no offence to beginners

[Guest]

there are too many beginers asking too many simple question to which the answers can be found by reading toms previous articles linked by the "More Release" button, I suggest before anyone keep asking fundametal questions, read thier hardare manuals and read toms previous artivles.

You will find it a rewarding effort.

Best regards
cx5

 

[Guest]

It is easier to ask a simple question then to look for an answer yourself..

Hey man i dont know .. i just think i do !!

 

[Kodiak]

don't be bitchy
if you don't want to bother answering them -- don't
I am not as much of an expert with computers as some of the other guys here, so I'll gladly answer simple questions -- they make me feel useful
Once you answer a few simple questions to newbies, they'll be glad to answer similar questions to other generations of newbies.
Then, in turn, I'll have (with my upcoming new machine) some seriously wicked questions and problems of my own, for bigger experts to answer.

Its a food chain, really, and it usually makes everybody happy

 

[Kodiak]

besides, what seems like a simple questions to you, may not be a simple question to me. And finding the RIGHT answer to my simple question in zillion of documents on similar topic all over the web can be a FRIGHTENING experience...

 

[Jaxon]

yoe , is this not a "forum" ???????/

 

[RavenPrime]

The only dumb question is the one you never ask!

James

 

[Guest]

cool guys hehe. like i said before in one of my other posts i don't want to cause any trouble or anything. i try not to ask questions to get people mad but i guess there are a few nice people right here who wouldn't mind helping me out. and i have learned so much in the last few days hopefully eventually i can actually start answereing questions for people instead of just asking. thanks

 

[Bubba]

I don't think any questions are bad. Someone may ask a question that I don't know the answer to and someone else may answer it and I may actually learn something.
As scary as this seems, it may come in handy some day. So as far as I'm concerned, ask away.

 

[mpjesse]

Let the newbies ask questions darn it! The only thing that makes me mad is when someone flames someone for their opinion- you don't have to like someone's opinion or view, but you <should> respect it.

-MP Jesse

 

[Arrow]

All the questions asked here are legitimate, and most of us don't mind (and maybe even enjoy!) answering them!

Rob
Please visit <b><A HREF="http://zidane222.cjb.net" target="_new">http://zidane222.cjb.net</A></b>

 

[Ncogneto]

I agree with you only in part, however the worst thing can happen when someone really seeking knowledge how do do something is given bad info by someone that really shouldn't be handing out information they know nothing of. There should be some kind of iq test to take and let your scores be posted (lol) so when a postee looks at the info he can make a rational decision as to who he should trust more. I have seen some down right scary advice (and some dam good advice too) given. I mean stuff like flashing your bios from a windows boot disk and stuff like that.

A little bit of knowledge is a dangerous thing!

 

[Guest]

I think what fcchin is saying has some validity. Most of us here learned what we know from our experience and reading about it. If someone just gives you the answer, you're not really learning I think. In reading the articles and what other people's experiences are, I think you gain a deeper understanding of how it all ties together. I think fcchin is trying to help these guys by encouraging them to go seek out the information on their own. If you are always asking other people then you are never going to learn how to get the info on your own. I guess what I think I am saying and what fcchin is saying is that don't rely solely on the forum. It's always good to get info from a variety of sources so that you see all sides of the question/issue/whatever.


- Every private citizen has a public responsibility

 

[Guest]

I guess I should add that I don't mind answering newbie questions. But there needs to be a balance between taking a proactive approach to your learning and advice from the more experienced users.

Hey look at that, finally a newbie myself.


- Every private citizen has a public responsibility<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by wheeljawk on 12/09/00 05:01 AM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

[RavenPrime]

Taking a proactive approach is nice if you had the time and are interested. Most people I know don't care about all the details, they have a simple question and want a simple answer from people who know.

I have had instructors who answered questions by pointing to a text and saying "look it up". I consider that rude and inappropriate for any instructor. A better approach is to <b>answer the question</b> <i>and then</i> encourage the person to seek more information by pointing him to a book or article. In my mind, that is how an instructor can justify his existence.

James

 

[cellbiogeek]

Yep. I agree. I've had no success encouraging students to read by not giving them answers.

 

[Guest]

Like I said. I don't mind answering questions as long as they don't become too dependent on it. I hate moochers! Nobody is going to give you the right answer when you start working in the real world. You might as well start learning how to come to the right answer yourself. Sure, your coworkers are always there for questions and giving of their experience, but when the coworker starts doing the other person's job, it drags everyone down. The sooner this lesson is learned the better.


- Every private citizen has a public responsibility

 

[WildRhino]

Methinks this is called trolling!

 

[phsstpok]

So what are you saying?

1. We should ask no questions.

2. Give no useful information.

3. Let everyone go about their business making their own mistakes.

4. Just hang out here and wait for the complaints on 3.

No, no offense taken. Just messing with you.

 

[Guest]

this is a copy from the post titled "No Offence (THE END)"

thanks to all who understand!!! congrats tank, you are learning fast.

First of all sorry to ALL and Rob, Bubba, TankDawg, James and Kodiak. Thanks to Wheeljawk for understanding.

The reason I said so are because some of the replies I saw does not provide enough information and looks misleading. This is dangerous to newbies. It's only because I am passiatone that I take this risk to voice my opinion.

For the ones that does not know, they will take the advice and try it, which at the end notice it doesn't work. They will then come back and ask more. That is fine with me, if they get the correct advice. Except they will find more incomplete answer, which again is quite dangerous to them.

I respect you guys coming back to me with your opinion, and I guess you guys are no newbies. I am sure you must have noticed incomplete or inaccurate replies and etc.

What are we going to do? nothing!!!

NO, we must voice up and help them by telling them the best reference is tom's previous articles and other sites and sources from original manufacturer.

Ultimately isn't it a better solution? to anyone!

So for these reasons everyone that did not read toms previous articles should go back in time and reference it. As most of you know if you read every single article tom writes back to Nov 1996, you will know nearly everything by then.

Under the link "More releases" it lists all article tiles plus some description, I think if they are not impatient, they will find what they want.

It was nice of tom to sometimes go back in time and rewrite some basics, even I need them. Thats is why he always put some links to his previous articles for new comers to catch up. That is one way to encourage newbies to learn more.


Alright, I will rest this case, and again sorry to those who was upset, truely sincerely sorry!

Best regards
cx5




Best regards
cx5

 

[Kodiak]

hey no worry, I don't think anybody was particularly upset, even if we may disagree to a certain point.
There are things you should read a guide for.
For example, I was new to RAID, and so instead of asking a question, I went to PC guide and read a pretty good series of articles on RAID, enough so I kinda know what I'm talking about.
However, if somebody asked "what's the difference between RAID 0 & 1?"... well, yes it's a basic question, and its all been answered before, but he may be just looking for a quick answer. So, I'd tell him in two sentences what the answer is, and then point him to pcguide.com or some other site for a more complete answer...

As always in life, balance is the key and extremes are bad

And obviously, everybody agrees that answering with inaccurate data is much, MUCH worse than just not answering.
But that's a different issue from 'should we answer simple questions'...
The guide I use for myself:
If I can answer the question quickly, or in more concise form than I know is available, then I will, regardless of simplicity or complexity of question.
If I would have to write a guide myself to provide a satisfactory answer to the question, then I'll point him to an existing guide.
(example: Somebody asking "how do I build my own computer?"

 

[Guest]

No offence to fcchin but I have to disagree with you on both your original post and your follow-up explaination.

My experience with these boards is that they have been extremely helpful. And what may seem like a newbie question to some could actually be that one little peice of information you are missing. Furthermore, your warning that some of the information given is incomplete or even incorrect can be applied to articles or even books. Everyone has their prejudices on any given subject.

As far as the 'Danger' to newbies goes. I put forth that most that find this site should have enough message-board-savy to know that you should read as many related opinions on a given subject as possible. If they don't realize this and get burned then they should consider it a valuable lesson learned. Would you come here looking for the best type of memory to buy for an amd t-bird sys and leave with the answer after reading just one post?

Please don't take this as a flame. I'm just expressing my opinion here and mean nothing personal to you.

 

[Flyboy]

Hey I've only built 3 systems and still don't really know jack s**t. I read the difficult questions as well as what YOU may consider simple. Whether a question is simple or not is highly subjective and sometimes finding the answers by browsing the plethora of archives out there can be down right frustrating. I don't consider myself a beginner, and I can't help but feel a little offended because I used to be one. I hate being afraid to ask a question because of guys like you...

 

[Flyboy]

Sorry guys...I read some of the other opinions about how people really should try to read first and ask later. I guess I over-reacted in the "beginners" defense because we've all been there and nobody should be discouraged from learning about computer hardware/software. However, it is human nature to look for the easiest way to answers (i.e. forums) and by doing so we often fail to learn in the process. But what about those that don't actually want to learn all this stuff, but just want the solution to their problem? I still think they have come to the right place. With regards to people giving bad advice to people who are not computer-savvy...well that unfortunately is the risk they take by not digging more on their own.

Sorry about the previous post...it's late and I guess I'm starting to get a little cranky!

 

[Guest]

Dear James

You are a nice guy, thought I reply to you. The reason instructors ask you to look it up is because there are NEVER simple straight forward answer.

I am sure you know that. Everything has some other thing in it and that effect the results, and to explain it all takes time, hence best reading.

Best regards
cx5

 

[Kodiak]

hmm.... maybe if all your instructors are ideal ones...
some of them are saying "find out for yourself" because they are enlightened enough to know there are many sides to any issue (although the truly enlightened ones can effectively summarize the answer to fit the needs of the asking student

But too many of my instructors were saying 'read for yourself' because they either weren't quite sure themselves, or couldn't be bothered. It shouldn't be that way,but it happens...