There is no good way to do this without stepping on toes.  I do apologize to those i offend, but i will be upfront and honest about this all rather than just lash out or avoid cuz i'm afraid to stir the pot.

If you're asking for help, you either need to A)Be researching and trouble-shooting your own issue as you go, or B)Be extremely patient and gracious with not just your supporter, as he tries to figure out what the problem is and advises you on what to do, but with those who are watching and biting their tongue as you show that you're not making much effort to help yourself.  I guarantee you, you may think you're being reserved or hiding how little you know about a problem, but you stick out like a sore thumb to pretty much everyone with experience in the field of troubleshooting.  I'm fond of doing the former option actually, as it's simply fast and effective way to solve a problem.  Yes, some of us do still ask for help on matters that actually are rather stupid and simple to fix, but when we do so we are still trying to fix the problem ourselves usually, instead of just sitting and waiting for someone else to wave their magic wand.  Don't think asking for help is bad, cuz it really isn't.  There are some matters that you'll spend an hour or better not actually testing, but just digging up the right info, and making sure it's not outdated.  Example being you dig up a hackshield error that details your problem, issue being we don't have hackshield now.  You'd still need to read the solution, to see if you can still apply it to fix your issue, even if you don't have hackshield anymore, but 9 times out of 10 you're going to safely assume that even though the problems seem identical, the solution for a hackshield issue won't work just cuz it's outdated.  So quickly checking in to see if anyone can just quickly point you in the right direction, or even tell you what/where to search, can be enough to save you 30, maybe 40, minutes of your time.  Which even if it doesn't work, is still a major help and time saver.  Just, even if it doesn't work, be sure to thank the person who helped.  You can say something along the lines of 'thanks for the help, but that fix doesn't seem to work anymore.'  And if they take what you say negatively, you can let them know that they saved you a lot of time searching, so even if it didn't directly help, it's something you rule out and didn't waste a lot of time searching on.  Being gracious goes a long way.


I want to ramble a whole lot on this topic, but i think that 'paragraph,' sums up the major concern.  You can expect a harsh reaction from some of us if you just beg for help.  Especially as this behavior becomes more common.  But don't be afraid to ask for help, when you're making honest efforts to resolve your problem.  We may be impatient or even rude at first, i got to be honest about that, but usually when it's clear that you're trying to help yourself, you'll get plenty of people offering advice on what to do, try, or search for even if they can't solve your problem.