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10

Keep in mind that a high rep users generate far less ad revenue per page view; users are shown far fewer ads whenever they hit that privilege at...whatever rep it's at. So maximizing page views from low rep users generates more money. (In the short term. Of course, pushing away experienced users means lower quality, which means lower views in the long term when people learn that SO doesn't actually have good answers anymore.)
– Servy
Commented Aug 23, 2018 at 21:30
4

This post nicely illustrates a harmful mindset that I've encountered a lot on SO. By the time I ask a question, I usually (dumb oversights happen) have read the doc, the manual, searched the web, etc. I'm still treated as somebody who "just wants their damn code fixed" and receive junk responses as a result -- by people who clearly haven't read the question, or haven't tried to understand it at all. But, alas, that won't be fixed by the "new contributor" indicator. Maybe a similar indicator for "this person has asked good questions before, don't write the post off immediately". ;)
– Raphael
Commented Aug 27, 2018 at 6:50
I read the tour and the FAQ back when I joined.
– xxbbcc
Commented Aug 27, 2018 at 16:37
3

@Raphael there is no "harmful mindset" illustrated by my post. Writing a good question is hard, despite the fact questions get asked every second. What you may consider a clear, understandable, answerable question can others consider unclear for a plethora of reasons. Sure, there are people who're just in it for the rants, but assume most seasoned people are here to help - with clear, answerable, unique problems. Which are rare.
– CodeCaster
Commented Aug 29, 2018 at 8:18
1

@CodeCaster Sure, no question is perfect; I usually revise mine multiple times in response to helpful comments. Still, it would be nice if everybody bothered to fully read the question before commenting. I mean cases where the answer to their reflexive questions are literally in the question body. Or they propose things that are explicitly stated as already tried. Or make assumptions clearly contradicting the question. (FWIW, I'll readily admit that I'm guilty of this myself on Computer Science; you get trigger happy after closing the first few hundred of same-form questions! Not ideal, though.)
– Raphael
Commented Aug 29, 2018 at 11:55

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