http://qs321.pair.com?node_id=393977


in reply to Abigail-II and some thoughts

Ever heard of summer vacations? Maybe RL catches up to some of us ...

More importantly, there's a reason (several, actually) why most of the regulars respect the hell out of Abigal-II. It happens to be the same reason we also tend to respect merlyn.

THEY ARE USUALLY RIGHT

If anyone's ego can't stand being told, in a firm and generally polite manner, that they are absolutely, 100%, no-questions wrong and that a better course would be X ... screw them.

Furthermore, Abigail-II has earned his stripes, moreso than any and every other member on this board, with few possible exceptions. He has always been helpful, accepted criticism, and been willing to work with others. Yes, he doesn't suffer fools gladly. And, frankly, I long for the day when my stature in any community is such that I don't have to, either. There are too many stupid people in this world and they waste my time - just like I have wasted others' time when I was have been stupid. And, just like I will waste their time in the future.

Update: Added wording to appease BrowserUk.

------
We are the carpenters and bricklayers of the Information Age.

Then there are Damian modules.... *sigh* ... that's not about being less-lazy -- that's about being on some really good drugs -- you know, there is no spoon. - flyingmoose

I shouldn't have to say this, but any code, unless otherwise stated, is untested

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Re: Not Again ... *sighs*
by Ovid (Cardinal) on Sep 26, 2004 at 19:46 UTC

    They are usually right.

    "Amen!" says brother Ovid.

    That's the tough part for many to swallow. While I admit that I have also at times struggled with the style of merlyn or Abigail-II, I always pay attention to what they have to say on technical matters. Even if I don't agree with what they say, I find that they usually have compelling reasons for their insights. It's a shame that some people ignore rich food for thought simply because they don't like the color of the plate it's served on.

    Cheers,
    Ovid

    New address of my CGI Course.

      Being right, does not endow the right to be rude; politeness costs nothing.
      Being unknowing, is not the same as being stupid.
      Expressing a contrary opinion, whether to the individual or the group, is more often a sign of deeper thought than of cantankerous belligerence.
      Do not mistake your goals as the only goals; your opinion as the only opinion; your confidence as correctness. Saying you know better is not the same as explaining you know better.

      Examine what is said, not who speaks.
      "Efficiency is intelligent laziness." -David Dunham
      "Think for yourself!" - Abigail
      "Memory, processor, disk in that order on the hardware side. Algorithm, algorithm, algorithm on the code side." - tachyon
        Being right, does not endow the right to be rude; politeness costs nothing.

        What should we value more, politeness or genius? Seems to me we've driven off a genius - perhaps temporarily, perhaps permanently - because he wasn't polite enough to not offend anyone. Our loss.

        --
        F o x t r o t U n i f o r m
        Found a typo in this node? /msg me
        % man 3 strfry

      Yet, people like tye, dragonchild, browseruk, theorbtwo, podmaster and tachyon, leaving off many people, on a daily basis, are quite civil. Some may be more sarcastic or gentle than others, but all in all, they gain a certain respect because they are truely wise. That's why I consider Abigail, just plain smart. He, and perhaps merlin, forget that we are all human and totally miss out on that, which no number of years of perl, will ever help attain.

      Can you respect Oppenheimer for the A-Bomb, of course. He was first a scientist. He did something inovative and cool. But it's because he did something that created such destruction, he becomes controvercial. But abigail and merlyn have yet to kill anyone to my knowledge, but they carry one weapon: their attitudes. Making people feel like poop, regardless of how factual you are, is very demeaning. Some of us out here, have thicker skin. But to the unwise, the lacking of experience and knowledge, their attitudes could easily deter people from persuing perlmonks, perl, programming, or some combination of the three.

      Just food for thought.

      ----
      Then B.I. said, "Hov' remind yourself nobody built like you, you designed yourself"

        {Abigail}, and perhaps {merlyn}, forget that we are all human and totally miss out on that, which no number of years of perl, will ever help attain.
        No, I think that's attributing the wrong cause to the symptoms. I absolutely recognize the humanity in myself and others. But when pressed for time, I deliver "just the facts, ma'am", and leave it to other able and capable human beings to manage their own internal state regarding the cognitive dissonance between their beliefs and my facts. (Actually, to baby other people along seems to be more an admission that I would be viewing people as fragile and incapable. Why would I want to encourage a world like that?) When I have additional time, I also try to handle those issues as well. But I'd rather deliver five important facts in a morning, than one fact surrounded by sugar coating. Excuse me for wanting to get the most bang-for-the-buck. {grin}

        See also my recently posted On Being Polite, which contains similar thoughts expressed differently.

        -- Randal L. Schwartz, Perl hacker
        Be sure to read my standard disclaimer if this is a reply.

        "their attitudes could easily deter people from persuing perlmonks, perl, programming, or some combination of the three.

        Hm... perlmonks, might be; perl and programming, absolutely not. This is just one of many web sites you can ask questions, and most of the people don't take this site as home, but rather a bar where they can go for a talk, asking questions, providing answers if they can.

        Just because being treated rudely by someone on some web site, one will stop programming? That is too dramatic. The power of rudeness is being over-estimated, and yet the nerve of a normal human being has been under-estimated.

        I actually even doute the perl monk part. If someone being rude at you, you will never visit their home again, but this is really not anyone's home, vitually nobody owns it, yet it is owned by everyone. Put it in this way, will you move out from your own home, just because someone came and said something rude to you? very unlikely! The same thing here, as this is your home, not someone else's.

      And when they're wrong, they can't admit it
Re: Not Again ... *sighs*
by BrowserUk (Patriarch) on Sep 26, 2004 at 17:28 UTC
    There are too many stupid people in this world and they waste my time...

    No. You waste your own time.

    ...just like I have wasted others' time when I was stupid.

    And you're perfect now?


    Examine what is said, not who speaks.
    "Efficiency is intelligent laziness." -David Dunham
    "Think for yourself!" - Abigail
    "Memory, processor, disk in that order on the hardware side. Algorithm, algorithm, algorithm on the code side." - tachyon
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