Comments on Marketing Math Codidact
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Marketing Math Codidact
I don't think it's controversial to say that this site is currently suffering from a lack of new questions.
I believe the main problem is lack of awareness. People aren't coming to this site because they have no idea it exists. A distant second concern, in my opinion, is the value proposition relative to the Math StackExchange. Nevertheless, I think having a clear answer to the second concern is useful for any explicit "advertising".
The main questions I want to ask are thus:
How can we make more people aware of Math Codidact?
What are or can be the benefits of Math Codidact over Math StackExchange?
For the former, I don't have too many suggestions beyond people active here mentioning it to people/communities they think will find it useful. I hope others can provide more options. The main option I have beyond that is I don't believe running community promotion ad on Math StackExchange has been tried. I don't believe there is any policy reason not to. It was done for the Writing Codidact on the Writing StackExchange. Admittedly, the Math StackExchange and Writing StackExchange communities are not comparable, so how it would be received might be quite different.
An answer for the second question seems useful for any "ad copy" we might make for e.g. a community promotion ad on Math StackExchange.
Here are currently the points I see, roughly in the order I think people would find compelling, particularly for those asking questions.
- It's not StackExchange. Many people have a negative perception of StackExchange whether from experience or reputation.
- It's supported by a non-profit organization. Having a viable, non-profit alternative to StackExchange is a compelling story to me.
- It's more responsive to change. I mostly intended this at the level of adding features, but it also applies to the social aspects of the community due to its size and youth.
- For some topics, you are more likely to get an answer here than Math StackExchange. For example, I can single-handedly guarantee this for type theory questions. Are there other topics for which this is true?
- It's based on open-source software.
What other points could be added? What features could we add to Math Codidact to improve its value proposition relative to Math StackExchange?
What is a short sentence and/or blurb that "sells" Math Codidact and incorporates some of the points above?
I'd be interested hearing how people who came here heard about Math Codidact and why the posted here instead of Math StackExchange, particularly people who were NOT part of the StackExchange diaspora from last year.
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One long-standing issue on Math StackExchange is the policy on "problem-statement questions", or PSQs in short. The current policy there is that questions must provide sufficient context, and there is a close reason specifically for questions that lack context. There are highly active users on Math SE with widely differing views on what counts as sufficient context, especially for questions in low-level math (i.e. school or undergraduate level).
The issue comes up in several contexts: sometimes in debates on Math Meta SE between the more vocal groups of supporters for stringent vs. relaxed enforcement of the policy, and also in the context of closing and deletion of questions taking place through the chatroom CURED.
Another related issue is that of duplication of answers beyond the point of usefulness. Many low-level questions have already been answered thoroughly, and are still asked by new users quite regularly (perhaps many new users do not choose to try and search the site for their question first, and also perhaps because searching for math expressions isn't easy). Current policy is to close these newer questions as duplicates of older questions with more thorough answers. There was also a push to compile a list of "abstract duplicates" on Math Meta SE, though that effort seems to have petered down.
The $n$-fold duplication of answers, especially by users who seem to chase after reputation points rather than engage in housekeeping activities, is combated somewhat in the chatroom CURED, but again there are differing opinions and it leads to some acrimonious debates between highly vocal users.
Since Math Codidact does not carry the baggage of Math SE, we have a chance to develop a clear policy that addresses these issues even before they occur. This could also be favourable to many knowledgeable answerers on Math SE who are tired of the current deadlock and may be looking for a different platform.
(Also, for what it's worth, I had nearly 10,000 reputation points and close to 300 answers on Math SE before I deleted my SE accounts network-wide.)
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