn't." This is probably better served as a pick question, when there aren't multiple answers or explanations that can be employed.
3) If you don't know the answer, don't answer the question. Responding just to say, "Oooh, I was wondering that, too!" or "Oh, I don't know, but I hope you figure it out" are not helpful to the asker, or anyone else for that matter. Either add your own answer to the question, or add on to what someone has previously said.
4) If it's been said, don't be a broken record. If a question has been sufficiently answered, and you agree with that answer, instead of answering again, VOTE FOR THAT AS THE BEST ANSWER. Makes sense, doesn't it? You agree, and it probably is the best answer. Don't be a glory whore and repeat what someone's already said.
5) If you think someone has it wrong, correct them. Just because a question has been answered several times doesn't mean it's necessarily been CORRECTLY answered. Feel free to add on to other people's answers or to correct someone whose answered incorrectly. It's OK to politely say, "Actually, the film was released in June, not October." Or, "In addition to what amazondebs said, this actor can also be seen in this series of movies." People won't beat you with a stick. I promise.
So there you have it, the five main guidelines to stick to when asking questions in the Answers feature. What do you think? Do you agree? Disagree? Do you have any rules you'd like to add?
