Based on this Meta discussion, our what topics can I ask about here page in the Help Center has been updated. The following details the changes that were made from the previous version with the goal of being more welcoming, adding clarity, and possibly increasing activity on our site:
- This first paragraph could have resulted in uncertainty, was a little redundant, and was possibly limiting:
Pro Webmasters Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for professional and enthusiast webmasters focused on how to operate websites. Questions here are about various aspects of owning, running, or administering your own website, such as:
This above was simplified to just:
Pro Webmasters is a site for asking questions about operating and managing your own website. Questions here are commonly about, but not limited to:
- Added to the list of on-topic categories is:
Web and email hostingwhich was previously justweb hostingWebsite management (e.g., analytics, ads, URLs, etc…)
Also added there:
To see other topics that are commonly covered, please view our list of popular tags. (Note: The existence of a tag does not necessarily mean it's on-topic. If you're unsure, you can always ask for confirmation on our Meta site).
- This was toned-down from:
Off-topic questions There are some types of questions about running websites that don't belong on this site
To:
Here are some topics that are either considered off-topic or better suited for other Stack Exchanges sites:
Recommendations for sites and resourceswas moved to the top of the list since that's the top reason questions are put on hold. A few minor clarifications were made and typos were corrected.
HTML, JavaScript, or CSS codingwas changed to:Coding/programmingsince we often get questions about other programming languages too. Some minor clarifications were also made.
Web sites out of your controlwas changed to:Websites you don't own or managesince the former was too vague. Some minor clarifications were also made.
Usage of web browsers and other softwarewas changed to:Software not related to running your website
- The description for
Content management systems (CMSs)was changed from:
There are specific Stack Exchange sites for several CMSs. Use those sites for Craft CMS, Drupal, Expression Engine, Joomla, Magento, Salesforce, SharePoint, Tridion, or WordPress. Questions about other CMSs may be asked here on Pro Webmasters.
To:
There are a number of other Stack Exchange sites specific to CMSs that might be better suited for advanced questions, or those unrelated to the on-topic categories listed at the top of this page. In that case, they might be migrated to one of the following sites: WordPress, Drupal, Joomla, Magento, etc… (Please consult the Stack Exchange sites page for a complete list)
Specific to only your sitewas too confusing so was changed to:Only could apply to your site. The description there was also changed from:
If the answers to your question could only apply to your site, it is probably not a good fit for Pro Webmasters. For example, we would close questions such as "What am I doing wrong here?" or "Please review my site."
To:
If the answers to your question could only apply to your site and not others, it's probably not a good fit for Pro Webmasters. For example, questions such as "What am I doing wrong here?" or "Please review my site" are typically considered off-topic since they're unlikely to help future visitors to this site.
Topics with a "catch all" question and answerwas removed, and changed from another bullet point into a separate section, since it's really not another "topic" itself. The text there was changed from:
Many topics are covered by a question with a comprehensive answer. Other questions about the topic are marked as duplicate. Some examples from the list of catch-all questions are:
To:
Many topics are already covered by a question with a comprehensive answer, so questions asking nearly the same thing are marked as a duplicate of those. Some examples from the list of catch-all questions are:
- In addition to the above, all the items in bold were changed to italics for emphasis, so that it doesn't give the impression that we're possibly shouting what's consider off-topic. Sections (horizontal lines) were also added to help organize the page.
- Lastly, a link to this page was added to the home page of the Help Center here.
* Numbers 1-2 were derived from the answers and comments discussed here and here.
