Click here to return to the list of pages
Problems happen. Even professional programmers ask each other for help. It is important that you ask for help as effectively as possible. Whether you’re writing to the instructor for help, posting on the forum, or using a site like Stack Overflow, there are a few steps to keep in mind.
On the left, a picture of a person writing a letter that says “Help” on the envelope.
On the right, a screenshot of the popular StackOverflow website, that helps people solve programming issues. There is a link to https://stackoverflow.com/help/how-to-ask
Keep the title concise and specific. Quickly orient the reader to your intended question. Pretend you’re writing to a very busy colleague and don’t waste their time. Sometimes, it helps to write the title after you’ve written the rest of the question.
On the left, a list of good titles:
“How do I import a module?”,
“What do you use a FOR loop to do?”,
“Question 4.5: What is wrong with my list summation?”
On the right, a list of bad titles:
“Can’t figure this out”
“HELP”
“I GIVE UP”
“What’s the answer to #5?”
Next, in the body of your email or post, clearly describe what you are trying to make your program do. If possible, also clearly describe any inputs to your program, and what you expected it to do.
A list of desired functionality:
“My program is supposed to take in a list of numbers and print their sum.”
“I am trying to write a summation function.”
“In this part of the program, I am attempting to open a file and read its contents…”
Third, describe what is going wrong. If possible, give the exact, specific error message you are getting. If there is no error, then precisely describe what you think is going wrong.
A list of problems and errors:
“Instead, it always returns zero.”
“Instead, I get the following error (attached).”
“Instead, the computer catches fire and sparks fly out.”
The goal is to let others reproduce the problem themselves. When pasting code, pay attention to formatting and make sure that it was not changed. Consider using a site like “https://pastebin.com” to transfer the code, or send the file directly.
On the left, an example of well-formatted code followed by an example of a PasteBin URL with the same code.
On the right, poorly formatted code that has no new lines, colored highlighting, or whitespace.
Communicating clearly is a hallmark of a professional, no matter what discipline you’re in. Although grammar, spelling, and punctuation may seem distracting, they are important. If the reader cannot understand you, it will take a very long time to get the help you want.
An email symbol with an annotation indicating its content that says: “LOL profesor dude culd i get help on #4 thanx”.