Howard wrote:
Well, what we're "qualified" for here varies a great deal, I'm pretty sure.
:-) But you're correct that this is not the correct newsgroup to ask
questions such as this.
A seasonal feature on behalf of the bouncier regulars here.
news:comp.lang.c++ discusses an advanced language often thrust upon
neophytes. They misunderstand the relationships between their
language, their libraries, their platforms, and USENET. Unchecked,
their posts would fill this newsgroup and starve the more deserving
and accurate ones. Regulars increase the odds of discussing C++ here
if they learn to politely, responsibly, and gently guide our new
members towards better USENET participation.
Following these rules will help one avoid a flame-back on one's bounce
posts:
- Always try to help. If you can't, don't bounce. Others who can
will help and bounce. Include a brief hint at the answer, to
provide direction, and provide an alternative forum.
- Post more on-topic answers than you bounce. "Policing" the group
may feel fun, but it starts a bad mentality. Anyone seen Paul
Lutus around recently?
- If a question is marginal, it's up to you to make the >reply<
on-topic. Example: "how does strdup() work?" Don't be a jerk
and pretend you don't know just because 'strdup()' is not in
the Standard Library. The correct answer is "strdup() works
worse than std::string::operator=()".
- Put OT: in the Subject if you can't follow the last rule. This
helps C++ purists filter their listings and see more on-topic
posts.
- Do not flame someone for providing an off-topic answer. In a
debate, referring to topicality will not get you points.
- Read the danged post. It's innocent until proven guilty. Did you
know that some posts have been bounced here just because they
mentioned VC++ in the header? The >entire post< has to be
off-topic,
not just a few words.
- Bounce messages should reinforce topicality is in the poster's best
interest. Do not say, "You are an idiot and we don't want you in
our exclusive club." Say instead, "You will get the best answer in
news:comp.whatever."
- For the newbies: The topic of the group is Standard C++. This means
we try to attract regulars who like to answer platform neutral
questions. POSIX is also platform neutral, so the odds someone here
knows the answer to a question about _open() is very high. But
there
are still better newsgroups for such a question.
- For the regulars: Telling a newbie that their post is off-topic
because the topic of the newsgroup is "Standard C++" is a useless
tautology. Invite discussions of platform neutral topics, theory,
design patterns, etc. The ISO C++ Standard does not define any of
those things; they are still of interest to all C++ programmers.
These
rules help our critical mass of regulars A> not get bored, and B>
proof others' answers, regardless of the platform.
- "What library should I use to" is on-topic. If you sent them to a
MS newsgroup, and a Borland library were better, wouldn't you feel
guilty?
- Technical fora include newsgroups, Web fora, list servers, Wikis,
chat rooms, Web source code repositories, Web snippet sites, Web
tutorial sites, vendor Web sites, and Web search engines. Don't
send
some other newsgroup what they'l consider a FAQ if you can suggest
the newbie locate the FAQ itself.
- Help newsreaders make URLs clickable. Use the http: or news:
protocol prefix.
- Some posters are unaware of
http://groups.google.com . It will find
either the answer or the correct newsgroup.
- Refer to Shiva's excellent Welcome message, at least, in a bounce
message.
http://www.slack.net/~shiva/welcome.txt
--
Phlip
http://www.greencheese.org/SkeletonCrew
-- This machine last rebooted during the Second Millenium --
