George -

An inquiry on the board will generally produce some helpful suggestions quicker than an exhaustive and quite possibly unproductive search of the archives - because the human memory is incredibly broad and quick, and the willingness to help is incredibly deep.

There are ways to be more helpful, and it seems to me the best way is to link back to information here on FAOL that you can readily find and post a link to. If someone trying to help doesn't know what is here on the site, and I'd take pretty good odds that no one knows what all is on this massive mound of information, ideas, and opinions, but knows another suitable place it can be found, a link to another site is also an expression of that willingness to help.

While expressing an intent to help, posts that simply say, in effect, "go find it in the archives" or "goggle it" or check a website without a link, are the ones that bother me. That's kind of like telling someone who is drowning to think about a PFD.

Another point about the inquiries that seem to infuriate you - often they lead to very interesting discussions. If everyone sat around examining the archives and got all the information and answers they needed there, the Bulletin Board would be a pretty quiet place. And sometimes, someone's question will cause others to think in a way that they would not have thought otherwise, or to see something they wouldn't have seen.

John