0
The Initiates Program (TIP)
The Initiates Program (TIP) is a program on Answers.com with the aim of preparing contributors for a supervisory role on the site. Contributors are trained in splitting alternates, recategorizing, removing flags from questions, editing questions, editing answers and answering questions.
132 Questions
What does TIP stand for?
Asked by Wiki User
In the Answers community, TIP stands for The Initiates Program.
It is an official program which prepares contributors for the role of Supervisor in the community here.
What are the benefits of joining The Initiates Program?
Asked by Wiki User
There are several benefits:
- You will receive guidance from TIP Supervisors in how to operate effectively on the website
- You will gain access to exclusive documentation and guides to help you
- You will learn to use tools you may not have used before
- You will learn things about tools that you never knew before
- You will become a respected member of the community
- Your progress will help you become a better Supervisor later
- You will gain feedback from your activities on the site and learn how to improve where necessary
- When you graduate, you will have a 98% chance of being invited onto the Supervisor team
Can I apply to join The Initiates Program or must I be invited?
Asked by Wiki User
You are free to apply to join the program.
If you would like to join then send a message to the program staff, either Xnicola or Skullcandy88. They will review your contributions to make sure you meet the requirements and then set you up with your program badge and first mission.
I have come across an offensive question or answer or alternate during my TIP task - what should I do?
Asked by Wiki User
We advise you to report the offensive or rule-breaking alternate/question/answer.
You can report it to your TIP Supervisor via their message board or click 'flag' on the left toolbar. Or if the question has an answer, you can click the red 'Report Abuse' link below it.
Reporting bad content can show your TIP Supervisors that you recognise the difference between good and bad on WikiAnswers, which will further aid your potential promotion to Supervisor.
As a Supervisor, you can deal with the bad content yourself.
I am a Supervisor and I have a problem with a certain TIP member so what should I do?
Asked by Wiki User
As with all contributors, please feel free to politely educate the TIP member on the problem or issue they are causing. 60% of the time they may just be making a simple mistake.
We advise you to stay off the warn button and to educate, rather than be aggressive and demanding. Warning is always a last-resort option, as it states in the Supervisor manual. The main purpose of TIP is to educate contributors. TIP members are "pre-supervisors" - they join the program before moving onto the Mentoring Program.
It is not a rule, but it is highly encouragedthat you refrain from warning TIP members unless it is absolutely necessary (ie cyberbullying). Minor issues such as URLs in answers and signing answers can be resolved with a simple message to the TIP member and the Supervisor in charge of that TIP member.
As stated above, TIP members are "pre-supervisors" - technically, supervisors cannot warn supervisors, only a community assistant can. So please refrain from doing so unless the warning is entirely necessary.
Please also inform the TIP Supervisor (via their supervisor email) for that relevant TIP member, you can find this information usually on their message boards. The TIP Supervisor may step in and educate their member and they will need to make a note of the issue on their records.
Since the TIP members are potentially future Supervisors, being aggressive or demanding with them can make your Supervisory duties awkward when you have to work with them later.
Can TIP Members merge questions?
Asked by Wiki User
Members of The Initiates Program do not have access to the merge tool.
TIP members can request merges in the same way as other contributors by changing the wording of a question to match the wording of the question they wish it to be merged to.
You can also ask a supervisor to merge questions for you (or your TIP Supervisor if you are a member).
Merging is a supervisor-only tool.
Who is the leader of The Initiates Program?
Asked by Wiki User
The leader of The Initiates Program is Jsarino.
What information does The Initiates Program keep about me?
Asked by Wiki User
The Initiates Program keeps some details about members on a secure database for record purposes:
- Your name / Username
- Your age
- Your country of residence
- Your favourite categories
- The date when you joined TIP
- The start and finish dates of all your missions
- Notes from TIP Supervisors about how you performed on your missions
- Reasons for inactivity if you are inactive
- Any guideline violations that you are warned for during your TIP membership
- Your graduation date
Can I request my personal TIP supervisor to be my Mentor when I am promoted to Supervisor?
Asked by Wiki User
Yes! It is perfectly acceptable to request that your TIP supervisor be your mentor when you are promoted to supervisor. You should try and ask your TIP supervisor as soon as possible after graduating from TIP so that they are aware of your request in time.
How many contributions do I need to have before I join The Initiates Program?
Asked by Wiki User
There isn't really an answer to this. We would like you to have a few contributions so we can assess whether you are a good potential for TIP. A rough recommendation would be around 100 contributions, most of them being answers, with a couple of tool usages and ideally some community actions.
As a better explanation, it would be ideal if you have at least 6 months of active experience on Answers before joining TIP, although exceptions can be made.
During the recategorise mission in The Initiates Program does it count if I categorise questions from the uncategorised category?
Asked by Wiki User
Yes! It is perfectly fine to categorise questions from the Uncategorised category for this mission.
By doing so you are helping lots of questions be answered quicker because they are in their correct category where they can be seen by an expert in that area.
How many missions are there in The Initiates Program?
Asked by Wiki User
There are currently 7 missions in TIP that need to be completed in order to graduate.
They cover answering questions, recategorising, dealing with flags, sorting alternates, editing questions, editing answers and a final survey.
What happens when I graduate from TIP?
Asked by Wiki User
When you graduate from TIP, you will recieve a TIP graduation badge and then it is a waiting game.
The Community Assistants will take a look at your history and contributions and discuss amongst them whether you will be a good asset to the Supervisor team. If they are impressed with you, you will recieve an email inviting you to the Supervisor team.
Once you join the Supervisor team, you are automatically enrolled in another program called the Mentoring Program. Somewhat similar to TIP, the Mentoring Program teaches new Supervisors how to use the Supervisor tools and the Supervisor procedures.
In between missions you should ideally continue to contribute to the site, to show that you are capable of doing things independently without instruction, increasing your chances of being invited to be a Supervisor.
These meetings between the Community Assistants take place around once a week, so please be patient. Impatience is not a good thing when trying to become a Supervisor.
During my TIP mission of editing answers do I need to use minor edit?
Asked by Wiki User
Yes and no.
The yes:
If you are editing the answer to correct spelling, grammar, edit the layout or style, remove excessive punctuation, removing a link and so on. In other words, if you edit an answer but do not provide additional information, you should use minor edit.
The no:
If you are editing to add new information to an answer, correct an answer, or contributing an additional/alternative answer underneath the current answer.
You should ideally use both minor and ordinary edits in answers for this task so TIP can assess your usage of them.
How do I get a personal TIP Supervisor?
Asked by Wiki User
By default your personal TIP Supervisor when you join the program is the TIP Supervisor who invited you. However you may be reassigned to either of the other TIP Supervisors at any time during your TIP membership.
If you want to personally request to be Supervised by a particular TIP Supervisor (Xnicola or Skullcandy88), please let us know.
When one of the TIP Supervisors is unavailable for some time, the other will temporarily step in.
Is it possible to fail in TIP?
Asked by Wiki User
You will fail your mission if you do not do it correctly or break the guidelines during the mission.
For example:
- Copy and pasting
- Links in answers
- Signing answers
- Splitting alternates that shouldn't be split
- Not correcting the spelling of split alternates
- Not using the minor edit button when you should
- Unflagging questions without dealing with the reason why they were flagged
- Recategorising questions to categories they don't belong
- And so on
In some TIP missions, you will be provided an exclusive TIP guide for that specific task. Even if you have done similar tasks before, you should always still read the given guides, because they may contain information you do not know and they also explain how we expect you to perform as a TIP member rather than a contributor.
TIP aims to prepare contributors to become Supervisors - Supervisors are expected to follow the guidelines and perform their actions properly as expected of them. Therefore if a TIP member fails to produce a Supervisor-standard from their missions, they will fail the mission.
You will be asked to re-do the mission by a TIP Supervisor. In serious cases (such as cyberbullying or promoting illegal material) you may be removed and blacklisted from the program.
Am I guaranteed promotion to Supervisor if I graduate from TIP?
Asked by Wiki User
I wish I could say yes, there is a 100% guarantee". But that would be lying.
There is a 98% chance of a TIP graduate becoming a supervisor. Those 2% who do not become a supervisor after graduating were found to be dishonest or broke the ToU/guidelines.
