Curious
Have you ever asked a question on this forum or any forum that requires a specific answer, then get responses like: " Why do you want to do that", or some other reply that does not answer the question...
Forum Discussion
As with any forum, there are some here who live for conflict and find joy in being argumentative. I think, and certainly hope, they are in the minority. Most are trying to understand your situation better and trying to gather enough information to provide helpful responses. Look through the forums and you will find many threads where people ask vague questions or post conflicting responses.
Unfortunately, forums don't make it easy to interpret whether a person asks a question from a position of knowledge or too little knowledge to properly form the question. There are many, many, many threads where someone will ask for help with seemingly impossible and conflicting symptoms and expect an instant answer that requires no actual work on their part. When someone asks a question, lets say "Hey my microwave doesn't work any more, do you suppose it could be the Main breaker in my house?" Well, the question doesn't necessarily make sense to a reasonable person who has any understanding of how things work unless there are additional facts like oh yeah, nothing else works either. One could easily respond, simply "NO", but while that may be answering the question, most would expect that the OP was trying to solve the problem of their microwave not working. Asking additional questions helps to isolate the real problem or clarify what the actual problem is. If the OP is really looking to solve their microwave problem, hopefully they will provide more information. If the OP is looking for something where they understand the question might not make sense, but they are looking for specific information, they should probably address it in the posting.
I think most, not all, of the posters here are reasonable people. If you are looking for advice and you have an oddball situation, acknowledge the elephant in the room in your post. I'm looking for X, and I know that many will think Y is the answer, but I can't or don't want to use Y and preferably explain why or at least acknowledge that you don't want to explain why. Most people read and participate in these forums for two purposes, to learn and to help others. People learn from past postings and are encouraged to search for answers before posting. So, many will point out when something doesn't seem to be advisable in hopes that others don't blindly follow what may make sense for your situation but would be a disaster in most situations.
Also, I see lots of postings where the OP asks a question and starts a storm of responses but never comes back. Did they solve their problem? Did they want help? Were they the ones trolling?
Unfortunately, forums don't make it easy to interpret whether a person asks a question from a position of knowledge or too little knowledge to properly form the question. There are many, many, many threads where someone will ask for help with seemingly impossible and conflicting symptoms and expect an instant answer that requires no actual work on their part. When someone asks a question, lets say "Hey my microwave doesn't work any more, do you suppose it could be the Main breaker in my house?" Well, the question doesn't necessarily make sense to a reasonable person who has any understanding of how things work unless there are additional facts like oh yeah, nothing else works either. One could easily respond, simply "NO", but while that may be answering the question, most would expect that the OP was trying to solve the problem of their microwave not working. Asking additional questions helps to isolate the real problem or clarify what the actual problem is. If the OP is really looking to solve their microwave problem, hopefully they will provide more information. If the OP is looking for something where they understand the question might not make sense, but they are looking for specific information, they should probably address it in the posting.
I think most, not all, of the posters here are reasonable people. If you are looking for advice and you have an oddball situation, acknowledge the elephant in the room in your post. I'm looking for X, and I know that many will think Y is the answer, but I can't or don't want to use Y and preferably explain why or at least acknowledge that you don't want to explain why. Most people read and participate in these forums for two purposes, to learn and to help others. People learn from past postings and are encouraged to search for answers before posting. So, many will point out when something doesn't seem to be advisable in hopes that others don't blindly follow what may make sense for your situation but would be a disaster in most situations.
Also, I see lots of postings where the OP asks a question and starts a storm of responses but never comes back. Did they solve their problem? Did they want help? Were they the ones trolling?
