Conversation started Nov 17, 2021 at 12:26.
BESW
BESW
Nov 17, 2021 12:26
The Stack doesn’t actually attract experts, because it gates new users out of full participation: expertise doesn’t matter, only Compliance.
AncientSwordRage
AncientSwordRage
I'd argue it does attract experts, but only a subset of them
user image
Each dot represents an expert who made it through being a new user on stackexchange
BESW
BESW
And when we're talking about indie game creators like Dee whose work is actively geared toward radically challenging the status quo and growing better ways of doing things into the cracks of the current regime, gamifying compliance isn't a selling point.
It’s a warning sign.
AncientSwordRage
AncientSwordRage
@AncientSwordRage alt text: a top down schematic of a world war 2 era plane with red dots indicating the locations that received damage and still survived
nitsua60
nitsua60
@BESW I made an edit and left a comment--poke me (of course) if you feel like I've trod on anything.
BESW
BESW
@AncientSwordRage The Stack acquires experts, but does not attract.
3
AncientSwordRage
AncientSwordRage
Nov 17, 2021 12:30
@BESW yeah, I'd like to help change the site to be more friendly/geared to attracting those people
BESW
BESW
Step one: attain a controlling interest in Stack Exchange stock
AncientSwordRage
AncientSwordRage
@BESW goes to check stock portfolio....
BESW
BESW
Step two: enact the “guy with a good idea gets thrown out of the meeting” meme
Step three: hope the meme ends differently?
Thomas Markov
Thomas Markov
@BESW I think the model works well to grow its own experts, but that requires a soil to grow them in i.e. an already established ecosystem of content to engage with.
AncientSwordRage
AncientSwordRage
@ThomasMarkov by that analogy we've optimised for plants that like one kind of soil and not another
"Wildflowers don't grow in orchards"
I totally made that up, but it sounds wise enough I might pretend it's an established phrase
Thomas Markov
Thomas Markov
Nov 17, 2021 12:39
But I think you’re right about not attracting them. Someone just as knowledgeable of 5e as myself, but lacking familiarity with the system here will face similar challenges as a total newbie.
AncientSwordRage
AncientSwordRage
And now I'm thinking of Three Sisters and how western farming practices made everything worse
Three Sisters (agriculture)
The Three Sisters are the three main agricultural crops of various Indigenous peoples of North America: winter squash, maize (corn), and climbing beans (typically tepary beans or common beans). Originating in Mesoamerica, these three crops were carried northward, up the river valleys over generations, far afield to the Mandan and Iroquois who, among others, used these Three Sisters for food and trade. == Cultivation methods == In a technique known as companion planting, maize (Zea mays), beans (Phaseolus sp.), and squash (Cucurbita pepo) are planted close together. The maize and beans are often...
BESW
BESW
And once it's established, this goes the other way too: we've got a ton of examples of users who are very VERY good at Compliance, who think that means they're also experts in all the questions they encounter regardless of subject matter.
Because the Stack gives us points for Compliance and tells us it means we're experts.
 
Conversation ended Nov 17, 2021 at 12:47.