[Pw_forum] Answers and Questions

[Axel Kohlmeyer]

On 8/31/06, Eric Abel <etabel at hotmail.com> wrote:

[...]

> From my perspective, I would say that some people are too eager to ask
> questions...the answers they seek are clearly present in the current
> available resources.   It just takes a little elbow grease to find them.
> It's much easier to simply post a question to the forum.  I don't support
> this...researching one's own problem is far more educational than having
> someone answer it for you.  We all learned this in the 8th grade.  That

yep. but you also have to understand, that people can get carried away.
my strategy towards this is to gradually provide less direct information
and move to point out ways to how to obtain the information yourself.
some people need to be helped across the first big barrier before they
realize that investing effort into finding the right answers
themselves pays off.
the whole thing is a matter of finding the right balance and understanding
the background.

> said, I feel that these wiki ideas are great, as they would make it easier
> to find answers.  I don't know if this is planned but the wikis should also
> contain the reference papers which disuss the thoery that goes into pwscf.

<grin>you should have looked into the mailing list archives, this has
been discussed recently</grin>
please head over to:
http://www.quantum-espresso.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
and ask to get an account (well actually you can probably
request it in person. ;-) ). i have made the experience, that
people who have just learned a method or how to use a tool
(i.e. advanced beginners) write the best documentation.

cheers,
  axel.

> As far as the developers are concerned, I am truly impressed with their
> patience and competence.  It is intimidating enough for a graduate student
> and pwscf beginner to post to the forum, it would be much worse if those
> answering the questions were condescending.  Instead, they treat every
> question more or less equally, and for that I applaud them.


>
> Thank you for all of your hard work and patience.
>
> Eric Abel
> Ph.D. Student, M.I.T.
>
>



-- 
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Axel Kohlmeyer   akohlmey at cmm.chem.upenn.edu   http://www.cmm.upenn.edu
  Center for Molecular Modeling   --   University of Pennsylvania
Department of Chemistry, 231 S.34th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6323
tel: 1-215-898-1582,  fax: 1-215-573-6233,  office-tel: 1-215-898-5425
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If you make something idiot-proof, the universe creates a better idiot.