Can everyone say "I'm the best"?

November 5, 2005 9:11 PM

Policy Question: I am not trying to call anyone out at all, (really!), but is it considered OK to mark you own answer in AskMe as the "best" ?
posted by crazyray to Etiquette/Policy at 9:11 PM (11 comments total)

Yes.

Sometimes you ask a question, and then further research elsewhere leads you to an answer that actually works. Reporting that in the ask.me thread and then marking it as something that worked is a good contribution to the community. Future readers with similar questions now know what actually worked for you.
posted by jacquilynne at 9:19 PM on November 5, 2005

Sure.

I mean, I'd love to walk through life with a little button that tells the world that I'm the shit.
You've got one here, why not use it?
posted by Jon-o at 9:34 PM on November 5, 2005

It's your question; you're the judge. If you find the exact info somewhere, sure.
posted by scarabic at 9:44 PM on November 5, 2005

The answers to all your questions rest peacefully within your own heart, and not in the words of others.

So, fuck yes, you can mark your own answer best!
posted by The Great Big Mulp at 10:00 PM on November 5, 2005

Yes, I think it is perfectly appropriate. As a matter of fact, I personally requested that pony after I had posted this. Sometimes, there is no one perfect answer, but if there are several that come close, a short summary of your own truly is best.
posted by MrZero at 10:27 PM on November 5, 2005

Another vote for "yes", and some background on why: Matt has envisioned AskMe not only as a place where you can get answers to your questions, but as a repository of searchable knowledge that may help others. Sure, a lot of questions don't lend themselves to searching, but some do. As such, if you discover the answer to your own question, and no-one else has yet, you should mark it as the best answer so that, in the event that someone else later has the same question and finds your question, the best answer will be marked as such.
posted by Bugbread at 12:09 AM on November 6, 2005

Here's an excellent example (disclaimer: he says "tell them that you're my girl, and I'm your boy") of a question that received no responses except by the original poster, and his answers would be helpful if someone were searching for ... well, a question like this. He has answers for the question; he found them himself: it happens. If someone is searching for questions with best answers, it makes sense for them to be able to find this one.
posted by librarina at 1:23 AM on November 6, 2005

How about flagging your own answer as a "fantastic post"?
posted by Rumple at 2:05 AM on November 6, 2005

it used to not be possible (to mark your own answer as best); it was explicitly changed to allow the case people describe above. iirc.
posted by andrew cooke at 3:38 AM on November 6, 2005

Yes, it's okay to do it. This is where mathowie said so.
posted by jessamyn at 7:15 AM on November 6, 2005

Another yes.
posted by grateful at 6:50 AM on November 7, 2005