The
BitCoin Q&A proposal at StackExchange is nearly ready to move into the next phase. All that is required are 15 more people to click "follow", indicating interest in such a site being launched, and for people to do some simple voting on the suitability of sample questions for the site. Then, BitCoin will be ready to enter the "commitment" stage where people promise to either ask or answer a minimum number of questions should the site go live, followed by a "beta" stage and a full site launch assuming sufficient interest and involvement all the way along.
Who should follow this proposal? Anyone who has ever asked or answered a question on these forums--whether they consider themselves a BitCoin enthusiast, an interested newbie, or just a curious passerby! A StackExchange site, unlike a forum, is designed specifically to get the best possible answer for a specific question. It includes a scoring and reputation system so that people who know what they're talking about are clearly identified, is much easier to search for already-asked questions in case you aren't the first one to ask it, and is search-engine friendly so that people don't even have to know the site exists to get their questions answered effectively.
While BitCoin has a strong and active community, both askers and answerers know well the frustration of trying to use the forums here for specific questions. Askers only get good answers if they're lucky and are willing to read extensively (more often the topic derails into opinion wars and political philosophies), while answerers find themselves repeating the same answers to simple questions over and over. A StackExchange site will not only be a safe zone for newcomers who don't yet know anything about BitCoin, but it will provide an invaluable service to the forums because of the possibility of linking to specific, quality answers--from anywhere!
tl;dr: Please follow this proposal now!
