[wp-forums] RTFM.

[Podz]

My intention is not to offend, but to change behaviour.

<rant>
That is what it seems the forums are turning into.

Forbes Directory - Best of the Web:
http://www.forbes.com/bow/b2c/review.jhtml?id=7262

"BEST: Community of users. If you have a question, either check the 
documentation wiki (to which anyone can contribute) or ask at the 
support message board. We had an obscure question answered within an hour."

So why are the forums turning into one big RTFM ?
Because increasingly I'm seeing one line answers that are simply a link 
to a Codex page (and sometimes the WRONG page) or else I'm seeing a 
whole bunch of Codex links which may or may not be relevant but they are 
assuming that the person has not searched and as not seen or used the 
Codex and essentially it's a message of "Shut up and go read THAT".
Codex may well be good, but it is not the panacea. If it was, we could 
get rid of the forums and replace it with a 16em "RTFC" link.

Now go back to the Forbes thing ... see that word ? That really 
important word ?
  OR

ASK if people have been to Codex, do NOT assume they have.
READ their questions for heavens sake too - there are some answers which 
illustrate only that the person who pasted the answer is actually keener 
on raising their stats that they are in seeing a satisfied user. (Which 
is why public displays of stats are such a bad idea).
And ANSWER them - any links to Codex (except for VERY clearly stepped 
answers) should be supplementary to what you type. They should not be 
the only thing you write.

And don't diss other users. If your answer is simply a rehash of what 
someone else has said, or you are simply restating what you have already 
said, then stand up and wander away from the keyboard - we don't need 
contributions that simply add to the noise.

Think about it .. someone hits a problem, goes to the Codex, can't solve 
it, posts to the forum and effectively gets told to RTFM ? Would I like 
that ? No - it would annoy me intensely, and I would hope it would annoy 
you - unless all your life you too have learnt from RTFMing.

It's a real person typing their query - let's not forget that.

And when we are talking about any sort of "team", we have to remember 
that certain of us will be copied, so if all of a sudden I start 
slopping codex links in answer, this will be deemed to be an appropriate 
way to behave. It is NOT.

</rant>

P.