Adjust old answer to add in info that may be out of scope?

Question

This question is most likely going to be marked as a dupe of this question.

While I agree that the two are very similar, the answer of the older Q doesn't involve any advice for film shooters when discussing ISO.

Film was outside of the parameters of the original question - but if these two Q's are really duplicates, then the film advice is warranted in the answer of the older Q. Would it be wrong to edit the older answer with additional info, especially in cases where that info may have been outside of the original q's scope?

Answer 1

It seems like exposure is exposure: either you've got enough light to make a good exposure, or you don't, regardless of the recording medium. Your answer includes film options that would help the OP shoot at higher ISO, but the OP doesn't actually ask about that or say exactly why shooting on film is more confusing than digital.

If you feel that your answer says something that'd be useful to capture, then either:

1. Add a new answer to the question that's being left open, perhaps with a bit of introduction like "Here's what I'd recommend if you were shooting on film..."

2. Create a new question that actually asks the question you're trying to answer, and then answer that.

Answer 2

Generally, yes it would be wrong. Even though StackExchange allows/encourages edits to all questions and answers, the original author's name is still the primary attribution for a post. Substantial content edits or additions are essentially putting words in the author's mouth.

This comes up periodically when somebody answers with objectively incorrect information or statements. The voting system, not editing, is how these should get handled. Assuming it's an otherwise legitimate answer (meaning, it addresses the question), the poster has the right to be wrong, and voters have the right to penalize wrong answers. But it's still their answer.

In this case, as in addressing objectively wrong answers, the correct course would be to create a new answer at the old question, addressing film issues.

Additionally, the original older question might need to be edited slightly to make it more generic to both digital and film photography.