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Activity Forums Cinematography Post on Forum — don’t contact off the forum

  • Post on Forum — don’t contact off the forum

    Posted by Rick Wise on April 13, 2009 at 7:41 pm

    For the second time in as many days, a Forum member has contacted me directly rather than post on the Forum. While I am flattered that my advice is sometimes useful, this method of solving some problem is counter productive. When someone posts a problem, and others find solutions, that’s a learning process for everyone, not just the poster. That simple reality is why the forum is so useful to so many people. When you talk directly to me off-forum, you remove the learning for all the others. Plus, other people may have a better solution than I do. There is still so much I don’t know.

    Rick Wise
    director of photography
    and custom lighting design
    Oakland, CA
    https://www.RickWiseDP.com
    https://www.recessionvideo.net
    https://www.linkedin.com/in/rwise
    email: Rick@RickWiseDP.com

    Bob Cole replied 14 years, 11 months ago 5 Members · 9 Replies
  • 9 Replies
  • Bob Cole

    October 1, 2009 at 11:32 am

    [Rick Wise] “There is still so much I don’t know.”

    Too modest by half, but Rick makes a good point. When you receive a response in the forum, a lot of other people are looking at it, and if it’s stupid, they probably will let you know.

  • Rick Wise

    October 2, 2009 at 2:36 am

    [Bob Cole] “When you receive a response in the forum, a lot of other people are looking at it, and if it’s stupid,”

    Doesn’t really happen except in the rarest of cases when the original poster doesn’t like the answers. There are many solutions to almost every problem, which is part of the fun. 99.9% of the posters here chime in with great generosity and good faith. That fact makes this forum, and others in the barn, so valuable.

    Rick Wise
    director of photography
    San Francisco Bay Area
    and part-time instructor lighting and camera
    grad school, SF Academy of Art University/Film and Video
    https://www.RickWiseDP.com
    https://www.linkedin.com/in/rwise
    email: Rick@RickWiseDP.com

  • Eric Monroe

    February 11, 2010 at 5:14 am

    I know from experience however, that alot of times you get ZERO response in some of the forums. For example, I try to answer and help as many people as I can when I am surfing through….but I have had no response to questions that i have had after searching relentlessly through back posts to find a solution. I find it hard to believe that the questions I am asking are not answerable by the talented people that make up these forums.

    I have even reposted stuff more than once on different days and still get nothing….not even a friendly “i dont know”

    (reason i wrote this is becuz I am about to resort to contacting someone off the forum just for help with my problem) LOL

    Oh, and not on this forum…it was in the Premiere Pro forum.

    Good Day to all! :o)

  • Bob Cole

    February 11, 2010 at 12:56 pm

    Both of you make good points.

    Another aspect is networking: A lot of us are very glad that (off-forum) friendships have developed through the various forums. It’s an interesting etiquette point, and has to be dealt with individually. I’ve tried to keep all forum business on the forum, and all business that might become personal, person-to-person.

  • Todd Terry

    February 11, 2010 at 3:28 pm

    Well there are definitely two schools of thought on that one… those that don’t want to be contacted personally and want everything on the boards, and those that don’t mind. It’s also easy to see and understand each point of view. What’s hard to predict, is who is gonna see the issue which way.

    Personally, I don’t mind it at all. I pretty frequently get emails or calls from people from the COW and other forums, usually with a problem or question that is extremely urgent… or someone with an issue that is unlikely to affect anyone else. I think I’ve had two such phone calls this week from forum members. If I have time, I’m happy to help. One I did have time to chat with for a bit, the other caught me in the middle of a rush. Sometimes it’s nice to be able to put at least a voice (if not a face) with someone you almost already know from forum banter.

    It doesn’t bug me… but hey, different strokes…

    T2

    __________________________________
    Todd Terry
    Creative Director
    Fantastic Plastic Entertainment, Inc.
    fantasticplastic.com

  • Rick Wise

    February 11, 2010 at 6:30 pm

    On this forum, almost no posts remain unanswered. So the complaint that “I don’t get a response” does not hold here. My original point stands. I don’t mind at all being contacted personally. BUT: every time I am, the questioner has a problem that almost certainly others share. A personal reply does nothing to educate anyone else. Further, a personal reply cuts off the rich information that might be added by another “expert.” No matter how much one of us knows, there will be others with other solutions to most conundrums.

    The great strength of this forum, as with the lighting forum and Vegas forum (the three where I hang out) is that questions are answered, and the answers form an ever growing data base for future seekers of a solution.

    Personal contacts are great… for personal contacts. They help no one else.

    Rick Wise
    director of photography
    San Francisco Bay Area
    and part-time instructor lighting and camera
    grad school, SF Academy of Art University/Film and Video
    https://www.RickWiseDP.com
    https://www.linkedin.com/in/rwise
    email: Rick@RickWiseDP.com

  • Bob Cole

    February 11, 2010 at 6:40 pm

    [Rick Wise] “the complaint that “I don’t get a response” does not hold here. My original point stands.”

    and sometimes, no response is itself a response — that the question is not appropriate. In fact, I’d much prefer that blessed silence to the alternative: a lengthy thread moaning and groaning about how lame the question is. That’s when I think NOBODY must be working today.

    Enjoy life. And — feel free to contact me off forum Rick, Terry, Todd, especially if it means work.

  • Fernando Mol

    March 19, 2010 at 9:16 pm

    In the Dreamweaver forum, I once got a post of somebody complaining that the advice he got was not appropriate for his level of experience. I wanted to answer “no problem, you can have you money back”, but I only stopped answering the questions of that person.

    This was only once. COW members usually are very grateful, so I am.

    Personally, and for the same reasons of Rick, I prefer to leave all advice on the forum for everyone to read. I began, years ago, as a newbie too. I still go from forum to forum reading and learning and I have to say:

    Thank you all for sharing your time and knowledge.

    PS. I have answered some direct emails too, but always trying to convince the shy person to ask trough the forum, usually with no luck. No choice but to respect that, I think.

    *Always share a link to your site and rate the posts. This is a free service for you and for us.

  • Bob Cole

    March 19, 2010 at 10:11 pm

    [Fernando Mol] “always trying to convince the shy person to ask trough the forum, usually with no luck. No choice but to respect that, I think.”

    Hadn’t thought of that “shyness” aspect, although it is really true. I admit that I’ve often solved a problem just through the process of drafting a question for the COW — and then I’ve not posted. I also confess to having asked a lot of questions that I should’ve been able to figure out for myself. But hey – at least I got those questions answered, and the replies have been, for the most part, very polite. Very few “RTFM’s.”

    Bottom line: get over the shyness. The best part of getting your questions asked publicly is getting them answered publicly — that way, if you get dangerously bad advice, it’s very likely that somebody will notice, and chime in.

    Bob C

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