It is challenging. Students have to do exactly what the instructor demands of them, because only she knows what they need to do to be successful. It is a difficult strategy for people to pursue on their own, because without that expert guide, people flounder and will quit if they don't meet with some initial and continuing success. People who like this approach are ones who say they don't learn much from lectures. We needs some wins from time to time to keep playing.
Some users are more resourceful than others in finding their own answers.
However, one way to help users support one another would be to encourage the use of the list serve. It might be an idea to publish short bios with email addresses, maybe, of willing users. IRM would need to offer some support in this as well. An archive of FAQ, seeded by IRM, might be of help.