Flag comments suggesting a jsfiddle or jsbin fiddles over stack-snippets

Question

A new user just posted their very first question on SO, the question is great - Clear description of the issue, and a working stack-snippet as a MCVE that you can copy to you answer and post a solution.

I wish all the question will be this way.

My question is about a comment posted by another user:

In the future create a jsfiddle or jsbin and share it. It makes things SO much easier.

What should I do with this type of comments? Should I flag it for moderator? Because I wish everybody will show the code in their question using a stack-snippet, instead of tricking the system by wrapping the link like https://jsfiddle.net/nice-try (Note that I don't suggest that all questions with links to 3rd-party fiddles are low quality, it's just a thing that I often see, where in this case i'm asking them to edit and include the code in the question).

Is it a moderator flag worthy, and if so - What would be the correct type to chose when flagging it?

• Heretic Monkey: You could flag it as "not constructive", since the user has already included the code appropriately, but I'm not sure it would not get declined.
• Alon Eitan: @MikeMcCaughan I tend to agree, but I want to be sure so my flag won't get declined. I want to learn what is the prefered action (if any) I need to take for the current comment, and for future comments
• BoltClock: What makes you think anyone who posts a fiddle or similar link will always circumvent the quality filter, or remove the Stack Snippet altogether?
• Alon Eitan: @BoltClock Sorry. I wasn't suggesting that anyone who do it is trying to trick the system, but often see new users doing so and I ask them to include the code in the question and use the link only for the mcve. I was just asking for clarification where the user already asked a great question with stack-snippet and someone suggested that they use 3rd-party snippets instead (I don't want that for their next question they will post an external link - I want them to continue and use the stack-snippets)
• Alon Eitan: @BoltClock For reference, this is the comment I'm talking about
• BSMP: @BoltClock - It happens frequently enough that there's at least a couple of Meta questions about whether we can/should edit someone's code into the question.
• Servy: @BSMP Not much since they added the check that prevents people from posting their question when there is such a link and no code. The one recent one I suspect you're thinking of is for a really tiny similar product that isn't used on a lot of posts compared to something like JSFiddle, and as such hasn't been added to the block.
• Shawn Whinnery: @BSMP Are you saying SO actively rejecting these types of links?
• Servy: @ShawnWhinnery No, they just require you to also post the code in the question if you post such a link.
• BSMP: @ShawnWhinnery I'm saying I still see questions linking to 3rd party code sites that don't have the MVCE in their question because they either 1) formatted the link as code, 2) included a bit of code but not enough to reproduce their issue, or 3) posted the link to the fiddle in the comments, not the question (usually in response to someone asking for one, not a deliberate attempt at circumventing the filter). I also once saw a user do this: Won't let me post question without code.
• BSMP: @ShawnWhinnery There's also what Servy said, 3rd party links that aren't listed in the block.
• Aluan Haddad: I think the code ought to be in the stack snippet but, for JavaScript, tools like JSBin has are a great addition to the question because they host transpilers that are often necessary to run the code. Using both would be my preference.
• user128511: The real problem is snippets are not as useful and friendly as external sites. With external sites it's clear and easy how to play with and manipulate the sample. With snippets you have to copy to answer. With external sites you can save your modifications without making an answer. Not so with snippets. As long as these things are true people will always be compelled to use those external sites over snippets. Flagging is just dealing with the symptoms, not the cause.

Answer 1

Is it a moderator flag worthy...

Probably not. The comments aren't actually telling the OP to do anything wrong. The problem is that can be misleading to new users who don't know the site requires their code be in the question.

The problem I usually see is people leaving these comments on questions that don't have code yet so the OP goes and creates a MVCE on a third party site only to get down and close votes anyway because their code still isn't in their question.

I normally leave a comment pointing out site rules require the code be in the question itself.

Making sure the user knows what the site requires them to do is the important thing. As long as they don't think they can use a 3rd party site instead of putting the code in their question they should be fine.

• Alon Eitan: I do leave a comment, but don't you think that if a user already include a stack-snippet should keep using it when they post new questions? The only thing that i'm not sure is whether we should allow comments that encourage using 3rd-party fiddles when the user has already used it (Which is much more comfortable when you answer such question), It's one thing if the user didn't post any code, but I want that they'll keep using SO-snippet if they find it useful
• Alon Eitan: And BTW, it was meant to be a general discussion, but since BoltClock commented on my question then I wanted to show exactly the type of comments i'm talking about - That's why I posted a link to that specific question
• BSMP: @AlonEitan If the comment doesn't say that the OP has to use a 3rd party site, that they can use a 3rd party site instead of providing the code here, or that they shouldn't use Stack Snippets, I don't know if flagging will work. I get that you worry that just by asking the OP will read it as "use this instead" and not "use this too" but I'm not sure a moderator will see it that way.
• Alon Eitan: I've just come back to check and apparently that comment was deleted (I didn't flagged it myself). I'll stick with what you wrote in your answer and not flag if I see another comment like this, although I'm still confused by the vote casting distribution on this question and answers (It seem that they prefer stack-snippets, but ambiguous about flagging such comments for mods) - Well, at least this type of comments is rare enough so I can live with the doubt. Thanks

Answer 2

Stack Overflow's version sucks. Compared to jsfiddle and jsbin it is literal garbage. SO just doesn't want users finding answers outside their domain.

Don't drink the kool aid, guys!

Q: "What should I do with this type of comments?"

A: Nothing.

• Alon Eitan: Nobody is going to ban you (I hope) - I just asking about a general guideline about the prefered snippet
• Shawn Whinnery: "Don't drink the kool aid, guys!" is the most important part of my response. If you're gonna edit it, remove everything but that line! hah. I guess I'm saying that I've been doing this for like 8 years now and I would recommend using the best tool for the job. Reject monolithic frameworks in favor of modular solutions. These external tools are objectively superior and allow us to answer questions with living examples. They are interactive and allow us to compartmentalize code. How can you, as a software engineer, object? It's a no-brainer.
• Alexei Levenkov: You may consider actually answering the question - so far there is only rant of sort (also it could be considered as "don't put any code in the post and use JSFiddle instead" recommendation which would be against SO guidelines)
• Shawn Whinnery: @AlexeiLevenkov I did but I'll be more specific.
• Blender: @ShawnWhinnery: How is it "literal garbage"? What's wrong with it?
• Siguza: SO just doesn't want users finding answers outside their domain - Every heard of link rot? People linked to Apple's Developer Documentation, and eventually Apple reworked it, breaking any and all links. People linked to Google Code, until is was retired, breaking any and all links. People uploaded images to ImageShack, which "expired" after a certain amount of time, not only breaking them but replacing them with ads! Link rot isn't some theoretical construct, it is a very real problem! Links are fine as a supplement, but only as a supplement.
• brasofilo: What "kool aid"? That Q&A's should be self-contained? Seems a very sensible proposition for a site of this scale that helps so many developers...
• Christian Gollhardt: While I agree with the first part of your answer, it should be better on a seperate feature-request. Leaving that out, your answer is very thin. Your answer is "Nothing" without explaination.