On Thu, Jan 26, 2006 at 12:50:58PM +0100, Johannes Kastl wrote:
2/ a newbie can usually understand what another newbie is asking better than an expert!
Sure he can understand, but can he solve the problem?
Yes. It depends on the problem. If the question is where to change the repeat speed of keys in KDE, then he can answer it. If the question is how to compile a new kernel then he can not. It is also the best way to learn things: become a teacher. I remember my first Usenetposting where I read a question and realized I knew the answer. That was great and it encouraged me to learn more. I see the same thing on Usenet. People get in, post questions and suddenly they start answering. Almost all express their pride when the answer is correct. You can almost see the smile on their face as if they are a baby taking its first steps. So yes, the newbie can solve some problems and while doing it he becomes a member of the comunity. On a more comany level, see it as first, second and third level support in a company. You do not want the third level people answering first level problems. You want them to work on third level problems. (The other way around would even be worse. :-) houghi -- Mollison's Bureaucracy Hypothesis: If an idea can survive a bureaucratic review and be implemented it wasn't worth doing.