Be a giver
The Internet, in my opinion, is by far the greatest platform for sharing knowledge the world has ever known. This fact, I’m sure, has not slipped your attention either.
However, some have taken to taking more than they give. In fact, asking for more than thier willing to return. Example: Forums, Message Boards, Bulletin Boards, Chats, NewsGroups and the like have been around for far longer than the Internet. In fact, they have been around far longer than any of thier digital cousins. Still, some are having trouble using them properly. Most people, when they have a given topic they would like to discuss, post an “opener topic” consisting of something they’ve found interesting, and asked for others viewpoint on that specific topic. Seems logical. Yet, when asking a question, perhaps about technology, the Internet or something they forget thier etiquette.
What am I getting at? Well, when you (not you the reader) post a question onto, let’s say a Forum, you are hoping that someone will answer your question with a reply that solves your issue. Depending on the amount of “traffic” that forum is subject to, you might get a reply that is quick, to the point, and accurate. However, sometimes, your question can go unanswered. What do you do then? RTFM! That’d probably help. But, if your question is sincere and geniune, than you might want to research the answer further. Once you have found your juicy little nugget, that is your solution, what do you do with it then? SHARE IT! Someone, at some other time, will have the same problem that you are facing. It’s almost inevitable. Posting the answer to your question will, potentially, help hundereds of people save thousands of hours. This will, perhaps even help you later on, if you should have the same problem again, and you didn’t document it for yourself. I mean, are we to assume that the millions of unanswered questions out there are just that, unanswered? Did the person just give up? Not likely.
If you search Google Groups (formerly Deja News) they have an archive of millions upon millions of Newsgroup posts that people have been using for years. This archive has helped me on more than one occassion for sure. I also try to personally document any problems I might have, so that I won’t waste time solving 1 issue twice or more. And, if someone else ever comes up with a problem similar, hopefully I can help them.
Do your part, whether you know it or not you are part of a community. If one of your neighbors has a problem with thier house that you had just dealt with, more often than not, you would provide your new found knowledge and expertise on the subject to help them to not make the same mistakes that you had.
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