Please don't discourage new users from using this site

Question

Don't discourage strange or odd new users to use this site. I saw this question with a score of -8 and closed. (I've edited it recently) It was asking about filling some hotel rooms using cheats, without mentioning with what. People said that it's unclear, but I say that, because it is a hotel, to be filled with furniture.

Of course, instead of editing, they closed it and downvoted, and it's most likely that the user was discouraged and unlikely that it will post again.

So, please, don't discourage new users and try to edit their questions if they aren't okay.

Answer 1

No.

Let me preface this by saying that I disagree with your edit. It's a complete re-write of the question and you used too much guesswork to fill in the blanks for my taste.

I'm not saying small and medium-sized edits should not be done. They should, which is why we can. It's that to me (and presumably others), this particular question was unsalvagable without help from OP themselves, and this answer is based on this context.

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Yes, this site does have fairly high standards for users both new and old alike, these standards are there for a reason, namely to ensure that we are a repository of gaming-related questions and answers.

A badly written question will attract downvotes, because it deserved downvotes for not showing any (research) effort, being unclear or not useful.

Furthermore, a question as unclear as this one is utterly useless. Questions like these are put on hold (and specifically not "closed") until we can figure out what exactly it is that OP is asking, using the comments (which are always available), like Studoku did:

Fill it with what? Lava? Copy-pasted rooms which you're too lazy too describe? TNT?

(Now, a point could be made to write a nice introductory text, but since OP did not put in any effort, it is absolutely understandable if someone else doesn't want to put in effort.)

OP can return to this site, notice that they did something wrong and try to improve their question, getting it re-opened as per standard procedure. If the question turns out good, it will attract upvotes for OP (which are worth much more reputation than downvotes partly for this exact reason!) and the site ends up with a good question with good answers that are good for everybody.

Answer 2

As far as discouraging users goes, I can see how trying to maintain a certain standard can be a bit daunting. Initially, yes the system can be seen as a bit blunt, but that's where we come in. By simply explaining that a question is unclear, or perhaps off-topic, or whatever reason the question doesn't meet our standards, it can help the user understand what is required to meet the standard.

If we do keep up the standard, then we can become more useful to users who need help, finding a question that matches their problem, and hopefully a solution, rather than trying to wade through forums containing little else than "MINECRAFT CRASHED... HALP PLZ" and "F---in noobz. Just google it!"

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I do agree with MrLemon about the editing, as too much can change the entire intention behind the question. For example, going back to my Minecraft example, if the user posts little else than a crash dump and "HALP PLZ", that's pretty much considered unclear. By editing that question on little other than guesswork to fill in the blanks makes it a completely different question, and is not helpful to the OP. In that situation, a better practice would be to post a separate, different question, rather than editing someone else's.

For example, this question about Rupoors in LoZ received some heat about the content of the question. However, the OP was pretty precise about the content of his question. At the time most people thought that it was off-topic, but instead of editing the question, which would have changed the content entirely, I asked a similar question (which I then self-answered).