st: RE: urgency, importance, desperation and the like

["Verkuilen, Jay" <JVerkuilen@gc.cuny.edu>]

Nick Cox wrote:

<much good stuff snipped>

>>3. There is a lot of evidence that on technical lists many of those
who answer lots of questions are _more_ likely to delete questions
presented in such a way. I am. <<

Ditto. In the past I have participated on lists where such appeals will
lead to said poster being raked over the coals by the regulars.
Remember, in many cases you are obtaining for free the services of
experts that would charge paying customers well more well over a hundred
dollars an hour for consulting fees. Many of us have students to work
with, papers to get to editors, reviews to do, paying clients, etc. 

I will add one additional point:

When you post, don't expect your question to be left "intact." Often
new-ish posters on technical forums show up with questions that are very
specific, like "Should I use Welch-corrected df in a t-test or not?"
but, in the opinions of the list, probably wrong. You may end up getting
an answer you don't want to hear, like "T-tests aren't appropriate to
your problem, regardless of what the norm in your discipline is, and
here's why." 

Jay

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