Ask Smart Questions, Get Smart Answers
30 Jan 2025In the world of programming, it is bound for programmers to get stuck writing code every once and a while. Whether it might be a small syntax error like a missing semicolon or a small bug that is unaware to them, there are many things that can go unnoticed while programming. However, with the help of people other than the programmer, it can be made easier to unclog the problem, and help keep the flow of the software development flowing. I believe a valuable skill that every software engineer should learn is how to ask ‘smart’ questions. Asking questions on programming websites like StackOverflow has always been a good way to get outside help on your code whenever you get stuck, but depending on how questions are structured, could ultimately alter the type of answers you get sent back.
What are ‘Smart’ Questions?
According to Eric Steven Raymond, and his article ‘How to Ask Questions the Smart Way,” he explains simple concepts that could guarantee a good response in return. Having a meaningful subject line that is straight to the point and is a quick summary of your issue, being knowledgeable in your problem, maintaining professionalism, following up to their questions, and leaving out irrelevant information in the body of the question. Sticking to these guidelines can be a very good way to receive good answers in return. Another significant benefit that you can take advantage of is time. Programming takes a lot of time, and getting a good response back because of a smart question could save you lots of time. Being efficient is another good trait to have as a software engineer.
This is a good example of a ‘smart’ question
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How Not to Ask Questions
Getting stuck on a problem and seeking answers can be frustrating to most people and being in a rush to get quick solutions can ultimately lead you to getting bad replies or your questions not being answered. Asking ‘smart’ questions is a good way to avoid this, but there are always bad ways of asking questions too. Not following the previously mentioned guidelines is a one way ticket towards that direction. Some examples of asking ‘bad’ questions can start with even the topic header. Since the topic header is the first thing readers will see about the problem, not being concise and straight to the point in the topic header can put the question at a bigger chance of not being answered or lead to bad answers. Another bad question could be a problem that can easily be solved, instead of waiting around for someone else’s input on the problem, solving a small problem on your own could save more time.
This is a bad example of how to ask questions on StackOverflow. The user’s topic line is not very straightforward and to the point, a reader might not know what it means at first glance. When the reader wants to continue to read further, the original poster provided the code they came up with and at the end provided irrelevant information, like “I don’t know what happened!” instead of providing information of what they have already done to solve the problem. As a result, the user’s attempting to answer the problem don’t find a problem right away and require follow up from the original poster. One replier said, “It would help if you revealed your expectations and how they are unfulfilled by your program.” This requires a follow up question because the original poster did not include the relevant information.
Conclusion
In conclusion, having ‘smart’ questions being time efficient is probably one of the biggest takeaways from asking them. “Not so smart” questions should be avoided at all costs to save time for yourself and the people trying to answer your questions. Having “smart” questions will give you a better chance of having your questions answered quickly and effectively. I believe that knowing the skill of ‘asking smart questions’ is a great trait to have as a software engineer because there’s no telling when we will run into a sudden halt in our program in need of help from others.
AI was used to enchance the grammar for this essay.