Papers in PDF format

Since the Help-Exchange system is entirely dependent on the good will of the users, some mechanism is
needed to assure that load balancing is fair and that there is a clear limit to the workload that any user might
sign up for. Provision is made for the user to increase or decrease this limit at any time as long as the balance
between the right to ask questions and the obligation to answer questions is kept. The system utilizes a simple
barter system: answers are considered as credits for the right to ask questions. In an ideal world, one might
wish for an even exchange, the right to ask one question in exchange for providing one answer. Unfortunately
economic systems are not so simple and some "float" is required to assure economic stability in the system.
Initially, we ask that each user agree to answer two questions for each one that they ask. As we gain
experience with the system, this may be changed.
Anonymity
Both the person asking a question and the person supplying an answer may elect to be anonymous. We felt
that this was important in a cross-disciplinary dialog. In newsgroups, the "newbee" is often discouraged from
asking what might be interpreted as "dumb" questions. Of course, no-one can be an expert in all domains, so
there is no good measure of what might constitute an improper question. Unfortunately, since newsgroups are
designed to broadcast to a large audience, an innocent question is often discouraged through intimidating
"flames" from the more experienced users. Referral to the frequently asked questions (FAQs) is not much help
because these are typically not well organized and may be heavily laced with jargon which is unfamiliar to the
novice. In contrast, we felt that it was important for a user posing a question to remain anonymous.
Likewise, a user providing an answer may wish to retain a degree of privacy and decide whether or not to
reveal their email address to the person asking the question. The commitment expected of an expert in
response to any question is thereby limited to a simple answer (and possibly one follow-up question). At any
time in the dialog, either party may elect to reveal their identity and thereby invite the other party to establish a
longer dialog outside the system.
The desire to respect privacy can also compromise the security of a system. In the Help-Exchange system, the
administrator is given privileged access to the identity for all correspondents so that in the event of clear abuse
by any user, their account may be closed. (see Security below)
The Question/Answer Dialog
A user posing a question selects the category in the taxonomy that, to the best of their understanding, best fits
the topic and for which an expert or experts exist. The question is then posted to the system and assigned to
one of the experts in that category. An algorithm is used to conserve "wealth" in the system, so the question
will probably be posted to the expert who owes the most answers, for example.
The next time that expert logs into the system, they will see that a question is in their mailbox. Of course,
some significant time might elapse before a user logs in, so an email message is sent to notify an expert that a
question has been posted to them.
Once the expert reads the question, an answer may be composed and sent, or if the expert does not know the
answer, the question may be referred to another expert, either in this domain or another chosen by the expert.
If the question is referred, appropriate email messages are sent notifying both the person posing the question
and the newly selected expert. The system keeps track of referrals so that the same question does not cycle
back to an expert who has already seen it.
Once the question is answered, an email message is sent to the user who posed the question to notify the user
that the answer is in their mailbox. If the user feels that the answer is not sufficient, the user may ask one
follow-up question which is routed back to the same expert, again ensuring anonymity. Since some context
has now been established for the question/answer pair, no referrals are permitted at this point.
Time-outs
The use of email is slightly problematical since it resorts to a second parallel communication system which
also retains state. Once sent, an email message may not be retrieved! The expert might be on vacation, or