[Python-ideas] Clearer communication

[Steven D'Aprano]

On Sat, Feb 02, 2019 at 11:12:02AM -0500, James Lu wrote:

> This list IS hard for newcomers. I wish there was one place where I 
> could read up on how to not feel like a noob.

It has become unfashionable to link to this, because it is allegedly too 
elitest and unfriendly and not welcoming enough, but I still think it is 
extremely valuable:

http://www.catb.org/esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

(Its also somewhat unpopular because the maintainer has become 
something of a politically Right-wing extremist.)

If you think of *proposals* as a kind of question:

    "What are the Pros and Cons of this suggestion?"

rather than

    "We must do this. I have spoken, make it so!"

then the Smart Questions document is relevant. Do your research first. 
What have you tried? Have you tried to knock holes in your own proposal 
or are you so excited by the Pros that you are blind to the Cons? What 
do other languages do? Do they differ from Python in ways which matter 
to your proposal?

Did you make even a feeble attempt to search the archives, 
Stackoverflow, etc, or just post the first ill-formed thought that came 
to your mind?

If your proposal been asked before, unless you are bringing something 
new to the discussion, don't waste everyone's time covering old ground.



-- 
Steven