Re: But I'm not like that at all!

That's really not like I am in person. The people here who've met me in person will certainly tell you that.

I can attest to that. I have hung out with Randal in conference settings, business settings and personal settings. Randal is a cool guy, fun to hang out with, good to have conversation with, and fun watching him charge a single piece of pie!

I think your impression of his is incorrect. He truely does like to help people and help people become better Perl programmers. Unfortunately, tone of voice, intentions, etc... don't come across in a textual world. But, I can attest that the following statement is not a true reflection of Randal (at least from my experiences with him over the last few years):

One gets the mental picture of you being a very haughty person who doles out information when absolutely neccesary, and then it's always with the inflection of "why am I bothering with you?"

Cheers,
KM

Comment on Re: But I'm not like that at all!

Replies are listed 'Best First'.
Re: Re: But I'm not like that at all! by merlyn (Sage) on May 01, 2001 at 18:44 UTC
Did I tell you about the time that I charged a 39-cent Big Gulp at a 7-11? (Some years ago, obviously.) And the guy hadn't ever done it, so he pulls out the old credit card imprint machine, and nearly puts a "REFUND" slip in the machine instead of a normal slip! I would have been paid 39 cents on my card to drink the gulp! Of course I stopped him. But I think that sets the record for minimum charge on any of my cards. -- Randal L. Schwartz, Perl hacker	[reply]
(Guildenstern) Re: Re: But I'm not like that at all! by Guildenstern (Deacon) on May 01, 2001 at 19:09 UTC
I did say that I was sure merlyn was not like that in real life. What I was saying is that consideration needs to be taken when writing to help ensure that what is written in the "textual world" doesn't come across wrong. Quite often it seems like merlyn would benefit from putting himself in the questioner's shoes. An answer to an experienced Perl programmer can be more terse, but a newbie would benefit far more from a detailed explanation. Guildenstern Negaterd character class uber alles!	[reply]
Re: (Guildenstern) Re: Re: But I'm not like that at all! by KM (Priest) on May 01, 2001 at 19:25 UTC
I know we have gone over this all before, and merlyn has been 'attacked' for his answers before. Let's try not to repeat it. An answer to an experienced Perl programmer can be more terse, but a newbie would benefit far more from a detailed explanation. Why are you now splitting how he (or anyone) should answer? It takes enough time to answer, and now someone should evaluate the questioners experience before answering? How do you know what someone will benefit from? I don't always think that a long detailed answer is best for a newbie. Why? Because teaching them how to teach themselves can be more valuable that showing them the answer. Why are you picking on merlyn for this? Do you read others answers on this site? The range from "perldoc something" to long, overly detailed explinations. Everyone has their own style, which may change daily or hourly depending on mood or how busy one is. The important thing is that people participate. If you don't like someone short, terse answer.. noone is stopping you from expounding on it. Cheers, KM	[reply]
(Guildenstern) Rex4: But I'm not like that at all! by Guildenstern (Deacon) on May 01, 2001 at 19:45 UTC
Why are you now splitting how he (or anyone) should answer? I guess I'm naively going by what works best for me. Should I couch all of my comments like that? "My answer is based on what works for me." Why are you picking on merlyn for this? Interestingly, this all started at my disagreement with merlyn's method of tracking down personality voters. That is what I am picking on merlyn for. The following disagreements have been resolved privately by merlyn and I, although I plan to make that conversation public, since merlyn and I feel that it might help others. Do you read others answers on this site? Surprisingly enough, I do. I have seen the range of answers. I have added to conversations where I saw appropriate. I have not added in general to merlyn's terse comments because quite often the area is one I am not familiar with. Guildenstern Negaterd character class uber alles!	[reply]
Re: (Guildenstern) Rex4: But I'm not like that at all! by merlyn (Sage) on May 01, 2001 at 19:54 UTC


Come for the quick hacks, stay for the epiphanies.
	PerlMonks