Who we are
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The recent comments about the quality of questions in the CP programming forums got me to thinking about how I find answers to questions myself. For many years before I found CodeProject, I read the Usenet programming newsgroups (now called google groups). Here are some of the differences between Usenet programming forums and CP programming forums: On CP
- Trivial or obvious questions will often be answered with "just google it."
- Questions pertaining to school assignments will usually be met with responses that range from "We're not going to do your homework for you" to "You're so lazy you're going to fail the class anyway."
- Posters who don't like the answers they get sometimes become abusive and make personal attacks.
- It's rare that a poster will thank anyone for a helpful answer.
- The overall impression after reading the forums for a while is that the posters seem to be fairly young and not very mature.
On Usenet
- It's rare that even basic questions will be met with the "google it" answer. If a direct answer to the question is not given, it's common to see a deep link into MSDN, etc. The tone of answers overwhelmingly seem to be respectful of the poster. The only offense not tolerated is cross-posting.
- Whether a question relates to school or not never comes up. Never.
- It is very, very rare to see any kind of personal attack or harsh words.
- It is common for posters to thank those who have answered.
- The overall impression is that the forums are frequented by professionals seeking answers from other professionals.
Of course, I know that my observations may not be shared by all, and yes, I'm sure there are counter examples. My conclusion: I would guess that posting questions on CP is much easier than dealing with the Usenet forums, and so to some extent CP is a victim of its own success. Can we do anything to help? I strongly believe so. First, I think we should stop - completely stop - disrespecting posters. If it's a homework question, or a question you absolutely know can be found using google, then fine - don't answer it at all. If the poster starts making insults, do not respond. If not replying really bothers you, then click on the abuse link. Whatever you suspect about the poster, I believe we have to treat them like they were a family member - don't blow them off, and if you reply, do it in a professional, civil man
Well you've changed me. I feel the love flowing through me.
Hans Dietrich wrote:
Whatever you suspect about the poster, I believe we have to treat them like they were a family member - don't blow them off, and if you reply, do it in a professional, civil manner.
You're assuming here that we respect our family members.
Hans Dietrich wrote:
The CP forums can and should reflect our image, not that of transients who do not appreciate or care about our culture.
Sod that. I'm a CP hobo. ;P Have you noticed that it's not every forum? Ironically the newer technology forums such as WPF and Linq get a better level of question than forums such as the ASP.NET or C# forums. I'd have to say that the worst forum is the ASP.NET forum, with the SQL forum coming a close second. And - a small point here, the difference between Usenet and CP is that Usenet users tend to be more savvy anyway, pretty much everybody knows how to use the internet, but knowing about Usenet is at a higher level.
Deja View - the feeling that you've seen this post before.
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The recent comments about the quality of questions in the CP programming forums got me to thinking about how I find answers to questions myself. For many years before I found CodeProject, I read the Usenet programming newsgroups (now called google groups). Here are some of the differences between Usenet programming forums and CP programming forums: On CP
- Trivial or obvious questions will often be answered with "just google it."
- Questions pertaining to school assignments will usually be met with responses that range from "We're not going to do your homework for you" to "You're so lazy you're going to fail the class anyway."
- Posters who don't like the answers they get sometimes become abusive and make personal attacks.
- It's rare that a poster will thank anyone for a helpful answer.
- The overall impression after reading the forums for a while is that the posters seem to be fairly young and not very mature.
On Usenet
- It's rare that even basic questions will be met with the "google it" answer. If a direct answer to the question is not given, it's common to see a deep link into MSDN, etc. The tone of answers overwhelmingly seem to be respectful of the poster. The only offense not tolerated is cross-posting.
- Whether a question relates to school or not never comes up. Never.
- It is very, very rare to see any kind of personal attack or harsh words.
- It is common for posters to thank those who have answered.
- The overall impression is that the forums are frequented by professionals seeking answers from other professionals.
Of course, I know that my observations may not be shared by all, and yes, I'm sure there are counter examples. My conclusion: I would guess that posting questions on CP is much easier than dealing with the Usenet forums, and so to some extent CP is a victim of its own success. Can we do anything to help? I strongly believe so. First, I think we should stop - completely stop - disrespecting posters. If it's a homework question, or a question you absolutely know can be found using google, then fine - don't answer it at all. If the poster starts making insults, do not respond. If not replying really bothers you, then click on the abuse link. Whatever you suspect about the poster, I believe we have to treat them like they were a family member - don't blow them off, and if you reply, do it in a professional, civil man
Hans Dietrich wrote:
read the Usenet programming newsgroups (now called google groups).
:mad::mad::mad: IT'S STILL USENET. IT'S NO MORE GOOGLE GROUPS NOW THAN IT WAS XNEWS OR FREE AGJENT OR OUTLOOK EXPRESS OR 5 YEARS AGO. :mad::mad::mad: I'll add that back around the turn of the century I got hit with several RTFM!s or similar when trying to get some sort of general hint to get myself unstuck on school work.
You know, every time I tried to win a bar-bet about being able to count to 1000 using my fingers I always got punched out when I reached 4.... -- El Corazon
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The recent comments about the quality of questions in the CP programming forums got me to thinking about how I find answers to questions myself. For many years before I found CodeProject, I read the Usenet programming newsgroups (now called google groups). Here are some of the differences between Usenet programming forums and CP programming forums: On CP
- Trivial or obvious questions will often be answered with "just google it."
- Questions pertaining to school assignments will usually be met with responses that range from "We're not going to do your homework for you" to "You're so lazy you're going to fail the class anyway."
- Posters who don't like the answers they get sometimes become abusive and make personal attacks.
- It's rare that a poster will thank anyone for a helpful answer.
- The overall impression after reading the forums for a while is that the posters seem to be fairly young and not very mature.
On Usenet
- It's rare that even basic questions will be met with the "google it" answer. If a direct answer to the question is not given, it's common to see a deep link into MSDN, etc. The tone of answers overwhelmingly seem to be respectful of the poster. The only offense not tolerated is cross-posting.
- Whether a question relates to school or not never comes up. Never.
- It is very, very rare to see any kind of personal attack or harsh words.
- It is common for posters to thank those who have answered.
- The overall impression is that the forums are frequented by professionals seeking answers from other professionals.
Of course, I know that my observations may not be shared by all, and yes, I'm sure there are counter examples. My conclusion: I would guess that posting questions on CP is much easier than dealing with the Usenet forums, and so to some extent CP is a victim of its own success. Can we do anything to help? I strongly believe so. First, I think we should stop - completely stop - disrespecting posters. If it's a homework question, or a question you absolutely know can be found using google, then fine - don't answer it at all. If the poster starts making insults, do not respond. If not replying really bothers you, then click on the abuse link. Whatever you suspect about the poster, I believe we have to treat them like they were a family member - don't blow them off, and if you reply, do it in a professional, civil man
I think doing homework problems for people when they have demonstrated no effort is counterproductive. Simply giving a solution to somebody teaches them nothing. I have taught at the university level and I have seen the consequences of simply handing out answers. Those consequences are that students just learn by example and gain no problem solving skills. I think when answering obvious homework questions, the poster needs to demonstrate that some effort was exerted.
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The recent comments about the quality of questions in the CP programming forums got me to thinking about how I find answers to questions myself. For many years before I found CodeProject, I read the Usenet programming newsgroups (now called google groups). Here are some of the differences between Usenet programming forums and CP programming forums: On CP
- Trivial or obvious questions will often be answered with "just google it."
- Questions pertaining to school assignments will usually be met with responses that range from "We're not going to do your homework for you" to "You're so lazy you're going to fail the class anyway."
- Posters who don't like the answers they get sometimes become abusive and make personal attacks.
- It's rare that a poster will thank anyone for a helpful answer.
- The overall impression after reading the forums for a while is that the posters seem to be fairly young and not very mature.
On Usenet
- It's rare that even basic questions will be met with the "google it" answer. If a direct answer to the question is not given, it's common to see a deep link into MSDN, etc. The tone of answers overwhelmingly seem to be respectful of the poster. The only offense not tolerated is cross-posting.
- Whether a question relates to school or not never comes up. Never.
- It is very, very rare to see any kind of personal attack or harsh words.
- It is common for posters to thank those who have answered.
- The overall impression is that the forums are frequented by professionals seeking answers from other professionals.
Of course, I know that my observations may not be shared by all, and yes, I'm sure there are counter examples. My conclusion: I would guess that posting questions on CP is much easier than dealing with the Usenet forums, and so to some extent CP is a victim of its own success. Can we do anything to help? I strongly believe so. First, I think we should stop - completely stop - disrespecting posters. If it's a homework question, or a question you absolutely know can be found using google, then fine - don't answer it at all. If the poster starts making insults, do not respond. If not replying really bothers you, then click on the abuse link. Whatever you suspect about the poster, I believe we have to treat them like they were a family member - don't blow them off, and if you reply, do it in a professional, civil man
Instead of the voting system that's now in place, we should have a single "voting" link that only the OP can click - something along the lines of "Chosen Solution". At that point, the OP is the only one that can "vote" in the thread, and he can only make a positive statement.
"Why don't you tie a kerosene-soaked rag around your ankles so the ants won't climb up and eat your candy ass..." - Dale Earnhardt, 1997
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"...the staggering layers of obscenity in your statement make it a work of art on so many levels." - Jason Jystad, 10/26/2001 -
The recent comments about the quality of questions in the CP programming forums got me to thinking about how I find answers to questions myself. For many years before I found CodeProject, I read the Usenet programming newsgroups (now called google groups). Here are some of the differences between Usenet programming forums and CP programming forums: On CP
- Trivial or obvious questions will often be answered with "just google it."
- Questions pertaining to school assignments will usually be met with responses that range from "We're not going to do your homework for you" to "You're so lazy you're going to fail the class anyway."
- Posters who don't like the answers they get sometimes become abusive and make personal attacks.
- It's rare that a poster will thank anyone for a helpful answer.
- The overall impression after reading the forums for a while is that the posters seem to be fairly young and not very mature.
On Usenet
- It's rare that even basic questions will be met with the "google it" answer. If a direct answer to the question is not given, it's common to see a deep link into MSDN, etc. The tone of answers overwhelmingly seem to be respectful of the poster. The only offense not tolerated is cross-posting.
- Whether a question relates to school or not never comes up. Never.
- It is very, very rare to see any kind of personal attack or harsh words.
- It is common for posters to thank those who have answered.
- The overall impression is that the forums are frequented by professionals seeking answers from other professionals.
Of course, I know that my observations may not be shared by all, and yes, I'm sure there are counter examples. My conclusion: I would guess that posting questions on CP is much easier than dealing with the Usenet forums, and so to some extent CP is a victim of its own success. Can we do anything to help? I strongly believe so. First, I think we should stop - completely stop - disrespecting posters. If it's a homework question, or a question you absolutely know can be found using google, then fine - don't answer it at all. If the poster starts making insults, do not respond. If not replying really bothers you, then click on the abuse link. Whatever you suspect about the poster, I believe we have to treat them like they were a family member - don't blow them off, and if you reply, do it in a professional, civil man
I often wonder why people bother replying "google is your friend". It's pathetic behaviour, wins no friends and reflects badly on the poster. If Google really is your friend, why bother with CodeProject at all?
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The recent comments about the quality of questions in the CP programming forums got me to thinking about how I find answers to questions myself. For many years before I found CodeProject, I read the Usenet programming newsgroups (now called google groups). Here are some of the differences between Usenet programming forums and CP programming forums: On CP
- Trivial or obvious questions will often be answered with "just google it."
- Questions pertaining to school assignments will usually be met with responses that range from "We're not going to do your homework for you" to "You're so lazy you're going to fail the class anyway."
- Posters who don't like the answers they get sometimes become abusive and make personal attacks.
- It's rare that a poster will thank anyone for a helpful answer.
- The overall impression after reading the forums for a while is that the posters seem to be fairly young and not very mature.
On Usenet
- It's rare that even basic questions will be met with the "google it" answer. If a direct answer to the question is not given, it's common to see a deep link into MSDN, etc. The tone of answers overwhelmingly seem to be respectful of the poster. The only offense not tolerated is cross-posting.
- Whether a question relates to school or not never comes up. Never.
- It is very, very rare to see any kind of personal attack or harsh words.
- It is common for posters to thank those who have answered.
- The overall impression is that the forums are frequented by professionals seeking answers from other professionals.
Of course, I know that my observations may not be shared by all, and yes, I'm sure there are counter examples. My conclusion: I would guess that posting questions on CP is much easier than dealing with the Usenet forums, and so to some extent CP is a victim of its own success. Can we do anything to help? I strongly believe so. First, I think we should stop - completely stop - disrespecting posters. If it's a homework question, or a question you absolutely know can be found using google, then fine - don't answer it at all. If the poster starts making insults, do not respond. If not replying really bothers you, then click on the abuse link. Whatever you suspect about the poster, I believe we have to treat them like they were a family member - don't blow them off, and if you reply, do it in a professional, civil man
Hans Dietrich wrote:
I strongly believe so. First, I think we should stop - completely stop - disrespecting posters. If it's a homework question, or a question you absolutely know can be found using google, then fine - don't answer it at all. If the poster starts making insults, do not respond. If not replying really bothers you, then click on the abuse link.
i completely agree. I find that while, yes like all forums on the internet CP does get its fair share of not so bright users, if there is a genuine mistake and nothing intentional the response is still a bunch of personal abusive attacks for just making the mistake. a flame war takes two.
----------------------------------------------------------- Completion Deadline: two days before the day after tomorrow
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I often wonder why people bother replying "google is your friend". It's pathetic behaviour, wins no friends and reflects badly on the poster. If Google really is your friend, why bother with CodeProject at all?
martin_hughes wrote:
It's pathetic behaviour, wins no friends and reflects badly on the poster
And yet - so much fun.
martin_hughes wrote:
If Google really is your friend, why bother with CodeProject at all?
Google isn't my friend. It won't take me out for a few drinks. Damn it Google - I thought you were my friend.
Deja View - the feeling that you've seen this post before.
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I think doing homework problems for people when they have demonstrated no effort is counterproductive. Simply giving a solution to somebody teaches them nothing. I have taught at the university level and I have seen the consequences of simply handing out answers. Those consequences are that students just learn by example and gain no problem solving skills. I think when answering obvious homework questions, the poster needs to demonstrate that some effort was exerted.
73Zeppelin wrote:
I think when answering obvious homework questions, the poster needs to demonstrate that some effort was exerted.
i think Hans point was to just ignore the question...not hand out answers.
----------------------------------------------------------- Completion Deadline: two days before the day after tomorrow
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The recent comments about the quality of questions in the CP programming forums got me to thinking about how I find answers to questions myself. For many years before I found CodeProject, I read the Usenet programming newsgroups (now called google groups). Here are some of the differences between Usenet programming forums and CP programming forums: On CP
- Trivial or obvious questions will often be answered with "just google it."
- Questions pertaining to school assignments will usually be met with responses that range from "We're not going to do your homework for you" to "You're so lazy you're going to fail the class anyway."
- Posters who don't like the answers they get sometimes become abusive and make personal attacks.
- It's rare that a poster will thank anyone for a helpful answer.
- The overall impression after reading the forums for a while is that the posters seem to be fairly young and not very mature.
On Usenet
- It's rare that even basic questions will be met with the "google it" answer. If a direct answer to the question is not given, it's common to see a deep link into MSDN, etc. The tone of answers overwhelmingly seem to be respectful of the poster. The only offense not tolerated is cross-posting.
- Whether a question relates to school or not never comes up. Never.
- It is very, very rare to see any kind of personal attack or harsh words.
- It is common for posters to thank those who have answered.
- The overall impression is that the forums are frequented by professionals seeking answers from other professionals.
Of course, I know that my observations may not be shared by all, and yes, I'm sure there are counter examples. My conclusion: I would guess that posting questions on CP is much easier than dealing with the Usenet forums, and so to some extent CP is a victim of its own success. Can we do anything to help? I strongly believe so. First, I think we should stop - completely stop - disrespecting posters. If it's a homework question, or a question you absolutely know can be found using google, then fine - don't answer it at all. If the poster starts making insults, do not respond. If not replying really bothers you, then click on the abuse link. Whatever you suspect about the poster, I believe we have to treat them like they were a family member - don't blow them off, and if you reply, do it in a professional, civil man
Hans Dietrich wrote:
It's rare that a poster will thank anyone for a helpful answer.
While I do agree this is often true, there are some that say thanks. We should recognise those who do. So, if your reading, cocoonwls[^], laserbaronen[^] and George_George[^], your thankyous were gratefully received, and made me feel any time spent helping you was worthwhile. I think you hit on the exact issue in your last point in each group. CP posters seem to be inexperienced and unprofessional, while Usenet posters seemed more professional. This is simply because it's true. With the proliferation of the internet, instant access to knowledge has made people lazy. People don't spend the time reading books and learning facts for themselves any more. In the past, you had to reach a certain level of experience to even post to Usenet, few people had access from home. These days computing related skills are popular because people think they can make money from them, so they just want to get by as fast as possible without really caring about archiving true experience. That said, you have made me think. I will think twice before abusing a user when they post simple questions or homework. Rather than ignoring them though, I will respectfully explain the etiquette, and offer to help properly if they go away, put in some effort and come back with a proper question.
Simon
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martin_hughes wrote:
It's pathetic behaviour, wins no friends and reflects badly on the poster
And yet - so much fun.
martin_hughes wrote:
If Google really is your friend, why bother with CodeProject at all?
Google isn't my friend. It won't take me out for a few drinks. Damn it Google - I thought you were my friend.
Deja View - the feeling that you've seen this post before.
Pete O'Hanlon wrote:
Google isn't my friend. It won't take me out for a few drinks.
You obviously don't google the for the right kind of dating websites. Google is better than ANY friend I've ever had! ;P just kidding! I have a wonderful girlfriend and don't google for dating websites! Marc
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martin_hughes wrote:
It's pathetic behaviour, wins no friends and reflects badly on the poster
And yet - so much fun.
martin_hughes wrote:
If Google really is your friend, why bother with CodeProject at all?
Google isn't my friend. It won't take me out for a few drinks. Damn it Google - I thought you were my friend.
Deja View - the feeling that you've seen this post before.
-
The recent comments about the quality of questions in the CP programming forums got me to thinking about how I find answers to questions myself. For many years before I found CodeProject, I read the Usenet programming newsgroups (now called google groups). Here are some of the differences between Usenet programming forums and CP programming forums: On CP
- Trivial or obvious questions will often be answered with "just google it."
- Questions pertaining to school assignments will usually be met with responses that range from "We're not going to do your homework for you" to "You're so lazy you're going to fail the class anyway."
- Posters who don't like the answers they get sometimes become abusive and make personal attacks.
- It's rare that a poster will thank anyone for a helpful answer.
- The overall impression after reading the forums for a while is that the posters seem to be fairly young and not very mature.
On Usenet
- It's rare that even basic questions will be met with the "google it" answer. If a direct answer to the question is not given, it's common to see a deep link into MSDN, etc. The tone of answers overwhelmingly seem to be respectful of the poster. The only offense not tolerated is cross-posting.
- Whether a question relates to school or not never comes up. Never.
- It is very, very rare to see any kind of personal attack or harsh words.
- It is common for posters to thank those who have answered.
- The overall impression is that the forums are frequented by professionals seeking answers from other professionals.
Of course, I know that my observations may not be shared by all, and yes, I'm sure there are counter examples. My conclusion: I would guess that posting questions on CP is much easier than dealing with the Usenet forums, and so to some extent CP is a victim of its own success. Can we do anything to help? I strongly believe so. First, I think we should stop - completely stop - disrespecting posters. If it's a homework question, or a question you absolutely know can be found using google, then fine - don't answer it at all. If the poster starts making insults, do not respond. If not replying really bothers you, then click on the abuse link. Whatever you suspect about the poster, I believe we have to treat them like they were a family member - don't blow them off, and if you reply, do it in a professional, civil man
I think the difference is that I don't recall ever seeing homework posted on usenet, or at least, I don't recall seeing an assignment pasted there with no code. I don't bother to respond when my answers get 1 votes, and I rarely respond when people get abusive, if I do, I try to bring things back on track. I do think it's reasonable to tell people they need to try to do their own homework before we will help them and that we won't post the entire assignment solution for them. Mainly because if we don't say that, someone WILL do it, and that doesn't help the OP at all.
Christian Graus Please read this if you don't understand the answer I've given you "also I don't think "TranslateOneToTwoBillion OneHundredAndFortySevenMillion FourHundredAndEightyThreeThousand SixHundredAndFortySeven()" is a very good choice for a function name" - SpacixOne ( offering help to someone who really needed it ) ( spaces added for the benefit of people running at < 1280x1024 )
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The recent comments about the quality of questions in the CP programming forums got me to thinking about how I find answers to questions myself. For many years before I found CodeProject, I read the Usenet programming newsgroups (now called google groups). Here are some of the differences between Usenet programming forums and CP programming forums: On CP
- Trivial or obvious questions will often be answered with "just google it."
- Questions pertaining to school assignments will usually be met with responses that range from "We're not going to do your homework for you" to "You're so lazy you're going to fail the class anyway."
- Posters who don't like the answers they get sometimes become abusive and make personal attacks.
- It's rare that a poster will thank anyone for a helpful answer.
- The overall impression after reading the forums for a while is that the posters seem to be fairly young and not very mature.
On Usenet
- It's rare that even basic questions will be met with the "google it" answer. If a direct answer to the question is not given, it's common to see a deep link into MSDN, etc. The tone of answers overwhelmingly seem to be respectful of the poster. The only offense not tolerated is cross-posting.
- Whether a question relates to school or not never comes up. Never.
- It is very, very rare to see any kind of personal attack or harsh words.
- It is common for posters to thank those who have answered.
- The overall impression is that the forums are frequented by professionals seeking answers from other professionals.
Of course, I know that my observations may not be shared by all, and yes, I'm sure there are counter examples. My conclusion: I would guess that posting questions on CP is much easier than dealing with the Usenet forums, and so to some extent CP is a victim of its own success. Can we do anything to help? I strongly believe so. First, I think we should stop - completely stop - disrespecting posters. If it's a homework question, or a question you absolutely know can be found using google, then fine - don't answer it at all. If the poster starts making insults, do not respond. If not replying really bothers you, then click on the abuse link. Whatever you suspect about the poster, I believe we have to treat them like they were a family member - don't blow them off, and if you reply, do it in a professional, civil man
An interesting - and possibly controversial post, but I would like to see what people think about something else. Which forums have you started to avoid because you don't like the level of question being asked? I used to spend a lot of time on the C# and SQL forums, but I spend a lot less time there now than I used to. I'll stop by, and if I think the poster has tried to help themselves then I'll try to help (or perhaps the question interests me enough to want to get involved). Now, I frequent the WPF and Linq forums more because the level of question is usually better.
Deja View - the feeling that you've seen this post before.
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Simon Stevens wrote:
Depends what kind of drinks[^] you want.
See. "Google is your friend" is a perfectly valid answer.
Deja View - the feeling that you've seen this post before.
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The recent comments about the quality of questions in the CP programming forums got me to thinking about how I find answers to questions myself. For many years before I found CodeProject, I read the Usenet programming newsgroups (now called google groups). Here are some of the differences between Usenet programming forums and CP programming forums: On CP
- Trivial or obvious questions will often be answered with "just google it."
- Questions pertaining to school assignments will usually be met with responses that range from "We're not going to do your homework for you" to "You're so lazy you're going to fail the class anyway."
- Posters who don't like the answers they get sometimes become abusive and make personal attacks.
- It's rare that a poster will thank anyone for a helpful answer.
- The overall impression after reading the forums for a while is that the posters seem to be fairly young and not very mature.
On Usenet
- It's rare that even basic questions will be met with the "google it" answer. If a direct answer to the question is not given, it's common to see a deep link into MSDN, etc. The tone of answers overwhelmingly seem to be respectful of the poster. The only offense not tolerated is cross-posting.
- Whether a question relates to school or not never comes up. Never.
- It is very, very rare to see any kind of personal attack or harsh words.
- It is common for posters to thank those who have answered.
- The overall impression is that the forums are frequented by professionals seeking answers from other professionals.
Of course, I know that my observations may not be shared by all, and yes, I'm sure there are counter examples. My conclusion: I would guess that posting questions on CP is much easier than dealing with the Usenet forums, and so to some extent CP is a victim of its own success. Can we do anything to help? I strongly believe so. First, I think we should stop - completely stop - disrespecting posters. If it's a homework question, or a question you absolutely know can be found using google, then fine - don't answer it at all. If the poster starts making insults, do not respond. If not replying really bothers you, then click on the abuse link. Whatever you suspect about the poster, I believe we have to treat them like they were a family member - don't blow them off, and if you reply, do it in a professional, civil man
Hans Dietrich wrote:
If it's a homework question, or a question you absolutely know can be found using google, then fine - don't answer it at all.
And that person learns what lesson? That CPian's are a rude bunch because they don't answer?
Hans Dietrich wrote:
Comments?
Frankly, I prefer the honest truth, not a politically correct, whitewashed, ether-silence.
Hans Dietrich wrote:
I believe we have to treat them like they were a family member
As someone else commented along the same vein, but I'll state somewhat differenty: just because you're family doesn't mean I have to put up with you, your abuse, your addictions, your psychosis. Thank goodness some of these posters on CP aren't family. I'd be hiding under a rock in embarrassment and driving the porcelain bus in disgust. As usual, I find it absurd that its the thinking and intelligent people that should be "responsible" for the idiots out there. All that results in is more idiots. I say we put the metaphorical birth control in the water and get these people to stop (metaphorically speaking, lest I insult anyone) reproducing. But no, we want the idiots, we want their idiotic children (metaphorically speaking) and therefore the very people that have the intelligence to do something about it instead decide to put their collective heads into the ground like an ostrich and ignore the problem. F. That. :) Rebuttal? Marc
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Pete O'Hanlon wrote:
Google isn't my friend. It won't take me out for a few drinks.
You obviously don't google the for the right kind of dating websites. Google is better than ANY friend I've ever had! ;P just kidding! I have a wonderful girlfriend and don't google for dating websites! Marc
Marc Clifton wrote:
just kidding! I have a wonderful girlfriend and don't google for dating websites!
Is this why you think every one of my posts references pr0n? Oh wait - that might just be me.
Deja View - the feeling that you've seen this post before.
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The recent comments about the quality of questions in the CP programming forums got me to thinking about how I find answers to questions myself. For many years before I found CodeProject, I read the Usenet programming newsgroups (now called google groups). Here are some of the differences between Usenet programming forums and CP programming forums: On CP
- Trivial or obvious questions will often be answered with "just google it."
- Questions pertaining to school assignments will usually be met with responses that range from "We're not going to do your homework for you" to "You're so lazy you're going to fail the class anyway."
- Posters who don't like the answers they get sometimes become abusive and make personal attacks.
- It's rare that a poster will thank anyone for a helpful answer.
- The overall impression after reading the forums for a while is that the posters seem to be fairly young and not very mature.
On Usenet
- It's rare that even basic questions will be met with the "google it" answer. If a direct answer to the question is not given, it's common to see a deep link into MSDN, etc. The tone of answers overwhelmingly seem to be respectful of the poster. The only offense not tolerated is cross-posting.
- Whether a question relates to school or not never comes up. Never.
- It is very, very rare to see any kind of personal attack or harsh words.
- It is common for posters to thank those who have answered.
- The overall impression is that the forums are frequented by professionals seeking answers from other professionals.
Of course, I know that my observations may not be shared by all, and yes, I'm sure there are counter examples. My conclusion: I would guess that posting questions on CP is much easier than dealing with the Usenet forums, and so to some extent CP is a victim of its own success. Can we do anything to help? I strongly believe so. First, I think we should stop - completely stop - disrespecting posters. If it's a homework question, or a question you absolutely know can be found using google, then fine - don't answer it at all. If the poster starts making insults, do not respond. If not replying really bothers you, then click on the abuse link. Whatever you suspect about the poster, I believe we have to treat them like they were a family member - don't blow them off, and if you reply, do it in a professional, civil man
I believe we should not do other people's homework. As Edward Morgan Forster[^] has said Spoon feeding in the long run teaches us nothing but the shape of the spoon. As for googleing Googling(how do you spell it?), most of the people are just lazy to type words from their question title in Google and study the links Google gives them. Apart from that, knowing how to find help using Google is a skill and I think it is quite a useful and valuable skill. No one is going to do your job so you should know how to find help yourself, without others help, without depending on others.
Giorgi Dalakishvili #region signature my articles #endregion
modified on Wednesday, April 30, 2008 6:19 PM
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I often wonder why people bother replying "google is your friend". It's pathetic behaviour, wins no friends and reflects badly on the poster. If Google really is your friend, why bother with CodeProject at all?
martin_hughes wrote:
I often wonder why people bother replying "google is your friend".
Frustration. When every imaginable permutation of the question has been asked and answered again and again for years. A sign it's time to stop visiting the programming forums for a while.
Citizen 20.1.01
'The question is,' said Humpty Dumpty, 'which is to be master - that's all.'
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An interesting - and possibly controversial post, but I would like to see what people think about something else. Which forums have you started to avoid because you don't like the level of question being asked? I used to spend a lot of time on the C# and SQL forums, but I spend a lot less time there now than I used to. I'll stop by, and if I think the poster has tried to help themselves then I'll try to help (or perhaps the question interests me enough to want to get involved). Now, I frequent the WPF and Linq forums more because the level of question is usually better.
Deja View - the feeling that you've seen this post before.
Pete O'Hanlon wrote:
Which forums have you started to avoid because you don't like the level of question being asked?
I took a look at the C# forum yesterday with the idea that maybe I'll start contributing to it, especially after several people tried to help me out with a question I posted on the .NET Framework forum, and I was feeling like, gee, I ought to return the favor by helping someone else. Two things struck me: 1. The number of inane questions 2. The number of questions that are so complicated that you either are unique in having a code example lying at your fingertips or you'd spend a day or two to produce a decent answer. To which I conclude: 1. I'm totally intolerant 2. And I call myself an experienced programmer??? :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: Marc
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Hans Dietrich wrote:
If it's a homework question, or a question you absolutely know can be found using google, then fine - don't answer it at all.
And that person learns what lesson? That CPian's are a rude bunch because they don't answer?
Hans Dietrich wrote:
Comments?
Frankly, I prefer the honest truth, not a politically correct, whitewashed, ether-silence.
Hans Dietrich wrote:
I believe we have to treat them like they were a family member
As someone else commented along the same vein, but I'll state somewhat differenty: just because you're family doesn't mean I have to put up with you, your abuse, your addictions, your psychosis. Thank goodness some of these posters on CP aren't family. I'd be hiding under a rock in embarrassment and driving the porcelain bus in disgust. As usual, I find it absurd that its the thinking and intelligent people that should be "responsible" for the idiots out there. All that results in is more idiots. I say we put the metaphorical birth control in the water and get these people to stop (metaphorically speaking, lest I insult anyone) reproducing. But no, we want the idiots, we want their idiotic children (metaphorically speaking) and therefore the very people that have the intelligence to do something about it instead decide to put their collective heads into the ground like an ostrich and ignore the problem. F. That. :) Rebuttal? Marc
perhaps Hans wants us to just be the bigger person and not respond with something as equally as stupid and immature. (Which we have seen a lot of lately). yes, if someone posts something stupid, then maybe it's time to just say "hey that's not gonna get an answer" but more often than not, a reputable CPian will just reply "omg you cant read. you are so dumb, do your own homework!" or even better "are you sure your[sic] not some indian lady boy!" I think Hans is talking about those kind of rebuttles to poor posts. Our negative responses to messages represent us more than the positive ones sometimes. just my thoughts. ;P
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