Mailinglist Archive: opensuse (4237 mails)

[Randall R Schulz <rschulz@xxxxxxxxx>]

James,

On Thursday 05 August 2004 10:18, James Knott wrote:
> Randall R Schulz wrote:
> > ...
> >
> > Naturally, if you can redefine the problem arbitrarily, nothing's
> > hard!
>
> I have spent many years solving problems for others.  I have often
> found they might have some preconceived notions of how to resolve their
> problems and start looking for solutions that fit their ideas.  In many
> cases, proper exploration of the original problem will make a more
> suitable solution apparent.
>
> Now the next step would be to determine exactly what the boss needs,
> not what he thinks he needs.  ;-)

Actually, I agree with you, in general, but I think in this case and 
context, there are two reasons not to second-guess or further question 
the OP's stated goal:

1) The problem as stated does not suggest a preconception about how to 
solve something that's not directly stated, and hence I see no reason to 
question the original problem statement.

2) We're all technical here and all peers (though clearly not equal in 
knowledge and experience, else there'd be no point in having the list). 
There is no boss / worker relationship and I believe we should relate to 
each other as equals.


Randall Schulz