Stackoverflow

I would encourage all readers here to post your questions via stackoverflow.

Few things to remember here - stackoverflow is a very mature Q&A (questions and answer) platform. It specially catered to professional and enthusiast programmers.

There are ways in which you need to present your problem so that people may be able to help you out. And you should only ask questions related to programming.

What not to ask...?

Never ask stuff like the following:
  • So what is the most happening thing in the web development right now?
  • Should I learn java or c#?

How to keep updated with stuff?

If you really need to keep updated with stuff try the following:

How to ask?

This is the area where most people fail miserably. Because the odds are they don't have so much exposure to how stuff gets answered online. My two cents of advice of how to post stuff on stackoverflow are:

  1. Search. Before you post your question, search the internet for answers to your question pattern. Many developers are used to working alone these days that whenever they encounter a problem and post it on SO, they write it with the conviction they've hit a road block because that is their experience; its personal. In all probability it isn't a road block exactly. You can relate this experience to a story whose end is that you hit this road block. There are countless stories out there that have the same ending. This is why I said its a pattern. Now go search.
  2. Explain your goal. In order to express this, I find most people struggle with the English language. But you really don't need to write it all out all the time. Use pictures, screenshots, etc to explain your goal. A picture is sometimes worth a thousand words.
  3. Why did you do it? Perhaps you quickly learned some concept and instantly went to coding something. And then all of a sudden your compiler hates you! Here be descriptive with sections of code relevant to your issue. If its some aspx page compilation problem - post the exact error. Post only the relevant portion which pertains to the error.
  4. Replicate your problem. This would help a ton. Especially if you can detail your complicated problem with some pics. Further, people should often spend time creating a fake problem which models their actual problem. This exercise will not only help you understand what you are doing wrong, but it will help the community in finding answers for you as quickly as possible.
There are a lot of stuff out there that can guide you into writing good questions. I'd advice you to look at the following:
Well, if you want me to help you out with your question, you can always email me: deoprogrammer [at] gmail [dot] com

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