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It may be true that people can find answers to their questions that way, Ratach, but it's ALSO true that this is not just a FAQ, it's a FORUM. It should be a place for dialogue, not for monologues that users read silently.
There should be discussion, not only for the purpose of answering questions, but for the purpose of making people comfortable here.
I think it's obvious from the abundance of such questions that most people come here hoping for people to actually talk to them in response, and I think it's worth expending a few seconds of our time to answer them personally and make them feel WELCOME, which is what I feel is lacking around here.
What makes a forum a useful place isn't just the availability of information, but the helpfulness of the forum's denizens.
Many of the people who come here and ask such questions are teenagers.
YES, teenagers will ask repetitive questions that they could find the answers to elsewhere.
YES, teenagers will not read carefully sometimes.
YES, teenagers will sometimes act or speak in an immature fashion. They're TEENAGERS.
Those same young people are also among the most likely to be scared off by unwelcoming replies to their questions! I recently saw that a longtime member had told a 14 year old girl "you know next to nothing!"
I have to say that I simply do not agree that this is an appropriate way to respond to a question from a person who is probably insecure (aren't all teenagers?) and skittish. This may be part of why so few of these users post more than a few times.
Be patient, correct them GENTLY, and help them learn the things that they need to know. They are the people who need places like this forum the most.
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