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How to Ask for Help

A guide to writing great questions that get fast, helpful answers from the community.

Last updated February 2026

Welcome to ❓｜》help-forums — Thank you for being part of the community! Whether you're asking for help or helping others, we're glad you're here. Here are a few things to know before making a post.

How to Ask a Good Question

We want to help you, but we're not mind readers. Instead of asking to ask, or asking half-baked questions, include all important details right away:

  • What language or tools you're using (Java, Python, etc.)
  • Your operating system, IDE, or compiler if relevant (e.g. C++ with CMake, React with pnpm)
  • Any error messages or code snippets

This will make it much easier for others to understand your situation and help you faster.

When You Start a Thread

  1. Don't ask to ask (i.e. "Can someone help me?", "Anyone know Java?")
  2. Ask directly: "How do I [describe problem] in Java using [specific tool or library]?"
  3. For more on this, check out dontasktoask.com
  4. Be specific about your goal. Do you just want the last 3 characters of a string, or a file extension from a file name? (See the XY Problem for why this matters.)
  5. Include assignment/project restrictions if your question is for coursework or a specific spec
  6. If your problem is resolved, please post the solution so that future readers can benefit
  7. If you need help urgently, ping @Volunteer (Ping me for help), not @Staff

Reminder: Asking for DMs is against server rules. Please keep help requests in public channels.

Closing Resolved Posts

Please close your post when your question has been resolved. This avoids excessive pings and clears clutter.

  • Use the command ?close to close threads
  • Only Mods or OP can close threads

Writing a Great Question

Follow these steps to maximize your chances of getting a good answer.

Write a title that describes the problem

The title is the first thing potential answerers will see, and if your title isn't interesting, they won't read the rest. So make it count!

Pretend you're talking to a busy colleague

Spelling, grammar, and punctuation are important!

  • Bad: C# Math Confusion
  • Good: Why does using float instead of int give me different results when all of my inputs are integers?

Introduce the problem before you post any code

In the body of your question, start by elaborating on the description you put in the title. Explain how you encountered the problem and any difficulties that have prevented you from solving it yourself.

Help others reproduce the problem

Not all questions benefit from including code, but if your problem is with code you've written, you should include it.

  • Don't just copy in your entire program!
  • DO NOT post images of code, data, or error messages

Check before posting

Now that you're ready to ask your question, take a deep breath and read through it from start to finish. Pretend you're seeing it for the first time — does it make sense?

Include relevant tags

Add the tags that are relevant to your question. If your question is related to a programming language that doesn't have a tag, simply add it to your title.

Respect our rules

All posts must comply with our rules. Any post that violates one of them will be closed and may result in a warning or banishment from the server.

Sending Code

If you plan on sending some code, don't forget to format it as shown below:

Your code here

If your code is too large, we recommend sharing your GitHub repository (or similar remote git repositories). If you don't use git, you can use Replit, Pastebin, or OnlineGDB to send your code.

Avoid sending images of code. Always use text-based code sharing.

Further Reading