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I saw this question here and people are recommending OP to throw it away because repairs will probably cost more than a new item. OP seems to say that is indeed the case in one of the comments.

But in general, do you think it's a good idea to just throw it away? Why not sell it through a used items store as a damaged item? Or give it away?

Personally I don't think throwing away a piece of tech (any tech, not just cameras) is a good idea, especially if most of it is intact, and someone with experience might be looking to buy these for parts or to fix at home and get a lot more use out of it.

What do you think about this? And what do you think about advising one way or another to users?

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This isn't really a meta question. You disagree with some answers to some questions. That's fine, but the correct solution is to write what you think is the correct answer.

In rare cases where you think other answers are just plain wrong (not just differences of opinion), you can downvote them. Personally, I set a higher bar for downvoting competing answers than downvoting answers to questions that I didn't also answer. Naturally we all think our own answers are the best, but be extra careful not to ding others just because they are competing with your answer.

After that, the community will decide which answers it thinks are better than others.

What to do if your answer ends up at the bottom of the list?

  1. Nothing. The community has spoken. Get over it.

  2. Look it over and see if you can clarify the writing. Maybe it didn't get upvoted because it was poorly written or hard to understand.

  3. Perhaps add more justification as to why it is correct, and others are wrong. Show hard evidence when possible.

What NOT to do when your answer ends up at the bottom of the list?

  1. Spam the other answers with comments trying to tear them down. The exception is pointing out a clear and objective error. Your answer is where you get to contrast your approach with that of others.

  2. Come here to meta whining about how the rest of us should have answered differently.

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    \$\begingroup\$ This answer seems emotionally charged. I didn't intend to make the impression that I am more right or wrong than others. I just want to find out how people think about recommending reuse and repair instead of recycling. I think this question is relevant to all hardware sites on SE. In my opinion we should strive to not just answer the questions as written, but to also steer people into becoming a better society in general, and I think giving away a fixable item is a trivial thing to do compared to just throwing it away. And I wanted to get community input on that. Is that a bad meta question? \$\endgroup\$ Jul 19, 2018 at 11:26
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    \$\begingroup\$ "In my opinion we should ... blah blah blah". Then go write that as your answer, instead of trying to preach to others that they should write it as their answers. \$\endgroup\$ Jul 19, 2018 at 11:31
  • \$\begingroup\$ "Is that a bad meta question?" Yes, as I already said. Re-read my first sentence. \$\endgroup\$ Jul 19, 2018 at 11:31
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    \$\begingroup\$ @user1306322 - I wouldn't take this answer as emotionally charged. Olin can be a bit... direct... at times, but what he's saying is good advice and believe me, this is him speaking level headed at you, not upset. This really isn't a meta question and he's spot on that the way to deal with a wrong answer is to a) post a correct answer that is well written and well supported and b) post a brief comment asking the incorrect answer about the problems with the post. Don't get in to an intended discussion in comments, but feel free to use chat if they are willing to discuss. \$\endgroup\$
    – AJ Henderson Mod
    Jul 19, 2018 at 17:44
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    \$\begingroup\$ If it's not a good meta question, it's certainly resulted in a good meta-discussion. \$\endgroup\$ Jul 20, 2018 at 17:16
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But in general, do you think it's a good idea to just throw it away? Why not sell it through a used items store as a damaged item? Or give it away?

All issues of what constitutes a good answer aside, there's simply this: these items aren't meant for consumer-level reuse and recycling. You might be able to get a few dollars for a damaged camera honestly sold as such, but probably not much more — and all the effort of doing so including shipping is probably worse in terms of net impact than just turning the camera in to your city or town's e-waste recycling program.

I get that it sucks for reasons both environmental and personal-economic, but that's just the reality.

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