Why do about 90% of the answers a question ever gets on Y!A usually come in the first hour after asking it?

Answer 1

Well, clearly because Kung Fu Chris is more representative of Yahoo! Answerers than I am.

As you know, I like to answer puzzling Q's, somewhat obscure ones -- and Q's that have been neglected by other answerers. Therefore, instead of searching for Q's in the first two or three pages, I usually try to find four-day-old Q's that have not been answered or have not been answered well or, at least, haven't been answered from my perspective. (And I, personally, am very grateful for other answerers who do the same thing, but more on that later.)

The only problem with my method is that it requires patience. To find four-day-old Q's, I have to flip through Q's in my preferred subcategory (Books and Authors) about three pages at a time until I reach four-day-old ones, usually around the 35th to 40th page. At that point I scan through all the Q's that have appeared since my most recent session, seeking out those that are interesting to me and that have fewer than 8-10 responses. I often find VERY interesting Q's that way (like an Emily Dickinson one I found recently!).

I wish Y!A made that process handier by providing a way to get to four-day-old Q's more easily. But that's a minor complaint.

But this takes me back to one of your previous questions: why some people answer more questions than they ask. As Kung Fu Chris says, you have to ask questions when you think several prospective answerers may be available. Late night person that I am, that doesn't often work for me. I suppose that prime-time hours in the early evening, perhaps on the eastern coast or the western, are the best times. I'm just not sure about that.

I notice that you ususally extend your answering period for an add'l four days. You're more patient and a better bookkeeper than I. I suspect that you get very few responses during your extensions. I like closure more quickly than that. I wonder if Y!A wardens would let you repeat the same question every three to four hours for several days in order to maximize the number of responses. But then what if everyone did that? What a chaotic mess.

I guess it's a catch-as-catch-can game. That's OK. Answering is always fun; sometimes the response one gets from an asker is fun, even downright fulfilling. And occasionally asking is fun, maybe even informative or enlightening. Voting? Well, for most folks, that's a take-it-or-leave-it proposition I guess. I'm always surprised that askers don't insist on choosing their own Best Answers. Sometimes only one or two people vote. I'm one of those people who takes pleasure in that, too. But my laptop refuses to show me the questions currently being voted on, and I rarely make it to my desktop, which does.

Now, let's see: did I answer your question? I guess what I really said was that Kung Fu Chris did. And I said that wordily. Par for the course.

Answer 2

12 hours later.


Because people do not go past the first page. I know what you mean. I have asked questions before. I just KNEW I would get a lot of answers. I did not give half of what I thought I would.

There is the factor of how many questions are being asked. What time you ask it. If your question line appeals to their interest. How you word it. Usually people like short question with a little explanation.

Answer 3

Because people ask so many questions that the questions that were asked a hour or so ago get sent to the last pages, where no one really looks because they probably have found quite a bit of questions to answer on the first few pages. Does that make sense to you? I hope you get what I'm saying.

Answer 4

Because if everyone is like me, they just keep clicking on the ANSWER buttom at the top of the page so that the page keeps refreshing with new questions only. After all, no one wants to be the 43rd person to answer a question. They'd rather be one of the first to answer and maybe make an impact on the person asking the question becaue of their speed in coming up with an answer.

It is up to you then, the questioner, to make sure you ask your question during a time of the day when you know there will lots of people browsing new questions (i.e. don't ask your question during the middle of the night).

Answer 5

Because it appears when you click on a topic in the recently asked questions of course. After that it can only be found through a search.

Answer 6

Beyond that point there is a high probability someone has already expressed your opinion or given the correct answer.

Answer 7

lol..ive wondered that myself..its probably because some people just search through questions to answer most of the day

Answer 8

because usually, thats when the site posts it, the most resent qs are easily accesible, like on the front of the type of question page.

Answer 9

because it gets trampled on with new questions after an hour