Just thought I'd add my "vote" about what you should and shouldn't be polling in my opinion.
I hate polls like "what graphics card vendor would you pick" because (to me) it is meaningless drivel because the poll doesn't capture any of the assumptions behind that choice.
What I'd like to see polling on (or data collection if you will) is
actual technical results seen by users, or feedback on the quality of the articles, etc... So, if you're doing a OC article on i7 processors, how about a poll asking people what overclock they've achieved? This would be far more useful information than "what graphics card will you buy?".
Just out of curiositiness (sp?), I notice every question in this poll had the option "I don't care" and there is a sizeable minority who chose that answer for each question. I'm wondering if anyone who took the time to complete the poll actually answered "I don't care" for every question, and if so, why they even bothered doing it in the first place :)
Rather like answering a poll on political beliefs, when actually you have no interest in politics whatsoever and probably don't understand half the questions anyway. I guess there is some statistical significance in people who complete polls they have no interest in, though, even if that some people need to find better things to do with their life.
An "I don't care" option is very useful because in fact, many people may want a poll but not care about certain particulars of implementation, and if they don't care they shouldn't be forced to pick anything that may taint the results. Suppose I want a frost-free, fridge/freezer combo, but I don't care if the handles have chrome trim compared to other factors.
1. Poll when you think it's worthwhile -or- whenever you get several requests for polling on a given topic.
2. Use as many questions as it takes to answer a given topic, but stick with one topic per poll.
3. PLEASE!!! No friggin' popups!!!
4. A week is probably about right. One day may result in many people missing an opportunity to participate, while one month and indefinitely don't really give you anything to work with - assuming you intend to take some action based on the results of the poll.
5. Definitely leave the results visible indefinitely, but make sure you tag them with the date(s) of the polling in case you revisit the same topics again.
6. A permanent polling spot may work if you can find enough appropriate topics, but if you have to make a choice I'd rather that you have good polls instead of frequent ones.
Why is the Articles tab on your site front page filled with blog posts, when there's a Blog tab right next to it? I don't think it's good to blur the lines between articles and blog posts. I'd like to see a very clear separation (including different RSS feeds).
OT I know, but I've been meaning to give this feedback for some time and just haven't ever found a place to do so.
I think you should put a "View Results" option somewhere too. I've answered this poll from work and now, being at home, I can't view the updated results.
I'm sure you guys are already aware of this, but the polls aren't working 100% as intended. When I first navigated to this page, I saw the poll results, then when I refreshed I was able to answer the poll. With yesterday's poll, after I submitted my responses, a few times I came back to the page and was prompted to fill out the poll again, instead of seeing the results. Refreshing cured this.
Hi,
I see a lot of complaints about spelling errors which seem to be a huge pet peeve to many readers here. It is important and it does effect a readers impression when there are errors in an article. But I for one understand that you folks are computer engineers and not journalists or English majors. We all went to college. We can all knuckle down a put a paragraph together. I'd rather you kept doing your job well and hired an editor to type up your notes. I have noticed a few errors in articles but they seem to be corrected fairly quickly. My biggest complaint is the number of articles being posted. You haven't posted a Linux article since 2004. I promise you I will ignore a missed comma if you put some news up.
1. I voted weekly for the number of polls - if there had been an option for "as is suitable" - I would have selected it. To get the readership engaged in polling and provide meaningful feedback, I think it is important not to have too many polls and it quickly becomes a chore to read an article and eventually only a small number will repeatedly fill the polls in.
2. Weekly for poll length - having 1 new poll a week with the voting open until next weeks poll keeps things simple. It should also be useful for providing time-stamped snapshots of reader opinion for future reference. For example, in a year you might want to revisit a topic to see how opinion has changed - with only a 1 week poll window as opposed to unrestricted polling, the 12 month old data won't change over time as opinion changes.
3. I voted No for a permanent polling spot on the front page... in hindsight I think that was a mistake - if there was a link to "this week's story and poll" I think it would work quite well.
Second time you have done this, so I figured I'd mention it. Taylor is a name, tailor is the verb you are looking for in "help us tailor this new tool."
thanks for pointing that out. i have an extremely unhealthy dependence on spell check which doesn't usually catch it when i'm just being stupid :-) i'll do my best to remember that from now on ...
If you're going to keep the results around for more than a month or so, just set up a separate page for previous results. Move results there a month or so after the poll closes.
If a poll is included with a specific article, move the results & leave a link from the article to the results. That way someone reading the article a while later can still find the results but I think there is value in having a central listing for all results.
BTW, there's an "Uber system poll" that takes place about once a year in the General Hardware forum. I find it very interesting to take a look in there each year and get an idea for how people's systems are progressing in general (looking at large shifts in speed, capacity & cores from year to year). If you ran a poll like this on the main page you'd get tons of data that would show nice trends from year to year.
"If you're going to keep the results around for more than a month or so, just set up a separate page for previous results. Move results there a month or so after the poll closes."
I second! And could you have a search function too?
Strictly speaking, it is called sarcasm if it is deliberate, but yes, I do believe that was his intent. Irony is when someone said something intending it to be correct, but contained either an accidental error which could change its meaning to something unintended, or an overlooked interpretation of the statement which often results in it being seen as other than intended.
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ZmaxDP - Monday, February 2, 2009 - link
Just thought I'd add my "vote" about what you should and shouldn't be polling in my opinion.I hate polls like "what graphics card vendor would you pick" because (to me) it is meaningless drivel because the poll doesn't capture any of the assumptions behind that choice.
What I'd like to see polling on (or data collection if you will) is
actual technical results seen by users, or feedback on the quality of the articles, etc... So, if you're doing a OC article on i7 processors, how about a poll asking people what overclock they've achieved? This would be far more useful information than "what graphics card will you buy?".
Thanks!
Spivonious - Monday, February 2, 2009 - link
I think a weekly poll related to current articles/reviews would be good. Close voting as soon as a new poll is up, but show results forever.Having a poll in every article would become very annoying.
PrinceGaz - Saturday, January 31, 2009 - link
Just out of curiositiness (sp?), I notice every question in this poll had the option "I don't care" and there is a sizeable minority who chose that answer for each question. I'm wondering if anyone who took the time to complete the poll actually answered "I don't care" for every question, and if so, why they even bothered doing it in the first place :)Rather like answering a poll on political beliefs, when actually you have no interest in politics whatsoever and probably don't understand half the questions anyway. I guess there is some statistical significance in people who complete polls they have no interest in, though, even if that some people need to find better things to do with their life.
mindless1 - Sunday, February 1, 2009 - link
An "I don't care" option is very useful because in fact, many people may want a poll but not care about certain particulars of implementation, and if they don't care they shouldn't be forced to pick anything that may taint the results. Suppose I want a frost-free, fridge/freezer combo, but I don't care if the handles have chrome trim compared to other factors.mmatis - Friday, January 30, 2009 - link
than some of the choices you offered:1. Poll when you think it's worthwhile -or- whenever you get several requests for polling on a given topic.
2. Use as many questions as it takes to answer a given topic, but stick with one topic per poll.
3. PLEASE!!! No friggin' popups!!!
4. A week is probably about right. One day may result in many people missing an opportunity to participate, while one month and indefinitely don't really give you anything to work with - assuming you intend to take some action based on the results of the poll.
5. Definitely leave the results visible indefinitely, but make sure you tag them with the date(s) of the polling in case you revisit the same topics again.
6. A permanent polling spot may work if you can find enough appropriate topics, but if you have to make a choice I'd rather that you have good polls instead of frequent ones.
LokutusofBorg - Friday, January 30, 2009 - link
Why is the Articles tab on your site front page filled with blog posts, when there's a Blog tab right next to it? I don't think it's good to blur the lines between articles and blog posts. I'd like to see a very clear separation (including different RSS feeds).OT I know, but I've been meaning to give this feedback for some time and just haven't ever found a place to do so.
nirolf - Friday, January 30, 2009 - link
I think you should put a "View Results" option somewhere too. I've answered this poll from work and now, being at home, I can't view the updated results.UNHchabo - Friday, January 30, 2009 - link
I'm sure you guys are already aware of this, but the polls aren't working 100% as intended. When I first navigated to this page, I saw the poll results, then when I refreshed I was able to answer the poll. With yesterday's poll, after I submitted my responses, a few times I came back to the page and was prompted to fill out the poll again, instead of seeing the results. Refreshing cured this.Joe Schmoe - Friday, January 30, 2009 - link
Hi,
I see a lot of complaints about spelling errors which seem to be a huge pet peeve to many readers here. It is important and it does effect a readers impression when there are errors in an article. But I for one understand that you folks are computer engineers and not journalists or English majors. We all went to college. We can all knuckle down a put a paragraph together. I'd rather you kept doing your job well and hired an editor to type up your notes. I have noticed a few errors in articles but they seem to be corrected fairly quickly. My biggest complaint is the number of articles being posted. You haven't posted a Linux article since 2004. I promise you I will ignore a missed comma if you put some news up.
crimson117 - Friday, January 30, 2009 - link
There are plenty of recent Linux articles on AT... but they're always to explain why they have no Linux articles :)February 2008: http://www.anandtech.com/weblog/showpost.aspx?i=38...">Soliciting Input For a Linux Review
February 2008: http://www.anandtech.com/weblog/showpost.aspx?i=38...">Update: A Month With Ubuntu To Commence
April 2008: http://www.anandtech.com/weblog/showpost.aspx?i=43...">Month With Ubuntu Update
October 2008: http://www.anandtech.com/weblog/showpost.aspx?i=51...">So Whatever Happened To That Ubuntu Article?
March 2009: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHg5SJYRHA0">The first rule about is that you do NOT talk about That Ubuntu Article
Amiga500 - Friday, January 30, 2009 - link
1. I voted weekly for the number of polls - if there had been an option for "as is suitable" - I would have selected it. To get the readership engaged in polling and provide meaningful feedback, I think it is important not to have too many polls and it quickly becomes a chore to read an article and eventually only a small number will repeatedly fill the polls in.2. Weekly for poll length - having 1 new poll a week with the voting open until next weeks poll keeps things simple. It should also be useful for providing time-stamped snapshots of reader opinion for future reference. For example, in a year you might want to revisit a topic to see how opinion has changed - with only a 1 week poll window as opposed to unrestricted polling, the 12 month old data won't change over time as opinion changes.
3. I voted No for a permanent polling spot on the front page... in hindsight I think that was a mistake - if there was a link to "this week's story and poll" I think it would work quite well.
Ph00 - Friday, January 30, 2009 - link
Just copy how slashdot does their polls.. just with more meaningful questions/answers :)strikeback03 - Friday, January 30, 2009 - link
Second time you have done this, so I figured I'd mention it. Taylor is a name, tailor is the verb you are looking for in "help us tailor this new tool."DerekWilson - Friday, January 30, 2009 - link
thanks for pointing that out. i have an extremely unhealthy dependence on spell check which doesn't usually catch it when i'm just being stupid :-) i'll do my best to remember that from now on ...Denithor - Friday, January 30, 2009 - link
If you're going to keep the results around for more than a month or so, just set up a separate page for previous results. Move results there a month or so after the poll closes.If a poll is included with a specific article, move the results & leave a link from the article to the results. That way someone reading the article a while later can still find the results but I think there is value in having a central listing for all results.
BTW, there's an "Uber system poll" that takes place about once a year in the General Hardware forum. I find it very interesting to take a look in there each year and get an idea for how people's systems are progressing in general (looking at large shifts in speed, capacity & cores from year to year). If you ran a poll like this on the main page you'd get tons of data that would show nice trends from year to year.
Pottervilla - Friday, January 30, 2009 - link
"If you're going to keep the results around for more than a month or so, just set up a separate page for previous results. Move results there a month or so after the poll closes."I second! And could you have a search function too?
This is really going to be fun...
StraightPipe - Friday, January 30, 2009 - link
|Corland - Thursday, January 29, 2009 - link
your articels look unprofessional when you fail to do this.okthxbi!
DigitalFreak - Friday, January 30, 2009 - link
Pot calling the kettle black...Corland - Friday, January 30, 2009 - link
See if you can spot the irony in the poll!It's an exciting fun game they have provided!
UNHchabo - Friday, January 30, 2009 - link
Maybe he was going for irony?PrinceGaz - Friday, January 30, 2009 - link
Strictly speaking, it is called sarcasm if it is deliberate, but yes, I do believe that was his intent. Irony is when someone said something intending it to be correct, but contained either an accidental error which could change its meaning to something unintended, or an overlooked interpretation of the statement which often results in it being seen as other than intended.Irony == accidental, Sarcasm == deliberate.
Both are good though. especially on forums :)