>If I ask one of my neighbors what kind of fencing I need to >keep goats from escaping, and his reply is, "somebody answered that just >last year, so go look it up on www.goatfence.com," I wouldn't find that to >be a friendly response.
Bill, I understand your point and it is a good one. But your analogy of asking the list being like asking a neighbor falls short in some instances. For instance, keep in mind that while your neighbor is always there (or will be home shortly) the list members come and go. When someone asks a question the person with the best answer may or may not be reading the list postings. However, there may be three or four who remember the guy's post from last June. In this case it makes great sense to refer the guy to the archives of last June. In addition, some topics have no easy answer. For instance, auxiliary batteries. There are many different solutions to this problem... some of them less safe than others. It would take me a whole day to try to summarize everyone's solution that I have read. I prefer to state the basics and refer the guy to the postings from last winter... he will truly get the best education that way. And remember, we are all human and truly sometimes get tired of answering the same old question... referring someone to the archives is better than no answer at all. And even if you don't get referred to the archives, on anything important or anything that involves safety it is best to go to the archives to get other opinions whether you got a current answer or not... that's because I have seem many WRONG answers posted while the correct answers are in the archives. So how about giving us a break... we all put in the time that we can at the moment. If I don't see the correct answer posted and don't have time to write out an answer, I will continue to refer people to the archives... especially if I have some idea of what time period he will find his answer. Bill > >Bill (SE Arizona) (Bill@freeholder.com) HTTP://www.freeholder.com >---------------------------------------------------------- >Censorship is the assassination of ideas. No matter how well-meaning its >proponents may be, they are more dangerous to us than any outside enemy. > |
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