Welcome, New Users, to Daily Kos, from your host catilinus. This Diary is intended to help you orient yourself to the site and ask questions about how to use it.
Below the orange gnocchi-doodle you will find links intended to get you participating more effectively. Also in this edition the most important thing you need to know as a new user.
After that you can ask me any questions about the site you want. If I don't know the answers someone smarter is bound to be along who does, or I'll go find the answers and bring 'em to ya (that means you veteran kossacks).
AND-- if you're new and wondering what is and isn't OK around here, read Kos' Community Guidelines. That'll keep you out of trouble!
Wanna follow us around or send us a kosmail?
Click the ♥ to follow us in your Stream, or click Send Message to send us a private kosmail. Please note you must be a registered user for one week before you can send kosmail.
Ignore the Meta Pie Wars - they are not directed at YOU.
Appearances to the contrary on a bad day or in a the wrong diary, new users are welcome here. New user let me tell you something officially: You ARE welcome here. Don't believe all the hype to the contrary. The meta pie wars (explained below) are between veteran kossacks. You haven't even opened you mouth yet. You got a clean slate (I wish I had one) here and you are very welcome. If anyone tells you different they are projecting.
Thing is about new users, you can last here for years (decades now) or for just a comment. Your choice. We want you here for years. Heh. That's our secret plan, except it isn't so secret. Least it shouldn't be.
Heck, those of in Welcome New Users have been here for years. We're all different from each other and don't toe anyone's line, not even each others. If we can survive here so can you. Two points I find helpful to keep in mind before commenting are:
1. I'm not the ultimate authority here on any question.
2. You're not the ultimate authority here on any question.
Ever notice how somethings DON'T work offline? For example, "Hi. I'm Martha. I know what I'm talking about and the rest of you don't know squat!" That generally doesn't work offline as an introduction. Won't work here either.
Where to introduce yourself?
Anywhere you want, including below this diary in the comments.
Suggestions how to introduce yourself to the community.
1. Good places to introduce yourself. Community diaries and Open Threads are great places to introduce yourself and let the community get to know you. There are dozens of community diaries published daily or weekly. Below is a list of daily ones.
The diaries below are all listed in Pacific Time zones (hat tip to smileycreek)
Morning Open Thread: 4:00 AM daily with a rotating cast of diarists.
Cheers and Jeers: 5:30 AM Monday-Thursday, 4:30 PM on Fridays, on the Front Page with Bill in Portland Maine
The Daily Bucket: around 5:30 AM daily with a rotating cast of diarists.
High Impact Posts: 7:00 AM daily (and twice on Sunday!) with jotter
Connect! Unite! Act! Team: 7:30 daily with a rotating cast of diarists.
PWB Peeps: 11:00 AM daily with a rotating cast of diarists.
Midday Open Thread: 12 noon daily on Front Page
Street Prophets Coffee Hour: 1:00 PM daily with a rotating cast of diarists.
Afternoon Open Thread: 4:00 PM daily on Front Page
Kitchen Table Kibitzing: 5:00 pm daily with a rotating cast of diarists.
Top Comments: 7:00 PM nightly with a rotating cast of diarists.
Open Thread for Night Owls: 8:30 PM nightly on Front Page
Overnight News Digest: 9:00 PM nightly with rotating cast of diarists.
2.
Bad places to introduce yourself.
Pie fights are the worst place to introduce to the community. You'll be stepping into a fight that likely turned sour aeons before your innocent self showed up. Sore feelings tend to run from high to sky-high in pie fights and they have given birth to many long grudges.
Pie Fights, Pie Wars or just
Pie are phrases coined here on Dailykos to refer to battles fought in diaries and comments between members of the Dailykos community. Often, though not always, the subject of the Pie War would be unfamiliar to anyone not already familar with the personalities that post here. They can be very vicious, and sometimes resemble a long series of folks stubbing their toes in sequence. In other words, not a place you want to accidentally find yourself as a newbie.
The Ad that began the first Pie Fight.
The term Pie Fight originated here way back in 2005 over an Ad that featured two women throwing pies at each other. Here is one version of it from the site owner in June 2005 in his
Pie fight ad diary/flamefest.
So over the weekend, certain segments of the community have erupted in anger over the TBS ad for their reality show, the Real Gilligan's Island. Apparently, having two women throw pies at each other, wrestle each other in a sexy, lesbianic manner, then having water splashed on their ample, fake bosoms is degrading to women. Or something like that.
Obviously, many many folks took exception with that point of view. Harsh words and stereotyping were flung back and forth in a shotgun pattern. That's in the nature of a Pie Fight. As a new user...avoid them.
and a Tip of the Hat to Some Recent New Users:
Arkshep:First diary made it to the rec list.
Amanda1: Commented and donated to the diary to support Brainwrap's efforts.
What new users have you met or helped in the past month?
Share them with us in the comments!
Please also check out the buddy system over at the New Diarists group. While WNU and New Diarists do quite a bit of cross-pollinating, there is one essential difference between us: Over at New Diarists you can request a mentor who will help you learn how to write and publish a diary that won't get you publicly consigned to Worst Diary Hell at the GOS (Great Orange Satan, as we are affectionately known among wingnuts). Just send them a kosmail asking for an invite! Also check out their Resource Diaries. Note: The New Diarists groups also welcomes experienced diarists who would like to be mentors.
Got questions? Comments? Ideas? We're all ears-- just join us in the comments. And remember: Since this diary is for New Users no question is too basic, no matter how long you've been here!
For More Helpful Diaries, Check Out Our Archives:
Everyone is encouraged to review some of the previously written goodness that survives here in the DKos archives, going back to WNU founder ek hornbeck and including the list of teaching diaries republished to our Group page.