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"Answer found elsewhere" - let's make some changes
Thread poster: Jennifer Byers
Susan Welsh
Susan Welsh  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 06:49
Russian to English
+ ...
"most helpful" Feb 16, 2016

I have occasionally posted a question and eventually found a better answer elsewhere, but the Kudoz description of closing a question does not specify that a given suggestion is the "right" answer, but rather that it is "most helpful." In that case, I choose that one, and write what the answer is that I chose. Sometimes the most helpful ideas or references are not posted as "answers," but in the "discussion" section. It would be good for the asker to be able to choose one of those in closing the... See more
I have occasionally posted a question and eventually found a better answer elsewhere, but the Kudoz description of closing a question does not specify that a given suggestion is the "right" answer, but rather that it is "most helpful." In that case, I choose that one, and write what the answer is that I chose. Sometimes the most helpful ideas or references are not posted as "answers," but in the "discussion" section. It would be good for the asker to be able to choose one of those in closing the question, without having to email the person asking him or her to post the suggestion as an answer.Collapse


mk_lab
 
Fiona Grace Peterson
Fiona Grace Peterson  Identity Verified
Italy
Local time: 11:49
Italian to English
Why aren't these questions removed? May 17, 2019

I wonder why the site does not remove these questions, if re-opening them or abolishing the option is not feasible.
If askers are not required to post the answer they found, then these questions do nothing but litter the site unnecessarily, which also makes for frustrating terminology searches, when the term you click on comes up as "Answer found elsewhere".


Matthias Brombach
Barbara Carrara
Grace Anderson
Elif Baykara Narbay
Josephine Cassar
writeaway
Yvonne Gallagher
 
DZiW (X)
DZiW (X)
Ukraine
English to Russian
+ ...
You-scratch-my-back groupies May 17, 2019

While some participants do abuse KudoZ selecting answers from their friends only, in case when the right* answer found elsewhere, instead of (A) getting zero points for my researching, I'd rather (B) write a line to a friend, so he could post the answer and get four points, feeling indebted to me.

Not quite fair, yet no real harm done or intended--for both options are good for the community: only the result matters.

IMO


 
Elif Baykara Narbay
Elif Baykara Narbay  Identity Verified
Türkiye
Local time: 13:49
German to Turkish
+ ...
I can't agree more! May 17, 2019

Fiona Grace Peterson wrote:

I wonder why the site does not remove these questions, if re-opening them or abolishing the option is not feasible.
If askers are not required to post the answer they found, then these questions do nothing but litter the site unnecessarily, which also makes for frustrating terminology searches, when the term you click on comes up as "Answer found elsewhere".


I have the impression that the "Answer found elsewhere" askers are mostly people who keep their business going by using "Kudoz translations". Anyone respecting the effort paid by others would at least provide a short answer.

I am talking about serial "Answer found elsewhere" askers. I can understand that someone may not be familiar with ProZ or forums in general. But then, of course, these askers usually ask more than a couple of questions on the same project with quite a simple terminology for a specialist.

E.


writeaway
 
Susan Welsh
Susan Welsh  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 06:49
Russian to English
+ ...
to Fiona and Elif May 17, 2019

I disagree. Sometimes the discussions are useful, even if the asker decides that none of the answers offered are quite right or they have not been adequately documented so as to be convincing. Very often it happens that good answers are suggested in the DISCUSSION section, but nobody composes them into an official answer -- which means that the asker cannot select them as "most helpful."

As I understand it (I may be wrong) the term will not appear in the Kudoz glossary if nobody mak
... See more
I disagree. Sometimes the discussions are useful, even if the asker decides that none of the answers offered are quite right or they have not been adequately documented so as to be convincing. Very often it happens that good answers are suggested in the DISCUSSION section, but nobody composes them into an official answer -- which means that the asker cannot select them as "most helpful."

As I understand it (I may be wrong) the term will not appear in the Kudoz glossary if nobody makes a glossary entry out of it.
Collapse


MollyRose
 
Michele Fauble
Michele Fauble  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 03:49
Member (2006)
Norwegian to English
+ ...
For the benefit of future askers May 17, 2019

When an asker chooses to close the question with “answer found elsewhere”, there should be an automatic request to provide the answer for the benefit of future askers.

Susan Welsh
Christel Zipfel
Jennifer Byers
MollyRose
writeaway
Sandra & Kenneth Grossman
TargamaT team
 
DZiW (X)
DZiW (X)
Ukraine
English to Russian
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the purpose May 17, 2019

Michele, you're talking for I often come across wrong "best" answers or such "Lost&Found" orphans, let alone stale questions without relevant replies.

However, if I direly need the right answer by the specific date and now it's no longer required (because of paraphrasing/omitting/failing/misprinting etc),
how could anyone demand it from me, presenting such an ultimatum?

If I don't know, I'd rather put "N/A"--and blast it, not to mention most parti
... See more
Michele, you're talking for I often come across wrong "best" answers or such "Lost&Found" orphans, let alone stale questions without relevant replies.

However, if I direly need the right answer by the specific date and now it's no longer required (because of paraphrasing/omitting/failing/misprinting etc),
how could anyone demand it from me, presenting such an ultimatum?

If I don't know, I'd rather put "N/A"--and blast it, not to mention most participants are still but rivals)
Collapse


 
Elizabeth Tamblin
Elizabeth Tamblin  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 10:49
French to English
For whose benefit? May 17, 2019

The purpose of KudoZ is to help the asker. The asker is not here to provide the answerer with points. Gaining points is just a side effect of helping.

I think we all know what it's like when you're in a hurry to meet a deadline, and there's that one term you just can't find. It's not surprising that the asker might not always follow the required etiquette.


 
B D Finch
B D Finch  Identity Verified
France
Local time: 11:49
French to English
+ ...
The purpose of KudoZ and value of etiquette May 20, 2019

Elizabeth Tamblin wrote:

The purpose of KudoZ is to help the asker. The asker is not here to provide the answerer with points. Gaining points is just a side effect of helping.

I think we all know what it's like when you're in a hurry to meet a deadline, and there's that one term you just can't find. It's not surprising that the asker might not always follow the required etiquette.



No, the purpose of KudoZ is both to help the Asker and to help translators who subsequently consult the KOG. Askers are expecting others to invest time and effort in helping them, so the least they can do is to "follow the required etiquette". Answerers are also busy people and Askers owe a duty of respect to the KudoZ community as a whole and should not behave like parasites.


Christel Zipfel
Barbara Carrara
Katalin Horváth McClure
Yvonne Gallagher
Daryo
Kay Denney
Fiona Grace Peterson
 
Elizabeth Tamblin
Elizabeth Tamblin  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 10:49
French to English
You're right, I'm wrong May 20, 2019

B D Finch wrote:

Elizabeth Tamblin wrote:

The purpose of KudoZ is to help the asker. The asker is not here to provide the answerer with points. Gaining points is just a side effect of helping.

I think we all know what it's like when you're in a hurry to meet a deadline, and there's that one term you just can't find. It's not surprising that the asker might not always follow the required etiquette.



No, the purpose of KudoZ is both to help the Asker and to help translators who subsequently consult the KOG. Askers are expecting others to invest time and effort in helping them, so the least they can do is to "follow the required etiquette". Answerers are also busy people and Askers owe a duty of respect to the KudoZ community as a whole and should not behave like parasites.


I should have taken into account that others do not necessarily share my attitude to askers. I would never regard them as parasites, for instance.:)

I wonder how many askers have read all the rules (https://www.proz.com/siterules/kudoz_asking/2.5#2.5). I have to confess, I hadn't, but I rarely ask questions. I wasn't aware of this one, for instance:

2.5 Glossary entries should be made upon the close of the question.
At the time a question is closed, an asker is expected to make a glossary entry--with source and target terms both in dictionary form--using the form provided. Questions that do not lend themselves to inclusion in a glossary are exempted.

Out of interest, what would you do about the "Answer found elsewhere" option?




[Edited at 2019-05-20 10:03 GMT]


 
Fiona Grace Peterson
Fiona Grace Peterson  Identity Verified
Italy
Local time: 11:49
Italian to English
Yes but... May 20, 2019

Susan Welsh wrote:

Sometimes the discussions are useful, even if the asker decides that none of the answers offered are quite right or they have not been adequately documented so as to be convincing. Very often it happens that good answers are suggested in the DISCUSSION section, but nobody composes them into an official answer -- which means that the asker cannot select them as "most helpful."


I completely agree. However I was referring specifically to questions that are posted then closed almost immediately, with no suggested answers or discussion.

Susan Welsh wrote:
As I understand it (I may be wrong) the term will not appear in the Kudoz glossary if nobody makes a glossary entry out of it.


True, but the term still comes up in terminology searches.


 
Samuel Murray
Samuel Murray  Identity Verified
Netherlands
Local time: 11:49
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
+ ...
So, what is the question we're discussing here? May 20, 2019

Fiona Grace Peterson wrote:
I was referring specifically to questions that are posted then closed almost immediately, with no suggested answers or discussion. ... the term still comes up in terminology searches.


Fair enough, but that was not the original topic of this thread. I would not be surprised if most people who join this thread this week (three years after the original discussion) would have assumed that your comment related to the question that was discussed in this thread three years ago. And based on the responses (particularly those of three years ago, but also from the past week), I don't think that the topic was "questions that are posted then closed almost immediately", but rather questions that have garnered some responses and discussion before being closed with "Answer found elsewhere".

Perhaps you should start a new topic that focuses specifically on the issue that you're trying to highlight (namely questions that are closed with the comment "Answer found elsewhere" without any other suggestions having been made). FWIW, I agree that it should be possible to exclude KudoZ questions that have no answers, when doing a term search.


[Edited at 2019-05-20 11:30 GMT]


 
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"Answer found elsewhere" - let's make some changes






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