Are the posted questions getting worse?

  • Brandie Tarvin wrote:

    Yesterday night, a job failed with a weird error I'd never seen before. I hop onto Google this morning to search for it and find all sorts of interesting responses. Including this little gem:

    Change your query to SCHEMA.dbo.TableName

    Because … reasons. <headdesk> This thread is from 3 years ago and no one called out that comment or bothered to down vote it. Even a comment posted to that comment said "and how exactly will this help?" as if the respondent to the erroneous comment also failed to notice the problem. This makes me very very very sad.  

    Of course that answer is a just a few months old. My guess is that not many people have seen that answer. Probably a good thing since it is so very wrong.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Need help? Help us help you.

    Read the article at http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/Best+Practices/61537/ for best practices on asking questions.

    Need to split a string? Try Jeff Modens splitter http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/Tally+Table/72993/.

    Cross Tabs and Pivots, Part 1 – Converting Rows to Columns - http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/T-SQL/63681/
    Cross Tabs and Pivots, Part 2 - Dynamic Cross Tabs - http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/Crosstab/65048/
    Understanding and Using APPLY (Part 1) - http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/APPLY/69953/
    Understanding and Using APPLY (Part 2) - http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/APPLY/69954/

  • Luis Cazares wrote:

    Brandie Tarvin wrote:

    Yesterday night, a job failed with a weird error I'd never seen before. I hop onto Google this morning to search for it and find all sorts of interesting responses. Including this little gem:

    Change your query to SCHEMA.dbo.TableName

    Because … reasons. <headdesk> This thread is from 3 years ago and no one called out that comment or bothered to down vote it. Even a comment posted to that comment said "and how exactly will this help?" as if the respondent to the erroneous comment also failed to notice the problem. This makes me very very very sad.  

    It's obvious that if you change to a different database, everything will work as expected. 😀

    Especially if you name the database [SCHEMA] - it's completely clear and won't confuse any beginners. 😉

  • I don't have a Stack Overflow account, let alone a 50 rep on the site. Since the topic is still open, maybe could someone able to post to the site add a comment about the wrong comment so future peeps don't read that and take it as gospel solution?

    Brandie Tarvin, MCITP Database AdministratorLiveJournal Blog: http://brandietarvin.livejournal.com/[/url]On LinkedIn!, Google+, and Twitter.Freelance Writer: ShadowrunLatchkeys: Nevermore, Latchkeys: The Bootleg War, and Latchkeys: Roscoes in the Night are now available on Nook and Kindle.

  • Brandie Tarvin wrote:

    I don't have a Stack Overflow account, let alone a 50 rep on the site. Since the topic is still open, maybe could someone able to post to the site add a comment about the wrong comment so future peeps don't read that and take it as gospel solution?

    I didn't see the need to add a comment. The other answer is shown as accepted with multiple positive votes. The bad answer has now 2 negative votes (one mine and probably one from Sean).

    Luis C.
    General Disclaimer:
    Are you seriously taking the advice and code from someone from the internet without testing it? Do you at least understand it? Or can it easily kill your server?

    How to post data/code on a forum to get the best help: Option 1 / Option 2
  • Luis Cazares wrote:

    Brandie Tarvin wrote:

    I don't have a Stack Overflow account, let alone a 50 rep on the site. Since the topic is still open, maybe could someone able to post to the site add a comment about the wrong comment so future peeps don't read that and take it as gospel solution?

    I didn't see the need to add a comment. The other answer is shown as accepted with multiple positive votes. The bad answer has now 2 negative votes (one mine and probably one from Sean).

    I don't use it. Years ago, someone posted a loop to build a table of sequential dates. I made my first post to SO ever - I pointed out how a tally table was a better approach, explained why and provided a good solution.  My post was removed because it was too long.  I concluded that SO was for one-liners and not about real learning.  I haven't posted since.  Now there's a bunch of rules on who can post and who can't, so that's another reason not to participate.

  • Luis Cazares wrote:

    Brandie Tarvin wrote:

    I don't have a Stack Overflow account, let alone a 50 rep on the site. Since the topic is still open, maybe could someone able to post to the site add a comment about the wrong comment so future peeps don't read that and take it as gospel solution?

    I didn't see the need to add a comment. The other answer is shown as accepted with multiple positive votes. The bad answer has now 2 negative votes (one mine and probably one from Sean).

    haha and I figured the other downvote was yours. 🙂

    _______________________________________________________________

    Need help? Help us help you.

    Read the article at http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/Best+Practices/61537/ for best practices on asking questions.

    Need to split a string? Try Jeff Modens splitter http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/Tally+Table/72993/.

    Cross Tabs and Pivots, Part 1 – Converting Rows to Columns - http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/T-SQL/63681/
    Cross Tabs and Pivots, Part 2 - Dynamic Cross Tabs - http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/Crosstab/65048/
    Understanding and Using APPLY (Part 1) - http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/APPLY/69953/
    Understanding and Using APPLY (Part 2) - http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/APPLY/69954/

  • Sean Lange wrote:

    Luis Cazares wrote:

    Brandie Tarvin wrote:

    I don't have a Stack Overflow account, let alone a 50 rep on the site. Since the topic is still open, maybe could someone able to post to the site add a comment about the wrong comment so future peeps don't read that and take it as gospel solution?

    I didn't see the need to add a comment. The other answer is shown as accepted with multiple positive votes. The bad answer has now 2 negative votes (one mine and probably one from Sean).

    haha and I figured the other downvote was yours. 🙂

    Heh - If I thought enough of SO to do so, it would have been. 😉

  • Ed Wagner wrote:

    Luis Cazares wrote:

    Brandie Tarvin wrote:

    I don't have a Stack Overflow account, let alone a 50 rep on the site. Since the topic is still open, maybe could someone able to post to the site add a comment about the wrong comment so future peeps don't read that and take it as gospel solution?

    I didn't see the need to add a comment. The other answer is shown as accepted with multiple positive votes. The bad answer has now 2 negative votes (one mine and probably one from Sean).

    I don't use it. Years ago, someone posted a loop to build a table of sequential dates. I made my first post to SO ever - I pointed out how a tally table was a better approach, explained why and provided a good solution.  My post was removed because it was <span style="color: #ff0000;">too long</span>.  I concluded that SO was for one-liners and not about real learning.  I haven't posted since.  Now there's a bunch of rules on who can post and who can't, so that's another reason not to participate.

    It is certainly a different atmosphere. I much prefer this place but it has become increasingly difficult over the last couple of years. So many talented people makes posting answers nearly impossible. Then add some of the challenges with the updates and worst of all is the marked decrease in questions.

    _______________________________________________________________

    Need help? Help us help you.

    Read the article at http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/Best+Practices/61537/ for best practices on asking questions.

    Need to split a string? Try Jeff Modens splitter http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/Tally+Table/72993/.

    Cross Tabs and Pivots, Part 1 – Converting Rows to Columns - http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/T-SQL/63681/
    Cross Tabs and Pivots, Part 2 - Dynamic Cross Tabs - http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/Crosstab/65048/
    Understanding and Using APPLY (Part 1) - http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/APPLY/69953/
    Understanding and Using APPLY (Part 2) - http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/APPLY/69954/

  • Sean Lange wrote:

    Luis Cazares wrote:

    Brandie Tarvin wrote:

    I don't have a Stack Overflow account, let alone a 50 rep on the site. Since the topic is still open, maybe could someone able to post to the site add a comment about the wrong comment so future peeps don't read that and take it as gospel solution?

    I didn't see the need to add a comment. The other answer is shown as accepted with multiple positive votes. The bad answer has now 2 negative votes (one mine and probably one from Sean).

    haha and I figured the other downvote was yours. 🙂

    Heh - If I thought enough of SO to do so, it would have been. 😉  For one-liners where you just can't get the syntax for right in .NET, it serves a purpose.  For real learning, it takes discussion, which SO actively (in my case, anyway) discouraged.  Just look at the ProperCase thread you had going a while back - there was some really great stuff in there.  That particular thread has been lost to the ravages of time or deletion, but it was a great good example of what discussion can lead to.

  • Sean Lange wrote:

    Ed Wagner wrote:

    Luis Cazares wrote:

    Brandie Tarvin wrote:

    I don't have a Stack Overflow account, let alone a 50 rep on the site. Since the topic is still open, maybe could someone able to post to the site add a comment about the wrong comment so future peeps don't read that and take it as gospel solution?

    I didn't see the need to add a comment. The other answer is shown as accepted with multiple positive votes. The bad answer has now 2 negative votes (one mine and probably one from Sean).

    I don't use it. Years ago, someone posted a loop to build a table of sequential dates. I made my first post to SO ever - I pointed out how a tally table was a better approach, explained why and provided a good solution.  My post was removed because it was <span style="color: #ff0000;">too long</span>.  I concluded that SO was for one-liners and not about real learning.  I haven't posted since.  Now there's a bunch of rules on who can post and who can't, so that's another reason not to participate.

    It is certainly a different atmosphere. I much prefer this place but it has become increasingly difficult over the last couple of years. So many talented people makes posting answers nearly impossible. Then add some of the challenges with the updates and worst of all is the marked decrease in questions.

    The decrease in questions is probably due to some of the updates.  If it's harder to use, it's less likely that first-timers will ask a question, much less hang around for long.

  • Ed Wagner wrote:

    Sean Lange wrote:

    Ed Wagner wrote:

    Luis Cazares wrote:

    Brandie Tarvin wrote:

    I don't have a Stack Overflow account, let alone a 50 rep on the site. Since the topic is still open, maybe could someone able to post to the site add a comment about the wrong comment so future peeps don't read that and take it as gospel solution?

    I didn't see the need to add a comment. The other answer is shown as accepted with multiple positive votes. The bad answer has now 2 negative votes (one mine and probably one from Sean).

    I don't use it. Years ago, someone posted a loop to build a table of sequential dates. I made my first post to SO ever - I pointed out how a tally table was a better approach, explained why and provided a good solution.  My post was removed because it was <span style="color: #ff0000;">too long</span>.  I concluded that SO was for one-liners and not about real learning.  I haven't posted since.  Now there's a bunch of rules on who can post and who can't, so that's another reason not to participate.

    It is certainly a different atmosphere. I much prefer this place but it has become increasingly difficult over the last couple of years. So many talented people makes posting answers nearly impossible. Then add some of the challenges with the updates and worst of all is the marked decrease in questions.

    The decrease in questions is probably due to some of the updates.  If it's harder to use, it's less likely that first-timers will ask a question, much less hang around for long.

    I wonder if it's also because they "broke the internet" when they did the upgrade...

    --Jeff Moden


    RBAR is pronounced "ree-bar" and is a "Modenism" for Row-By-Agonizing-Row.
    First step towards the paradigm shift of writing Set Based code:
    ________Stop thinking about what you want to do to a ROW... think, instead, of what you want to do to a COLUMN.

    Change is inevitable... Change for the better is not.


    Helpful Links:
    How to post code problems
    How to Post Performance Problems
    Create a Tally Function (fnTally)

  • More like scrambled the internet.

    Unfortunately the upgrade turned into Whack A Mole.

    One thing to break external links, and a whole different one to lose internal stuff. Reconfirms my early retirement 6 years ago - the push for speed is too great for me. Getting it right and avoiding the scramble to fix is pushed to the curb.

    Right now, my priority is to wait a few more days for the water to warm up. Predicting some time to relax and pull in some crappies. And maybe a few walleyes next week, after the rush of opener. Upgrading to a new minnow just seems to have more appeal these days than upgrade the software.

  • Greg Edwards-268690 wrote:

    ...

    Right now, my priority is to wait a few more days for the water to warm up. Predicting some time to relax and pull in some crappies. And maybe a few walleyes next week, after the rush of opener...

    This may as well be written in Swahili for all the sense it makes to me. You need warm water before you can 'pull in some crappies'? You should consider calling a plumber.

    The absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.
    Martin Rees

    You can lead a horse to water, but a pencil must be lead.
    Stan Laurel

  • Phil Parkin wrote:

    Greg Edwards-268690 wrote:

    ... Right now, my priority is to wait a few more days for the water to warm up. Predicting some time to relax and pull in some crappies. And maybe a few walleyes next week, after the rush of opener...

    This may as well be written in Swahili for all the sense it makes to me. You need warm water before you can 'pull in some crappies'? You should consider calling a plumber.

    LOL. These are both North American fish.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crappie

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walleye

     

    _______________________________________________________________

    Need help? Help us help you.

    Read the article at http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/Best+Practices/61537/ for best practices on asking questions.

    Need to split a string? Try Jeff Modens splitter http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/Tally+Table/72993/.

    Cross Tabs and Pivots, Part 1 – Converting Rows to Columns - http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/T-SQL/63681/
    Cross Tabs and Pivots, Part 2 - Dynamic Cross Tabs - http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/Crosstab/65048/
    Understanding and Using APPLY (Part 1) - http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/APPLY/69953/
    Understanding and Using APPLY (Part 2) - http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/APPLY/69954/

  • I don't know what's the internet and how to unbreak it, but I could participate mostly on the go, from my Apple mobile devices.

    previous upgrade made it very difficult to post from Safari, the las one made it almost impossible even to read posts.

    does anyone really appreciate the empty spaces on 75% of the screen?

    _____________
    Code for TallyGenerator

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