Hi,

Have noticed that quite a few people get impatient when it comes to receiving help, especially in the Virus & Malware Removal forum. Or their thread seems to slip under the radar sometimes. I know other forums have a 'not getting help' thread to which you can take certain steps after a certain amount of waiting time.

I know we aren't as big as some forums but was curious as to what our policy is on this.

Thanks

Hi snow,
I saw that you posted this almost 9 hours ago and didn't want you to feel like your thread had "slipped under the radar" . this gets asked from time to time and the response from some mods has been to be patient. I like your suggestion though.

Sometimes, it just can't be avoided (perfect example is me replying to this thread 9 hrs. later). Sometimes the person who can help on a certain topic is busy with a few others and just takes more time than normal. I like your idea though, maybe 'flag' the thread somehow

We let users bump their threads within reason, which is usually no more than once and not before at least a day has passed.

At least from my point of view, I don't know all the answers, plus I type rather poorly. So our volunteers "buzz in" on topics of where they have, (or believe they have), working knowledge.

As to the "Malware Removal Forum", we only have so many qualified members, and a great many "needy" individuals.
Much of the malware issues stem from downloading illegal music, software, and games from P2P sites, for installing "freeware" without reading the tick boxes. In short infections brought on by greed and poor judgement.

This is generally coupled with, "I don't have a Windows disc", "I don't have security software", and last but not least, "I never back anything up, so I can't reformat".

Accordingly, I believe that in this arena, our malware removal experts are virtual demigods, with patiences rivaling that of saints.

My queries are not always answered, I wonder if it's because of my attitude, or perhaps even more likely than no-one has stumbled on the thread, or that simply no one knows the answer. My response is usually, "oh well, life goes on, I'll work around it". So, this is a volunteer forum, and many times the supplicants are so obnoxious, there should be no mystery why the threads don't generate a response. Other times, inquiries are answered multiple times, given the same correct answer each time, yet ignored by the OP. kimsland always used to like to refer to this header, "Need Some Effing Help" as an example of how not to get help, or get yourself banned at the jump.

Well, the foregoing is rather harsh, but realistically Techspot's forums are overreaching if we believe that we can solve every problem encountered. Besides, if we could, wouldn't every other forum and every computer repair tech be furious with us?

I always ask myself, "can I answer that question correctly", if the answer is "no", then can I hope only, that someone who knows more than I do will be kind enough to do so.

You have a point, well said. I guess even the recommendation I made about 'flagging' a thread would even create chaos... Maybe we just need to be patient, and I realize it may be hard but that's the way it is.