Please consider not apologizing in the subject--I maybe want to answer but if I have to extend mercy before I even click on it-- it gets confusing/depressing.

I work in retail and people apologize for using a debit card for a small purchase or not having exact change or they apologize for using a bill with a large denomination. I mean this is a store. We exist to take your money in exchange for goods no need to apologize for fulfilling our reason to be here.

Likewise with a cake forum, go for it ask a question.
No need to say you are sorry.

However, apology accepted/mercy extended for calling us suckers. omg

Let's all just consider to try & stop overthinking this and ask, answer and make comments at will.

Early morning pre-coffee thought for you.

<sip sip> Here's to a great day!

I'd add that the clarity of the topic title can make a big difference in getting an answer to your question...or not.

For instance, you may need to know how much gel color to add to your MMF since you've only ever used those little liquid bottles of color in the past. I may have run into that exact same issue when I first started out and have the exact answer you need.

However, you've decided to title your question, "HELLLLPPPPP!!!" or "OMG, MMF is killing me!!!" or "Need answer NOW!!!" or "How do I decide?"

I NEVER click on those topics...ever.

Since not many people click and read every post that comes up, they scan the titles to see if it's something they can help with or at least interests them. The above titles would only make me think, "newbie in a panic...probably asking some question that's already been answered a million but they don't want to search." or "not a lot of time today...just keep skimming...just keep skimming until I see something that I can help with or looks interesting." So most of us just move past your topic, not ever knowing what you wanted, taking our valuable answers with us.

Now if your title was, "Liquid vs gel color...how much" or "coloring MMF with gel" or "new to gel color...confused" then you'd probably get lots more folks stopping to answer you because they say, "hey, I know about gel color!"

I know, this will probably never change. But there, I've said it.

I totally agree with everything K8, Artscallion and IndyDebi said...We have been around along time on this forum and I just ignore the HHHEELLLPPPP posts and Scratch vs Box issue and the comment "I know this already been asked but" I don't mind helping anyone and sharing what I know and have learned but when the same questions keep getting asked without looking in the previous threads first....For example.."What kind of Edible Image printer should I buy" Grrrrrr

I just bypass them all together! Just my 2 cents...LOL

To clarify, I tihnk all of us are very willing to help when we can and with new people joining everyday, there are going to be repeat questions and new folks don't really know, yet, that its a popular question. Guiding them to previous posts helps them with their answer and shows them where the info is "filed". (Thanks JanH for your helpful posts with lots of links!)

but we have to actually get into the thread before we can give that help. Vague topics prevent that.

I really appreciate all the advice and lessons learned on here. I always "search" first. It aggravates me some time to see some of the questions that are asked before searching first, but some people.... that's why there's chocolate and vanilla.

I do want to say however: Thanks for all you do -- all of you!

Now I just answered this question for SS and the whole thing disappeared somewhere
--so it's a good question--it's a very important detail--here yah go, SS~~

Bottom tiers need to be taller than upper tiers otherwise if they are all the same height, the bottom tiers will look too short. Optical illusion.

My personal preference is 4 to 5 inch tall tiers.

3-3.5 inches is about as short as you'd ever wanna go and be appropriate unless you are doing it on purpose for a special effect. A three inch tall bottom tier is gonna look pretty squat so you'd wanna keep that in consideration. But a top tier that's 3.5 inch tall is probably gonna look nice.

So I might have a 1-1.5 inch height difference between my top & bottom tiers overall give or take a bit.

agree with what has been said already, and on the search topic.... i don't mind guiding people to a search if they at least say they've tried but couldnt' find what they were looking for. Sometimes navigating the search on here is a little difficult and you have to know how to work the system.

But when the first line says "i'm sure this has been asked but i need an answer quick so i'm not going to search....." i close these topics right away. It usually takes longer to get a reply that it does to search. Some days i'm feeling nice and do a quick search but most of the time i just close the topic and go on to the next.

GUILTY to a certain extent. I ALWAYS, ALWAYS do a search prior to me asking a question. I actually spent about 2 hours yesterday afternoon and another 3 or 4 hours last night doing searches for cameos, molds, the SPS system, different dust, Cricut cake--cake designs, how to make bling for a cake, etc. I came up a little short. Some I found useful, others no such luck.

I was on here since about 2am this morning. Once I'm on a mission, I stick to it until I accomplish my goal or fall out.

But, I do know that I have, in the past, put vague subject headings in my posts, not because I wanted to, but because I didn't know how to word it. So, now I try to put as much info in the subject line that is allowed.

My thought too is that some people want to boost their forum post numbers and just think of anything to ask so they won't be a "newbie" anymore.

Yes, I was tempted a few times to do this, but now I rarely post...just read.

I do not answer questions that involve quantities, like

How much buttercream/fondant/gumpaste for this size cake?

There's no way for me to know that, because you and I do not frost our cakes the same. I know how much I use, because I do my own cakes. I wouldn't even wager a guess as to how much, because I always make extra, anyway, and just freeze what I do not use.

Or

How much should I charge for this cake?

This subject was discussed to death a few years ago, with the concensus that we cannot tell you how much it would cost where you live, only what it would cost where we live. You have to charge what your market will bear.

Someone had even posted that questions and answers of that nature could be considered price-fixing, and is subject to prosecution under the RICO act. So I stay away from them altogether.

Sometimes the repeated questions are posted by someone who claims to be a newbie, but they've actually been a member for longer than I, have either never posted before or have three posts to their credit, and just don't want to look up the information for themselves. Hey, don't they know that their join date is posted under their screenname? I check all join dates now, and if I feel the person should already know the answer or should know how to find it themselves, I just move along to the next question.

Theresa

[quote="playingwithsugar"]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Angelfire3

Quote:

Originally Posted by amygortoncakes

I've been here for 2 years and barely hit the 150 mark.

But at least you participate. You don't just ask questions, you engage in conversation here, too. The members I'm talking about are the ones who have been here forever, ask questions that have already been asked, and otherwise, you don't hear from them. It's like we're supposed to help them, but they refuse to help anyone else, even though they're here long enough to know the answer.

Theresa

I couldn't have said it better myself. You're 100% right.

quick question, how do newbies find previous threads that have the answers to our questions? I mean, I always check in the category that Im wanting to ask but after a few pages of not finding what I am needing, I just go ahead and ask anyways, and I KNOW that there is NO WAY no one else has started out in caking and not asked some of the questions I have! LOL! Sometimes, I do not always know how to word the questions either....any suggestions for finding these threads???

If I want to see if Gumpaste orchids have been discussed here, I go to Google and type, "gumpaste orchids cakecentral"


This is what I get...

http://www.google.com/search?q=gumpaste+orchids+cakecentral&ie=UTF-8

links to tons of cakecentral discussions and/or tutorials on gumpaste orchids. If I just want pics, I do a google image search in the same way and I get this...

http://www.google.com/images?q=gumpaste+orchids+cakecentral&hl=en&prmd=ivns&source=lnms&tbs=isch:1&ei=5nAnTcOhPMSp8Aan3KjMAQ&sa=X&oi=mode_link&ct=mode&ved=0CAcQ_AU&biw=1106&bih=845

Underneath the "forums" tab, at the top of the page, in the purple bar, click the word "search". In the search field, use as few words as possible. the fewer the better.

here's a couple of threads that give some tips on how to search successfully:

http://cakecentral.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=682417&postdays=0&postorder=asc&highlight=search&&start=30 (see my 2nd post on page 3)

and

http://cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-679930-search.html

-----------------------------
edited to correct the page number

I'm pretty sure that I'm still ranked as a newbie. I have put very few comments or questions on here, but read MANY threads every day. I try to search for everything that I'm trying to figure out before I ask.

I avoid most of those topics as well. I have learned an extreme amount of information from this site and appreciate everything that has been posted.

Haha! Well, thanks for pointing that out! I honestly haven't paid attention when I have put things and never noticed when it went up!

I commend all of you who take the time to search through CC before asking the question. Learn how to use the entire search feature, because you can have the system search from oldest posts to newest, or vice-versa. You can also search by topic title, or as part of the text.

Theresa

Also consider that although the person may have a long term join date, they may have joined but have not been back on in awhile.

Some people probably don't have time to do a lot of posting, they just lurk and read, too. I know that the only time I ever go to the photos on here is when someone posts a specific question about something and refers to a photo. I'm sure that there are people who have been on here forever who just don't bother posting.

Thank you thank you thank you for going over how to search the forumns. I have had tons of trouble, computer illiterate, searching so now that I know, I won't be asking as many duplicate questions. Thanks again to all you more experienced cakers, as a hobbiest this is the best site ever!

Oh and even tho I have been a member of the site for a long time, I don't post too much because I am not super confident I would give the best answer, and I wouldn't want to direct someone into making a mistake. But I am getting better and more confident thanks to everyones help!

I've been a member for a long time, but haven't posted much for quite awhile. Life just got in the way and it also seemed like it was the same stuff, endlessly. However, I do peek in from time to time.

I do agree though. I never even look at posts that don't have a specific topic. I've also always been amazed at the threads that go on for pages where people give exactly the same answers as everyone else who posted! Why?