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rareyman rareyman
 
December 24, 2008 08:57 AM

Will people (lazily) answer questions on Mahalo Answers by just doing Google searches and providing links?

Hopefully, Mahalo will figure out how to weed this out. :) I think the idea behind Mahalo Answers is to actually have a discussion on how to answer specific questions, not just have people copy paste-links from Google searches... :) I don't know about you guys, but I come to Mahalo Answers after doing multiple searches on Google for an answer, so getting answers that are just Google searches isn't very helpful. :)
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jasoncalac... jasoncalac...
 
 December 24, 2008 11:06 PM
We have been warning folks against just putting a list of links (unless thats what the question requests), and we even deleted an account for doing this over and over.

We're looking for well-researched, original answers that are written by the person asking.

A couple of links as citations or a modest clip is fair (use), but when we see bad answers we delete them.

You can help by selecting NO to helpful answer AND by reporting things.

In the future we will probably automatically turn off/collapse answers with three not helpful votes. so, community policing is best.
Asker's Rating:
• Thanks, Jason! Whew! I wanted to be sure that I was understanding Mahalo Answers correctly, but recently was disappointed by the frustrating answers I was getting. Keep up the great work!


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claytonkch... claytonkch...
 
December 24, 2008 09:12 AM
To answer your question, yes people will answer with Google links because they are lazy. It's ironic that online search engines and encyclopedias make finding information so easy and fast - at the expense of original thinking, reasoning and formuating a response.

A popular article titled, "Is Google Making Us Stupid" by Nicholas Carr appeared in The Atlantic magazine. I highly recommend reading it.
Source(s):
http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200807/google


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rareyman rareyman
 
December 24, 2008 12:19 PM
Great article! So far, I think your answer is the best. :) I am going to wait and see what others think, though. :)

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srt4cab3 srt4cab3
 
December 24, 2008 09:22 AM
You can still provide a simple answer to a question without providing links. I don't think that this is necessarily lazy.

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rareyman rareyman
 
December 24, 2008 12:20 PM
I am just worried that Mahalo Answers will just be all about people providing answers by way of a bunch of links that were obviously just taken from a quick Google search, instead of actually knowing the answer and taking the time to thoughtfully answer the question...

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richonion richonion
 
December 24, 2008 09:58 AM
people used google searches,providing links and wiki to support their answers because sometimes its hard to explain something they know about but not much facts they have, to support the answer.

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rareyman rareyman
 
December 24, 2008 12:26 PM
I agree! When you use links to support your answer, that is totally cool. Sometimes a wiki article or web page can explain things better... What I am complaining about though really, is just when people answer things by just providing links from a simple Google search instead of taking the time to formulate an answer. :) I guess a part of me thinks: "If you know the answer tell me and give me your resources! If you don't, please don't waste my time with links from a Google search... I can do that myself!" :P

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kevinberna... kevinberna...
 
December 24, 2008 10:17 AM
I think leave it upto the answerer if he is satisfied with what he wants no doubt even if is a link in reply there is no harm. But descriptive answers are also welcomed by everyone.

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rareyman rareyman
 
December 24, 2008 12:26 PM
Agreed. Sometimes an answer can be pretty simple, so a link may be all that is needed. :) I guess I just hope people answer questions based on their knowledge about something rather than the perceived knowledge of doing a Google search. :)

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colttrickl... colttrickl...
 
December 24, 2008 12:58 PM
Some people will do this. But I think those people won't hang around very long. You have to really take an interest in answering the questions and helping people to do it for any length of time.

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k3vin187 k3vin187
 
December 24, 2008 03:20 PM
All answers should be allowed. It should be up to the people reading to decide what is helpful. Sometimes a link is all you need. If there was a way to sort answers by most helpful then this would automatically solve this. I hate censoring and discouraging.

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fjpoblam fjpoblam
 
December 24, 2008 08:19 PM
Sometimes the correct answer is to provide the questioner a useful link or series of links, I would think. "Give a man a fish and feed him for a day; teach him to fish, and feed him for a lifetime."
Source(s):
btdt


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