Scope, from the tour: "Focus on questions about an **actual problem** you have faced."

Question

This question what-would-cause-gelcoat-in-a-boat-repair-not-to-harden

Interesting question with a researched answer but I am not seeing how it is in scope as defined in the tour.

Focus on questions about an actual problem you have faced

Not an actual problem the OP has faced. It is a problem in a review on Amazon. Cannot query the actual problem. Cannot verify the solution.

Specific issues with outdoor activities

• Yes boating is an outdoor activity. Apply gelcoat in the shop is maybe a reach.
• A general speculative question on gelcoat is not a specific issue.

Don't ask about questions with too many possible answers

Spots had not hardened has many possible answers.

I am not getting how do I convert amps to watts is an outdoor activity. From a moderator the comment is "something that many classes of campers have to deal with". By that definition pretty much anything would be in scope at this site. There is an electronics.stackexchange.com. In my opinion making TGO a catch all is not good for TGO nor the stackexchange network. On another question where I suggested a possible better fit I got a comment characterizing my comment as telling the user their question is not good enough for TGO. Suggesting another site is not telling a user their question is not good enough.

Not saying it is a bad question. The site does not have much volume. Just saying I think there a quite a few questions that are beyond the scope as stated in the tour and the criteria I see on other stackexchange sites.

Answer 1

Currently, in the growth phase, questions that are of relevance to a number of our members should still be allowed to remain.

Sure, the amps/watts one possibly would have been better on Electronics, had they wanted it. And the gelcoat one may have been accepted on DIY. But as long as they are doing no harm, and are helping grow the site, I'm of the opinion they can stay.

Scope tightens up on graduation, as by that stage it is considered to have settled, but while growin, scope is a bit fluid.

Answer 2

I don't think we should adhere too strictly to this guideline:

Focus on questions about an actual problem you have faced

Some questions that are pretty clearly on topic here are safety related and as such people might want to research a strategy before the event occurs. It is important for sites like StackOverflow to limit the range of questions, and reasonable for a developer to post a question right when they have a problem. If you are out in the woods, get bitten by a snake, your arm is swelling and turning purple its too late to post a question here.

Similarly people that will use this site generally have interests that are beyond their abilities. I'll probably never climb Everest, but I'm interested in high altitude mountaineering and I've read about it. If I want to learn more about the subject that feels reasonable even though the odds of me standing on terra firma at over 7,000 meters is pretty slim.

As far as the question you linked to I think that is on topic because it is about repairing outdoor equipment. That is an activity that many people do who engage in outdoor activities that require equipment.