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'a lot of the time the one doing the asking has explicitly said "I know this is unorthodox" or "just answer how to do Y please, don't give me your 'better' opti
by dsr_ 6y ago
'a lot of the time the one doing the asking has explicitly said "I know this is unorthodox" or "just answer how to do Y please, don't give me your 'better' options".'
After being burnt by a person who never wanted to do anything in a conventional, well-supported way* and kept making that explicit request, I have given up volunteering my time to appease them.
At work I get paid to say "I know a couple of ways of doing that, but if you could tell me more about your problem and the constraints, I can give a better answer."
*Problem: router and three laptops need to be networked. Conventional solution: ethernet cables or wifi. Requested solution: IP over serial (SLIP or PPP) over USB-serial connectors. Had not purchased USB-serial adapters.
- AnIdiotOnTheNet 6y ago> After being burnt by a person who never wanted to do anything in a conventional, well-supported way* and kept making that explicit request, I have given up volunteering my time to appease them. That's fine and completely fair. Just don't provide unasked for answers as an alternative.
- fiddlerwoaroof 6y agoI’ve found (on both sides of the conversation) it’s really effective to find a third party that consistently asks what X is: when I’m on the “answering” side of this problem, I’ve generally found that saying something like “Y is impossible” or “Y can be done this way but that’s usually a bad idea, why do you ask?” Goes a long way to being effective at answering the question.