Do you think a Research Help forum would be useful?

[Astaroth]

Sometimes you might wish you had a handy list of historically accurate medieval names.

Maybe you want to know what kind of training your Soviet soldier ought to have.

Perhaps you're setting your supernatural roleplay in Thailand and have never been there, let alone know what kind of ghosts they believe in!

Your latest character could be a Londoner... and your only knowledge of British slang comes from reading Harry Potter.

Maybe you're thinking of playing a character with Dissociative Identity Disorder, or you took a bullet to the knee in that last fight scene and aren't sure if it should be killing you.

Would you like to have somewhere to ask these questions or look this stuff up ON IWAKU?


What we're proposing would be a companion forum to the Institute. Like the Institute, it would be devoted to helping roleplayers- but would allow questions, discussions, and workshops that are "off-topic", i.e., useful for roleplayers and writers as references but not directly related to roleplaying or writing. The Worldbuilding Guild is very useful, but just doesn't fulfill this need on its own.

We already have several workshops and resources in the Institute which could be relocated to this forum. We would also love to see some of our professional or well-learned members offer their expertise in their favored fields to write workshops or help answer questions. We know you nerds are out there. (Paging Dr. @Razilin.)

WE love this idea, but what do YOU guys think?

 

[Kestrel]

Well, if we're going to get expert opinions rather than a lmgtfy-subforum, I'd be all in favour of it.

 

[Karaan]

I may able to add my own expertise too, if the forum is there I will mostly try to add thing to help :)

 

[Astaroth]

@Kestrel

No, we'd be making sure people are actually posting real resources and guides. I know for a fact we have people on site who are trained medical professionals, scientists, weapon enthusiasts, history buffs, and military personnel who could offer real insight on relevant topics. The Worldbuilding Guild and Institute have both been very successful and have gotten plenty of real content, so there are people willing to do it if there's a demand.

 

[ElBell]

I would love this, and I certainly have a ton I could add as far as names with meanings, pregnancy, and early development in humans goes. And I have a lot I'd like to gain more knowledge on, so this seems like a fantastic idea to me. I'm all for it!

 

[Reaper Jack]

Sounds like a great idea!
I have a pretty extensive knowledge of history, philosophy both modern and ancient, how politics in the UK and Europe functions, WW1 and WW2, Japanese history, Viking history, the Medieval period and I can also provide a good amount of firearms knowledge and general weapons and military knowledge, both names of specific equipment and how they function.
It'd be great to be able to share my knowledge and help people out!

 

[ElBell]

Would we be able to collaborate here? I think there's plenty of overlapping knowledge with the members, so a discussion thread in here may be good so people aren't all working on similar things, and could maybe just make a group effort out of certain research and fact giving.

 

[Astaroth]

@ElBell

Yes, absolutely. Collaboration is allowed and encouraged, just like with the Institute and the Worldbuilding Guild.

 

[Ochalla]

I will live in the research forum!

 

[Karaan]

I will live in the research forum!

We can share a room :)

I would live there too

 

[ElBell]

Would I need to pay rent to join in on living in this potential forum? xD

 

[Laggy Lagiacrus]

As long as credible sources are cited, then I'm all up for it. It's not that I don't trust you lot, I'd just sleep easier knowing we're getting accurate information.
Not that I'd be much help, though. I've got a few history textbooks laying round, but nothing fancy.

 

[Astaroth]

@Laggy Lagiacrus

We're not going to require MLA citation or anything, but some degree of source citation is going to be heavily encouraged due to the nature of this forum in particular. It can be something like "I have a medical degree" or "I'm a hobbyist who collects swords" or "I actually live in the place you're asking about", but SOMETHING should indicate why we should listen to your input and the more citations or qualifications the better.

 

[ElBell]

@Laggy Lagiacrus

We're not going to require MLA citation or anything, but some degree of source citation is going to be heavily encouraged due to the nature of this forum in particular. It can be something like "I have a medical degree" or "I'm a hobbyist who collects swords" or "I actually live in the place you're asking about", but SOMETHING should indicate why we should listen to your input and the more citations or qualifications the better.

Would citing research websites that are reliable count for this as well? And volunteering type stuff? Sadly, I don't have any degrees yet, but I wanna be sure I'm contributing properly :)

 

[Astaroth]

@ElBell

Citing reliable web or text sources is fine, but you might want to stick to just giving input in general discussions or help requests unless you've got a decent background in something. Workshops and etc. are probably better left to people who have a lot of experience or knowledge on the topic.

 

[Laggy Lagiacrus]

@Ozzie Chanter

Fair enough, I suppose. Just as long as the information's correct.

 

[Astaroth]

@Laggy Lagiacrus

If anyone is found posting inaccurate information, it will be corrected, rest assured.

 

[ElBell]

>.< so I'd not be allowed to post my workshop thing if all my researching has been online sparked from curiosity? :/ because that's all I have to go on

 

[Karaan]

>.< so I'd not be allowed to post my workshop thing if all my researching has been online sparked from curiosity? :/ because that's all I have to go on

If you are able to quote something coming from JSTOR or any public library that we can have acccess it will be quite nice. I know a lot of publication on subject can be found on the internet now :)

 

[Astaroth]

@ElBell

It would be allowed! Just not recommended unless you've done a lot of research, and we'd like you to be clear about where and how you got your information.