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Does this (now deleted) comment:

Could answering this question be a form of neglect towards good use?

below this question refer to any stack exchange policy? If not, what could it mean - it sounds bad!

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    $\begingroup$ I wouldn't worry about it... I think your question looks fine. $\endgroup$
    – ringo
    Commented Mar 6, 2016 at 1:32
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    $\begingroup$ If I were you, I'd've commented and asked for clarification on what they mean. Whatever they meant, it's not related to any SE policy or concept. $\endgroup$
    – M.A.R.
    Commented Mar 6, 2016 at 18:58
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    $\begingroup$ Thanks @IͶΔ - I did ask the question, thence came the second, weird comment about my "professor" not being "authorized". Noting the strangeness of phrasing and mismatch between question and answer I decided rational discussion wasn't likely. So instead I asked here, where I was confident I could find out more about chemistry.stackexchange policy, and that it would be somewhat less likely to run into conspiracy theorists. $\endgroup$
    – uhoh
    Commented Mar 7, 2016 at 5:13

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Could answering this question be a form of neglect towards good use?

I do have no concrete idea what the intention with this comment is. But I can guess. I think that s/he actually refers to fair use. From the linked page:

Fair use is a legal doctrine that permits limited use of copyrighted material without acquiring permission from the rights holders. [...] Examples of fair use in United States copyright law include commentary, [...], research, [...] and scholarship. It provides for the legal, unlicensed citation or incorporation of copyrighted material in another author's work under a four-factor balancing test.

Within this I think that asking for certain values appears legally to be okay. But I am no lawyer, so what do I know.

However, the question itself is not quite such a good fit for the network: Should we allow data questions? You should probably consider stressing that you are looking for an open access data base. Also include where you have looked previously, like NIST webbook. And if possible, then an extension of our resources post would be great, too.

As an additional action I will clear the comments, because I find them distracting.

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  • $\begingroup$ Thanks for your help! I'll edit the question now. While the title "Open access source for the...", and the phrases "Can someone help me find...", and "...or even better a link ..." tend to suggest I'm looking for an open access source, I can try harder. I've tried a variety of google searches, but since I don't have a background in chemistry I wouldn't know where to begin to search specifically. $\endgroup$
    – uhoh
    Commented Mar 7, 2016 at 10:48
  • $\begingroup$ Yeah you are right, it is quite obvious, sorry. Try NIST from our resource post, then include if you found something... $\endgroup$
    – Martin - マーチン Mod
    Commented Mar 7, 2016 at 11:02
  • $\begingroup$ Thanks! Actually your advice is quite helpful and I've substantially revised the question accordingly. $\endgroup$
    – uhoh
    Commented Mar 7, 2016 at 11:30

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