Does it bother you

[MrBenchmark]

[ QUOTE ]
matt_j said:
that in the world of faceless internet a 16 or 12 yo gives you an advice? You ask for an opinion and somebody half/third/fourth the age with no experience expresses his point of view using idealistic assumptions. It happened many times when after 1-2 years of participating in the forum discussions poeple realize that indepth conversations about survival/anything were taken between a 15 yo boy and you... Now how does the validity of his point and experience stack up now? Somebody is looking for camping tips and he gets an advice from a 13 yo that never been out in the woods. Just saying....

Matt

[/ QUOTE ]

No, it doesn't bother me in the slightest. Who I'd listen to would depend:
1. If the question required primarily intelligence, I'd listen to the person who seemed the smartest, regardless of age.
2. If the question required primarily experience, I'd listen to the person who seemed to have the most real-world experience, regardless of age. (Although age *is* a big advantage in accumulating experience, there's no question about that!)

All of my kid's and their 16 yo friends know more about tech than my XX yo mom. (Age censored to protect delicate feminine sensitivity.)

On the other hand, if a question involved years of real-world experience, I'm going to listen to the person who seems to have that. Some stuff you just have to learn by experience.

Sometimes older folks are inflexible and unwilling to change their thinking, even when the facts change significantly. (There are young people like this too - maybe it's just bull-headed people vs. everyone else?)

As for young people who are overly enthusiastic and have unrealistic expectations about the world because of their lack of experience - this is often true. Then again, think of a middle-aged guy with an ego who thinks he knows it all. A lot of guys like that are afraid to admit they don't know the answer, and will MAKE UP stuff to cover it up. The male ego in midlife crisis is a frightening thing. (Just watch me sometime, I'll show you...) I have both of these things going on in my house right now, between me and my kids, and I don't know which one is worse!!! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

BTW, I do think that people who offer information on products they don't have (even if they are pretty sure it's factual information) should preface what they say with "I don't actually have this but..."

I thought this was going to be a flame, but this is really an interesting and well-thought out topic! Kudos!

 

[leadfoot]

Some are here to learn
Some are here to do
Some are here to talk
Some are here to hear themselves talk

As to the question above, I don't have a problem with the youngsters/newbie's because not so long ago I was one.

I don't trust most of what I see on the net without proof from other sources. When I deal with a company with a web site and a catalog, I still ask for the catalog. Internet/web site information is so infrequently updated and or corrected as to be unuseable.

Instead of buyer beware it's reader beware

Leadfoot

 

[raggie33]

ijust take in all advice then make a decsion based on all ive took in

 

[koala]

This has been meaningful to me...

Baz Luhrmann - Everybody's Free (To Wear Sunscreen)
...Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than
it's worth...

 

[Unicorn]

What bothers me most is when people give legal advice like they are experts. Ok, maybe they know the law for their area, but with federal laws and regulations, plus 50 states, DC, each with their own sets of laws, and counties with their own, and even cities with their laws. I get irritated when somebody from SE Florida, is giving legal advice to someone in Wyoming about what is or isn't legal to do/own.

 

[joshwang]

As all the other guys said, I guess that i would say that it really do with age. If one is not famillar with a topic, no matter how old he is, he should not give ill advice to others. The guy asking for advice should really be smart enough to do some researching on the topic before asking the question. Many times we are just lazy. For instace, i might come onto CPF asking what difference there is between an E2e and a 6P, or i could log on to the SF website and spend some time finding out. I think the "search" on CPF is real nice for finding what you need!

 

[Ken_McE]

> Does it bother you that in the world of faceless
> internet a 16 or 12 yo gives you an advice?

The internet is a democratic enviroment. Anyone can speak their opinion freely, regardless of qualifications. Democracy is a messy and confusing business, I don't consider it suitable for everyone. In practice "Anyone can speak freely" = Anyone can lie freely.

One of the most important tools that you need in order to use the net effectively is a personal Bull Sh*t Detector. If you can't seperate signal from noise you will have severe problems here.

>You ask for an opinion and somebody half/third/fourth the
>age with no experience expresses his point of view using
>idealistic assumptions.

I treat strangers on the internet just like I do sales people. I toss them a soft, easy question that I already know the answer to. If they hit it out of the park I will be ready to respect and listen to them. If they have an ignorant answer I will still be polite to them, but I pay their opinion no real mind.

>It happened many times when after 1-2 years of participating in the >forum discussions poeple realize that indepth conversations about >survival/anything were taken between a 15 yo boy and you...

You are dealing with them mind-to-mind. There is a jewish saying that

"you show someone into your house according to the cut of their clothes, but you show them out according to the cut of their conversation."

In here you have to judge them by their mind. Some people have twenty-five years of experience in something. Some people have one years worth of experience repeated twenty-five times. You be the judge.

>Now how does the validity of his point and experience stack up now? >Somebody is looking for camping tips and he gets an advice from a >13 yo that never been out in the woods.

And if you bought it, and are sitting out on the playa in a r331yE nEyEt
10nt made of aluminum foil, black plastic trash bags, more aluminum foil and duct tape, freezing you *ss off while pieces blow away in all directions and it attracts lightning from all across the county, well, maybe you need to recalibrate your Personal BS Detector.