Smart Questions for Smart Answers

28 Jan 2021

Now a lot of educators would argue that there are no stupid questions, specifically so that students are not discouraged from asking questions about topics and things they don’t understand. While most can agree that there aren’t any stupid questions, there are stupid ways to ask questions. This has been made clear by Raymond’s extensive guide on how to ask smart questions. Stupid ways of asking questions can be easily recognized, and these are examples of stupid ways to ask questions that Raymond has provided:

This is an example of asking a question and placing it in the wrong category. Someone even replied to him and stated that this was not, in fact, a programming question, but a math question. If you are lucky, someone may be nice enough to answer it, but it is downvoted for a reason. Another example of a bad way to ask a question. Not only is the title vague, the user offers no explanation and just pastes their code. Again, you may be fortunate enough that others will answer, but that may not always be the case.

However, before you ask a question, there are things you can do yourself to save everyone’s time. Raymond has recommended that you:

Basically what it boils down to is; try searching for the answer yourself first. If you still cannot find the answer, that is when you should ask your question.

So what is a smart way to ask a question?

You want to be doing the opposite of the examples Raymond has provided, which means posting your answers in the right categories. In addition, being clear, concise, grammatically correct, and detailed goes a long way for both parties. A question cannot be answered if the person answering the question cannot comprehend what you are asking. Here is an example of a user asking a question the smart way. This user is clear, concise, and straight to the point. They also provide easily understood examples of what they want to achieve with their code. All of this contributes to the question being communicated effectively. This is another example of a smart way to ask a question.

Let’s recap!

Asking questions the “smart” way saves both you and the responders’ time, and can be achieved by communicating effectively and efficiently. A skill that is necessary in the computer science field, and in all aspects of life.