Re: wu-ftpd problem with time in the logs

From: Ed Murphy (emurphy42_at_socal.rr.com)
Date: 07/05/03 

Date: Sat, 05 Jul 2003 16:32:52 GMT

On Sat, 05 Jul 2003 13:34:20 +0200, Peter T. Breuer wrote:

>>> I know what you are saying - that the guy is just walking round in a
>>> hazy cloud. But that's what he can cure. He has the solution, and his
>>> problem is the /personal/ one of perceiving it wrong.
>
>> Your problem is that you usually say "You're wrong!" and stop there, as
>> if that alone will make the cloud go away.
>
> It should. Knowing that you are wrong is the zeroth step you need to
> take. It allows you to dispense with the arrogance that comes with
> thinking you are right and the world is wrong, which annoys me
> intensely.

I understand that annoyance, believe me. I also understand - because
dealing with cloudy thinkers is a significant part of my job description
- that your approach, which /should/ fix it, in fact does not. Most
people need it shown to them first, then stated in a less accusatory
fashion. ("That turns out not to be the case.")

Also, fairly often, a person knows they're overlooking something, but
has no idea what it is. Let's look at your suggested approach:

>> Realizing that rpm can list files post-install is intuitively obvious
>> /after/ it's been pointed out. ("Oh yeah, it totally makes sense that
>> it would include that feature.") It is much less obvious before it's
>> been pointed out.

> It's completely obvious to anyone who looks. What can one say but
> "look"?

Change that to "look at rpm" (or, more generally, "look at tool X") and
you've got useful, substantive advice. Many people /don't/ look at
tool X, or not closely enough; they use it for task Y1, but it never
occurs to them that it might also be useful for task Y2, and so they
fail to discover the "how to use X to do Y2" section of the X manual.

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