A question received let +40 votes. Then someone else post a duplicate question .
Then should it be down voted besides being flagged for duplicate?
A question received let +40 votes. Then someone else post a duplicate question .
Then should it be down voted besides being flagged for duplicate?
I've always felt it is a bit harsh to downvote a question just because it is a duplicate.
I suppose the fact the question is a duplicate shows a lack of effort from the OP because they should have searched the site first. However the site search isn't especially good and I often only spot duplicates because I remember seeing the original and possibly even answered it.
You do get cases where even a trivial search would have found the original, and in these cases I find myself strongly tempted to downvote though I usually just leave an acerbic comment instead.
But at the end of the day site members can, and should, downvote according to their consciences. We are, after all, just trying to make the Physics Stack Exchange a better place.