@0x29A said:
I could’ve just pasted him my ~50 byte payload and maybe tried to answer some questions following that, but instead I took 20 minutes out of my day and wrote a fairly detailed write-up specifically for him on how it was done. It taught him how to do it, I learned a couple things merely explaining each individual step, and if he ends up sharing it, so be it… there’s no copy & paste solution, just reading material for others. Sure there’s a leader board, but we don’t – shouldn’t be measuring epeens here, we’re all intellectuals. We should all think of ourselves as students and teachers. Do your part in the community. Learn together!
For me, this is the best thing about HTB. I have certainly had times where something has stumped me (often stupidly obvious things as well) and I’ve asked for help. I can’t tell you how grateful I am if someone can explain the solution to me, rather than give me an answer. If I can then understand it well enough to explain to someone else, all the better.
On the whole, everyone can approach HTB in whatever way they want - it doesn’t affect me. If they are in a rush to get every box and just want the flags handed to them, I don’t mind. They have as much right to experience it that way as anyone else. However, for me, I want to learn new things and explore ways of thinking I might not be used to.