Idea: Add a request/issue template, reduce repetitive work with better structure

Site Help & Feedback
,
1

Hey! I would like to improve our bug triage and information request workflow here a bit.

Current situation

We are reached by maany users, and need to ask the same silly questions very often.

Not only does this waste time we could use for more fun stuff, but we also make mistakes, or miss useful commands.

Adding Markdown templates that are auto-filled into Ask Fedora posts could help here.

Idea

This means, a premade text it put in there, and users can fill checkboxes, paste text, follow instructions and by that follow a nice logical order, especially for bug reporting.

  1. This is an issue or info request. Otherwise, you dont need to follow this template.
  2. I have searched for duplicates, at least a bit.
  3. My title is short but informative
  4. This is what happens
  5. This is what should happen, or what I want or need.
  6. System info (fpaste, kinfo, inxi)
  7. Additional info
  8. Spam

What do you think?

Suggestion

This template could be maintained by TL2+ in a “wiki entry” (the discourse function) and then copied by moderators (or an automated system?) to the correct location.

Possible problems

Checkboxes in Markdown code are confusing

- [ ] I did A
to
- [x] I did A
(remove whitespace, add a specific letter)

“Powerusers” are annoyed, should be dealt with in the first point.

Differentiating between info requests, discussions, issues etc. Flexibility.

Opinions

Do you think such a system is useful?

  • yes
  • yes, but changes needed
  • maybe
  • no
0 voters
2

Added idea, problem, suggestion

3

There actually is a reasonably-sophisticated template feature we could use.

4 Likes
4

You may want to get some feedback on whatever template you decide to start with, but otherwise I think this is great. There’s another forum I participate in that implemented a template for getting advice. It was three simple questions it helped to draw out the basic info we would all ask anyway. I think it helped.

3 Likes
5

Yes simple questions may be better and easier. While it would also be nice to deal with everything.

I would say a stressed comment “you dont need to answer everything”

2 Likes
6

Oh! I linked the wrong thing. There’s a new, better option. I’ve fixed the link in the post above. This one looks like this:

55fbf7beb6652b89a1989b1ceab86dfed9935de6

We could even have multiple templates, for, say: Simple Question, Detailed Help Request, or Free-Form.

1 Like
7

That sounds great!