Are the advice topics here due for an overhaul?

[Turnarcades]

For the first time in years I casually browsed through the guides/links/examples instead of just lingering on the forum for once and noticed many of these categories are now seriously outdated.

Understandably it can be hard to maintain that much info and a lot of information is always going to be relevant (like the info in Saint's book), but many of the links are now dead, relate to products/software that no longer exists or references arcade projects or companies that have disappeared.

Not trying to hava a ---smurfette---, but if you read this saint, maybe now is a good time for a little 'spring cleaning' as it seems more noobs come straight to the forums wanting every answer in 30 seconds these days.

[geocab]

Hey, while you're here, can you tell me the basics to building a control panel?  What's a good layout?  What's an 8-way stick?  Is it better than analogue? 

[Lyellin]

Speaking as a noob who came here... read a bunch... then decided to buy Saint's book.. and now finally registered... I applaud this idea. If I knew more, I would help.

[BobA]

Not sure what causes it but you seem to get the same newbee questions in waves.   Everyone gets caught up and then the same newbee questions surface again.

I think that the major problem is that there is so much to learn by reading the wikki and the read first info that the newbees do not have the patience to do their homework since the hobby is so interesting and complex and they need to get started on that 5 joystick 100 button control panel RIGHT NOW.     

[Flake]

I agree - I dont know how many times I see people respond to questions/inquries with a READ THE WIKI post.  For some this is probably a reasonable piece of advice but I think for many it doesnt answer all questions and many people post real, new issues.  I mean the capabilities here are updated almost weekly so its safe to assume something that was posted 6 months to a year ago are out of date.  I know for myself, I read a ton before even registering but during my build I ran into a problem with my particular video card and using component out.  It wasnt working the way I thought it should and come to find out my card didnt actually support component out the way I thought it would so I had to adapt my connection.  From what I can tell on the wiki and the forums no one has really had really documented this issue.  It is now - if you search for it using the right search parameters........if not you'll probably post a new topic that yields the same results.

I would imagine this is a monsterous task so its probably not likely to be done any time soon so maybe all you "veterans" out there could cut the new kids some slack and try to provide some constructive advice before posting a READ THE WIKI post.  BTW - I cant be sure but I dont think this has ever happened to me so dont think I'm impartial.....

[CheffoJeffo]

If somebody posts a "Read The Wiki" response to a question that isn't answered by the wiki, then that's just silly. I try to link to the specific section of the wiki if I refer to it.

And if you find something that isn't in the wiki ... please add it ! If something is outdated or incorrect, please fix it! Or at least report it in the wiki forum so that somebody can fix it.

[Turnarcades]

Applause to jeff as I notice you frequently do post the appropriate links in the wiki, but I don't think it's the wiki that's the problem - it's the other categories on the left-hand side when you first arrive at the BYOAC site I was referring.

The wiki itself is great and I've made a couple of amendments myself, but it does not follow a logical 'linear' layout with links like the categories I mention did. Ideally, a very compressed guide based on project arcade would be good for noobs, with a few relevant links just included in the text as you go along. Sure there are many members who have a written a quick 'start to finish' guide with considerations, links and solutions, but they are usually only relevant to their project and needs at the time. As these sites fade away it leaves no focal point.

In all fairness I would love to write a short 2 or 3 page guide like this but by my own admission I don't have a very balanced view of the whole scene as I have mostly worked with PC architecture over the years and never gone into the considerations of building custom control parts, hard-wiring genuine arcade hardware or anything like that. I've always kept things simple and functional for both my own personal projects and the needs of our customers so I imagine any write up I do would create more questions than it answers. 

[CheffoJeffo]

Applause to jeff as I notice you frequently do post the appropriate links in the wiki, but I don't think it's the wiki that's the problem - it's the other categories on the left-hand side when you first arrive at the BYOAC site I was referring.

What is this BYOAC site of which you speak ?

j/k ... I haven't come through the main site in years and I believe that many others may not see the same links as you do (is another common issue -- people forget about the main site altogether).

[sean-o-mac]

You guys have to keep in mind, someone, somewhere- every single day says, "Man, I want an arcade".  And for the most part, they have no idea where to start.  When someone who has finally stumbled into BYOAC.com for the first time, they are so excited they found a wealth of information, they get a bit eager to get started and just post the same old questions.  You have to admit, there are a lot of topics here within the forums and it can be a daunting task to look through all of the information.

It took me months to find Ultimarc.com and BYOAC.com.  Took some time to figure out what exactly an IPAC was when I first started out. 

Maybe we need a seperate topic for noobs only, not just a sticky thread.  If you think about it, skill level for arcades are just that, levels.  Once you got something figured out, along comes another problem.  This is why the same questions and topics are repeated.

[ctozzi]

completely agree, this is why i rarely post/answer anything on this site anymore. the topics have been gone through a million times already

[garnerb350]

Speaking as a noob who came here... read a bunch... then decided to buy Saint's book.. and now finally registered... I applaud this idea. If I knew more, I would help.

Same here....I'm learning new stuff each day....and I've helped others who had simlar questions that i have asked in the past....

This is my opinion and take it as you will....but I think alot of us noobs are sooooooooo used to seeing and holding what we trying to figure out ( phyiscal) " Kinda like ole shop class....the Instructor is there with you telling you how to properly make a birdhouse without cutting your fingers off"... Looking at the problem and writing the problem is two totally different things...

I am a visual person....you have to beat my head in twice to keep information in that you tell me ...

Another thing, We all love arcades, but NOT all of us are IT techs...

My story is exactly this... I love arcades...always had , always will...growing up , I always wanted to have an arcade....Friend of mine said hey build ya one...BAM thats what I am doing...

Saints book , to me was A to Z on how to make an arcade...( Holy Bible to some ....Necrononicum to others....) and I thank him tremendouly for making my dream come true...
 Only problem I found with it, and I overcame it... was that the year is 2009....his book was made in 2004....Ask yourself how much has MAME and just computers alone has upgraded?....My mindset when it comes to computers is still stuck in the 90s....And for those who bought one that came with the CD ( I did)....would you use the programs that came it now,  today?....Not insulting anybody intelligence....But I would love to see a MAME for retards...cuz I know I am one!

But at the same time ....noobs here are learning who are the pros and legends very quick...
I want to personally thank everyone who has helped me in completing my cab...Where I am from...NO ONE around me are doing the same thing...I am learning everything from all of you...

I'm not finished yet...but because of everyone this is where I am at so far...see pic




 

[Ummon]

There's a link in my sig to the monitor wiki, so when I post on monitor stuff and say 'read the wiki', I think there's not much else to do but read it. Especially as the topics I'm saying it about are, to my knowledge, documented there. As for the main site, yeah, I only go there for the news, which is infrequent anyway. I mostly go right to the forum, which is largely where it's at.

And regarding the 'enthusism' of finding AC: well, okay, but I think many (especially those under 30) are not used to reading help files and wikis - for example, Wikipedia - the former of which is understandable to some degree because in many cases the 'about' of some things are basically technical jargon or types of 'what's new' that don't make sense to those who aren't familiar. But I think the main thing is people are biased against looking up thing because it's like school or being talked down to in their mind.

[daywane]

I agree some spring cleaning is needed.
as far as noob questions go?
I hate the read the wiki and that's it or read the FAQ and that's it.
leave those simple questions to some one like me that ENJOYS answering a question I can.
If it is below your standard to answer MOVE ALONG

[Level42]

completely agree, this is why i rarely post/answer anything on this site anymore. the topics have been gone through a million times already

That happens to _any_ forum and is quite natural.
Seeing your number of posts it doesn't look like you did that much posting anyway, no offence.

If everyone would know everything or knew where to find everything already, this would become a very quite place. Everyone was a noob in this hobby at one point in time.

[Paul Olson]

leave those simple questions to some one like me that ENJOYS answering a question I can.
If it is below your standard to answer MOVE ALONG

Couldn't have said it better myself. I have spent countless hours searching and reading on this site over the years, but not everyone has the interest to do that. If you know how to do something and have the time to explain it to someone, I think it would benefit everyone. You will reinforce your knowledge while teaching, and probably make it easier for others to find the info while searching later on. This is a discussion forum after all, so let's discuss. New posts about old topics also help to keep everything updated, which is always a problem if people are only looking at old data. Let's take advantage of the medium we are using, which is conversation in addition to information, and let the wiki serve its purpose as an information repository; both are good for the community. If you don't want to respond to a question, you don't need to; there is no requirement to post saying you don't want to post a reply - your silence is enough to let everyone know. Unless there is a prize for highest post count that I am not aware of?

[sean-o-mac]

I think there are too many sticky posts for arcades for sale.  A few of the vendors arent selling anything most of the time.  But, thats just me.  Looks kinda junkie.