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Why "any advice?" is the least effective ending for a post — the long version

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Solved by e.mikkelsen in post #2
Avoid "any advice?" at the end. It is so generic that people do not know which part of the post it refers to. Pick the specific part and ask that specific question instead.

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SG
s.girardTL2 Moderator3 May 2025#1

Asking directly, because I could not find a straight answer: Why "any advice?" is the least effective ending for a post — the long version

Question in the title. Context below, and I have tried to include the things people here always have to ask for.

What I have already read: the relevant maintained document, the two topics it links to, and the tag page. What I could not find is the specific case I am in, which may simply mean it is uncommon.

I am happy to be told this is answered elsewhere if someone can point at where.

0 likes 15mo
EM
e.mikkelsenTL2Member Solution10 May 2025#2

Avoid "any advice?" at the end. It is so generic that people do not know which part of the post it refers to. Pick the specific part and ask that specific question instead.

7 likes 15mo
RO
r.oyelaranTL2 Moderator14 May 2025#3

Disagreeing with an answer you got: cite what you disagree with, say what contradicts it, and ask which one holds. Do not open with "I think you are wrong". Lead with the evidence.

4 likes 14mo
RT
r.torrenceTL2Member18 May 2025#4
r.oyelaran, post #3: Disagreeing with an answer you got: cite what you disagree with, say what contradicts it, and ask which one holds. Do not open with "I think you are wrong". Lead with the evidence. Go to post

Worth separating two things that the opening post runs together.

Asking a follow-up: new topic or reply in the old one? If the answer depends on the previous post, reply. If it is a question that makes sense without the previous post, new topic. The second gets faster answers.

12 likes in reply to #3 14mo
EK
e.krastevTL2 Moderator21 May 2025#5

Picking up post #2: that is the part I would want checked first.

Disagreement-style questions: "I read this and it contradicts what I heard here, which is right?" is answerable. "Is this a bad idea?" without giving the context is not.

0 likes 14mo
M
MSaarinenTL3Regular25 May 2025#6

Coming back to post #4, because the follow-up matters more than the original answer.

Practical note that does not fit anywhere else. Whatever you conclude from this topic, write down what you did and when. The single most useful thing in your own records is not any individual result; it is that they are dated and consecutive.

1 like 14mo
ET
e.tammTL2 Moderator28 May 2025#7

Chromatogram questions: describe the method first. Column type, gradient, wavelength, detection method. Everything else follows from method. A chromatogram without method is a number without context.

7 likes 14mo
CN
cannula_notesTL2Member31 May 2025#8
MSaarinen, post #6: Coming back to post #4, because the follow-up matters more than the original answer. Practical note that does not fit anywhere else. Whatever you conclude from this topic, write down what you did and when. The single most useful thing in your own records is not any individual result; it is that they are dated and consecutive. Go to post

Arithmetic questions: write out the steps. "I have a 10 mg vial, I added 2 mL, I want a 0.25 mg dose, and I get this number for the syringe mark" is answerable. "How many units" is not.

18 likes in reply to #6 14mo
JM
j.marchettiTL2 Moderator3 Jun 2025#9

I disagree with the reply above, and I think the disagreement is substantive rather than terminological.

The distinction being drawn does not survive when you look at the published data for this specific question. I would be glad to be shown wrong on this, because the version I am arguing against is more convenient.

0 likes 14mo
N
NorringtonTL36 Jun 2025#10
PS
p.silvaTL2 Moderator9 Jun 2025#11

Lab result questions: state the result, the reference interval, and what else is on the same panel. A single flag on a single draw is usually uninformative without context.

0 likes 14mo
EK
e.kimaniTL2 Moderator12 Jun 2025#12

Units. Everything needs units. This is why we ask every single time. I have seen the same arithmetic done three different ways depending on whether the person was thinking mg/mL or mg/dose or something else entirely. Stating the units makes that impossible.

0 likes 14mo
AW
a.weissTL2 Moderator15 Jun 2025#13

Having read the exchange above, I think I was wrong earlier in this topic and I want to say so plainly rather than quietly editing.

The correction was fair and I had been repeating something I had not checked carefully enough.

12 likes 13mo
AA
a.almeidaTL2 Moderator17 Jun 2025 · edited#14
a.weiss, post #13: Having read the exchange above, I think I was wrong earlier in this topic and I want to say so plainly rather than quietly editing. The correction was fair and I had been repeating something I had not checked carefully enough. Go to post

This follows post #11 rather than contradicting it.

The specific question in the title is more useful than you might think. A title like "a question I have" forces the person answering to guess what you want to know. A title with the actual question gets you an answer in two hours instead of two days.

4 likes in reply to #13 13mo
LD
l.dziedzicTL2 Moderator20 Jun 2025#15
e.kimani, post #12: Units. Everything needs units. This is why we ask every single time. I have seen the same arithmetic done three different ways depending on whether the person was thinking mg/mL or mg/dose or something else entirely. Stating the units makes that impossible. Go to post

What you have already read matters. Saying "I read the maintained page on this and I still have a gap" tells people they do not need to point you at the same resource you have already found. That is a genuine time saver.

0 likes in reply to #12 13mo
KR
k.roosTL2 Moderator23 Jun 2025#16

Five questions in one post gets you one answer: the easiest one, usually not the one you needed most. Post them separately or pick the one that depends on the others least and ask that one first.

26 likes 13mo
IB
i.bakkenTL2 Moderator25 Jun 2025#17

Coming back to post #15, because the follow-up matters more than the original answer.

Asking a follow-up: new topic or reply in the old one? If the answer depends on the previous post, reply. If it is a question that makes sense without the previous post, new topic. The second gets faster answers.

8 likes 13mo
NL
n.lehtinenTL2 Moderator28 Jun 2025#18

Picking up post #15: that is the part I would want checked first.

For anyone arriving from a search: the marked solution above is the direct answer, and the replies underneath it add the caveats that make it safe to use.

2 likes 13mo
KL
k.laurentTL2 Moderator30 Jun 2025 · edited#19

Worth separating two things that post #15 runs together.

Questions you cannot explain: "I cannot say why I am asking this, but is this compound stable at room temperature?" is more productive than no question at all. People here know that some questions cannot be asked in public and they will work with that constraint.

4 likes 13mo
K
KLindqvistTL4 Moderator3 Jul 2025#20

post #19 is right about the mechanism and I think understates the practical bit.

Units. Everything needs units. This is why we ask every single time. I have seen the same arithmetic done three different ways depending on whether the person was thinking mg/mL or mg/dose or something else entirely. Stating the units makes that impossible.

0 likes 13mo
SO
sa.okonkwoTL2 Moderator5 Jul 2025#21

I disagree with the reply above, and I think the disagreement is substantive rather than terminological.

The distinction being drawn does not survive when you look at the published data for this specific question. I would be glad to be shown wrong on this, because the version I am arguing against is more convenient.

0 likes 13mo
AW
a.westergaardTL3Regular8 Jul 2025#22
r.torrence, post #4: Worth separating two things that the opening post runs together. Asking a follow-up: new topic or reply in the old one? If the answer depends on the previous post, reply. If it is a question that makes sense without the previous post, new topic. The second gets faster answers. Go to post

The specific question in the title is more useful than you might think. A title like "a question I have" forces the person answering to guess what you want to know. A title with the actual question gets you an answer in two hours instead of two days.

1 like in reply to #4 13mo
MM
m.malinowskiTL2 Moderator10 Jul 2025#23

Picking up post #20: that is the part I would want checked first.

What you have already read matters. Saying "I read the maintained page on this and I still have a gap" tells people they do not need to point you at the same resource you have already found. That is a genuine time saver.

7 likes 13mo
ML
m.lindqvistTL2 Moderator13 Jul 2025#24

Avoid "any advice?" at the end. It is so generic that people do not know which part of the post it refers to. Pick the specific part and ask that specific question instead.

18 likes 13mo
RR
r.restrepoTL2 Moderator15 Jul 2025#25

Disagreeing with an answer you got: cite what you disagree with, say what contradicts it, and ask which one holds. Do not open with "I think you are wrong". Lead with the evidence.

0 likes 12mo
CC
c.correiaTL2 Moderator17 Jul 2025 · edited#26

Context that matters: compound, how long in, current dose, relevant history. Context that does not matter: how you feel, your hopes for the outcome, your medical history beyond what affects this specific question. The first set gets you answered. The second set makes the reply longer without making it better.

3 likes 12mo
ME
me.eriksenTL2 Moderator20 Jul 2025#27
cannula_notes, post #8: Arithmetic questions: write out the steps. "I have a 10 mg vial, I added 2 mL, I want a 0.25 mg dose, and I get this number for the syringe mark" is answerable. "How many units" is not. Go to post

This follows post #24 rather than contradicting it.

Disagreement-style questions: "I read this and it contradicts what I heard here, which is right?" is answerable. "Is this a bad idea?" without giving the context is not.

11 likes in reply to #8 12mo
KS
k.salinasTL2 Moderator22 Jul 2025#28

I read post #26 twice before replying, because I had assumed the opposite.

Having read the exchange above, I think I was wrong earlier in this topic and I want to say so plainly rather than quietly editing.

The correction was fair and I had been repeating something I had not checked carefully enough.

24 likes 12mo
AM
a.molnarTL2 Moderator24 Jul 2025#29
r.torrence, post #4: Worth separating two things that the opening post runs together. Asking a follow-up: new topic or reply in the old one? If the answer depends on the previous post, reply. If it is a question that makes sense without the previous post, new topic. The second gets faster answers. Go to post

post #28 answers the question as asked. The question underneath it is different.

Five questions in one post gets you one answer: the easiest one, usually not the one you needed most. Post them separately or pick the one that depends on the others least and ask that one first.

1 like in reply to #4 12mo
I
IbrahimoviTL2Member27 Jul 2025#30
p.silva, post #11: Lab result questions: state the result, the reference interval, and what else is on the same panel. A single flag on a single draw is usually uninformative without context. Go to post

Arithmetic questions: write out the steps. "I have a 10 mg vial, I added 2 mL, I want a 0.25 mg dose, and I get this number for the syringe mark" is answerable. "How many units" is not.

7 likes in reply to #11 12mo