[ANSTHRLD] Re: [artheralds] Answering questions

[D.Gilmore]

Teceangl,

as far as _I_ am concerned you are doing just fine.  I for one am grateful if
when you add where I can find the information in the future, 'cause, even though
I am not a "novice" Herald anymore, I am still learning constantly :)  As for the
person who ripped into you - well, ya can't please all of the people all of the
time...

--
Für Liebe und Ehre,

Herr Tilke von Lehe
"Daring ideas are like chessmen moved forward. They may be beaten, but they may
start a winning game." -- Johann Wolfgang Goethe

Teceangl wrote:

> An open query to the list:
>
> Recently, I responded to a posting on an heraldic mailing list I
> subscribe to (this narrows it down not at all - I subscribe to every
> SCA heraldic mailing list I know of) with pointers to the locations
> in the AH/RfS/Laurel Precedents/Laurel Education articles/mundane sources
> where the poster might find the answers I gave, and pretty much said,
> "in future, you may look here for answers".
>
> I got pulled into private email and ripped for it.  I was told that I
> made the person asking the question look too stupid to have checked other
> sources first (the poster had not said anything about having looked anywhere)
> and that I made the poster look like a pest.  The private email accused me
> of toning my message in a "don't bother asking in the future" manner.
>
> I'm wondering if I come across wrong when I address questions as though the
> poster is looking for not only the specific answer, but perhaps trying to
> learn something.  Should we who reply to questions keep our answers to
> "yes" and "no" rather than actually trying to educate?  Should we discount
> the number of people lurking-to-learn who gain useful information with
> references to available sources which will not only answer the question at
> hand, but allow people to find answers in the future?
>
> If I sound hurt, I am.  I thought folks were on these lists to learn, not
> just to have other people do their work for them.
>
> - Teceangl
> --
>           Fill your mouth with toothpaste and quack like a duck.