In order to learn more about how to ask “smart questions” I read “How To Ask Questions The Smart Way” by Eric Steven Raymond. This reading helped me understand a lot more about what software engineers consider “smart questions”. I also learned a lot more about what questions I should ask and what questions I should keep to myself. For example, if I haven’t done enough research on a topic and I ask a basic question such as: “What is JavaScript?” then it is very likely I will not get an answer. This is because I haven’t taken the time to answer this question myself. When asking questions, “smart questions” arrive after you have done as much research as you can to answer the question yourself. Once you have done this, you then use the information you have gathered to ask a “smart question”. Stupid questions occur when one tries to ask a question beefore doing any research themselves. Stupid questions tend to be basic questions that anyone could find the answer to if they used Google. People who ask these stupid questions normally just want a quick answer to their problem. Here are some examples from stack overflow that give us a better understanding about what smart and stupid questions are.
The poster asked the question: “I’m trying to get the output from my for loop to print in a single line in the console, but nothing is printing to the console, can someone point me in the right direction?” Although this is a very basic question, the poster has taken the initiative and has at least attempted to get his code to work before he asks his question. He also asks if people can point him in the right direction. This shows us that he doesn’t just want us to give him the answer, he wants to know what his error is so he can fix it. This is a good example on how you can ask “smart questions” even if the question may not have a complex answer. Smart questions are also important for software engineers because it helps clear the way for helpful, insightful, and meaningful conversations between two parties. If software engineers aren’t asking smart questions this essentially just wastes everyone’s time.
Another poster asks the questions: “I have a hw assignment that asks me to make a working hangman application, how should I start?” This is a very good example that shows what a “stupid question” is. The poster does not take the initiative and wants others to do his work for him. Instead of doing as much as he can and then asking what he can do to fix his application, he blatantly asks other users to give him a starting point. The user also states that it is a homework assignment. No one wants to do your homework for you, and this is a good reason why his post has no responses to it. Also, because it is a hw assignment he could ask his professor for help, or even other students that are in his class for help before he goes to stack overflow.