http://www.perlmonks.org?node_id=593355


in reply to XY Problem

I didn't even know there was a name for this! There's a guy with whom I work who often responds to my questions with "Why don't you just tell me exactly what you're trying to do?" (meaning I do lots of XY) I just sent him an email and the format of it was

I have problem X. Y is the way I think the solution would work, but here's a full explanation of X (and please pardon the verbosity):

blah blah blah

What do you think?
I must admit to a little bit of pride for remembering how he tended to answer my questions and creating a request that (I hope) will result in better communication.
And I think this node is really neat.

I like computer programming because it's like Legos for the mind.