If I'm solving other people problems am I really helping that person?
In my opinion, that depends on the person asking the question, and it is tough to identify at first glance what would help that person the most. Maybe there is a pressing issue and they need the answer right away, or maybe they are just not interested in learning anything, just trying to solve something they inherited from somebody else or a lot of other reasons. My point is that we never know.
About myself, I`m more interested in the solution itself and I will use that to understand how it is done and learn from it. Sending me a helpful link alongside the solution will also be highly appreciated. That is how I often answer questions: by sharing the solution, documenting each step in the workflow and sharing tutorials, tool masteries and other stuff if the person is interested.
Having said that, I understand that this is not common sense and that I may be considered an outlier and that many people are just interested in shortcuts instead of learning a new skill. It might take some time, but whenever I identify someone who is taking advantage of my answers and is not learning anything from them, I don`t answer this person anymore.
The bottom line is that people are different, and I`m okay with all approaches. The only thing I don`t really like is people giving fast/incomplete answers only for the sake of getting the 'solution accepted'. And sharing the workflow is definitely the easier path for someone looking for just this.
Best,
Fernando Vizcaino
