I was recently involved in a debate with marto. On the whole it was mild and though it started to go in circles, I think productive. I have no interest in rehashing the particulars of that debate. It's over. And this post is not directed specifically at marto and I thank him for his time and consideration. But I did want to add a few thoughts to this very age old, and probably tired, discussion about RTFM.

I'll first say that yes, I agree, "RTFM" is very good advice. It was advice that was pounded into me probably within days of me joining the PM community 17 years ago. It is advice that I reflect upon quite often. One interpretation of it boils down to: "Be self sufficient. Don't expect others to do your work for you. Be very respectful of others' time and effort and don't expect an answer if you can't be bothered to put some work in for yourself."

But like all rules of thumb, "RTFM" is open to wide interpretation. And so I offer another interpretation: "Learn how to figure things out for yourself, you'll be a better programmer for it. But if you feel like you are in over your head and you're feeling frustrated, go ahead and ask. It can't hurt. We'll try to be helpful, within reasonable limits, and you'll get the benefit of the doubt that you put in some effort into trying to figure it out."

I would like to encourage Monks to provide that benefit of the doubt. It's most people's instinct to want to reciprocate when they see others being generous with help. And so I think erring on the side of generosity and helpfulness does a lot to enhance and build the reputation of Perl. Sure, there will be some takers who don't reciprocate or who constantly ask questions that can be answered with just a cursory read of the manual or google search. But we should be careful not to be so guarded against them that they prevent us from helping those who genuinely need a helping hand and that will be very appreciative of any specific guidance they receive.

It's not easy advice to follow. We live in a dog-eat-dog, kill-or-be-killed kind of society that values hyper efficiency. Going out of your way to look something up for someone that strikes you as a lame brain does not seem like a very good use of your time. But I think, in the end, having faith in the good will of others gets us further down the road of progress. And I think that spirit of gift giving and reciprocation is what makes PM such a great community and Perl such a great programming language. I will do my absolute best to carry on the tradition.

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