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They're not ignorant (Score:2)
Part of what will make things easier is if you adjust your goggles. Instead of seeing them as ignorant, there are any number of other potential explanations for why they sent you the mail. In any case, don't see it as a character flaw. Makes life much easier to deal with.
Second, there's nothing at all rude about redirecting someone to a list. Explain to them how they can better serve themselves. Make it about helping the person, not about how you're not interested. "I'm sorry but I think you'll get a better answer to your problem if you send your request to the wooglybongo forum." You don't have to elaborate that the reason why they'll get a better answer is that you aren't going to provide one.
What if someone came knocking on the door to your house asking for a can of soup and a gallon of milk? Maybe you'd give someone a cup of sugar, but soup & milk, that's too much than you care to deal with. "I think you'll have better results if you go down to the store on the corner." Same thing.
--
xoa
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Re: (Score:1)
You appear to be ignorant of the fact that ignorance is not a character flaw!
rjbs
They can't be ignorant forever (Score:1)
Exactly. Perhaps a replybot or boilerplate reply with all of that text explaining why you can't personally triage their problem.
Hi $name,
Please send your questions about $thing to $forum. Sorry for the automated response. Per-incident support is available via $company at $rate/hr. Tips for asking good questions are available at $link. You may also find your answer in $faq.
Thanks
That will at least solve the ignorance. Laziness, selfishness, &c may lead some to feel that this was rude of you, but that's an ignorance you can't correct via e-mail.