Re: [mv] use of demos as starting point

[Hans-Joachim Leidinger <jojo@buchonline.net>]

******    message to minivend-users from Hans-Joachim Leidinger <jojo@buchonline.net>     ******

David Babler schrieb:
> 
> ******    message to minivend-users from David Babler <dbabler@Rigel.orionsys.com>     ******
> 
> On Fri, 26 May 2000, Hans-Joachim Leidinger wrote:
> 
> > The another most common problems (this is important) is:
> >
> > - People don't visit the mail archivs enough.
> 
> Probably true, but there's a another couple of points to this discussion.
> Often, a newbie is told to go troll the archives, usually based upon the
> recollection that the subject had been discussed before and so MUST be in
> the archives. The problem is that if you go off to the archive and enter a
> common subject, you'll get 900 hits. Of those 900, 500 are from people
> asking the same questions over and over, 200 are from people answering by
> saying the answer is in the archives, 250 are message from people
> complaining that people don't search the archive and 50 are the actual
> answers to the question. Of those 50 answers, some are right, some are
> wrong (and still in the list), some are irrelevant (different OS,
> different software, whatever) some are misleading, some are obsolete and a
> couple are offers for plans to build cable TV descramblers. <G> This is
> pretty typical on *any* technical mailing list with a turnover of newbies.
 
This is true. 
At the first time, this was a big problem for me to find a right answer.
Another problem is the search engine itself. You can't define or use
such kind of searching like

Search "keyword" in "BODY" only
or
Search "keyword" from year1=1999 to year2=2000
or 
Search ("keyword1" AND "keyword2") in "SUBJECT" AND "keyword3" in
"BODY"...

At the first time, I've spent ca. 1-2 hour(s) each session and 1-3
session(s) to find any answers. 
(In my case, I was not able to ask the list. I've had to learn English
first and it was very difficult or impossible for me to ask the list in
English for any answers or solutions.) After a lot of training with mail
archivs (wiht hard stomach), I'm able to find an answer between 10 - 15
min. in one session only (in most case).

I don't know anything about the technique of the search engine of the
MiniVend mail archivs.
Maybe my following suggestion is usefull to improve the mail archivs.
The suggestions is ...

If someone has found a answer(s)/solution(s) from the mail archivs, he
has to submit somethings like "Success" and to submit "Wrong subject",
"Off Topic" etc., if the message is wrong and this will be stored into
the special database XYZ. What i mean is for example:

1) Search for "losing cart"
2) Results:
   a) "Re: Why I'm losing cart....."
   b) "Re: AOL user is losing cart..."
   c) "Re: Losing cart with SSL...."
3) Looking into a)
   -----snip-------
   any discussions about wheather
   -----snip-------
   ---> wrong subject, off topic etc...--> submit "off topic"

   Looking into b)
   -----snip-------
   in minivend.cfg
   Domaintail no
   IpHead yes
   IpQuad 0
   and set this in catalog.cfg:
   WideOpen yes
   SessionExpire 15 minutes
   -----snip-------
   ---> success --> submit "success"
   
   All this or only the submit "success" will store the search keywords
and the email (b) into the database XYZ.   

4) Possible results of 3) can be for example
   New searching for "losing cart"
   a) searching "losing cart" in database XYZ first.
   b) If not found, searching in normal mail archivs.
   c) Delete message (3a with wrong subject and off topic) from the mail
archivs, if more than perhaps 10 people has submitted "off topic"
   d) The first 10,20 or more hits (Ranking list of success?) will be
inserted into FQA for example
       No.     subject                   keyword(s)      count
       -------------------------------------------------------
       1       Re: AOL losing cart...    losing, cart     234
       2       Re: Losing cart with SSL  SSL, losing..    123
       etc.

Ciao

	Joachim

-- 
-------------Hans-Joachim Leidinger---------------------


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