QOD Cheats
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I feel you are missing a trick with the very popular QOD business. Anyone who wants a 100% score just needs to read the answer in the following days email, and then answer the question.
Surely disabling the question after you've released the answer is relatively simple otherwise we will be comparing real scores with artificially inflated ones. And people will inevitably cheat if they can - its human nature.
The easiest way to ensure that people have time to answer is not to release the answer 24 hours later but delay it for a week.
I think QOD is a fantastic development but people will lose interest if they feel that other people are 'cheating'.
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Hi,
I agree with you. But who are they cheating at the end of the day?? QOD is good cos it gives you an idea of what your strong/weak areas are. If someone is sad enough to cheat in this way then leave 'em to it, they aren't going to get any benefit.
Laters
*I didn't do anything it just got complicated*
"I didn't do anything it just got complicated" - M Edwards -
Well, There is cheating and there is cheating.
One can either: A) answer the question based on current knowledge B) actually test out the alternatives in the question and/or look up reference materials, or C) just cheat
I most often use option B
. I use the questions as a learning tool, and it's a good one at that. If not option B then it's option A.... which explains my oft-incorrect answers.Option C is not for me. Same as braindumps are a no-no. There's no personal gain in it.
My advice.... don't worry about potential cheating... just use QOD to further your learning.
Cheers,
- Mark -
Hi mccork,
I must admit I have cheated!
Although there is no excuse for this, I wanted to keep track after one week out of office and to my ashame even one of those answers was wrong, because of a quick click.
quote:
One can either: A) answer the question based on current knowledge B) actually test out the alternatives in the question and/or look up reference materials, or C) just cheatI most often use option B
. I use the questions as a learning tool, and it's a good one at that. If not option B then it's option A.... which explains my oft-incorrect answers.So do I.
I think of QOD as strengthen your ability to search BOL, because it is definitely the No.1 source of information. For me the intention is not to be able to answer everything straight out of the head, but to know where to look for the answer. I would be pretty lost without this.
quote:
... just use QOD to further your learning.that's what it's all about, I guess
Cheers,
Frank
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Frank Kalis
Microsoft SQL Server MVP
Webmaster: http://www.insidesql.org/blogs
My blog: http://www.insidesql.org/blogs/frankkalis/[/url] -
Well either knowing the answer or finding it out through a source that is always available are valid ways of answering QOD.
I just think that it would be better if the question was disabled after the answer was given. Its one thing researching an answer - but another thing altogether to copy it from the answer sheet.
The point I'm trying to make is that QOD could become quite a useful method of seeing whether you are up to speed with your peers. If you have a score of 50% is that good or bad - you don't know so you compare it against your peers. If the peer results are skewed then interest will wane as people become dispirited because their (honest) scores are low and the dishonest top scorers will also get bored.
All in all block the question after you publish the answer.
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I will say I mostly delete the EMails. I didn't even realize the answer was there next day until it was pointed out.
However, I agree with other comments made here. The only person you are cheating is yourself. I have a tendency to get particular items backwards in concept so those I answered to see how I was doing and found an improvement since last time. Then there are those I am sure of so I answer immediately. But I have seen a few that I had not had experience in so I looked up the answer in the usual way BOL then Web and gained the knowledge by testing some things. It is entirely up to you how you go about adding the knowledge or not bothering (you only hurt yourself in the long run).
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Hi Antares686,
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I will say I mostly delete the EMails. I didn't even realize the answer was there next day until it was pointed out.there is also a feature available to unsubscribe from the newsletter. Saves the procedure of deleting
Cheers,
Frank
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Frank Kalis
Microsoft SQL Server MVP
Webmaster: http://www.insidesql.org/blogs
My blog: http://www.insidesql.org/blogs/frankkalis/[/url] -
quote:
The point I'm trying to make is that QOD could become quite a useful method of seeing whether you are up to speed with your peers. If you have a score of 50% is that good or bad - you don't know so you compare it against your peers. If the peer results are skewed then interest will wane as people become dispirited because their (honest) scores are low and the dishonest top scorers will also get bored.Turning of the ability to answer the question after the answer is published still won't let you compare yourself to others.
Let's say you can't answer a day later. Okay, so are you comparing yourself to peers who answer from knowledge or are you comparing yourself to peers who look up the answer?
It makes a difference. Let's say I only answer using my personal knowledge and never use BOL or any other reference (don't even test possibilities)...strictly from my head. Is my whatever percent comparable to another persons exact same percent? Probably not.
Unless everyone and I mean everyone is using the same method to get the answers you'll never truly be able to compare yourself to the others. Also, everyone would have to answer ALL the questions. I know I don't. If I see a real stumper, I wait to see the answer the next day.
How do you do a comparison of yourself to someone who only answers the 'easy' questions, or the questions they are very sure they know the answer to?
I like it the way it is. If I'm on vacation and can't answer questions, I still have the ability to test myself later.
Also, I only use it to see how well I know my SQL Server. Since I can pick the questions I want to answer and since I can pick how I want to figure out the answer, I know that I SHOULD do well on the questions. The results gives me a guideline on what I actually know and what I need to work on.
I vote to leave it as it is.
-SQLBill
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quote:
It makes a difference. Let's say I only answer using my personal knowledge and never use BOL or any other reference (don't even test possibilities)...strictly from my head. Is my whatever percent comparable to another persons exact same percent? Probably not.Unless everyone and I mean everyone is using the same method to get the answers you'll never truly be able to compare yourself to the others. Also, everyone would have to answer ALL the questions. I know I don't. If I see a real stumper, I wait to see the answer the next day.
How do you do a comparison of yourself to someone who only answers the 'easy' questions, or the questions they are very sure they know the answer to?
I like it the way it is. If I'm on vacation and can't answer questions, I still have the ability to test myself later.
Also, I only use it to see how well I know my SQL Server. Since I can pick the questions I want to answer and since I can pick how I want to figure out the answer, I know that I SHOULD do well on the questions. The results gives me a guideline on what I actually know and what I need to work on.
I vote to leave it as it is.
So do I.
I think, the whole thing about comparing the results (whereever they come from) is just a nice side effect of QOD.
Certainly, while seeing I scored more than average, I'm proud of, but am I cleverer?, smarter?, or just had more luck? Who knows....and who cares
Cheers,
Frank
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Frank Kalis
Microsoft SQL Server MVP
Webmaster: http://www.insidesql.org/blogs
My blog: http://www.insidesql.org/blogs/frankkalis/[/url] -
I agree with what has been stated. I use testing,BOL and searching the Web to find answers depending on the question. I don't have SQL200 and since most of the questions are for SQL200 I have to search or best guess anyway but at least it will prepare me for when we do get SQL2000.
I think this a great idea and I am learning all the time.
Far away is close at hand in the images of elsewhere.
Anon. -
quote:
I agree with what has been stated. I use testing,BOL and searching the Web to find answers depending on the question. I don't have SQL200 and since most of the questions are for SQL200 I have to search or best guess anyway but at least it will prepare me for when we do get SQL2000.ever thought of installing SQL2K Client tools to control SQL7?
Works good
...and you get SQL2k BOLCheers,
Frank
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Frank Kalis
Microsoft SQL Server MVP
Webmaster: http://www.insidesql.org/blogs
My blog: http://www.insidesql.org/blogs/frankkalis/[/url] -
Yes. But I thought there were compatibility problems if you tried certain things? Have you had any problems?
btw where would I get SQL2K tools if I have'nt got SQL2K!!!
Far away is close at hand in the images of elsewhere.
Anon. -
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Yes. But I thought there were compatibility problems if you tried certain things? Have you had any problems?no, not really.
I was just once wondering why I can't index an image column for fulltext search, but then I realised I can't do this on SQL7, so I went straight to production server
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btw where would I get SQL2K tools if I have'nt got SQL2K!!!You mean, no one in your whole company has a license? Poor Mitsubishi cars
Well, in this case why not use BOL online. Hopefully it up to date.
Cheers,
Frank
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Frank Kalis
Microsoft SQL Server MVP
Webmaster: http://www.insidesql.org/blogs
My blog: http://www.insidesql.org/blogs/frankkalis/[/url] -
Well, what do you know! I thought about the potential for cheating (especially because I was way behind on my Email), but decided no, there's no way they'd let me answer after the day of the question--it would most certainly be disabled. So I didn't even try. Ha, ha!
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People always cheat. You can't prevent it, though honestly we never discussed this. We tend to operate in a real time environemnt and assumed most everyone else would.
We're a community and we have that level of trust among us. If people cheat, I'd like to think they'd get caught at some point. Perhaps we should disable the points when the next newsletter goes out. I hate to do that though.
I never look up "code" for games or try to find away around things. I like to stand on my own merits and accept my own shortcomings.
Steve Jones
. I use the questions as a learning tool, and it's a good one at that. If not option B then it's option A.... which explains my oft-incorrect answers.
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