Sometimes, asking a question can be a big challenge. Because even if your question is very clear and precise, there’s always someone that will get it wrong. Perhaps that would be something to expect in fields like fine arts or philosophy, where so many things are open to interpretations and debate. But when it comes to highly technical matters, it’s amusing to see all the ways that things can go wrong after a question has been asked.
How many time have you asked a technical question on a forum or newsgroup, and have only received lots of useless, clueless, wrong or even arrogant answers?
Obviously, human beings can’t always provide a right answer to a given question, and that’s something we have to live with. But nonetheless I wonder: what’s the point in giving an answer when...
- you’re not answering the question that was asked
- your answer is clearly not helpful (and you would have noticed that if you had thought for a minute before answering)
- you really don’t know what the answer is (and maybe you even know that you don’t know)
- you don’t have real world experience on the subject (and no, having a friend who knows, or having read a paper on the subject is not equal to having real experience)
- you’re not qualified for answering (for example, because a question is about medieval history, and you happen to be a car mechanic who hasn’t even studied history as a hobby)
So let’s see how a clear, simple, precise question can be answered in every possible wrong way.
Fair warning
This article contains some slang and expressions that might make some people feel uncomfortable. You’ll also find a good deal of sarcasm. So if that’s not ok with you, please don’t read it (or at least don’t complain about it after having been warned)
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