I appreciate trying to lockdown a subreddit to people who are specifically in a trade, employed by a specific company, have a specific engineering degree, etc. Totally get it. The repetitive questions by homeowners asking about “removing a load bearing wall” are not only annoying, but in that case, dangerous.
/r/MechanicAdvice is a really great example of what a subreddit like /r/askalocksmith would be like in a perfect world. /r/askanengineer is decent as well, but mostly for eduction and employment questions.
The reality is that most subreddits like /r/askalocksmith are DOA. There’s a ton of trade specific subreddits that might as well not even exist because they’re also dead. I dont know why /r/MechanicAdvice works so well, maybe just due to the fact that almost everyone has a car in the US.
Growing up in the pre-internet world, I personally think the topic specifc forums were one of the greatest things to ever happen to my world. The knowledge base and being able to bounce ideas off anyone else viewing the forum, whether it be an actual professional, enthusiast, or an absolute idiot who gets told why they’re wrong, has been a life changing experience. I couldn’t do a lot of things I’ve done without access to those people in those forums.
There’s a member in the Mercedes community who has posted for years in response to anyone and everyone who has a question. He’s definitely a Mercedes tech and has access to manufacturer information that most don’t. There aren’t many posts he doesn’t respond to. There’s no incentive for him to do it other than he probably believes in sharing helpful information with others because he can. I think about him every time I see posts like this /r/askalocksmith announcement.
You guys at /r/locksmith are totally within your right to lockdown the subreddit, make it private with proof of being a locksmith, etc. Dumb questions can get annoying. I guess you can just downvote the posts and leave it to the few who may or may not answer it.
I just hope that when it comes time for you or your peers to get involved in a project outside of your trade, you think about this post, and stay far away from any other trade professionals you may want to ask a question to.
adapterbitspk t1_je1lmvm wrote
Reply to [Meta] Hey there, mod of /r/Locksmith here. Please refer people with lock issues to /r/AskALocksmith instead. by Maoman1
I appreciate trying to lockdown a subreddit to people who are specifically in a trade, employed by a specific company, have a specific engineering degree, etc. Totally get it. The repetitive questions by homeowners asking about “removing a load bearing wall” are not only annoying, but in that case, dangerous.
/r/MechanicAdvice is a really great example of what a subreddit like /r/askalocksmith would be like in a perfect world. /r/askanengineer is decent as well, but mostly for eduction and employment questions.
The reality is that most subreddits like /r/askalocksmith are DOA. There’s a ton of trade specific subreddits that might as well not even exist because they’re also dead. I dont know why /r/MechanicAdvice works so well, maybe just due to the fact that almost everyone has a car in the US.
Growing up in the pre-internet world, I personally think the topic specifc forums were one of the greatest things to ever happen to my world. The knowledge base and being able to bounce ideas off anyone else viewing the forum, whether it be an actual professional, enthusiast, or an absolute idiot who gets told why they’re wrong, has been a life changing experience. I couldn’t do a lot of things I’ve done without access to those people in those forums.
There’s a member in the Mercedes community who has posted for years in response to anyone and everyone who has a question. He’s definitely a Mercedes tech and has access to manufacturer information that most don’t. There aren’t many posts he doesn’t respond to. There’s no incentive for him to do it other than he probably believes in sharing helpful information with others because he can. I think about him every time I see posts like this /r/askalocksmith announcement.
You guys at /r/locksmith are totally within your right to lockdown the subreddit, make it private with proof of being a locksmith, etc. Dumb questions can get annoying. I guess you can just downvote the posts and leave it to the few who may or may not answer it.
I just hope that when it comes time for you or your peers to get involved in a project outside of your trade, you think about this post, and stay far away from any other trade professionals you may want to ask a question to.