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  1. Path: sparky!uunet!cs.utexas.edu!qt.cs.utexas.edu!yale.edu!think.com!enterpoop.mit.edu!eru.mt.luth.se!lunic!sunic!seunet!augs!rabbit!staff
  2. From: staff@rabbit.augs.se (Staffan Friberg)
  3. Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.misc
  4. Subject: Re: Commodity question
  5. Message-ID: <staff.02p0@rabbit.augs.se>
  6. Date: 22 Dec 92 09:26:44 GMT
  7. References: <1992Dec17.070805.1@vaxb.acs.unt.edu> <rschuler.724653094@pv0221.vincent.iastate.edu> <crystal.724659529@glia>
  8. Organization: Amiga User Group Sweden
  9. Lines: 49
  10. X-NewsSoftware: GRn 1.16f (10.17.92) by Mike Schwartz & Michael B. Smith
  11.  
  12. > >RTFM (read the FINE manual)
  13. >
  14. > Uh, if I may interject here... ?
  15. >
  16. > Many times I've found that the manuals written by *programmers* are difficult
  17. > for the non-programmers/casual users to decipher.  They assume that their
  18. > audience has the computerese background to read between the lines and
  19. > understand the "missing" information.  (Not that anything is missing here,
  20. > I wouldn't know, I haven't yet bothered with the program. Nor do I know the
  21. > computer expertise of the poster).  So, from my experience (as one who
  22. > *always* RTFM, though rarely understands it without a question or two)
  23. > I find that comment to be quite rude because it makes an assumption that
  24. > you don't know to be true.  If you wish to help someone, there is no reason
  25. > to insult them while doing so.
  26. >
  27. > A more polite way of stating it would be: "Have you read the manual?"  This
  28. > makes no assumptions whatsoever and gently reminds the poster of something
  29. > that may have slipped their mind.  You can then follow up with "If not,
  30. > here's how it's done:"
  31.  
  32. IMHO this problem could be overcome if the poster in his/her question states
  33. that he/she has read the manual and doesn't understand/doesn't find relevant
  34. information. I don't think that one should be ashamed of not understanding a
  35. manual but very often people just can't be bothered to read it in the first
  36. place.
  37.  
  38. Well.....
  39.  
  40. --
  41.  
  42.  
  43.  
  44.                      ------------------------------
  45.                     / ---------------------------- \
  46.                    /  Staffan Friberg               \
  47.                   /  Undergraduate student           \
  48.                  /  Chemistry                         \
  49.                 /  Linkoping University   Sweden       \
  50.                /                                        \
  51.               /                                          \
  52.              /   Life, loathe it or ignore it, you        \
  53.              \ \  can't like it.                        / /
  54.               \ \                       (Marvin)       / /
  55.                \ \                                    / /
  56.                 \ \                                  / /
  57.                  \ \EMail:                          / /
  58.                   \ \InterNet: staff@rabbit.augs.se/ /
  59.                    \ \FidoNet: 2:204/404.2        / /
  60.                     --------------------------------
  61.