I guess what I'm asking is: Are there questions that are too basic? Should a newbie be required to pour over the docs for answers that we can provide in 5 seconds?
I would say absolutely! Getting answers in five seconds isn't a good way of learning. And, if you repeatedly do it, you won't learn anything but how someone else says to do it.
Actually, my experience is fundamentally different.

One of my most enjoyable learning experiences is learning a) a new language, and b) the programming practices and use of an existing code base by sitting among three other programmers and being able to just throw out quick questions, getting answers within seconds.

I realize that maybe Perlmonks isn't the same thing, but I can say that I would like to have that kind of quick and responsive environment on the Net as well.

I'm not saying that you shouldn't read the manual, because you really should! I'm saying that sometimes you learn better by getting a quick solution to your immediate problem than you do by getting a reference to The Whole Picture(tm) in the form of a dense man page when you're not ready for it.

Knowledge doesn't expand 100% to new areas all at once. It slowly grows and deepens by internalizing what you read and do. When you have the personal experience of doing something you are so much more prepared to understand the theoretical base of that "something".

/J

In reply to RE: Are there questions to basic? by jplindstrom
in thread Are there questions to basic? by OzzyOsbourne

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