Trouble Shooting Over The Internet

The above clip from the movie Slingblade is quite poignant because it has such a huge element of truth behind it.

When something goes wrong in a relatively complex system, there are times when the most obvious and most basic issue might get over-looked.

Frustration and anger can sometimes make these obvious solutions a bit more difficult to discover.

So when somebody new to the forum jumps in with a problem, I don't think it's out of line or insulting to ask some very basic questions.
Questions that may seem "obviously stupid" may in fact incite conversation and dialog that could reveal a solution.

"Is your kickstand down?"
"Do you have fresh gas in bike?"
"Is your battery fully charged?"

These kinds of questions are not meant to demean or belittle anyone.
They are meant to remove something obvious from the equation.

Remove the "low hanging fruit" is always a worthwhile methodology when it comes to trouble shooting.
Take care of, and look at the easiest stuff to fix first.


The bottom line is, sitting on the opposite end of a computer screen trying to understand what a problem is and how to quickly and easily fix it is not an easy thing to do.
It takes patience and understanding on both ends. The people trying to help are working with very little knowledge of the situation. Any question that brings more information to the group as a whole will help everybody have a better picture of what's going on.

Don't take anything personally when obvious questions might be asked.

Ultimately people are just trying to help.

100% right on!

Oh, and by the way: When you do solve your problem POST BACK so everyone involved knows. I know hearing a resolution make me more likely to help the next person.

railbird wrote:

Oh, and by the way: When you do solve your problem POST BACK so everyone involved knows. I know hearing a resolution make me more likely to help the next person.

It also (provided the next guy know how to use the search function) helps the next guy with both the problem solving tactic and possibly a solution to their issue.

+1. Feedback to a response as to whether it helped (or not) is always a plus.