Tutorial:How to Use Biostars, Part-I: Questions, Answers, Comments and Replies

Question

[Ram]

In this post, moderators will cover a few important features of Biostars:

1. How do I ask a question?
2. How do I answer a question?
3. How do I ask for clarifications/give additional information?
4. How do I respond to comments?
5. How do I go back and edit my post?

See also: How to Use Biostars, Part II: Post types, Deleting, (Un)Subscribing, Linking and Bookmarking

[Dan D]

Eric Normandeau's post on this is the best overview IMO.

[Istvan Albert]

I have deleted most comments on this page to make the page easier to follow for newcomers. The large number of intertwined answers/comments made the guide hard to follow.

Regular readers will see only the relevant posts. The deleted content is still visible to moderators.

Answer 1

[Ram]

How to add a question

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This is how you add a question:

1. Search first - Make sure the question on your mind hasn't been answered already. Search on biostars AND on google.
2. Click on the "New Post" on the top right of the website. See red highlight in image below

3. Type in the question. Then, add a relevant title. And then, add pertinent tags. Use the following links to understand how best to ask a question:

   3.1. Eric Normandeau's post

   3.2. ACGT blog post

   3.3. Ten Simple Rules for Getting Help from Online Scientific Communities

4. Proof-read everything
5. Click on the blue "Submit" button (see image)

Answer 2

[A. Domingues]

You just did :)

A good question IMO should be clear, to the point and have as much relevant background information as possible.

[Ram]

Upvote + Accept an answer

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I think this answers my question as well. Also, because I find this helpful, I will thank this person by up-voting their answer. To do this, I click on the green check mark to accept answer (as I did here) and also the green thumbs-up (seen above the green check-mark in the same image) to up-vote the answer.

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Also read : How to Accept an Answer

[A. Domingues]

Anyone can post comments that enhance discussion, even after a question has been answered. For instance, I forgot to mention that if the question involves code, providing a small reproducible example is extremely helpful. Here is an example of how to do it for R.

Frequently when formulating a question and writing it down with the reproducible code, I have figured out the answer by myself.

Answer 3

[Ram]

How to edit a post that you created

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Looks like I have a typo in my question. How do I change the content of my post after I've already submitted it?

1. Click on the edit button

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in the post/comment to get this window

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2. Make necessary changes
3. Click on the blue Submit button

Note: You can also change the question title using this procedure.

Answer 4

[Ram]

How to reply to a comment using a Comment-Reply

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I would like to respond to Damian's comment. Here's how I would do that:

1. Click on the relevant "Add Reply" button (highlighted in the image)
2. Add content (My content will be: "Maybe we can create a separate post for moderators?")
3. Click on the green "Add Comment" button (highlighted in the image)

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Answer 5

[Ram]

How to accept an answer

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I find this answer helpful. It addresses the question and answers it. I will accept it as an answer to my question. How do I do that?

1. Click on the pale green check mark (highlighted in the image)
2. You're done :)

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Remember, you can accept multiple answers, as long as they provide valid solution to your top level problem. Accepting an answer is your single most important contribution to the community, as it helps others that face the same problem you did.

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Answer 6

[Ram]

How to Add a Comment

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I would like to clarify a point. To do that, I can add a comment:

1. Click on the gray Add Comment button:
2. Add your comment, proof read it.
3. Click on the green "Add Comment" button.

Actual clarification: I'm dealing more with the how-to than with the etiquette here :) This post is a WIP, that's why it's incomplete.

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