Bitcoin Forum

Based on what I have seen in the forum. There are some Post that I will see some of the boards scared me to make comment, mostly Meta. Because I only see Sr/Hero/legendary members in that board. And some of the threads I saw there are very good for me to at least make a comment but my fear is that, wether is is an offend to do so. So I want to know if I have restrictions on some of the boards to make posts and comments in the forum. And if there is please provide those boards for me so I will be properly guided.

to answer your title, yes, Beginners and help are meant for newbies who are just starting out here in the forum. that being said newbies can also post on the majority of the boards but there are few boards/subboards that restrict newbies.

since it seems like that you are new in this forum I suggest reading these
Newbies - Read before posting (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1689727.0)
Unofficial list of (official) Bitcointalk.org rules, guidelines, FAQ (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=703657.0)

You can post anywhere in the forum, except two boards, Ivory Tower (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?board=251.0) (Member at least to post), and Serious discussion (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?board=250.0) (Jr. member at least to post)
- Two new no-signature boards (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=2716647.0)
- Rules for Serious Discussion and Ivory Tower (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=2722359.0)

Beginners & Help is for newbies so you can ask any question in this board.

Why are you scared to make a comment? If you really have something to say and you think that your comment contributes to the discussion, then do it. Ranks don't matter. But if you think that your post won't in any way enrich the discussion, then it is enough to just read. But it is no offense to join discussions even if most of those who are sharing ideas are high rank members. Just make sure you're bringing something relevant.

Its fine posting on different boards. Meta is kinda a broad section so better post here on Beginners and Help section.

One thing, dont be scared to make a mistake. Even those high ranking posting there also been criticised and undegone correction but thats normal no ones perfect to know everything and this is a forum and discussion of opinion is openly accepted. If you think you are correct and the one you saw is wrong then justify it and show its support and people here will back you if you are right.

Only if you are aware that what you are about to say is garbage should you be afraid. However, if you are able to rationally back up your argument, provide real life examples or relevant hypothetical situations, or if you simply have a solution in mind for the discussion's topic, then post.

Personally, you are only going to make a post if you have something interesting to say regardless of your rank, and that's it.

You're kinda intimidated because of the ranks of those who are posting in Meta section and you are just a newbie rank but in reality, you don't need to be scared because all of us are free to say our opinions.

TBH, I'm a Sr. Member right now and there are times that I'm feeling the same as you are especially if I'm not that knowledgeable in that particular topic. In your case, as long as you know what you are saying then you don't need to be intimidated by these higher rank users.

Now to answer your question, there are some like Beginners & Help, Off-topic and Local section as well. Don't hesitate to share your opinion here as long as there is nothing wrong with it whether it is a negative or a positive one. Learn to accept criticisms because I myself can't accept criticisms years ago but throughout the years, I learned it and you should as well.

@SquirrelJulietGarden provided the boards where you can’t post until you reach a certain Rank. Aside from that, you can post anywhere you wish. Newcomers that are not just bounty hunting tend to post more, I believe, in Beginners & Help and Bitcoin Discussion, but it’s not so much a question of where you want to post but what topics you feel more inclined to participate in, which lead to determining the appropriate boards.

Now it’s true that it is not trivial to participate with some non-trivial comment, and the best way to overcome that is to read a fair share on the topic to gain some background knowledge, and to try to read through the whole thread (within reason) before making your post.

There is a Beginners & Help (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?board=39.0) board for newbies, so there is no restriction on what you can ask in this board. Just like you already did with this topic.

As for commenting in other threads, don't be afraid to speak your mind. This is a discussion board, so everyone has an equal right to their opinion, as long as it is on topic and follows the forum rules.

Apart from the ones listed where there are restrictions due to ranks, you are free to express yourself in any board you are comfortable and have knowledge to share, however as a newbie, in your early days especially if you are new, with little knowledge about crypto and have never been in any forum, the most appropriate board where other forum users here expect you to have more activity in is in this BEGINNERS & HELP board where you can gain visibility before you begin to try out discussions elsewhere. But say you are an experienced newbie with very good knowledge of crypto, particularly bitcoins and that was what lured you to sign up here, you can participate in Development & Technical Discussion (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?board=6.0) and Bitcoin Technical Support. (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?board=4.0)

You should not be scared by any ranks. Some have earned their ranks for knowledge, some only by simply being very old here (but not necessarily knowledgeable). Even newbies can ask or tell smart things, even legendary members can ask or tell stupid things and make mistakes.


As said there are no restrictions, just, if you create a topic, make sure you create it in the most suitable subforum, hence increasing the chance of being seen by relevant people (one example is that you better ask about mining in the Mining areas than in Beginners and Help).

Then... you should never fear of offending some. It's a free forum. Some get offended easy, some not at all, learn to care less about such things.


So as long as you are on topic, you don't repeat things already said and as long as you don't spam, .. you should be okay.

just curious, what about archival? I remember reading somewhere that archival is also one of the boards where newbies can't post/create a thread and I remember trying it too. did that change or do newbies only need a certain amount of activity in order to be able to post/create a thread on archival?

OP you don't need to be scared if you have thought or you want to express your opinion then I'll suggest that you are free to comment because this is a open forum you can share also you can learn through this forum. But you always remember that this community has a rules and regulation so you need to study first and obey as well to remain good and avoid sudden mistakes.

The word implies that board is for old things and the forum has a very short description for that board "old stuff".

Forum members use Archival for testing, old stuffs and are fine, they don't break forum rules but storing old stuffs is a main use case for Archival.

I don't think you are scared to comment at all, OP. You are just scared to be criticized or be taught by other users here.
You should not restrict yourself in making comment if you know what is going on in the thread or you at least "read the room".  Just feel free to express your constructive opinions here.
In the end, this is the internet after all and different people would treat you differently.

There are some restrictions for newbies where they can't post like Investigation section. You will not find the board or you can't find the option to post where you aren't eligible. Where the post option enables you means you can post there. No restrictions. But it's important to avoid unnecessary posts. Here is freedom of speech, you can write any constructive posts.

I think me and you came when there is much freedom in the forum. I have heard of "Newbie jail" that existed years back in the forum. I am pretty not sure how it worked, but I believe as the name implied, it was a restriction of newbies to some specific boards and their inability to do some things.

Since the idea of newbie jail is no longer invoke and theymos is unwilling to re-introduce it, you are free to post anywhere that allows you to post including the meta.
But don't abuse the privilege. Ensure you only post when you have something good to add to the conversation in order to avoid spamming.

SquirrelJulietGarden already provided the information regarding the restrictions of some board like a rank requirements before you can post in that board. Beginners & Help is open for newbies and even higher ranks. Don't let fear stopping you from posting in Meta board as meta board is where people are discussing about bitcointalk forum account problems, ban appeal, suggestions and many more. If you think you can't join a discussions from a certain topic in a thread then better learn it first/learn it later then find one where you can join in the discussions. There is nothing to be afraid when you are posting in a board or isaac_clarke22 is right about you afraid to get criticized by other forum users especially from high ranks.

Thanks you very much for everyone for the contributions and information. Now I know my stand on the forum, where to go and where not to go. Some people were even saying I am afraid to be criticized. I believe what I did is not a matter of afraid but it is very good question as a newbie. Thanks you for those who encourage me.

My bad for my wording, OP.
I hope the answers above were really an encouragement for you, since you are free to navigate, read and join discussion around here anyway.
There are just those boards that do not really fit your fancy and that is okay. I am already a Full Member, and I do not visit nor comment on Mining section since crypto mining is not really my fancy, and I would not be able to create a constructive opinions nor questions.

As far as I know, newbies can't post in the investigations sub-board too. Only members and above can post there. This is not supposed to be a problem for OP as this sub-board won't be visible for him in first place (I just felt he needs to know about it).
OP, post anywhere you want as long as the forum software allows you to do so and what you are going to write is on-topic and may add value to the discussion.

If your post considering not spamming, constructive and have a relation to the topic ( not out of topic) mostly you can still comment and the post will be there. And of course you still following the rules

Rules and regulations are more important to every user here in the forum and we should read it and understand. You are right that mate ( if you are not doing off topic, spamming, and low quality replies for sure your comments will be useful  Yes mate its the user choice where they want to post a if he/she have more knowledge about bitcoin then the related board is weaving for him.
OP good luck to your journey keep up the good work then you will achieve what other already reach.

Ahh I somehow understand your frustration since the meta board is predominantly a board consisting about the general improvements about the forum itself. No wonder that most veterans are active there since they are accustomed and open to the idea of any improvements. But hey, this is a forum and any form of opinion is accepted as long as you do not spam and post plagiarized contents!

To answer your question, ask yourself what your goal is. Do you plan on ranking your account; or do you just want to engage into a discussion and share your insights?
If you choose the former, then you can post in any board for as long as you contribute something that is beneficial. If you choose the former, then I suggest delving into topics about the development and technical discussion, mining boards, or the BTC price movement.

yes that's the answer, those who are new to this forum are just afraid to be criticized for every comment they make, even to the point of getting an explanation from other users that something is wrong.
I think this is very good, those who criticize certainly understand what should be said.
When newbies only limit themselves without daring to express what they think, of course they can never grow. This forum is a forum that contains all people's thoughts, different opinions and sometimes there will be many who agree. It just takes courage and a more open mindset to be able to follow everything.

You are correct that sometimes I hesitate to reply to a post where many legendary members have already commented in order to avoid being shamed for my mistakes or errors, but when you think about it, the forum explicitly stated that one should feel free to reply to a legendary member's post or replay.

This is for the O.P.. in as much as you have a very good contribution to offer on a particular thread, or topic of discussion, you are free to do so as long as you follow the rules that guide each of these boards. Because "author=SquirrelJulietGarden" have said it all, you are a Newbie and "Beginners and Help" is the first board to ask questions and get familiarize with the forum, and likewise the "Serious Discussion" actually meant for the serious discussion on the forum

You are not the only one in this shoe. We are many that don't fancy commenting on meta board because of the kind of posts that are discussed there. I can't tell whether I have commented on the meta board before or not. Not that am been scared or I don't know what to say. Just that I have less interest in commenting on meta board. We have so many sub-boards in this forum, everyone does posts or comments where he or she finds interest in

Don't get feared to post if you think your opinion is right oe you can contribute something on the discussion, have a confidence to communicate with other forum member since most of us here love to read different opinions coming from different people.

Don't mind the rankings of forum users because it doesn't really mean anything if you think about superiority since what you can contribute is the most important thing here.

Yup, that's right newbies should not be afraid to comment or post a thread because there's nothing you can do if you are newbies here unless if you share something valuable and that requires you to make some useful thread because everyone needs some merits before they could rank up. The search button is always available if OP wants to find something since this forum has a lot of thread of different question and answer so it's up to the OP to decide which thread he/she wants.

@OP. The act of fear makes most of the newbies not to grow faster being that they might be ban or got restricted from the forum but your boldness have made you to asked a clarifying questions which would lift you above your mates. With this singular act I will tell you that your free to make contribution anywhere you feels you have something important to make or corrections, we all here are learning from each other's and I believe no one is above mistakes so whatever you are doing have full confidence to carry it up without fear.

Some users have already listed some restricted board you'r not meant to make post or comments.

Meta is a place for all to post, irrespective of ranks provided one knows what input to make. What makes Meta look restrictive could be the nature of the big boys who play there and so many users may not like crossing paths with the big boys. That can be applicable to those who don't like putting their accounts under searchlight because once you start posting there some of these knowledgeable members would likely peruse your account. Again, any thread that can open up for you it means you can post there. If it doesn't then it means you're restricted posting there (I don't really know for sure as I never encountered such even as a noob member).

I can feel what @OP is trying to say because in the early days I have also encountered the same problem and don't want myself to engage in the high rank members discussion but the only reason behind it was not having adequate knowledge to participate in that but slowly I worked upon it and explored different boards on the forum.Now I find it interesting to involve in discussion with them and there are many newbies and low rank members also there so you don't need to worry at all.

As a newbie you are not restricted on posting in Meta section and you can ask your doubts or post in the threads about forum related discussion only.You need to find out that which board is suitable for your discussion and that's only the way or even if you have posted in the wrong board the mods will move the topic to the right one.But there are some board restrictions as newbie where you can't post  (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?board=250.0) and nothing else.

This is open discussion forum and you can post your content here without worrying about anything if you are into healthy discussion and your rank doesn't matter a lot and many high rank members are friendly if you are on topic can't say about all of them.So as a newbie you don't have to fear it but face it and improve your knowledge with time.

Each of us was a newbie at the beginning, and with some exceptions, we didn't have much knowledge and experience about crypto, bitcoin, altcoin etc.
I remember that in the beginning it was difficult for me to participate in different discussions because I didn't have much knowledge and experience and I didn't know what to write.
In the beginning I read more posts from others and was a bit more active in my local part of the forum and in off-topic and Politics & Society.
By following older and more experienced forum members and reading other sources of information, I slowly gained the knowledge and experience to feel confident that I have something useful to share with others, but it didn't happen overnight. Everyone has their own path on this forum and how much respect they will gain from others depends on their investment and effort.

The fact is that you can't expect to be everywhere, some boards here on the forum requires forum members who are experienced in other to participate in the discussion, now how do you expect a newbie to know about the forum without actively being in the forum more than a year, boards like meta, technical discussions etc. needed no one than an experienced user, and so while all this happens, you watch and learn.


Your restriction to any board on this forum onky lies in your ability to know a d identify areas you're good at and talk about it, and I will also employ you to go through the forum rules and posting guidelines for more directions

Consider that not all beginners are genuine beginners but it is quite possible that some of them are experienced users hiding behind their novice accounts. You may find some newbie who are very good at posting, understand the merit system, understand the trust system or even do some things that the community might consider a plus.

I can expect some newbie like that to be here and active on several boards. But it doesn't matter because having alts is not a rule violation as long as it doesn't violate the set rules.

Some boards including meta have negative stigma among users whether they are newbie, spammers or some other category of users. But there is no prohibition to post and discuss there as long as users understand the rules of each board.

You can engage in discussion on any Board in the forum, but you should also pay attention to certain Boards that may not be counted in the Campaign you are promoting.
Fear will prevent you from developing, engage in discussions with Sr. Member/Hero and legendary will allow you to absorb knowledge from them.

I see your progress since joining the forum is very good, since you registered on April 27, 2022, you have obtained 133 Merits. I can underline, you have been able to do something that other users of the same age as your account have not been able to do.
I can only say, try to engage more with users who rank higher than you or users who have important roles in the forum, they will be happy to guide you to be even better.

Hmm, I understand your worry, it happens to me too hehe but I think we're here to not only gain some knowledge but also share what we have either knowledge or experiences. So, if you confident that you can share those two and give the new perspectives regarding the topics, I think there's nothing to be afraid of. Even if our message got deleted, consider it as an experience, a chance to learn and grow. Of course there are some of rules that we need to obey, but aside of that, I think all ranks have the same chance to maximize this forum utility.

I was thinking anybody can post on every section of the forum, no matter the rank you are, you can post in any section on the forum but according to the reply made by @SquirrelJulietGarden, I now discovered that their are restriction in some section, but I think is just those two sections mentioned by @SquirrelJulietGarden, any other sections you are free to post. Anybody can post in meta section, but whenever you are posting make sure you make positive post that can benefit the forum or the users of the forum, don't just make post just because you want to post, just try and be making meaningful post and one day you will also be among the high rank members of the forum.

That's what I thought before I knew that some boards are restricted to lower rank. If newbies or brand new accounts can post in that board not that some of them are not knowledgeable or have knowledge already but there are those who doesn't have knowledge that may post or reply on the threads on that board which it is considered as low quality or spam posts. No one likes cleaning mess and that will only bring more work for moderators to delete posts that needs to be deleted. As far as I know, mods are very busy deleting posts right now.