[andybak]

> The problem is, SO can't tell someone who asks an insane question from someone who asks the same question but has constraints that make it sane.

Stack Overflow is not there to help you solve your use-case. It's there to create a body of knowledge that everyone can refer to. You need to spell out your specific reasons so that the question and answers become useful to others.

A lot of the friction on Stack Overflow comes from people thinking it's a free help website rather than an attempt to create a collaborative knowledgebase.

[shkkmo]

I think a lot of SO's problems comes from it trying to pretend it was building a knowledge base when it was really only ever a question and answer site.

It was nice to use early in its life when every answer was fresh. These days, the stale knowledge outweighs the fresh and the top answer is usually no longer correct.

If SO wants to be a knowledgebase, it needs to to be redesigned as it's current structure is not well suited to it.

[nottorp]

There's no more friction, I've stopped trying to give answers :)

I was dumb and was trying to help people, not build a 'knowledge base'.

[andybak]

> I was dumb and was trying to help people, not build a 'knowledge base'.

It is about helping people - but helping multiple people for the same effort it takes to help one person.

As we descend further into "Need help? Just ask on our Discord!" hell - it's a lesson that I wish resonated with more people.