A Pet Peeve

[Tom Frohman]

Something I see a lot of here, especially from one unnamed individual, is people who answer questions with a variant of

"Look it up on Google".

Why not leave it to someone who feels like answering the question rather than giving this LAZY and RUDE answer.

1)It stops people who actually might answer the question from answering. 2)It drives people away because they aren't getting answers to their questions.

Further, if you aren't going to answer the question don't waste time by nitpicking how it was posted, i.e., "put code tags around it". If you aren't going to try to answer the question, LEAVE IT ALONE. Don't post just to up your post count.

Just my opinion.

[Shuja Ali]

Something I see a lot of here, especially from one unnamed individual, is people who answer questions with a variant of

"Look it up on Google".

Why not leave it to someone who feels like answering the question rather than giving this LAZY and RUDE answer.

1)It stops people who actually might answer the question from answering. 2)It drives people away because they aren't getting answers to their questions.

Further, if you aren't going to answer the question don't waste time by nitpicking how it was posted, i.e., "put code tags around it". If you aren't going to try to answer the question, LEAVE IT ALONE. Don't post just to up your post count.

Just my opinion.

That is some nice thread I saw after a long time. I agree with all of it.

If the person wants to look it up i Google, then why would he post here. Next time he will just Google the answer.

[laserlight]

Just my opinion.

It is not just your opinion, but is in fact officially discouraged here. Read the discussion on "noise" in Enforcement of the use of code tags.

[Twey]

Depends. On the one hand, it isn't particularly useful to say ‘Google it’; on the other, however, it truly is a useful skill and people should develop the ‘Google reflex’ whereby they at least attempt to ask Google before going to other people for help. If you come across such a post, you could perhaps solve both problems by giving the answer and also linking to the Google query with which you found the answer. This will keep the noise to a minimum while also letting the poster know that there was a quicker way to find their solution. Linking directly to the query even gives them a clue as to the sort of search terms they should have been using.

[dglienna]

First, it's not a problem, if the answer is there (which it usually is, as most questions have been asked before)

I usually refer them to searching THIS forum, though.

If you search for "Google is your Friend" you'll find the search results (for the day)

[HanneSThEGreaT]

Well, unfortunately Google isn't perfect. I have literally spent hours on google and the like, to find solutions, which sadly never happened.

If it is quite a commonly asked question, why not refer the member to an existing FAQ or Article right here on CG, if that doesn't help, try searching through the forums - you are bound to find the answer for the member. Advise the member then, that ths info was found through a search through the articles, FAQ's etc.
Forget google, rather ( when possible ), many many newbies / established members forget the search functionality on CG.

[dglienna]

Here, you tend to have to use the right word or sequence to find results. Using advanced search can usually nail what you need though.

Whereas, searching the Net, you can use whatever language that you want, and you'll find someone that asked the same question using the same terminology

[Arjay]

Sometimes I respond with look it up with Google. Generally when I do this, I recommend the search criteria (e.g. Search google for "single instance application mutex").

I don't particularly believe in spoon feeding folks asking questions especially if it is obvious that they haven't made any effort in finding the answer on their own.

Learning how to find information via Google or Msdn is an extremely important skill. It takes practice to learn the various topic keywords or phrases to help narrow the search. I prefer to guide the OP into finding the answer rather than just giving the answer directly.

Lastly, let's keep in mind that posting to a forum is an inefficient way of obtaining an answer (as compared to being proficient with searching yourself). Imo posting to a forum should be a last resort.

[dglienna]

single instance application mutex

I'd only add the language that you're looking for at the end.

single instance application mutex C#

[Notsosuperhero]

I would only say that as an addition to the answer I have given, like just to find maybe some other possibly better solutions.

I agree though it is extremely rude.