In this question
A couple different people helped the OP discover the solution to his problem in comments.
In cases like this, is it best to just suggest to the commenters that they should submit their solution as an answer, or would it be okay to submit an answer myself?
I've noticed there are some users who prefer to leave viable solutions in comments, for whatever reason, but I don't want to step on toes.
Answers should be quality. Things like references, proper formatting, etc. should be included to aim for quality (goes for Questions too IMO).
Sometimes I'm not inclined to leave a quality answer, so I just leave (what has turned out to be) an answer in the comments alone. I helped, the user likes it.
If someone else wants to come along and write a detailed answer with nice links, formatting and spell-check, etc., based on the comments (or just the same knowledge) then more power to them -- and I hope they go edit 50 more questions or answers to improve on them in the same ways.
Just don't be a jerky and pirate the answer from the comments 2 seconds after they show up. :)
On the flip side -- I don't think I've ever actually done it to someone else's comments (maybe?). When I see someone has left the answer in a comment I'll usually add a comment @ them, saying "you should make that into an answer".
In the end, I believe the goal of the Stack Exchange sites is quality Questions and Answers, not Comments. So an Answer is better than a Comment - regardless of the author.
Answers are answers , comments are more often searching around for what the answer might be. If you can formulate a good answer for anything, do it. If it stepped on anyones toes, you would know, because they could have answered it already. Including the Questioner this time.
There is even a goofy badge thing https://superuser.com/help/badges/19/enlightened for those who are quick on the draw but still correct in the answer.
On that one, if you finish it, I can rmove my comment at least, and clean it up a bit.
Just because someone else got selected to have the answer before you got a chance to review and response, doesn't mean their answer can't be improved on. If you have something to contribute, then contribute. Nothing rude about it at all. Anyone who considers that rude is more important about their vanity than solving a problem. Be part of the solution and post an answer. It doesn't matter if it's in the comments or not.
Aside from what techie007 pointed out, I would suggest that you try your best to make sure the person who answered in the comments has a chance to post an answer. In some cases a user will post a comment when they are unsure if they are correct. However the person who asked the question may have indicated the success, but the user who posted the answer has not yet seen the reply.
We can see time stamps, and we can see how long it has been since a user has been online. Thus if it appears that the answerer has had plenty of opportunity to notice the confirmation, then posting the answer your self will be fine - they do not seem inclined to do it themselves. However if it would appear that they would not know that they were correct yet, give it some time.
In cases where many users helped, the original poster may wish to post an answer - since they put it all together. So again check that they have had ample opportunity to do so.
Aside from all that, you are probably fine.
Remember that one goal of SE sites is to be a resource for other. The original asker may be gone, having gotten what they needed, but others may come along and need the same info. A well written answer is going to be a better resource for them than a bunch of comments. So when in doubt, post a good answer - it's for the good of the community.
