| ??? 07/25/08 08:13 Read: times Msg Score: +1 +1 Good Answer/Helpful |
#157047 - Request and best solution often different Responding to: ???'s previous message |
Richard Erlacher said:
Now, we all know that BASIC52 relies on a dumb-terminal interface via the UART as a console. The O/P wanted to use an LCD panel and a PS/2 Keyboard. I found it interesting that, while some suggested PIC's or other components, nobody thought to suggest this simple solution, on the off-chance that would satisfy his desire. Clearly he didn't know what he really wanted. I'm not so sure that the OP didn't know what he wanted. It was quite clear from the OPs post that he wanted to be able to bring his computer with him. Justin Rimmer said:
Hello,
I've always thought it would be fun to design a portable and programmable computer-- something I can take places with me, and something that will have a lot of flexibility and expandability. Because of this, the requirement of an external dumb terminal doesn't seem like an option. A big problem when people do ask questions - on any forum - is that many do not know all options available. That is one of the big reasons why they do ask questions. And that is one of the reasons why people do suggest solutions that may not totally fit the original question. The answer may be wrong, but the answer may just as well suggest something that the OP did not think about, and hence may actually fit the original request even when the request kind of imply something else. Some answers may be a bit too "You must do like this", and such pushiness is bad. But most often, it is good that people do suggest different things. The OP may then - if really interested - think about possible options and then come back and refine the direction of a thread by telling why a specific suggestion seems to divert from the original plan. It is my belief that a huge number of requests should _not_ be answered with the answer that the OP originally wanted, just because the OP started off from a too narrow point-of-view. Often, writing the answer that makes the OP happy, may be the totally wrong approach. That is why it is so important to not just spend time giving solutions, but also to try to get the OP to supply more information about the actual reason for their request. I haven't made many posts to this forum, but have spent a lot of time on other forums or mailing lists, and can not for the life of me believe that this forum would be too different. The big job is almost always to not just answer the OPs question but to figure out the original goal/problem since the "best" answer may be 180 degrees off from what is implied by the original post. Students often reads questions exactly as written and things: Hey, I know the answer. With more experience, people start to spend more and more time wondering about why the OP did the request. In the end, it really is important to spend just as much time on wondering why, as to directly jumping for the "obvious" solution. |
