- Joined
- Feb 13, 2009
- Messages
- 1,175
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- 272
This has kind of been bothering me every now and then, and I admit I've also been guilty of it, but I thought it was worth bringing up.
Every now and then we get a thread in which a member, new or old, wants our opinion on a number of different pieces of hardware or software they are considering buying. In other words they want help deciding which to go with.
Sometimes, I've noticed, these threads escalate and branch out to discussions about completely different items than what the original post was asking about.
I think options are great, and people's willingness to share their own experiences and preferences is admirable. Yet I would like to see the original post's dilemma approached first before the branching out begins.
For example, in a recent thread a relatively new member asked opinions about two different hard drives he was trying to decide between. Replies, quite rightly, pointed out that there were better options that could be acquired for very little more money. That seems sensible, because by paying ten bucks more, and therefore by buying a $60 drive instead of a $50 one, we get a much better drive. Makes sense, yeah?
But that wasn't what he asked, and we don't know where he's from or if these same market conditions apply. Maybe a guy with an Indian name is from India, where the average annual salary is $971. Maybe a new hard drive there costs, respectively, a buck and a half. I don't know. Do you?
If not, it's best to assume that he does. It won't close the door on discussing better alternatives.
Every now and then we get a thread in which a member, new or old, wants our opinion on a number of different pieces of hardware or software they are considering buying. In other words they want help deciding which to go with.
Sometimes, I've noticed, these threads escalate and branch out to discussions about completely different items than what the original post was asking about.
I think options are great, and people's willingness to share their own experiences and preferences is admirable. Yet I would like to see the original post's dilemma approached first before the branching out begins.
For example, in a recent thread a relatively new member asked opinions about two different hard drives he was trying to decide between. Replies, quite rightly, pointed out that there were better options that could be acquired for very little more money. That seems sensible, because by paying ten bucks more, and therefore by buying a $60 drive instead of a $50 one, we get a much better drive. Makes sense, yeah?
But that wasn't what he asked, and we don't know where he's from or if these same market conditions apply. Maybe a guy with an Indian name is from India, where the average annual salary is $971. Maybe a new hard drive there costs, respectively, a buck and a half. I don't know. Do you?
If not, it's best to assume that he does. It won't close the door on discussing better alternatives.