From: Erik Max Francis <max AT alcyone DOT com>
Newsgroups: comp.os.msdos.djgpp
Subject: Re: The DJGPP Oracle
Date: Tue, 19 Aug 1997 19:03:09 -0700
Organization: Alcyone Systems
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George Foot wrote:

> Yes; I think it's helpful to answer courteously nonetheless. For
> example, rather than saying `This is explained in section X.Y of the
> FAQ' and giving a short description, perhaps it's better to say
> `Search the FAQ [contents/index] for "zzzzzzz" and you'll find your
> answer'. I don't know, though; it seems more sociable (to the asker)
> to give the exact reference.

Yes, it would be more courteous, but it's a waste of my time.

I'm sorry.  I'm more than willing to answer questions (often questions
that are about C or C++ itself and not necessarily DJGPP or gcc), even
dumb ones.

When I come across a frequently-asked question, I often give a short
summary of the answer (e.g., "use gxx instead of gcc") and point them to
the FAQ.  It's not my job to dig up the section, or tell them precisely
what to search for, or quote the FAQ for them (particularly in my own
words!).  If it's convenient, I'll give them a one-sentence summary, and
point them at the FAQ.  If not, I'll just point them at the FAQ.  That is,
after all, _what's it for_.

> Perhaps a web-based version of this Oracle would be most effective at
> guiding FAQs away from the group; I don't think people really look at
> what they've installed on their hard drive. Then again, I wonder how
> many newbies here have bothered to read the DJGPP User's Guide; though
> incomplete, it is instructive and might be more what they're looking
> for in terms of documentation, rather than the lasagne-code FAQ :)

One thing I think would help would be to have downloading of the FAQ
_mandatory_.  Include it in a vital package, and make people download it.
That way you can't say, "I can't find it" (which is a fairly common FAQ in
itself).

-- 
       Erik Max Francis, &tSftDotIotE / email / mailto:max AT alcyone DOT com
                     Alcyone Systems /   web / http://www.alcyone.com/max/
San Jose, California, United States /  icbm / 37 20 07 N  121 53 38 W
                                   \
   "Love is not love which alters / when it alteration finds."
                                 / William Shakespeare, _Sonnets_, 116