Suggestion to all of the gurus answering n00b questions

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Lately I simply ignore the lazy-dumb newb questions.
Not being snooty about sharing any knowledge (I've typed out loooooong detailed posts many times to help out)....it's just that I've lost interest in trying to teach someone who I see is not willing to learn, but is just looking for the answer.

In school....the best teachers would make you work for, and find your own answers....they never just handed them out without any effort made.
 
triquee said:
I'm willing to bet that most of the time, they don't want the scientific explanation. They want someone who understands to put it into terms that they can understand. Writing a half-assed novel isn't likely going to be helpful as I'm pretty certain they can find the novel version elsewhere fairly easily.
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Well, in my example, the scientific explanation is the only answer. Its pretty easy to ask what seems like a simple question that doesn't have a simple answer. The only simple answer to some things would be something like "because that's the right way to do it" which no one would accept.
 
Maybe some of this is cultural (?) Instant gratification takes too long.

You probably get a two sheet page telling you which slot to stick a sound card. Whereas, you got a 100 page manual with a Tascam Whatsit-88. It's easy to say RTFM when you actually got a FM.. That said, when you actually do get a FM. RTFM is a valid place to start IMO.
 
Asking how to find a derivative and receiving an answer referencing the vast historical uses for calculus may do much for someone's message board cred, but it doesn't do much for the person asking.

I assume that when someone is asking me a specific question, they want me to help them distill the vast amount of information available so that they don't have to wade through a half a day's worth of web pages to find an answer that will move them beyond whatever is holding up their creative process. I suppose I could use it as an opportunity to show them in glaring spotlight, how little they know and by extension, how much I know - but I prefer to just try and help them over the hurdle so that they can get on with whatever they are wanting to do.
 
I have been trying to determine the area under a curve lately. ":-)

However, "I keep getting hum on *** when I ***" It does help to explain what a ground loop is before you tell someone to e.g. get an isolation transformer, with the caveat that grounding isn't an easy subject.

(In all honesty, there have been times when I wished I could remember some of the math I once knew....)
 
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triquee said:
I'm willing to bet that most of the time, they don't want the scientific explanation. They want someone who understands to put it into terms that they can understand.
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no ..... they want someone to actually do it for them.
 
This is all well and good for some. I imagine.

But I never kiss and tell on the first date!

;)
 
triquee said:
I suppose I could use it as an opportunity to show them in glaring spotlight, how little they know and by extension, how much I know...
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Do you think that is what most long answers are really about and intened for...?


triquee said:
- but I prefer to just try and help them over the hurdle so that they can get on with whatever they are wanting to do.
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Great!
You're on newb patrol...the rest of us can take some time off. :)
 
miroslav said:
Do you think that is what most long answers are really about and intened for...?
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When they satiate the intellectual brain dump needs of the person who is answering but offer little or no utility for the person who is asking, then yes. It really isn't difficult to tell the difference.
 
triquee said:
When they satiate the intellectual needs of the person who is answering but offer little or no utility for the person who is asking, then yes.
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Fair enough....sometimes the answers may seem to be intended for that, but they may also just be requiring a little intellectual effort on the part of the person asking, instead of being offered as a pure handout. ;)

Didn't your teachers ever make you work a little for an answer, while all the time sounding much smarter than you and knowing what the simple answer was? :)

Personally...I hate just *telling* someone "put the mic there" without them knowing or *wanting to know* why.
 
miroslav said:
Didn't your teachers ever make you work a little for an answer, while all the time sounding much smarter than you and knowing what the simple answer was? :)

Personally...I hate just *telling* someone "put the mic there" without them knowing or *wanting to know* why.
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I work for most every answer. Neither research nor the English language frighten me. I have a firm command of both.

But as far as helping others find the answer, I am very giving of information and eager to provide it in a way that they can relate to and understand - like a translator - because I know that sometimes that makes all the difference for someone. I do not consider the gesture to be an imposition or unworthy of my efforts. I guess in some small way, I actually consider it to be a bit of a responsibility.

I suppose if it were really important to me that the person asking the question arrive at the answer themselves, I would use the Socratic method (asking questions intended to guide them to the conclusion through logic and deductive/inductive reasoning) - but I generally reserve that for real jerks/assholes because there is nothing more satisfying than watching them arrive at your point of view themselves.
 
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triquee said:
I suppose if it were really important to me that the person asking the question arrive at the answer themselves....
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No, it's not really about that being "important"....just like it's not really about making them intentionally feel stupid for some half-assed moment of ego-stroking.

For a lot of guys, after spending the last 10+ years on various audio forums, and making thousands of post on them, many to help out those starting out...you can often spot the lazy-dumb newbs VS those who are stuck but eager to learn.
Often the lazy-dumb are never satisfied with even the simplest answers, and they end up coming back over and over, asking more lazy-dumb questions.
They just want you to hold their hand, give them the answer, and not try to teach them.

I never saw anyone who was truly interested complain about getting "too much" info.
Yes, sometimes it's overwhelming to them, but usually those guys will engage in discussion and ask the right follow-up questions, and make an effort to learn/understand...and not have the "just tell me" attitudes.

I think most here are on the same side, and willing to help out anyone needing it....it's just that sometimes there ARE annoying newbs who really don't deserve it, and they even get pissed at you when you give them an answer they don't like. :rolleyes:
 
miroslav said:
....and they even get pissed at you when you give them an answer they don't like. :rolleyes:
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Heh...Honestly, whether they show it or not, I think pretty much everybody I've ever known or come into contact with either virtually or otherwise gets a little pissed (or frustrated) when they get an answer they don't like. I think that's more a human nature thing than a strictly obnoxious noob thing...The obnoxious ones just don't hide it well.
 
"Neither a borrower nor a lender be.", would be the easiest option.
We could all keep schtum and allow new folk to learn through trial & error whilst the newbie could be committed to the hobby & demonstrate that by eschewing any proferr assistance as failing to provide them with the necessary experience and mistakes from which to truly learn.
Life is so exceedingly hard when one asks a question and then has to listen for the answer.
Worse so when there are differences of fact/opinion/experience or application.
Far be it for any soul with the nouse to offer more than a terse and wholly situationally appropriate solution to a problem that was vaguely put &/or with little or no real concept of what is being asked.
Ingratitude due to the answer being other than was wanted may be human in some respects but is much likelier to be the result of a spoon fed existence that has been nurtured by instant, self gratifying, mutually flattering, yet often inaccurate internet searches.
I know I'm showing my age: but once way, way back when Mr Peabody's machine did its thing, if the answer provided wasn't what one expected or wanted one reconsidered the need, desire or expectation whilst applying the answer to the task at hand.
By the way, this diatribe didn't satiate any intellectual need - it satified a base need for revenge, brutal character assassination, world domination and whetted my appetite for even more bombast.
 
I TRY to make my answers as concise as possible but since one is by the very nature of things, answering the same basic questions time after time, I try to vary my delivery! However if a punter comes back with "I got lost at dBFS" say, I always reply that I am prepared to break my answers down as far as possible so that they understand.

In my "telly days" I would not, for instance cover VCR timer recording at the initial installation. This is because I knew that 80% of VCR owners NEVER set up their machines for that and I really did not have the time to waste. I did however always promise that I would come back a few days later when they had got the basic operations sorted and (attempt!) to demo' timer setup...Fork! Quite a few peeps never got the concept into their heads that they did not need a telly to record!

Take a concrete noob question: What level should I record at? The quick and dirty answer is easy. An average of -18dBFS at 24bits and 44.1kHz. Simples! But implicit in that answer is that the noob is conversant with decibels, the FS concept and sampling rates and word lengths...But we don't want to bang on about all that for the simple "what level" question.

Dave.
 
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