Moodle.org forums help
Getting Help in the Moodle Forum
The Moodle Forums are a tremendous resource in the world of open source community-supported learning management systems. The following is a list of guidelines for how to best access the support systems already active in the forums.
1.) Asking your question in the right Forum is the first important thing you need to do.
Since Moodle is compatible with so many different server types and operating systems, many of the questions that people ask (and the answers they are given) depend upon the operating system and computer hardware that is being used. For example, Moodle has a forum just for questions and answers that are specific to Moodle installations running on Windows servers. If, for example, you have a problem with your Moodle installation running on a hosted Linux server and you ask a question in the Windows forum, the people who are most likely to be able to help you may never see your message. If you aren't sure where your questions belong, try asking your question in the General Forum. [link to general forum to be inserted next edit]
2.) The next thing you need to do is write a subject line (also known as a discussion topic) that is an accurate one-line summary of your question.
If, for example, you are having trouble locating newly created course topics in your Moodle installation, a subject line like "Help My Moodle is broken!" is less likely to encourage people to read and answer your question than a subject line like: "Moodle 1.8.4, new course topics missing."
3.) Once you have written an informative subject line, there are certain elements you should include in your question to get the fastest possible results.
Your question should contain:
- The version of Moodle being used (or upgraded To or From)
- The server operating system and version [e.g. RedHat Linux 9.1, Mac OS X 1.4, Windows 2000, etc.]
- The web server being used [e.g. Apache 1.3.18, Apache 2.0.63, IIS 5, IIS 6, etc]
- The PHP version being used [e.g. 4.47, 5.23. 5.25, etc]
- The database being used [MySQL 5.0.41, PostgresQL 7.4, Windows Sequel 2000, etc]
If you don't have all this information, fill in as much as you can.
And, of course, it should contain your question. Remember that your question should be more like a (very) short story than a novel. It should be direct and to the point. For example, the question with the subject line:
Moodle 1.8.4, new course topics missing
My system: Moodle 1.8.4 FreeBSD 7.0 Apache 2.0.61 PHP 5.25 PostgresQL 8.1
After creating new course topics for weeks 7 and 8 in my Latin I class, I logged out of Moodle as an administrator and back in as a test student, but the the new course topics in 7 and 8 aren't there. Is there some documentation that might explain how to create new course topics that I can follow?
Tim
The question lists the hardware and software, a brief description of the events leadng up to the problem, the problem itself, and a request for a resource that might help the questioner solve his own problem. Knowledgeable Moodlers with experience or insight into that particular problem may even offer solutions in lieu of, or in addition to, any available resources that the questioner requested.
4.) Try to resist emailing or messaging users directly in most cases.
It might be tempting to email the maintainer of the module you have a question about. You are almost always better asking questions in a forum as the audience is much bigger and even Moodle contributers take holidays (sometimes). Don't worry about "clogging" up the forums or asking a stupid question in public. There are so many users out there that someone likely is running into a similar issue and your question will help them clarify their issues, too.
The Moodle Forums are free, community-supported, resources. Almost all of the participants donate their time and brain-power to the further refining of Moodle as an excellent and evolving learning management system that is provided without license fees to the general public. Questions and comments which are rude, incomprehensible or incomplete can discourage volunteers from sharing their time and their own limited resources with the entire community. It is helpful if your questions or comments try to stay on-topic for the Forum in which they are posted. If you are frustrated by your experience and feel the need to rant (as we all do sometimes), please remember that these Help forums are not the place for diatribes or flames. If you feel the need to address an aspect of Moodle or the online digital environment with other Moodle users that doesn't fit into any of the Help topics, you can use the Lounge (the Social Forum) for general discussions. But even in the Lounge, civil discourse is the Rule of the Day.
The Moodle Forums are a tremendous resource in the world of open source community-supported learning management systems. They will continue to evolve and improve as long as all of the participants also continue to be dedicated to their own improvement and that of the entire Moodle community.
