I am truly thankful for people who spend their time helping others online in tech forums. Please keep posting!
Often when I embark upon a learning experience about controversial gizmos like iframes, I run across forum threads that follow this basic pattern, which I call the Ulterior Solution:
Alice: “How do I use iframes to do X?”
Bob: “Uh, why do you want to use iframes? IFrames are evil. By the way, the solution to your problem is Y.”
Alice: “I don’t know any better. Thank you so much for your answer. By the way, Y doesn’t work.”
Bob: “Oh that’s too bad. Please elaborate on what you’re trying to do in greater detail and let’s see if we can do it without iframes.”
Carl: “Indeed, you shouldn’t really use iframes. IFrames are so evil. By the way, Bob’s solution didn’t work because he forgot about Z. And that’s also the super subtle reason why you shouldn’t use iframes.”
Alice: “OK, thanks! Yes, iframes are evil. I know I shouldn’t be using frames. By the way, Y+Z worked. Thanks again!”
It might be fun to collect and catalog common forum thread patterns. This one reminds me of arguments that my parents used to have, each claiming the other had “ulterior motives” for arguing one way or another.
But again, I am truly thankful for people who spend their time helping others online, something I should really do more of. Please keep posting! (And if I have ever used iframes in the past, it is only because I have a job ;-)
