Then you state that and alter your WTH to address it. What you don’t do is get pissed at the person who told you about ABC. Flag the post and move on, if they are being offensive, the post will be removed.
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And that would be great if you could just insert it into the TTS text string within the gui. Unfortunately you have to switch to YAML view and once you use a template you can’t always switch back to the visual editor because it doesn’t support templating. This is particularly troublesome if you are using Chime TTS with all of the dropdown TTS options you can adjust on the fly.
I don’t get pissed. Maybe just a little frustrated if they close or merge the thread.
We only close and merge duplicates or things that are out of scope (custom integrations, addons, new integrations, etc). If it’s a mistake we can only rectify closed WTHs, merged cannot be undone. Simply flag it if it’s closed and a moderator will look at it closer. We are humans here, mistakes can happen.
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I see your point and kind of agree.
But if I use the GUI and I know I need a template somewhere and it’s a action I’m not familiar with all the settings then I add placeholder values in all the fields I need to use then I replace them all with templates after.
But sure templates in fields that’s nice.
I believe the issue is the error line that comes when you forgot a " for example (that exists right? I think I remember that at least)
There are people that make their skills very clear, and I have a lot of time for people seeking honest help, but honestly, after some years here, you become pretty good at spotting yet another routine question being asked. That’s when many give the RTFM answer.
The issue comes in when a new person from the outset critises anything that doesn’t work the way they assumed (because they couldn’t be bothered) and punt their incredible expertise and skills in other or related domains.
In other cases, simple questions are asked, and they get simple answers, only to reject the answer and changing the requirement.
These are the behaviours that makes it very tedious to help.
What often goes with this is a question to the OP to explain why that solution would be less than ideal for them. It’s not always to say it’s the most optimal solution, but it’s at least something. Often (if it’s an FR), you may wait forever to see it implemented (unless you dive in yourself, if possible, which is something many don’t want to hear either), so having something in the meantime is in my view more useful than nothing.
Amazing reponse here by Petro – all of it, even though I’m not quoting it all.
I just want to add that How to help us help you - or How to ask a good question has existed for a long time, but more recently How to help us help them - or How to give a good answer has been added too (and the whole creation of the cookbook was a great idea). I think this shows really positive intent.
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Just adding a recent anecdotal example
I guess I could have been more helpful in the first response, but the way it was phrased made me feel what Pieter says above
And yes, googling for 15 minutes didn’t help apparently .
No gatekeeping, just trying to help out. By not spoonfeeding, and firing up some curiosity in stead
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Here’s positive example: WTH - Custom easy to add (assumed) energy tracking devices
OP is very happy with the 3rd party integration suggested as a solution and is going to use it. However the WTH remains open as it is not the core solution asked for. No gatekeeping here.
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Hey @Hellis81 , wanted to ask if you could clarify if you are citing my forecast WTH as an example of a good WTH with a happy ending, or one that was unnecessary because there was a workaround?
Personally, I can see both perspectives. It is indeed possible to graph just the outdoor temp with a simple template sensor, which solved my problem in about five minutes. But that five minute solution came after about 10 months of me being completely stumped and assuming there was no way without a dedicated device or a different weather provider. Which makes me think it likely applies to other users as well.
I appreciate your reply.
You didn’t ask for a graph or a separate sensor.
You actually specifically asked not for a new sensor.
Then you just picked up the goal post and ran with it because in the end you wanted a separate sensor.
No workarounds was presented in the thread.
You got the official way of how to use the attribute in an state based automation and you got the official way to use a template.
Both of these methods are documented so they are not workarounds.
Your thread is a good example of a bad WTH post since what you asked for already exist you just haven’t bother looking for it or asking for it.
This is not something unique in any way. A good chunk of the WTH posts are of things that already exist