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Be extremely careful with ESR's documents. This one links to How To Ask Smart Questions which I have "subscribed" to myself in the past but now I see very seri
by chx 8y ago
Be extremely careful with ESR's documents. This one links to How To Ask Smart Questions which I have "subscribed" to myself in the past but now I see very serious problems with it:
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What we are, unapologetically, is hostile to people who seem to be unwilling to think or to do their own homework before asking questions.
There's no reason to jump down a new user's throat. If you are annoyed by a question, move on, let others deal with it if they so want. Or improve it.
You could adopt Sai Baba's philosophy: Before you speak, ask yourself: is it kind, is it necessary, is it true, does it improve on the silence?
Or you can just go with Ellen Page's: This world would be a whole lot better if we just made an effort to be less horrible to one another.
You could read https://www.destroyallsoftware.com/blog/2018/a-case-study-in-not-being-a-jerk-in-open-source https://www.destroyallsoftware.com/blog/2018/a-case-study-in... as well.
- 0815test 8y ago> There's no reason to jump down a new user's throat. If you are annoyed by a question, move on, let others deal with it if they so want... If you read further in ESR's document, you'd find out that this is exactly what he predicts will happen! But let's not pretend that this isn't a sort of hostility towards those who ask questions in unhelpful ways. Even entirely non-violent, passive resistance is hostility - of a sort! This is what ESR is trying to fix here, by addressing the root problem that causes it.
- thraway-burnout 8y ago> There's no reason to jump down a new user's throat. If you are annoyed by a question, move on, let others deal with it if they so want. Or improve it. But then you're keeping them ignorant. Letting them know they're expected to do their part is a net positive in the long run, for everyone involved.