Making High-Quality Threads : Ask and I'll Point You In The Right Direction

I have been on ATS since 2005 so I thought it was time that I gave back to the website by giving a little assist for those of you who may be new with some ideas and suggestions in how to make a high-quality thread so you get more people reading your ideas or when you post in someone else's thread they will appreciate your contribution, and they may thank you.

I will provide a few of the threads I have done, as well as some of the quality threads of other member, so that you get an idea from various directions, along with different perspectives of how people get other ATS'ers interested in their threads. I will also invite those people to come to this thread and maybe give their own perspective directly so I am not misinterpreting their ideas. I will start this first thread with my own threads first, so I can take a moment and send a U2U to the owners of the threads I will include so as to be respectful to them by asking permission. Respect is important here on ATS as well as following the Terms and Conditions.

Remember that when you are participating here on ATS that this is an international forum, where people of all walks of life will post on all kinds of different types of topics. To thoroughly grab someone's attention here, in my opinion, you have to have knowledge of what you're speaking on as well as contribute source websites for people to go read and understand on their own, which may or may not make it easier on you, because so many people have different levels of education as well as levels of life experience.

Political Collusion of a President and Congress in Collapsing America, The Fall of the New Rome

You will notice in this first thread I provide there that I use absolutely no reference material to assist the reader in going outside of my realm of posting. This is because at this point I got an extremely strong following and people would notice my name or the title of the particular thread and instantly jump in. This in my opinion would be an indicator that you know you have gotten your groove on and are rocking the boards at ATS. Notice my choice of title there though in that it is an instant attention getter for several levels of people here on ATS.

It is often difficult to remember to use diplomacy when replying to someone else's post when they criticize, critique, or wholeheartedly disagree with your point of view and I will say I am in no way perfect in the way I reply. Sometimes this is due to stress throughout my day, so a good suggestion before coming here where heated discussion may happen to relieve your stress outside of ATS, unless that's your particular way of relieving stress by coming here, of course.

Bilderberger : The Global Agenda, Eugenics, Global Warming, And Biochiping Sheeple

In this thread you will notice that I used a lot of well researched videos and website references, as well as book references. If you are an avid reader like I am, knowing your way around sharing your opinions through knowledge recitation of a book in your own words is another good example of how to make sure you are posting powerful threads and high-quality submissions that will get noticed by others, if that's your particular interest in coming here on ATS.

Blackwater : Right-Wing Conservative America, Whether You Like It Or Not...

Here is my favorite thread to date in that it got a lot of attention, both positive and negative. At one point when ATS was still factoring in how many views someone's thread got the thread had gotten over 12,000 views, plus the flags, and the stars as well.

Enough about me and my threads now. Let's get to some basic ideas in how to get you started on a path towards kicking butt on ATS.

Utilizing search engines is a high-priority, even if you already have a good link, more reference websites will not hurt, providing you do it in a good fashion, and make it intelligible.

Website Referencing :

Regular Websites

Wikipedia

Amazon

YouTube

Specialty Websites

Central Intelligence Agency

Department of Homeland Security

White House

News Websites

Associated Press

Washington Journal/C-Span

Los Angeles Times

International and Search Engine Websites

Yahoo

Yahoo United Kingdom and Ireland

Google Australia

Okay, that's good enough for this post since I've used over half of the character limit in creating this thread. Be sure and ask questions and I will do my best to reply quickly, or if you prefer send me a U2U (link at the bottom here that says U2U) or feel free to ask anyone else who contributes to the thread as well. All of what I've included so far will be a great jumping off point for you to begin your path on ATS.

Just remember one more thing. Pay attention to details. They matter.



[edit on 28-3-2009 by SpartanKingLeonidas]

Researching, or lurking as some have come to express it here on ATS, is as good a tool to do your own research to see if other people have already began a discussion on the particular interest you have. In other words, you want to make sure you are not competing with someone else for attention who is a veteran contributor, because that is rather difficult sometimes as well as sort of a silly way making your head hurt.

ATS Media

ATS Media is a great place to look for videos other members have posted on here to get some ideas.

Tin Foil Wikipedia

The Tin Foil Wikipedia, or TinWiki as you can see it on top, is ATS's own Wikpedia branch, and a lot of great members, myself included, have busted their proverbial behinds to add content to in order to make this site rock and roll even more so than it already does. It works just like Wikipedia, it's just more specifically tailored for conspiracy theorists.

AboveTopSecret.com

The main board itself is your number one jumping off point. You will need to exercise some patience and explore each, because posting to the appropriate area will siginificantly factor into just how positive or negative the feedback of harcore posters give to you.

Submit News

Submitting news in the appropriate fashion is extremely important, because people are quick to mistakes and make sure that you are assisted in the right direction. This button is right next to the ATS Google Search Engine.

The ATS Google Search Engine, is another useful tool towards finding articles, if you know how to use a search engine properly. Using a search engine is simple, you enter the main words, minimalizing the amount of words you use in order to get the greatest hits.

In real life, I have been called a Walking Wikipedia by various friends, because you can ask me almost anything political, military, or espionage and I will have an answer or know how to find it. Some of that comes from utilizing ATS to my maximum potential, but the vast majority of it comes from my huge library of books, my Amazon account, and the public library.

Research, research, research. It's important. Just griping about a topic will not keep peoples attention, knowing it will.

Member Debates

Member debates is a great place to go look at how people here on ATS professionally argue among themselves. Just remember that they are arguing within a designated area set specifically for that and there are rules. ATS is abound with rules, called Terms and Conditions.

Terms and Conditions of ATS

This is one of the many Terms and Conditions links here within ATS. The T & C keeps shifting and changing with addition of new members and new issues popping up all the time because the website is constantly being improved and changed on a daily basis.

HAL : Handbook of ATS Links

HAL, explains a lot more in depth than I have gone in detail so far, since I'm using my experience, having never utilized the HAL, or Handbook of ATS Links yet. I prefer learning on my own or asking questions, but I'm going to begin taking a look at HAL more often now. It's the FAQ button you see between "SEARCH" and "CHAT".

[edit on 28-3-2009 by SpartanKingLeonidas]

The next step and suggestion for newer members to make high-quality threads, would be to utilize your resources wisely. What I am referring to here is the usage of programs like Microsoft Word, or Word Perfect, or any other program to write your thread and or post in advance, save a copy, and as well use the spellcheck within it to check your wording for any errors in grammar, spelling, and or typos. This is a simple process to do, as well as it is a good idea, just in case you lose power and your awesome thread gets wiped out just before you click the submit button. As well as this, it gives you a copy you can keep and if you want to copy and paste it into another thread you're creating because the topic you're discussing is large and diverse, of course creatively editing it so that it is not the exact wording, but has small bits and pieces of it within the new entry.

This is good advice another ATS member gave to me one time, right after having lost a 10,000 character post for the power loss issues because of a hurricane in my area. It also gives you a hard copy on your computer that you can print out and hand to a friend with the website's address for ATS written on it and encourage other people to visit this fine online community. Remember, ATS always wants new members, so encouraging your offline friends to come online is a great way of getting other people involved in the discussions of the JFK assassination, Roswell, or even September 11th.

Another fine tool to get people reading your threads who might not already be ATS members is to DIGG It. DIGG, is an online community where news is linked and people discuss it without the conspiracy content. People an vote on your submission to the site, by "Digging" it, as in uncovering it, but be forewarned, people can vote the other way as well, and cover it up as well. The conspiracy content may not be there, but the subtle play is to an extent.

Yet another fine tool is Twitter, an online domain similar to the above mentioned DIGG, you may have even heard of Twitter being in the news lately involving Government employees "Twittering".

That's it for now. Keep up the good work.

[edit on 29-3-2009 by SpartanKingLeonidas]

Here's a few of the best threads that I have done in my time here. The first thread dates back to 2005 in which I had a little bit of fun in doing.
Taking Pictures of Trains Is Illegal!!

The second thread dates back from 2006.
Homeland Security's U.S. Rail Plan

The following thread dates from November of 2006.
Hybrid Vehicles & Firefighters

The last thread that I am posting I had compiled and put on the boards back in November.
The History of Mothman

reply to post by gimmefootball400


Thanks so much for your input on the thread. Any ideas or suggestions to assist newer members?

reply to post by SpartanKingLeonidas


Yes this thread went THUD as you said!! lol, i will take heed for any future threads i post from this...heheh

Hey Spartan.

Thanks for putting this up for all of our new members, I'm sure we can all learn a little something.

S&F for you .

~Keeper

reply to post by zazzafrazz


zazzafrazz, thanks for dropping in.

Yes, the thread seemed to not get much attention.

See you in "The Muttering Zone".

reply to post by tothetenthpower


Thanks for the kind words.

Even I am still learning about ATS.

I thought I would give back to this fine community.

Originally posted by SpartanKingLeonidas


Yes, the thread seemed to not get much attention.

Well I think it is a good thread. Some people care to learn how to make great articles, and just as importent, getting them noticed.

But then again, most people (i guess) have been lurking on ATS for a while before joining as members, and thus have already read a bunch of articles. Most articles on ATS are constructed like
"youtube" --> "wiki" --> "External link" as their way of backing up their opinion, but I like the first article that was posted by the OP, without any sources. That is just a sign of individual thinking which most of the time too, can be great. I will do the same for sure, when I get enough post to start threads

reply to post by Alternative Thinker


Thanks so much for the comments and posting here.

My original thread which I linked, was after I had been here for three years, so I had gotten writing experience under my belt.

And yes, I understand a lot of people will lurk, and watch as well as read.

I just wanted to contribute something back to people who may not know the lay of the land, so to speak.

Originally posted by SpartanKingLeonidas
reply to post by Alternative Thinker

 

My original thread which I linked, was after I had been here for three years, so I had gotten writing experience under my belt.

Yea experience that proves that you know what your talking about, when dealing with objective subjects, like politics.

My point is that subjective topics like ideologies, not necessarily needs to be linked to others opinion, as long as you can explain your thoughts well.

Anyways, this post does contribute, and I will be looking at it when i make my first thread for sure!
And I'm just pretty exited to get into some discussion here on ATS, which is mainly why I made a reply again

I am beginning to think that though there may be a large number of people that may enjoy viewing high quality threads these same people are least likely to star or flag.

The threads with the longest runs, the most stars and flags are those that either insult your intelligence, attack your pride, religion or candidate or is so outrageous that even the poster doesn't believe what they wrote.

I have seen a big change in ATS and I am a newbie.

reply to post by Alternative Thinker


Well said, as well as appreciated.

Feel free to U2U me if you have any questions.

My posts here within the bounds of ATS are because I read extensively.

My current biggest book is on the Federal Reserve :

The Creature From Jekyll Island: A Second Look At the Federal Reserve

My next book I will be reading is :

Tragedy & Hope: A History of the World in Our Time

What are you interests in what brought you to ATS?

One of my past favorite books :

The Secret Life of Houdini: The Making of America's First Superhero

That one is about how Houdini discovered the entire system of Government, up to and including the White House, had been infiltrated by spiritualists.

[edit on 26-5-2009 by SpartanKingLeonidas]

reply to post by NightSkyeB4Dawn


I can appreciate your take on how threads seem to get the longest as well as most exposure because they attack one side or another.

Those type of threads irritate me, because if you're not in agreement with the original poster, you get sleighted.

I've been on the receiving end of those, and someone accused me of the same thing, which was untrue, the person just happened to have formerly been employed by the people I was posting my thread on, and he was vehemently defending them.

Watch out for posting-gangs, which are against the terms and conditions of ATS.

Great idea.


I have found that good quality threads are made up with a blending of media, good references and lots of links for follow up information so the reader can respond with questions from reading the information provided by the posters links.

Here are some examples of some of my more successful postings starting with the latest.


The New Great Game

The Complete Idiot's Guide to the New World

Olmec Giant Stone Heads Mystery Solved?

Definitive Back Engineered Alien Technology Research thread

Ancient America Rocked!

Emergency Broadcast - New World Order Ahead!

reply to post by SLAYER69



Thanks for posting SLAYER69. I have not had the time to post to your New World Order thread there, but I think it's worthy of these guys, with proper citation for reference materials as far as getting you published.

Penguin Books : The Complete Idiot's Guide

Wikipedia : Complete Idiot's Guide To...

I have these two :

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Private Investigating, 2nd Edition

Nonprofit Kit For Dummies

I also highly recommend to anyone who wants to read an interesting book :

How To Start Your Own Secret Society


[edit on 26-5-2009 by SpartanKingLeonidas]

Originally posted by SpartanKingLeonidas
reply to post by Alternative Thinker

 

What are you interests in what brought you to ATS?

I don't know if that was a question to me?
But the Federal Reserve and the Rothschild's, the NWO, quamtom mechanics & such related to philosofical theories. Christianity, macroecomonics, politics, the self .. Basically everything that this site offers I just hope I'm not to open-minded for ATS!! I know I was during the Swine-flu pandemic.
But I will be looking forward to your future post about the Fed. Have already read alot of articles on ATS about that subject

Btw thanks for allowing me to u2u you, but don't I need a lot of post or points to do that? Cause I will probaly ask for help, when I'll make my first thread

[edit on 27-5-2009 by Alternative Thinker]

Originally posted by Alternative Thinker

Originally posted by SpartanKingLeonidas
reply to post by Alternative Thinker

 

What are you interests in what brought you to ATS?

I don't know if that was a question to me?
But the Federal Reserve and the Rothschild's, the NWO, quamtom mechanics & such related to philosofical theories. Christianity, macroecomonics, politics, the self .. Basically everything that this site offers

I just hope I'm not to open-minded for ATS!! I know I was during the Swine-flu pandemic.
But I will be looking forward to your future post about the Fed. Have already read alot of articles on ATS about that subject

Btw thanks for allowing me to u2u you, but don't I need a lot of post or points to do that? Cause I will probaly ask for help, when I'll make my first thread

[edit on 27-5-2009 by Alternative Thinker]

You know I owe you an apology I missed your reply to this thread until just now.

No, you do not need a lot of points to U2U any member of ATS.

Glad to see your interested in a variety of topics and that you are open-minded.

As per Spartan's welcome invitation, allow me to add my input.

I am a writer by trade, amateur film maker and sript writer, so writting threads has always come easily to me.

I use a simple format.

We start with an idea. Whatever the idea may be, broad or specific.

I then view perspective. Your perspective is what matters most when starting a new topic, however to get the best responses from members it's important to show both sides of the coin in your argument or discussion.

I've found that I learn the most when people present two sides of a story and make you think critically about the information.

Sources....sources are very important. Not so much where the source comes from but the quality of the source.

Spartan and I are quite fond of WIKI as a source for the general things, but you must learn to delve deeper in the series of tubes that is the internet to find something that isn't biased.

That is hard to do. In a case where this is impossible, just put up two sources from each biased perpsective and let the membership hash it out.

Make your intentions clear.

Some members have quite the ability to make something into something else, for no other reason that to fuel negative discourse. DO NOT FEED the trolls.

At the beginning of your thread, much like an essay, explain why you put up the thread, what it means to you, and what you expect to get out of it.

NEVER say that you don't want certain people to respond. That equals an instead thread killer.

~Keeper