23
\$\begingroup\$

I would like to propose to remove the answer directory from the Sandbox. It seems that:

  • It's never up to date.
  • It takes a lot of unnecessary vertical space.
  • I have no indication that anyone is actually using it.

If you're using it to find your own proposals, there is a much better way: simply use this search query which I'll gladly link in the sandbox post. If you're actually using it to look for others' proposals (and find the list invaluable for that), I'd like to hear that.

Let me know your opinions/objections in comments or answers.

\$\endgroup\$
4
  • 8
    \$\begingroup\$ Yes please. I often look for new sandboxed questions but can not recall ever using the directory instead of just sorting by active. (30^3-3 :D) \$\endgroup\$
    – Calvin's Hobbies
    Apr 29, 2015 at 23:30
  • 6
    \$\begingroup\$ Wait a minute. I've never used them, but why not use a Stack Snippet that shows all the posts edited within the last 2 weeks or so, and (again, have not used them) sorts them by tag in the header? \$\endgroup\$
    – ASCIIThenANSI
    Apr 30, 2015 at 0:10
  • 3
    \$\begingroup\$ @ASCIIThenANSI That's certainly possible. But my main takeaway from your comment is "I've never used them". So unless it turns out that this list is actually a useful tool to anyone I don't see why anyone would want go through the effort of writing such a snippet. \$\endgroup\$
    – Martin Ender
    Apr 30, 2015 at 8:38
  • \$\begingroup\$ @MartinBüttner By "I've never used them" I mean Stack Snippets. I use the list to see what new challenges pop up, but I wasn't sure whether or not it could be done with Stack Snippets. \$\endgroup\$
    – ASCIIThenANSI
    Apr 30, 2015 at 13:39

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
16
\$\begingroup\$

I'm very happy with getting rid of the list of answers and replacing them with a few useful links instead. No more manual updating, and no more scrolling for a fortnight to get past the question.

I would find it very useful to have the link to your own answers that MartinBüttner suggests. This one is also sorted by active, so you can see what you have been working on most recently at the top.

We could also include links for reviewing just one tag type:

: Link to KotH answers sorted by active

: Link to golf answers sorted by active

\$\endgroup\$
4
  • \$\begingroup\$ I think these links will serve as a good replacement. \$\endgroup\$
    – PhiNotPi
    Apr 30, 2015 at 11:58
  • 1
    \$\begingroup\$ This might actually work better than anything else. The only thing left is to get people to put tags in or near their headers, so we can see the titles. \$\endgroup\$
    – ASCIIThenANSI
    Apr 30, 2015 at 13:41
  • 2
    \$\begingroup\$ You could add the term is:answer for the search links. \$\endgroup\$
    – randomra
    Apr 30, 2015 at 13:51
  • \$\begingroup\$ @randomra fantastic thank you - I've updated the links to reflect is:answer \$\endgroup\$
    – trichoplax is on Codidact now
    Apr 30, 2015 at 14:55
6
\$\begingroup\$

Use a Stack Snippet instead

This was a very popular comment of mine, so I'm turning it into a post.

I think that Stack Snippets could be the way to go here. It (mostly) solves the current list's problems:

It's never up to date.

One possible solution to this was my community wiki idea, but that's still work. A Stack Snippet that searches through the Sandbox would always be up to date every time you ran it.

It takes up a lot of unnecessary vertical space.

Stack Snippets would be compact, like all the others on the website, so it doesn't take up much room (and you can always use 'full page'.)

I have no indication anyone is actually using it.

My guess is that no one uses it because of the other two problems. Because you need 1000 rep to edit it (since meta doesn't allow suggested edits), it's time-consuming to handle (for the posters and the editors). It's also very long, so no one has the time to scroll through all those posts.

What do you think?

\$\endgroup\$
4
  • 4
    \$\begingroup\$ You might be right that no one is using it because it's not up to date. But even so I'm not sure what benefit the stack snippet would provide over a) just looking at the sandbox sorted by active or b) using the site's own search with the restriction inquestion:2140, which is a lot more flexible than a Stack Snippet could ever be. So no, I personally don't think it's a good idea, and we can use this opportunity to educate people about the advanced search features instead. \$\endgroup\$
    – Martin Ender
    May 2, 2015 at 17:48
  • \$\begingroup\$ @MartinBüttner You've got me there. Personally, I didn't know that you could use inquestion:2140 to search through the Sandbox. You may also want to add this whole question to the Sandbox body, before we remove the entire list. \$\endgroup\$
    – ASCIIThenANSI
    May 2, 2015 at 17:50
  • 1
    \$\begingroup\$ This is not a bad idea, but I'm with Martin in the doubt that a stack snippet list would be viewed any more than the current one. I say we remove the directory and add a snippet later on if it seems necessary. \$\endgroup\$
    – Calvin's Hobbies
    May 3, 2015 at 5:14
  • \$\begingroup\$ @Calvin'sHobbies I'm in favor, but before we do that, we should link the users to this page, so they can know what's going on. \$\endgroup\$
    – ASCIIThenANSI
    May 3, 2015 at 5:25

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .