Archive - Originally posted on "The Horse's Mouth" - 2006-01-19 09:32:50 - Graham Ellis
"Graham, I doubt that the guy will understand that." writes another contributor on a forum where I post, following up on my instructions to change a password and login name embedded within a sample script.
On one hand it's easy - all too easy - to overcomplicate instructions and to go into too much detail. But on the other hand there are many geeks out there who feel that others who don't know a topic as well as they do are somehow lacking in an ability to follow anything but the simplest of instructions.
I find that a huge majority of people that I train, and a majority of those I answer on forums and by email, are bright - very bright. They've got the ability to do a lot more than my geek friend who followed up gives them credit for, and they can (and do) ask supplimentary questions if they need to. To refuse to answer a question, which was being advocated on this thread, is to deny the questioner any chance of learning and taking his requirement forward, and it's also to deny anyone else who's interested that opportunity too.