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What can we do to make Cool Tools better?
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Cool Tools is a reflection of its readership, and we remain blown away at the amazing depth of knowledge that is showcased on a daily basis here at Cool Tools. But that doesn't mean we should settle.
What can we do to improve the site?
Are there specific kinds of reviews you want to see more of?
How do you think we can encourage submissions?
Do the contests work? What would make them more attractive?
We are always thrilled to get feedback from our readership, and we value your honesty. If you'd rather email us than post publicly send us an email to editor@cool-tools.org. I try to respond to every email, but given the amount we get it can be a challenge. If you don't hear back feel free to send me a reminder!
Best,
Oliver Hulland
Editor, Cool Tools
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I'd like to know why people don't cast votes for answers. -C |
Another suggestion: Make commenters "subscribe" by default--don't make them opt in. This would lead to deeper discussions--and I don't think anyone would really object. |
A third suggestion--stop abbreviating the years. Every time I see something like Jan 05 '12 I have to stop and translate that into 2012. Don't make me think! (Ask a bunch of other people about this if what I say sounds idiosyncratic.) |
4: Fix the Ask FAQ so it doesn't stretch beyond the right margin (when viewed on my Mac), which makes it hard to read. Printing it out doesn't help either, because the material beyond the right margin gets chopped off. |
After I submitted a tool, I got an e-mail containing this sentence: "If you used the "Submit a Tool" form to contact us for another reason, please send an email to editor@cool-tools.org instead, so that we can get back to you sooner." Why not put that info at the head of the Submission form? |
In the left sidebar under the heading CATEGORIES, there are two classes of items. I think they should be grouped together by class and separated by a blank line. Categories in the smaller class are "para"-tool related, and include: Related Stuff, Announcements, Dead Tools (maybe), Readers' Gifts, Tips, Source Wanted, and Uncategorized. PS--My second suggestion above--"Make commenters "subscribe" by default" is moot, I now realize. I'm new on this site. |
Add a button to the Suggest a Tool form: "Is This a Tip?" If clicked, turn off the inquiry boxes about Model Number and URL. And, to encourage Tips, include the word Tip in the title. Alternatively, provide a separate tip submission form. |
Use slashes instead of hyphens as date-format separator characters. E.g., use 04/15/14, not 04-15-14. According to an official international standard (which I read about 20-some years ago), hyphens are reserved for use with the yr-mo-da format. The idea is that this will disambiguate dates in that format from others. |
A cool tool can be any book, gadget, software, video, map, hardware, material, or website that is tried and true. All reviews on this site are written by readers who have actually used the tool and others like it. Items can be either old or new as long as they are wonderful. We post things we like and ignore the rest. Suggestions for tools much better than what is recommended here are always wanted.
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