The Art of Asking Smart Questions
30 Jan 2025
In software engineering, communication is not just about writing code but about fostering collaboration. Eric Raymond’s essay How to Ask Questions the Smart Way provides a blueprint for effective interaction in open-source communities. This essay explores the visible impact of “smart” versus “not smart” questions on platforms like Stack Overflow, analyzing real-world examples to demonstrate how following Raymond’s principles shape problem-solving outcomes.
The Smart Question
Title: Why is processing a sorted array faster than processing an unsorted array?
In this question on Stack Overflow, a developer observed a performance anomaly in C++ and Java code: sorted arrays were processed faster than unsorted ones. The question included detailed code snippets, benchmarks, and hypotheses about CPU branch prediction. The developer demonstrated prior research by referencing related concepts like compiler optimizations and hardware behavior.
The question aligns with Raymond’s Principles:
- Clarity and Specificity: The title briefly states the problem, while the body provides context, code, and observed behavior.
- Prior Effort: The original poster tested code in multiple languages and speculated on causes, showing initiative.
- Reproducibility: Code examples allowed others to replicate the issue, enabling targeted solutions.
The thread received over 27,000 upvotes and 30+ answers and discussions from the community. The top response explained branch prediction with analogies (e.g. railroad switches) and linked to CPU architecture documentation. One answer included a visual demonstration of branch misprediction penalties. The discussions on the post resolved the issue and helped the community’s understanding of low-level performance optimization.
The Not-Smart Question
Title: Replacement project for existing school assignment
A developer searched for a replacement for a scanner/lexical analyzer assignment used since the 1990s, describing it as “antiquated” and “boring.” The question requested a project idea of “equal difficulty” in C++, Java, or Objective-C but provided no specific details about the original assignment’s requirements, scope, or learning objectives. The original poster also failed to explain why the existing project was outdated or what specific improvements they were seeking.
This question violates Raymond’s Principles:
- Lack of Clarity and Specificity: The title and description were vague, offering no context about the original assignment or the desired outcomes.
- Insufficient Prior Effort: The riginal poster did not demonstrate any research into modern alternatives or explain why existing solutions were unsuitable.
- Overly Broad Scope: The request for a replacement project in multiple languages without constraints (e.g. time, resources, skill level) made it difficult for responders to provide targeted suggestions.
The thread received 4 answers and had several discussions, but the original post and answers were not highly upvoted or accepted, indicating unresolved ambiguity. Many responses were generic or contradicted the original poster’s opinion on the assignment, along with questioning the original poster: “What’s wrong with the existing assignment?” or “Define ‘modern’.” The lack of clarity in the question led to confused responses, demonstrating the drawbacks of asking questions in a “not smart” way.
Analysis of Outcomes
Smart questions are essential for efficient and effective collaboration in software engineering. By providing context and showing prior effort, smart questions reduce unnecessary back-and-forth, allowing responders to provide precise solutions. High-quality threads, such as the sorted array example, often become long-term resources, benefiting many other users by helping them understand complex topics like CPU optimization. Overall, clear and well-structured questions respect other individuals’ time and foster cooperation within the community. In contrast, poorly written questions lead to wasted effort and missed learning opportunities. Unclear posts confuse responders, dissuade engagement, and often result in an unfulfilling response. For instance, the school assignment question failed to provide enough context or show prior research, which left the original poster without meaningful insights or solutions. This shows the importance of preparation and specificity as researching and isolating issues before asking saves everyone’s time, while also narrowing problems down for precise answers.
Conclusion
Asking smart questions is not just a skill but a responsibility. By following Raymond’s guidelines, developers can turn ambiguity into clarity, which encourages collaboration and learning. Whether optimizing code or debugging assignments, the principles of clarity, effort, and respect remain universal.
The essay above used DeepSeek for spelling and grammar correction/suggestions.