24

I've run into this situation a couple of times, where people give an "answer" that basically repeats the problem in the original question. (Not going to give examples here obviously, but it's happened.) So a hypothetical example might be a question like:

I've noticed that addition overflows just get wrapped around in x86. Why?

and a hypothetical non-answer might be something like:

x86 naturally wraps around addition overflows in numbers, just like MIPS and other architectures. You need to be careful when performing arithmetic; check the carry/overflow flags to see if something overflowed.

On the one hand, this doesn't answer the question. But on the other hand, it's well-written (no specific quality issues), and it seems to answer the question.

Should an answer like this be flagged? (Sometimes commenting doesn't help, since there's just no response.)

Improve this question
1

3 Answers 3

Reset to default
42

The "not an answer" flag is for the following situations:

  • The OP...
    • needed to update the question with new information, but posted the new information as an answer.
    • wanted to reply to an existing comment or answer, but posted the reply as an answer.
    • posted a "resolution answer" saying something along the lines of "Joe's answer worked for me"
  • A user...
    • wants to reply to the OP, an answerer or a commenter, but doesn't have enough rep, and instead of thinking "maybe there's a reason I'm not allowed to post comments," ignores the help text about what an answer is.
    • posts to say "I'm having this problem too, does anyone have a solution yet?"
    • has a related issue and isn't aware of the "Ask Question" button.

These are common situations for new SO users who may be confused by the reputation, editing and/or commenting systems. They may be used to forums where it's normal to add a new post underneath the existing posts, and blindly click the "Post Your Answer" button assuming that it says "New Reply" or something.

Improve this answer
4
  • 1
    I'm here for the same question, "What exactly constitutes 'not an answer'" as nearly every answer I flag as "not an answer" is declined, even when it quite literally "does not attempt to answer" at all, but instead just point out other issues in the code instead of the issue OP is asking about. To me this is a comment. If the "I am flagging to report this answer as..." modal had the above description, even distilled down a bit, would make this distinction much clearer.
    – Drew Reese
    Commented Aug 1, 2020 at 22:46
  • @DrewReese My recent Not-An-Answer flags were declined which were for: 1. Duplicate Answer 2. Completely unrelated answer. After reading this answer, I realized I should have raised Custom Flag instead of NAA flag. NAA flags would be rejected because those answers very much look like answers. But a Custom Flag may (not guaranteed) do the job.
    – Ajeet Shah
    Commented May 5, 2021 at 8:38
  • 1
    @AjeetShah Sure... makes sense, but In practice, well... I've given up ever marking answers as "NAA" since even though this is the tool hint "This was posted as an answer, but it does not attempt to answer the question. It should possibly be an edit, a comment, another question, or deleted altogether." it's still all very subjective. I feel my point is still valid about the description being inaccurate at worst, and unclear at best. Custom flags it is then 😉. I've put in a lot of time and effort since last August so I'm able to effect more stewardship in the community now anyway.
    – Drew Reese
    Commented May 5, 2021 at 8:50
  • Hrm this is confusing. If 'answers' that do not attempt to answer the question are OK, and we shouldn't use 'not an answer' for this - as this answer seems to suggest -it sounds like "not an answer" isn't the correct name for this flag. I've just had my own account temporarily suspended for marking answers that weren't attempting to answer the question as 'not an answer' too frequently, which is a somewhat unpleasant reaction to trying to keep SO clear of people 'answering' questions with non-answers.
    – mikemaccana
    Commented Mar 23, 2023 at 15:26
10

Your hypothetical example is an actual answer. It might not be a good answer, but it is still an answer.

Examples of answers that are not answers (and can be flagged as such):

I have the same problem. Anyone find a solution?

Thanks but that didn't really help. (should be a comment)

I have a different problem, what if.. (should be asked as a new question)

I have some new information (should be edited into the question)

Improve this answer
2
  • Hm... the question asks "why", though, and there's nothing in the answer that says "because X". It just restates the question in a different form, doesn't it?
    – user541686
    Commented Mar 2, 2011 at 17:54
  • 1
    @Mehrdad: We don't moderate for technical accuracy or answer quality. That's what voting is for. The "Not an answer" flag is there to catch those specific cases I outlined.
    – user102937
    Commented Mar 2, 2011 at 18:06
5

I'd say no. Moderators can't be expected to judge the technical merit of an answer like that.

Just downvote and leave a comment if you feel like it.

Improve this answer
4
  • Okay, but then what is the Not an answer flag for?
    – user541686
    Commented Mar 2, 2011 at 17:27
  • 1
    @Mehrdad as far as I understand the blog post and the comments there, that is rather for clear no-answers like comments posted as an answer, follow-up questions by people who can't comment yet and the like.
    – Pekka
    Commented Mar 2, 2011 at 17:31
  • Ah, all right, that makes sense. :) +1
    – user541686
    Commented Mar 2, 2011 at 17:58
  • 3
    This is what I've been reduced to doing - downvote & comment. Invariably every non-answer I flag as not an answer gets disputed and the moderators are hesitant to actually remove the post.
    – Yuck
    Commented Aug 31, 2011 at 18:31

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .