new user - how to get by?

[szabgab]

I am new in DW and used LJ only once so I have no idea where to find things and how to do things here.

Following the recommendation of damned_colonial I got on the #dw IRC channel and asked about it. I got a link to this getting_started community, to dreamchasers, and to support.

So I am posting here wondering how do you start using DW? How do you find people to answer your questions if there is no community yet with your interests?

Comments

[phoenixsong]

Don't limit yourself to communities! Not to say communities don't get used, but most people post more frequently to their personal journals than to comms.

If you want to look for people with similar interests to the ones you listed in your profile, you can click on any linked interest. If an interest is linked, that means other people have the same interest in their profiles as well.

If you want to search for people or comms with other interests than those listed in your profile, look for the search box on your profile page. By default, it will search on interests, though you can search on other options as well by changing the drop-down menu.

just talk to almost random people?

[szabgab]

Ok, so I find a bunch of people listing robots as interest but no community.
Shall I just send a private message to them with a link to my question in my personal journal?

Re: just talk to almost random people?

[cesy]

Usually (at least in the social circles I spend most time in), the way to get to know people is to subscribe to them, then comment occasionally on their entries. They'll notice you, probably reciprocate, and then you'll gradually get to know them. Some people consider it polite to drop a comment on their top entry when you first subscribe, just introducing yourself. However, given that you're new to Dreamwidth and need an answer fairly quickly, PMs to random people with that interest could well work.

As far as robots go, you could also try one of the general programming communities, or maybe science, as that will have a fair number of overlapping interests.

Re: just talk to almost random people?

[yvi]

Seconding the suggestion for science. Just repost your question there, szabgab or ask whether anyone is interested in the same topic as you.

I could also do another intro round. Hmmm....