Questions tagged [answering-advice]
The answering-advice tag has no usage guidance.
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Answers in comments
There are quite a large number of Meta.ELU questions about answers in comments, but none which definitively settles community opinion, mainly because they are rather old now, but also because they don'...
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Should we compile synonymous answers?
Full disclosure: I have the currently top-ranked (4 UV) answer.
The OP asked for a single-word meaning "not up for discussion". I posted the first answer, and four others (2 nearly identical to each ...
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Comment(s) or Speculative Answer?
Given a question asking for the original source of a quotation. Some digging around the 'net has thrown up an avenue for further exploration but not an answer. What I've found (and their links) would ...
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In relation to answers in the answer section, what is a "complete answer"?
I made the following partial answer a comment to the question "Word choice: to parent somebody?":
One can certainly parent with tolerance (and love, and kindness, etc). But the verb parent isn't ...
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What to do with yes/no questions?
I'm sorry if this is a duplicate, but I can't find any prior guidance on this. Closest I could get was Asking questions with very short answers.
Someone just posted this question:
Possibility ...
CommunityBot
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Can a newly constructed word answer a single word request?
When I searched for this question, I found questions regarding whether asking for people to coin words is on-topic.
I have a little bit of a different question.
Suppose if OP is making a single word ...
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Should we discourage the use of argot such as AmE, BrE, ELU, ...?
[With Addendum]
Should we discourage the use of argot such as
AmE and BrE—even ELU—[added:]
in answers to nonspecialists' questions at ELU?
Most visitors who find answers here come from ...
CommunityBot
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What is our current position on these issues?
I’ve been noticing an increase in answers that, essentially, consist of nothing but a suggestion or bald assertion and that are often lacking any apparent effort to even format, punctuate, or spell ...
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Is Urban Dictionary an acceptable source?
The reason I ask this is because an answer I gave to a question quoted an Urban Dictionary definition and received 2 downvotes without any explanation as to why. Could anyone please tell me what (if ...
CommunityBot
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If the answer I was going to submit has already been submitted what should I do?
Here's what occasions my question: I submitted an answer (the first answer) and in the course of the next 24 hours three other users provided essentially the same answer. Until now, my conduct has ...
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What advice would you offer to a new EL&U user perplexed by the first downvote of an Answer they wrote?
I'm an earnest new user here at EL&U. I'm enjoying the site very much, and I'd like to make useful contributions.
I'm perplexed as to why someone downvoted this Answer that I wrote the other day. ...
CommunityBot
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Exception to 30 character minimum for answers
Is there any way to create an exception for the minimum answer length for questions tagged "single-word request?" It seems wasteful and inconvenient and seems feasible from a coding perspective.
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How to answer questions about acceptability
Relating to this question about what tag to use for questions about acceptability, I thought I would ask what is the best way to answer these kinds of questions, so as to address both prescriptive and ...
CommunityBot
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What to do with repeated question types?
StackExchange is all about answering questions and spreading knowledge. However there comes a point where particular types of questions are getting asked repeatedly, despite being relatively easy to ...
CommunityBot
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Negativity on other people's EL&U answers
Is there a good way to handle people on EL&U who seem to thrive off of making others feel their opinions and explanations are inferior or "incorrect"?
Is this a forum for constructive, respectful ...
CommunityBot
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How should I report the author of a quote on English.SE?
When I include a quote from a book, blog, or a site, how should I report who is the author and from where the quote comes from?
Principia philosophiae, René Descartes
René Descartes, Principia ...
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How should I report the origin of a word on English.SE?
When I report the origin of a word, how should I write the meaning of the word from which the word derives?
I write it in quotes, after the word in that language: Latin minister "servant".
I write it ...
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What's the best way to answer when there's a really good answer elsewhere?
In researching the question Which is correct, “buck naked” or “butt naked”?, I found a very thorough examination of this question at Language Log that I linked to in a comment under the OP. I feel ...
CommunityBot
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Is it OK to answer to old questions?
I was wondering—if we find an old question without an accepted answer, are we allowed to answer? Or should we expect down-votes for that?
I don't know if it's a stupid question but I didn't find ...
CommunityBot
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