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I sometimes find questions that look interesting, or badly need a review, but sometimes the OP requests certain things to be reviewed, like "algorithm correctness", or "performance help". Sometimes I lack the knowledge needed to answer those parts, which means I feel like I can't answer the question, even if there are other glaringly wrong parts with it, like style, or a mis-typed condition.

Should I just leave a comment in these situations, or is it okay to post a review?

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    \$\begingroup\$ possible duplicate of Jack of All Trades, Master of None - Let's work together to offer ultimately better content, faster \$\endgroup\$
    – rolfl
    Jul 20, 2015 at 19:50
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    \$\begingroup\$ @rolfl Sort of similar, but not quite a duplicate. I'm more asking about specific requests from the OP. \$\endgroup\$ Jul 20, 2015 at 19:54
  • \$\begingroup\$ Hmmm, also, the linked question has no answers, and it is an answer, really, not a question. Dups on meta can be complicated... and an answer is needed somewhere. \$\endgroup\$
    – rolfl
    Jul 20, 2015 at 19:56
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    \$\begingroup\$ Sometimes (frequently), I actively ignore the asker's questions. \$\endgroup\$
    – nhgrif
    Jul 20, 2015 at 20:03
  • \$\begingroup\$ Hmm... I could have sworn that I did answer this somewhere. Anyway, the gist of that answer was to be polite enough to acknowledge OP's request and admit that you can't help with that, "but this over here could use some attention". \$\endgroup\$
    – RubberDuck
    Jul 20, 2015 at 21:54
  • \$\begingroup\$ Sure, do whatever you believe brings most bang for the buck. Other people may prefer to address other issues and save them dealing with what you've covered. For example, I like to concentrate on performance (or correctness), so it's a good fit. \$\endgroup\$
    – maaartinus
    Jul 24, 2015 at 21:53

1 Answer 1

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Yes, it is implied with every Code Review question that "any and all aspects of the question can be reviewed". From the help center:

  • Do I want feedback about any or all facets of the code?

As a consequence, any answer that addresses any aspect of the code, whether the user asked for that aspect, or not, is acceptable as an answer.

Whether the answer is a good answer, or a bad one, depends on the actual answer itself, and how it affects the voters.

But, a request by the asker, to focus on a specific aspect of the code, is just that, a request, and can be ignored.

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    \$\begingroup\$ While I agree with this, I think that sometimes we don't focus enough on the user's questions. \$\endgroup\$ Jul 20, 2015 at 20:42
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    \$\begingroup\$ @SimonAndréForsberg the way I see it, OP's specific points make criterion for a green checkmark - nothing more. Any answer that addresses any aspect of the code is legit nonetheless. \$\endgroup\$ Jul 20, 2015 at 21:20

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