Still no vdrum FAQ??

[darrenmc]

Hey all, I discovered this board a week ago, and I love it!! After many hours spent happily devouring old posts and messages, (instead of working)

However, I quickly realized that this site really needs an FAQ for the drums themselves, not just for "how to use the msg board". The search tool is great, but I keyed in a few search terms and, each time, quickly found myself overwhelmed with inaccurate, incomplete (in terms of the question I was trying to research), outdated, and off-topic posts. I'm not complaining, that's just the way a search function works, but it quickly became apparent that there are some dark and murky areas of e-drumming and v-drumming that have been discussed over and over and over and over again, that could really benefit once and for all from the clear, shining light of a well-written FAQ.

I then searched for "FAQ" and discovered that others have noticed this too. Many people have volunteered their time to set one up over the last year or so, have suggested how it could be managed, how different people could contribute, what should be on it. I too would like to contribute, since I do a lot of technical writing/editing in my day job, and enjoy it. It seems like there's lots of energy, expertise, and enthusiasm in support of the idea.... but for some reason it hasn't happened yet.

Mr. Webmaster, is there some political or technical factor that makes putting together a FAQ impossible or undesirable?

[Steveo the Devo]

Still no FAQ. I would say the moderators are too busy with their 'real' lives to invest more into developing the board. Hell, I haven't seen a post from them in years.
I, for one am just happy that we have this board to discuss all the relevant things on. Sure it could be improved and I have no doubt that a FAQ is on their 'to-do' list. If anyone desires to help them do this why not write your own FAQ and answers in as much or as little detail as you like and send them direct to the moderators?

[darrenmc]

Originally posted by Steveo the Devo:
Still no FAQ. I would say the moderators are too busy with their 'real' lives to invest more into developing the board. Hell, I haven't seen a post from them in years.
I, for one am just happy that we have this board to discuss all the relevant things on. Sure it could be improved and I have no doubt that a FAQ is on their 'to-do' list. If anyone desires to help them do this why not write your own FAQ and answers in as much or as little detail as you like and send them direct to the moderators?

I wouldn't want to put any effort into writing a FAQ unless I was sure that the webmasters would put it on the site. I've sent them some email, we will see what happens.

[Marc.]

darrenmc, much discussion in the past, and there it has remained until your post. Use moxt xlnt Search engine, keyword : FAQ (in subject title).

Here ya go, I saved you the trip on one of them ...

http://www.vdrums.com/discussion/For...ML/000329.html

[Boingo]

And who is appointed as that most knowledgable person with above average writing skills that is going to supply this information and insure we get "just the facts" and not opinion? We will have to devote a Forum just for the arguments over the validity of the FAQ's. And how long will this free service be maintained. I think this will prove to be much more work than meets the eye.

Where is Rus. He was supposed to do this wasn't he?

[Stoovey]

I think that anyone who decides to make a website of this caliber should plan on making time on a regular basis to do updates and stuff. Otherwise, why even bother?! Even once a month would be nice.

[darrenmc]

Originally posted by Marc.:
darrenmc, much discussion in the past, and there it has remained until your post. Use moxt xlnt Search engine, keyword : FAQ (in subject title).

Here ya go, I saved you the trip on one of them ...

Yep, I read all those threads already before I posted this That's how I knew that many people have said "hey, we need a FAQ", and some have also said "hey, I'll put one together if nobody else will"... which makes me all the more curious why it doesn't exist yet.

[darrenmc]

Originally posted by Boingo:
And who is appointed as that most knowledgable person with above average writing skills that is going to supply this information

Whoever wants to do it. I'm volunteering. Several others have volunteered. Anyone who volunteers for this job is probably reasonably qualified. I don't think it's a question of "most knowledgable". That certainly ain't me! It's a question of knowing how to make sense out of complex, disorganized, and contradictory information, knowing how to organize and present it, how to tell fact from opinion, and being able to judge what's too specific for a FAQ and is best left out.

and insure we get "just the facts" and not opinion? We will have to devote a Forum just for the arguments over the validity of the FAQ's.

A forum... that's exactly what I was thinking, actually. I don't think that's a problem, I think that's a good thing. It makes life a lot easier for the "FAQ editor". 99% of the problem in the FAQ will not be VALIDITY, but COMPLETENESS and CLARITY. I write technical documents for a living, and I know that when you put it all down on paper in one place in a well-organized way, confusion and controversy tend to disappear, and things that are missing tend to leap out at you. A lot of the posts won't say "what you said there is WRONG", but will say "I think you missed the part about X, why dont you say yada yada yada right there.", at which point the FAQ editor does a quick search of the forum to make sure there's nothing controversial about the submission, and then puts it in.

And how long will this free service be maintained.

Who cares? For as long as the volunteer(s) wants to do it, after which point, another can take over. There have been not one but SEVERAL volunteers for this project, so I don't think a shortage of brain power or effort is the problem. Even if the resulting FAQ is only 50% of what it could be, it will still be far better than the FAQ that exists now.

I think this will prove to be much more work than meets the eye.

Well, virtually all of the work and research have already been done on this forum, and all that remains is to collate and organize it. Frankly, I think the FAQ will almost write itself.

The FAQ will not and could not replace the forums and the search function, of course, but this is probably the best place on the Net for e-drum discussion and I think it would be a shame not to collate some of the more important pearls of wisdom contained herein.

[Boingo]

Pull it off and You Be Da Man!

I can only assume you have a lot of time on your hands (and are a bit of a masochist since you will no doubt experience some abuse during those times the moon is full).

2 suggestions if you pursue it:

There should be an area to "pre-post" a FAQ for feedback on accuracy. You could always add to it once it's posted, but you probably should avoid constant editing so the FAQ's maintain some kind of integrity.

Your first TD-10 topic should revolve around "I just installed my expansion card and ...Ackkk!!! what the #@!^& happened to my original 50 kits?"

[darrenmc]

Originally posted by Boingo:
Pull it off and You Be Da Man!

I can only assume you have a lot of time on your hands (and are a bit of a masochist since you will no doubt experience some abuse during those times the moon is full).

2 suggestions if you pursue it:

There should be an area to "pre-post" a FAQ for feedback on accuracy. You could always add to it once it's posted, but you probably should avoid constant editing so the FAQ's maintain some kind of integrity.

Your first TD-10 topic should revolve around "I just installed my expansion card and ...Ackkk!!! what the #@!^& happened to my original 50 kits?"

I'm Da Man?? Cool!

But seriously, this is all dependent on getting some co-operation from mr. webmaster, so we'll see what he/she says.

As for time, I might be unemployed soon (I'm a contractor) so I should have enough to take a stab at this (I can't play drums ALL day, can I?) Again, I am of the humble opinion that almost anything I do will be better than nothing, so I don't feel like I am embracing a Herculean commitment. As far as the abuse goes, I am a regular debater in groups that are a LOT meaner than this , so believe me, I am like Tolkien's Ring: there is no fire in here hot enough to destroy me.

I like your idea about checking the answers for accuracy, a procedure like that will definitely need to be in place... I will have to work out with the webmaster how we would administer the FAQ, but I agree it's best to hold off on an addition to the FAQ until it is of high quality. It's better to have no answer at all rather than a wrong one that confuses people who have come to the FAQ for the straight dope (which may be why the FAQ doesn't exist yet )

Also, my first topic is going to be .... wait for it... the DEFINITIVE discussion of trigger types (fsr, piezo), what Roland pad types are what, how PS works, what cables are what, what the input types of the various Roland brains are, why you can't plug dual trigger pad X into input Y on brain Z and get two sounds out of it... I've seen ALL of this discussed in depth already, so it's just a matter of pulling it all together and organizing it.... I don't even OWN an e-drums set at this point, I'm still shopping, thought I'm leaning towards a V-session (must take into account my possible unemployment )... but I don't need to own one... I'm not going to be doing any experimentation with the brains as that's been done to death by other fine folks here already. I just need to organize what's already been done!!

[bcleach]

Back from the dead...

We would definitely post a FAQ section of the site if one were created.

If you have news worth items please email them to us and they'll get posted (eventually).

Please realize that with the dotcom collapse Eric and I have been very busy.

--
-Brian Leach, [email protected]

[Marc.]

Originally posted by Boingo:
Your first TD-10 topic should revolve around "I just installed my expansion card and ...Ackkk!!! what the #@!^& happened to my original 50 kits?"

Followed by "what do I tell my wife?" and "standard or electric sticks?"

Darren, you have my support.

[bcleach]

here are some interesting vdrums.com discussion forum stats

4,567 discussion topics

130MB of html text

--
-Brian Leach, [email protected]

[Steveo the Devo]

Mr Leach, nice to see you again!
As I attempted to say, we understand that you have been busy and we certainly don't demand or expect you to dedicate all your time to keeping us happy. Thanks once again for the great opportunity to contribute to this great forum.

darrenmc As far as FAQ goes, a simple definition of terms would be invaluable. eg. What is a PD-7, TD-10, V-Session, DTXtreme, etc.....
We should certainly try to avoid saying the SRM-450's kick the JBL Eon II's butt! Naturally state the features of each unit and any 'Which is best' discussion can be left to the forums (I'm sure you are already aware of this). You have my support bud, any help I can offer is yours.

[darrenmc]

Originally posted by Steveo the Devo:
Mr Leach, nice to see you again!
As I attempted to say, we understand that you have been busy and we certainly don't demand or expect you to dedicate all your time to keeping us happy. Thanks once again for the great opportunity to contribute to this great forum.

darrenmc As far as FAQ goes, a simple definition of terms would be invaluable. eg. What is a PD-7, TD-10, V-Session, DTXtreme, etc.....
We should certainly try to avoid saying the SRM-450's kick the JBL Eon II's butt! Naturally state the features of each unit and any 'Which is best' discussion can be left to the forums (I'm sure you are already aware of this). You have my support bud, any help I can offer is yours.

To the webmeister: No problem. I realize you are busy. (Wouldn't you be LESS busy after the dot-com collapse? ;p) I just wanted to make sure that a FAQ would get posted, before I started working on it.

Right now I am working from home, so I will be dedicating my at-home work hours to stuff that actually pays $$. Serious work on this will probably have to wait till my job ends (or I'm working in an office and can work at home "guilt-free"). In fact, this post is not up to my usual writing standards, at the moment I'm procrastinating when I should be working.

I agree that any OPINIONS expressed in the FAQ should clearly be labelled as such, if I include any opinions at all .... as for a "definition of terms" as you mentioned, I think the marketing material put out by the various companies covers that already. What I want to do is go BEYOND the marketing material. ie: What are the REAL differences between a TD-8 and a TD-10? Roland is not necessarily interested in answering that question clearly.... they are marketers and are ONLY interested in selling more ROLAND STUFF. How can I expand my TD-10? Roland's answer, of course, is BUY SOME MORE ROLAND STUFF, but there are other answers that might make more sense (shacking, grailing, etc... I will be spending long hours on feefer's posts soon.) Are there any common reliability problems with the v-drums? Roland's answer will always be OF COURSE NOT. DON'T WORRY, JUST BUY SOME ROLAND STUFF, but that's not necessarily the real answer. I will look for and try to summarize real problems people have been having over the years, with the caveat, as always, that Your Mileage May Vary.

A fun project, and I'm looking forward to it.

Probably what I will do, in order to avoid having to bug the webmaster frequently, is put up the FAQ-in-progress on MY OWN WEBSITE, post a link to it in a thread, and ask "what do you think?" When the abuse dies down a little, I can make some corrections (and additions if anyone wants to submit a complete question and answer), and then say "Mr. Webmaster, I think I have something to submit." Then, we can answer questions with "please consult most xlnt FAQ."