<p>I'm not a moderator or anything, but can I give one word of advice to people on this forum? Please don't direct someone to another site when they came here for advice. If they wanted advice from another site, they'd have Google'd it. Either help or don't, but you directing traffic AWAY from CC kinda defeats the purpose. It's different if someone has made a thread, it's gotten a few pages of responses, the person still needs help, and you give them the link to another site. But don't be like</p>
<p>Thread starter: I need some help/advice/what do you guys think?</p>
<p>Poster A: GO HERE AND CLICK ON THIS AND THEN YOU'LL HAVE YOUR ANSWER</p>
<p>It looks clumsy, tacky, and it's not really productive. People come on message boards for help and advice. If they wanted advice and help in another way, they would go look for it. Trust me.</p>
<p>Sometimes the best advice is to go to another site - it may not be the best thing for CC, but it might be for the poster. I wouldn't assume that any poster is aware of these other sites. When students ask if their 150 LSAT and 2.0 GPA can get them into the University of Profundity law school, it makes sense for them to go to the sites that have the data to answer that question. The alternative is for someone here to go there and look it up and report back - hardly makes sense.</p>
<p>"If they wanted advice from another site, they'd have Google'd it." </p>
<p>Often true, but you're overestimating some. This forum is intended as a resource, but not as a replacement for one's own research. The purpose of CC is to help direct posters to the information they seek, whether by responding directly or by pointing them toward another source (be it a website, book, individual, or admissions office).</p>
<p>Frankly, if I ask a question, I just want to get an answer. I'd rather that a person direct me to another site than not respond at all (as no one here is obligated to help me). And if I can't find the information where the person says I should be able to, then I'll ask again for clarification. Very simple.</p>
<p>I certainly understand your frustration, and I think that there are a few cases in which it's a valid request, but I personally get annoyed when a poster acts like CC members have an obligation to help him.</p>
<p>It can also be more reliable to direct someone to another site. Not always, but often. And if I were the person on the receiving end, I'd probably feel more comfortable with whatever info I obtained there (for example, info from a school's own website instead of secondhand on a message board).</p>
<p>So ditto cartera: "Sometimes the best advice is to go to another site."</p>