Related questions in AskMe

January 28, 2005 10:04 AM

Suggestion for a policy discussion: In AskMetafilter, if somebody asks a question, and you have a related question yourself, up to what point is it okay to seek help for your own question in that thread? Theoretical examples provided within.
posted by Hildago to etiquette/policy at 10:04 AM (14 comments total)

If person A asks something like, "How do I fix a flat tire on my car?", would it be acceptable for person B to ask, in that same thread, any of the following questions:

• Has anybody had any experience with those run-flat tires?
• How far can I drive on a donut?
• Which insurance companies provide roadside tire repair or towing service?
• How much does one of those big old monster truck tires cost?

Or if person C started a thread with the question "What are some good public swimming beaches in Southern California?", which of the following questions would be acceptable additions to the thread by person D, if any:

• I live in Northern California. Any good beaches there?
• I'm planning a trip to the west coast. Can anybody recommend a good beach-side resort?
• Is it safe to let my kids swim without my supervision?
• How crowded do those beaches get during the summer?

Is the role of comments in a thread only to answer the specific question at hand, as the existing guidelines seem to imply? Is it okay to ask your own questions, but only after the first question has been thoroughly answered? Where's the cutoff point between when it's okay to ask your new question and when you need to start your own thread about it?

I ask for a general discussion on the subject because I often find myself wanting to slightly divert the course of the AskMetafilter thread when I've got a related question that I don't think deserves it's own thread, but is worth asking as long as people are already on the general subject. I feel a little guilty whenever I do it, though.
posted by Hildago at 10:04 AM on January 28, 2005

I'm kind of ok with side questions asked by other folks. Often those people find the information they are looking for without distracting from the main discussion (it's usually a side issue or deeper issue closely related to the original).

What I don't like are seeing five questions on the same day, all saying "along the lines of what foo asked, can you tell me about other tire-related alternatives..." where the stream of ask mefi becomes all the related questions. Often, I think "why didn't they just ask in the thread it was related to?"

Certainly this could get in the way if it was done obnoxiously, but so far the side questions I've seen all seemed to work fine and not distract from the main question. They usually enhanced it by further exploring a subject.
posted by mathowie at 10:09 AM on January 28, 2005

i hope it's ok because i think i do it a lot. i try to wait until the original question is more-or-less answered, though.
posted by andrew cooke at 11:30 AM on January 28, 2005

I think related questions are fine within the thread as long as they're not all-consuming and showing up as one of the first few answers. What andrew says. I'd rather see them there than in a second thread on almost the same topic in the same day.
posted by jessamyn at 12:03 PM on January 28, 2005

What I don't like are seeing five questions on the same day, all saying "along the lines of what foo asked, can you tell me about other tire-related alternatives..." where the stream of ask mefi becomes all the related questions. Often, I think "why didn't they just ask in the thread it was related to?"

agreed.
posted by fishfucker at 12:05 PM on January 28, 2005

As andrew cooke says, it's probably polite to wait until the initial question has been answered. But then I think it only makes sense to try to take advantage of the same expert population that self-selected to address the first question.
posted by rushmc at 1:04 PM on January 28, 2005

It should be noted, however, that such follow-up questions will probably never become part of the question database for posterity like front page questions do.
posted by rushmc at 1:05 PM on January 28, 2005

If the original question has been answered, there's no harm in posting your own question within the thread.
posted by five fresh fish at 2:48 PM on January 28, 2005

But by then, most experts have seen that it's been answered and may not bother to check back.

There was a specific question about a specific ceiling fixture just recently and I was dying to ask for general advice and/or directions on installing one myself, but then I thought, it sort of annoys me when other people do that, so I didn't.
posted by CunningLinguist at 3:26 PM on January 28, 2005

I just did this the other day, here. It seemed like a reasonable extension of the initial question.
posted by painquale at 5:31 PM on January 28, 2005

Why do you want a flourecent light fixture, anyway, Especially since spelling that word is, apparently beyond my capabilities,
posted by ParisParamus at 6:05 PM on January 28, 2005

I would conclude that that's an inappropirate sub-question, but I couldn't help myself.
posted by ParisParamus at 6:06 PM on January 28, 2005

See, I don't. I just wanted to know if I can install a regular ceiling light, maybe a chandelier, without any electrical knowledge. But it didn't seem right to horn in on a fluorescent light question.
posted by CunningLinguist at 3:42 AM on January 29, 2005

installing a light is really easy. which means that if you don't feel confident doing even that then you should walk slowly away from the wires and call an electrician. really, if you're asking "is it safe?" then you're not safe.

hmm. that seems unfriendly. i'm thinking how can you ever get started if that's true...? i learnt from my dad. so i guess what you need to do is get a friend to do it with you. once you see it done, it should be clear what to do next time.
posted by andrew cooke at 9:01 AM on January 29, 2005