Re: How do I set ORACLE_SID in windows NT environment

From: Howard J. Rogers <hjr_at_dizwell.com>
Date: Tue, 14 Dec 2004 04:55:28 +1100
Message-ID: <41bdd78f$0$5287$afc38c87@news.optusnet.com.au>

hpuxrac wrote:
> snip
>
>

>>informed of this.  My advice was, in my opinion, helpful, and is

>
>
> Man oh man i guess we have far different ideas on what being helpful
> is.

It's a funny thing, but there seems to be a number of posts lately that equate kindness and helpfulness, or politeness and helpfulness. No-one ever seems to point out that honesty can be helpful, even when it is honesty to a painful degree.

It is at least arguable that pointing out to someone their manifest incompetence for a particular job is helpful.

>>From what I remember, the op asked specifically how to set an

> environment variable in windows. That was all that they asked.
> Did the op ask for advice on setting unix environment variables? No.

But he offered *us* "advice" on how to do it. Advice which was wrong.

> Did the op ask for advice on the startup options available? No.

But he offered *us* advice on what options to use. Advice which was incomplete.

> Did the op ask for advice on customer relationships? No.

But he let us know he was charging someone for doing something he didn't know how to do. That is at least asking for someone to comment.

> Why did you feel that you had all the relevant knowledge to deduce that
> the op was behaving un-professionally?

I, at least, didn't say he was unprofessional, a term of abuse which itself is widely abused. But...

On the evidence before us in the original post, the OP was charging someone sums of money for doing something he didn't know how to do, and with a volunteered demonstration of subsidiary Oracle knowledge that was flakey, at best.

It is plausible to imagine that, though impossible to be sure, that he is doing these things because he works for a company where his boss has put him into this situation. It is definitely helpful, I think, to have it pointed out that your boss has dropped you in hot water without teaching you to swim... and definitely conceivable that being a bit of an Oracle novice, he wouldn't have been aware of this.

And if the OP is self-employed, and has put himself into this sort of situation, it is again at least arguable that he has done so with the best of intentions and motives... but a serious over-estimate of his current skillset.

In either case, having it pointed out that in this area, at least, and right now, you aren't up to the job might not be pleasant. It might be exceedingly painful. But it is honest. And helpful.

HJR Received on Mon Dec 13 2004 - 11:55:28 CST