Is it okay to PM someone for help?

[vasa1]

I post a request for help but I don't get a solution. In such a situation, rather than bumping the thread, is it okay to PM the thread link to a specific person who I feel could help me?

[QIII]

Try bumping some times at 36 hours rather than 24 to get visibility when someone half way around the world is more likely to see your bump. You live in Mumbai. I live on the West Coast of the US. It's not likely I'd see a post you left at 4:00pm your time and kept bumping around 4:00 pm.

You might PM them and ask them to take a look at your post and leave a URL. But some might take offense at the intrusion, so I would be extremely careful. It could be taken to be similar to knocking on someone's door at dinner time. They might feel you are hounding them and you might get an infraction.

Personally, I don't mind the odd PM pointing to a thread and asking for me to look at it. But if someone asks for the help in the PM I usually just delete it. I won't give answers in PMs.

Don't ask for help in the PM itself. That would not allow others to benefit because it would be invisible.

[Shadius]

I don't see why not. I've done it before and received help. :)

[roelforg]

If you're sure the person doesn't mind and can help, i don't see why not.
Just make sure you post about the problem on a thread.

[Shadius]

Do you need help with something?

[vasa1]

Okay, I'll stick to the bumpy way :)

[Paqman]

The main problem with it is that if someone else comes along with the same problem they won't be able to see the solution, because it was all done in private.

[spynappels]

From the Forums Code of Conduct:

Private Messaging: Asking support questions via private messages is strongly discouraged. It is unlikely that users will respond to these requests and it defeats the secondary intent of the forums to be a resource for people seeking assistance using internet searches and forum searches.

[Elfy]

The main problem with it is that if someone else comes along with the same problem they won't be able to see the solution, because it was all done in private.


From the Forums Code of Conduct:

Private Messaging: Asking support questions via private messages is strongly discouraged. It is unlikely that users will respond to these requests and it defeats the secondary intent of the forums to be a resource for people seeking assistance using internet searches and forum searches.

+1 to both of those.

The only PM people asking for help get from me is one outlining both of those points.

[vasa1]

I have mentioned that the PM would be the link to an existing, unsolved thread. I thought that would make it clear that there wasn't an intention to bypass the forum :)

[Shadius]

I have mentioned that the PM would be the link to an existing, unsolved thread. I thought that would make it clear that there wasn't an intention to bypass the forum :)

Right. Something like, "Hey, I could really use your help on this thread", and the link to the thread would be provided. I don't think there would be a problem with that.

[wolfen69]

I've had PM's before, and it has been annoying. If you can't find help through traditional means, then oh well. PM'ing for help is like knocking on someone's door you don't know.

[mips]

You might PM them and ask them to take a look at your post and leave a URL. But some might take offense at the intrusion, so I would be extremely careful. It could be taken to be similar to knocking on someone's door at dinner time. They might feel you are hounding them and you might get an infraction.

Personally, I don't mind the odd PM pointing to a thread and asking for me to look at it. But if someone asks for the help in the PM I usually just delete it. I won't give answers in PMs.

Don't ask for help in the PM itself. That would not allow others to benefit because it would be invisible.

+1

I don't mind being PM'ed with someone asking me to look at a thread. Do not expect to be helped via PM on a one-on-one basis though, not on.

I'll explain my rationale for this. Should I help you in a PM that info is only available to you, no one else benefits from it and is probably lost after the fact. If one helps via a thread the information is in the open for all to see and benefit from. Secondly someone else might have a different take on the problem with a better/cleaner solution. Through interaction and collaboration you will get a better end result to your problem.

So feel free to PM asking for assistance in a thread (provide a link to the thread!) and we can carry on there, although there is no obligation. Don't expect help/solutions in a PM.

[Shadius]

+1

I don't mind being PM'ed with someone asking me to look at a thread. Do not expect to be helped via PM on a one-on-one basis though, not on.

I'll explain my rationale for this. Should I help you in a PM that info is only available to you, no one else benefits from it and is probably lost after the fact. If one helps via a thread the information is in the open for all to see and benefit from. Secondly someone else might have a different take on the problem with a better/cleaner solution. Through interaction and collaboration you will get a better end result to your problem.

So feel free to PM asking for assistance in a thread (provide a link to the thread!) and we can carry on there, although there is no obligation. Don't expect help/solutions in a PM.

Agreed. Well said.

[forrestcupp]

On the outside, it seems like there wouldn't be anything wrong with PMing people to ask them to help on a thread that everyone will see. Some people have said they don't mind if people do this. That's because it's not common practice. But if it becomes common knowledge that this is acceptable, then certain people are going to get regularly swamped with hundreds of PMs asking them to help in threads, and they will quickly turn from not minding to being ticked off about it.

I say that if you think it through, it's not good practice, even if you're not bypassing the purpose of the forums.

[fatality_uk]

I must make anyone aware that I charge a minimum $15 p/h for reading PM's, unless of course the content is a GUARANTEED 6 winnings LOTTO numbers.

[malspa]

I must make anyone aware that I charge a minimum $15 p/h for reading PM's, unless of course the content is a GUARANTEED 6 winnings LOTTO numbers.

LOL!

I don't mind if someone sends me a PM asking for help on something. Of course, I might not be able to help; or, I might not feel like it. I might PM someone else asking for help on occasion, but I agree with the points made about that here, so I try not to do that. And if they don't want to reply, that's cool, I get the message.

[vasa1]

Okay, I'll stick to the bumpy way :)
So that's where the matter rests as far as I'm concerned :)

[Old_Grey_Wolf]

This is the Community Cafe so I'll offer my opinion about PMing a question. My response is not specific to what the OP asked. My response is directed at other people that may be thinking of doing it.

I don't like PMs asking for help; however, that may be influenced by the PMs I have received in the past.

The PMs I have gotten for help are mostly dealing with doing something that is not a topic permitted on the forum.

I don't trust those PMs to be honest about the intended use of the information.

They are asking things; such as, “How do you do ARP poisoning?” or “How do you hack a Windows Administrator password?”.

I don't appreciate those PMs at all.

[Shadius]

This is the Community Cafe so I'll offer my opinion about PMing a question. My response is not specific to what the OP asked. My response is directed at other people that may be thinking of doing it.

I don't like PMs asking for help; however, that may be influenced by the PMs I have received in the past.

The PMs I have gotten for help are mostly dealing with doing something that is not a topic permitted on the forum.

I don't trust those PMs to be honest about the intended use of the information.

They are asking things; such as, “How do you do ARP poisoning?” or “How do you hack a Windows Administrator password?”.

I don't appreciate those PMs at all.

If I received PMs like that, I would be annoyed as well. I don't know what ARP poisoning is, but I know of hacking a Windows Administrator password, and those are things with ill intentions. I would only PM a person for help if they've already tried to help me on my own thread. I wouldn't just randomly PM a person. I think there's an unspoken/unwritten rule there. :)

[Old_Grey_Wolf]

If I received PMs like that, I would be annoyed as well. I don't know what ARP poisoning is, but I know of hacking a Windows Administrator password, and those are things with ill intentions.

With PMs, you really don't know what the person's objectives actually are. Someone can make it seem innocent when in reality it is nefarious.

Sometimes there are legitimate reasons for hacking a Windows Admin password. My grandson managed to change the Admin password on my daughters laptop; then, forgot what it was. After I reset the Admin password, I set up a limited user account for my grandson.

:lolflag:

ARP poisoning/spoofing is an old form of a man-in-the-middle attack for intercepting someone else's internet traffic. I can't think of a legitimate reasons a home computer user would need to use it. I started getting PMs on another forum after I replied to a woman asked about her boyfriend/husband spying on her internet activities.


I would only PM a person for help if they've already tried to help me on my own thread. I wouldn't just randomly PM a person. I think there's an unspoken/unwritten rule there. :)

I wouldn't object to a PM like that; however, it defeats the purpose of the support forums. Any help provided in the PMs would not help other people with the same problem.

[Old_Grey_Wolf]

If I received PMs like that, I would be annoyed as well. I don't know what ARP poisoning is, but I know of hacking a Windows Administrator password, and those are things with ill intentions.

With PMs, you really don't know what the person's objectives actually are. Someone can make it seem innocent when in reality it is nefarious.

Sometimes there are legitimate reasons for hacking a Windows Admin password. My grandson managed to change the Admin password on my daughters laptop; then, forgot what it was. After I reset the Admin password, I set up a limited user account for my grandson.

:lolflag:

ARP poisoning/spoofing is an old form of a man-in-the-middle attack for intercepting and modifying someone else's internet traffic. I can't think of a legitimate reasons a home computer user would need to use it. I started getting PMs on another forum after I replied to a woman asked about her boyfriend/husband spying on her internet activities. Men started PMing me wanted instructions for using ARP poisoning/spoofing.


I would only PM a person for help if they've already tried to help me on my own thread. I wouldn't just randomly PM a person. I think there's an unspoken/unwritten rule there. :)

I wouldn't object to a PM like that; however, it defeats the purpose of the support forums. Any help provided in the PMs would not help other people with the same problem.

[Shadius]

After I reset the Admin password, I set up a limited user account for my grandson.

:lolflag:
:lolflag: I'm pretty sure you can find information on resetting the Admin password on Google anyway.


ARP poisoning/spoofing is an old form of a man-in-the-middle attack for intercepting someone else's internet traffic.

Thank you for explaining to me what ARP poisoning is. I assumed that it was something with ill intent because it does have "poison" in it. :lolflag:



I wouldn't object to a PM like that; however, it defeats the purpose of the support forums. Any help provided in the PMs would not help other people with the same problem.

I agree. I forgot to mention, I don't ask for the help in PMs. I PM the user to take a look at the thread and if they can, offer their help in the thread so that others can benefit too. I tend to think about other users facing the same problem as me and going nuts finding a solution. However, if the user that I've PMed does help me by providing the help in the PM, I do include the instructions within the thread so that others can see what I've done in my search to solve my problem. It also helps in marking the thread as solved! That's just me though. :)