Klarinet Archive - Posting 000644.txt from 1997/05

From: "Edwin V. Lacy" <el2@-----.edu>
Subj: Re: Questions !!
Date: Sun, 25 May 1997 16:37:54 -0400

I have thus far refrained from joining this sometimes rather heated
discussion. However, I feel the need to make a couple of comments.

Several have written to assure those less experienced members of the list
that "there is no such thing as a dumb question." I think we can all
agree with that. If a person has not yet had an opportunity to gain the
information about which they are inquiring, then certainly we should not
criticize them for asking. In general, I think most people who have been
around for a few years, perhaps especially those who are teachers, will
be willing to try to help a younger or less experienced person.

On the other hand, sometimes it is amazing to see the nature of questions
which are posted to groups like this one. (I subscribe to nine of
them.) It seems that there are dozens of inquiries that best could be
answered by just picking up a dictionary or an encyclopedia, and many
more that could easily be answered by a trip to a library.

It seems to be becoming the accepted practice to just post questions to
lists on the internet rather than doing the kind of basic research many
of us have become accustomed to for most of our lives. I suppose this is
a natural result of this new medium, which we have not yet become used to
using. But, one must question the quality and accuracy of the
information one is likely to get from a list. There is no way of knowing
how accurate an answer to a question will be, and it is potentially even
more confusing when several conflicting answers are received.

I also must say that sometimes _answers_ are posted to such a list in
almost as haphazard fashion as questions. I know I have been guilty of
this. When someone asks about something which I feel that I might be
able to help them with, I have a tendency to want to post a reply almost
immediately. I think it is a result of having been a teacher for 38
years. One wants to supply information where it is needed. As a result,
I have sometimes posted answers in which the information is either
incomplete or at least partially misleading (unintentionally, I hasten to
add). In such cases, if I had waited until the next day when I could
have gotten to some reference materials in my studio, I might have
posted a better answer. But, the original questioner probably would have
no basis on which to judge the quality or supportability of my reply.

As time passes and use of the internet becomes still more widespread, we
have the opportunity to go either of two ways. We can learn how to use
this new tool, or we can see the quality of both questions and answers
become even less reliable.

Ed Lacy
*****************************************************************
Dr. Edwin Lacy University of Evansville
Professor of Music 1800 Lincoln Avenue
Evansville, IN 47722
el2@-----.edu (812)479-2754
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