Roving Reporter

All over the place, really.  Both physically and mentally.  And it’s all good…it always is, isn’t it?  I’ll give you the highlights of where I was last week.

New Orleans with some crazy bead ladies…and I use that term very lightly since some aren’t ladies in any sense of the word and some just aren’t, well, ladies.  Enough already.  On to part one of the picture tour:

Lots of shopping at the Artisan’s Market.  John and Jan of Check Glass fame’s funky and fun bead and artisan marketplace right across from the not-as-funky-and-fun French Market.  I swear, I was there at least two times a day and still found more and more treasures every time I turned the corner.

Above this glorious store was their awesome beadmaking studio:

It also doubled as our staging area for the Halloween festivities:

Jan, Lisa and John were make-up artists extraordinaire.

Can you tell that we had fun?

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There’s a discussion going on over at the Lampwork Etc. forum that started with the etiquette of how to ask (or not ask) for information on an art forum.

While the suggestions in that post aren’t written in stone, I think there is some pretty good information. I am going to highlight some of the points and I will put out this disclaimer: it is not intended to deter new people from asking for information. The points made here (and there) serve not only to help you, as an internet forum user to learn etiquette, but also to help you to become a better artist.

Why the disclaimer? Because the thread went on with other posts from people indicating that it was off-putting for new people and that they might be afraid to ask questions which would in turn hinder new people from learning. Everyone is different and that might be the case.

I had the opposite experience. When I was starting out and using newsgroups for information and community, the various groups served to help me to become more considerate and thicker skinned at the same time. Those groups also helped me to develop into a professional artist seeking my own voice and style by doing my own work and research.

I learned ‘forum etiquette’ by getting my hand smacked and saw even worse reprimands going on at one of the rec.crafts usenet boards that I used to read. And that was from the ‘professionals’ in the art industry. I’m not saying that it has to be that way for everyone but I am grateful for the experience. Even though it didn’t feel good at the time, I hope that others that might be feeling put out or shut down take the opportunity to look at themselves and grow from it. Many times when we’re offended by something (excluding something like prejudiced remarks, vulgar language, etc.) it might mean that there is some truth to it. It’s a good opportunity to face up to it and maybe see the other side.

But that’s just me…I like to see the positive possibilities in negative situations and see where I can grow from it, and maybe even use it later, rather than feeling bad about it or taking it personally.

So, here goes my own commentary on seeking information in forums…

Using the search function before asking a question.

• You’ll learn more. Someone made reference at one point that every time they’d ask their parents a question they’d get the answer “look it up.” Me too. Remember Encyclopedia Britannica?…”Look it up, dear.” We learn better when we look things up ourselves and research it. In that process we learn so much more than we set out to learn because we come across other information too. Looking things up is good for you.
• You save other people time. When you perform a search on a well-established forum you’ll probably get many hits on the subject. You will also notice that many of those posts are asking and answering the same question over and over. If some of those duplicate questions wouldn’t have been asked it sure would have been easier to find the answer without weeding through all of the “follow this link for your answer, it’s already been answered many times” posts. Just say no to duplicate posting!
• Saves you time. If you do a search you will probably find the information faster than if you post your question and wait for the right person to come along and answer it.
• Still can’t find what you’re looking for? Let the forum know that you didn’t find it but you did look. Sometimes searches don’t come up because three letter words aren’t recognized. Or you’re new and you don’t know what terms to search for. There’s nothing wrong with saying that, but you’ll get a better reception if you’ve at least tried or thought about it.

You’re not entitled to information.

• Other people’s pictures. It is not appropriate to post people’s pictures and ask other people how to duplicate their work. If you can’t ask an artist directly, you probably shouldn’t be asking a group of people to reveal their methods either. Why wouldn’t you ask them directly in the first place? That might help guide you as to whether you should ask publicly.
• More on other people’s pictures. Caveat: You might see other people’s pictures on blogs. Generally, the idea of blogging and how it works is to promote each other. If you use someone’s image it is generally accompanied by a link to their site, which in turn is to benefit to them. If anyone ever asks you to remove an image, honor their request. If their site plainly says, do not share this in any way, then do not share it!
• Not getting the answer you were looking for. If you do ask someone privately for information be prepared that they might not be ready to give it up. Now or ever. They might have it coming out in a book or they might teach classes and reserve some of their secrets for paying students. Understand that many people make their living this way and who would pay them to teach or write books/articles if it were free?
• Don’t be offended. If you don’t get your question answered, don’t be offended. Everyone has the right to say no. And that’s ok. Don’t get mad at them for that. Try to see their side of it…and if you can’t, still, don’t take it personally and respect their right to hold back.
• Say thank you. If you do get help, make sure you respond with a nice thank you. You’d be surprised at how many people forget to say thank you.

Be patient and understanding.

• You might not get an answer right away. Be patient and give it some time. Maybe the right person didn’t see it who could help you, or maybe they didn’t have time to answer. Remember, forums are not help desks where people are sitting around waiting to help people. It’s a community of people with lives outside of the internet. Well, for some of you anyway.
• You might not get an answer at all. While many times that doesn’t happen, be prepared and don’t take it personally. It might feel like you’re being ignored or that you’re a ‘thread killer,’ but don’t let your imagination run away with you. You may have just stumped the peanut gallery. What better time to dig in deeper to your research and experimentation and to be the first one to figure it out? Then everyone will be asking YOU for the answers and you’ll know how they feel.

Thanks to the poster who originally brought these points to the fore.  It’s good stuff.  There’s a lot more that I could go on and on about but I’ll save that for another day.  I mean, how much more of this can you take?

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