Learner Mode? Figuring out how the Meta community works

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Hi, I’m actively exploring around the Meta community to learn how Discourse works and could be set up for my own new community.

I’m often asking, “Now how do they do that?” Is it via a plugin, a theme component, a setting, a custom feature they hand-coded?

It would be great if there were some kind of learner’s mode I could switch on and get tooltips for various features and functionalities implemented on the the Meta site.

Next level would be if learner tooltips could link directly to the relevant documentation, plug-in, theme component, guide, or topic.

Learning the ins and outs of Discourse is fascinating, but now I’m overwhelmed. I’m actually stalled on getting my community up and running because I keep thinking, “Oh, I need that!” – and then I spend way too long trying to figure out how to do it, or (first) how hard or easy it would be to implement.

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I like the name “Learner’s Mode”. This seems like something that could be implemented as a Theme, or a set of Themes, which could be made available in the Theme Switcher.

If the Discourse Forum Helper AI Helper is enabled on a Discourse site (like it is on this site), then users (all users, since we are all Learners here, always learning something new!) can select any text and get at least some instant edification, like so…

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Oh, I like this AI explain feature a lot. I will be using it to get quick insight into terms and concepts.

That’s an intriguing idea to create a special theme that would incorporate a learner’s mode. I could see that having wider application, maybe.

Besides trying to figure out Discourse for myself, I’ve been thinking a lot about how to onboard my future community members. We really are all constant learners. I need to set things up to take as much pain as possible out of learning to use the platform itself.

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It’s okay to actually ask those questions in Support :slight_smile: Usually, someone can tell you which feature, plugin, or component that is and ome others will probably also be grateful if you draw their attention to this feature with your question.

Edit: Maybe My Wiki of useful Meta (and other) links is something you are interested in

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One interesting idea floating in my head is using a system like ask.discourse.com as the place where people start interaction with a community.

Meaning force people to interact with the LLM to do research on a question (maybe it was asked before and is already answered), prior to allowing them to post a new question on the forum. Then use that session to detect if the user was a spammer or not.

@tgustilo ask was built mainly for our customers but it will answer general questions about how to do various things in Discourse quite well.

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@sam are you thinking that, for example, a user on one of my Discourse forum sites could be routed to ask.discourse.com to get help learning how to use my forum, and perhaps get contextual or in-line guidance on my site from an external source (a sort of integrated help system service) that I subscribe my site to?

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What I am thinking here is more about a “site-aware discobot” type thing.

Discobot can feel tedious because you have done it 10 times before and it is always the same.

A system that is forum-specific, on the other hand, can be useful regardless.

So unlike “discobot”, it would kick off with a

:wave: how can I help you?

I am trying to find out if people prefer the Canon EOS to the Fuji cameras.

I found the following discussions on the forum:

  1. Canon vs Fuji
  2. Canon is the best camera

Is there any other way I can help you?

This was great, but I really wanted to know how “aspect X” interacts.

I cannot find any discussions about aspect X, how about replying to Canon vs Fuji

Sure I would love to, but I am struggling with formatting here, can you give me a quick breakdown of what I can use…

Etc…

Then using the following techniques, discussions like this with the robot can also serve as a signal for spam protection, moving people who interact really badly to a “require admin approval” queue.

Use global forum signals

  • 10 spammers recently were asking about Minolta cameras… so people asking about this are likely spammers.

Use local signals

  • Person asking incredibly off-topic stuff.
  • Incoherent discussion with chat bot
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How about a site-aware chat bot? A benefit of that approach is that it could be used simultaneously while a user navigated around the site. Users could ask it questions about the page they were currently visiting.

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I haven’t used the AI much yet, although it’s one reason why I went with Discourse. Thanks for the link to ask.discourse.com. I will play with that.

As to a learner’s mode using an AI-powered bot, that sounds useful. Site-awareness seems essential, but there are different perspectives of learners.

Are they staff, who need to understand the Discourse platform and manage users and content? Or are they users, who will be focused mostly on the content and other users and will be resistant (probably) to having to learn anything more than they have to about the platform/tool itself. The more friction they encounter, the less likely they’ll be to participate or stick around. (Or maybe they’ll just be intimidated…)

There is some evidence out there that naive users might be able to use an AI more easily than learning the ins and outs of a complex tool. The latest announcement from The Browser Company re: Arc might be a case in point.

tldr: Arc will be maintained for existing geeky users, but it’s not going to scale, so they’re starting a whole new project for non-techie “friends and family.”

As a new admin, I’m in (geeky) learner’s mode for Discourse as a platform/tool, and as a new user here on Meta (who does actually want to learn the platform). My real focus is elsewhere, though, i.e. setting up my own forum, including making a lot of decisions about my unique configuration, my unique starting set of content, and my new and future members. It’s a lot.

My biggest fear at this point is making decisions that will be hard to back out of later. I fully expect to experiment and to evolve both my set-up and content over time, but some decisions seem stickier than others. I’m particularly conscious of what my earliest users will need to make the project a success in the long run, ultimately. I want to get off on the right foot.

I went through discobot’s standard tutorial (not the advanced one yet), and I’ve been poring over docs and wiki here on Meta. There’s a lot of really advanced content intermixed with “what you really need to know to get started,” and it can be hard to tell the difference.

Maybe a way to think about an AI bot for Meta – and as a tool for admins to use on their own forums – would be to consider what kind of persona with what kind of information the bot/AI should have to be helpful for different needs, for example:

  • admins at various stages of the game, with various concerns front of mind
  • new or experienced users, also at various stages in the evolution of the community they’re joining
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I look forward to your “community of practice for lifelong learners” !

Don’t hesitate to post questions here at Meta as they arise. Discourse is complex, but the community is extremely helpful.

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