When do you stop giving advice? 3

[bcastner]

I have had the experience several times where it seemed to me better to stop helping a forum member than continue.

I am curious if you have faced this issue, and how you dealt with it.

On point: I have someone who hijacked a perfectly good thread dealing with client communications in a network setting between XP clients and Windows 2k servers. I researched the issue, tested it, thought about it, and wrote a very widely (outside of TT) quoted piece, which I then with encouragement made into a FAQ.

Someone added a new response that bumped the thread again to the top. It usually for 6 months or so floats on page 1 or 2 of the XP Forum, and quite frankly has gotten unwieldy in size (hence, the FAQ). It became clear to me that the questions being asked were so niave and inexperienced that I felt irresponsible after a time trying to answer any further questions.

The questioner clearly was out of their league in the job position they had taken. Really, clueless. Now, I cannot serve through the Forums as a remote fixer of all the issues involved. Please see the end of this thread, the last 10 or so messages, and tell me a better way to handle this concern of mine that the more I am helping this user the more the network users at this site are essentially screwed: thread779-540080

 

[rosieb]

Personally, I only ask for help when I'm really stuck - I get loads of clues/answers from existing postings, mostly I don't need to post.

My feeling is that, if I get a helpful response, I am grateful, if I can't appreciate the response - that's my problem. I DO appreciate that someone has tried to help me. How far they help is up to their generosity, Sleipnir214 has it dead right.

I prefer to be pointed towards an answer, rather than being spoonfed, 'cos that way I actually learn something. Isn't this what the whole thing's about? We're all supposed to be professionals (tho' some of us are at a very lowly level).

The way I see it, the help provided on TT isn't a right.

(OK, it's a grovel - but sincerely meant)

 

[arlems]

I would stop giving advices when the other guy is unwilling to learn, arrogant, or just plain dumb stupid. One has to be willing to learn before any attempt to absorbe any data. Often the first barrier is when you hit a guy who already "knows all about it".

The key thing for the one who teach, like you, is not to show how much he knows but how well can he get his knowledge duplicated to another.