As you allude to, this is a topic that is some what open for interpretation (hence why this is now the third question about it and no definitive answer).
As I once said:
It seams to me, that there is still no clear different between a good but long answer, and a full tutorial.
When you read http://meta.blender.stackexchange.com/q/62/2217 and http://meta.blender.stackexchange.com/q/476/2217 they are contradictory; but note the dates, BSE has somewhat changed its stance on tutorial type of answers.
Obviously there are some very good, long answers, some are "tutorial" type other are just very detailed.
They can be broken down in to two categories, info (like my parenting answer, and troy_s' answer) and step by step. I think everybody will agree that the first category is not a tutorial, and there is no debate about those answers.
The grey area comes from the step by step answers.
First off, I think the question has more to do with the answer being a tutorial then the answer. While you could (I guess) write a tutorial for something like this, it is much more likely that a tutorial will result from a open ended question (like you linked to), then a pointed topical question.
I'm not saying that "larger" questions do not have a place here, but that we need to decide, and make it clear what is too broad and what is on topic.
Step by step answers are an important part of the answers on our site.
Now to answer your question - what is a tutorial, and what is a step by step answer - I have no idea. :)
More seriously, if you feel it would be easier to record a youtube video, then to write your answer, it is probably a tutorial and you should rethink your answer, and the question should be revised.
A bunch of steps does not make it a tutorial, say you are answering about drivers, there are a lot of steps before you even get to write the driver expression.
That example is a case for omitting non essential parts of the answer. I have done this when talking about addons, I do not want to explain how to install a addon every time.
Out of the list of answers I linked to I would say that Shady Puck's is the most tutorial. (I bet you did not know that "tutorial" could be an adjective) In that answer (sure it is a very good answer) he covers everything: loading in images, modeling, materials, lighting, camera settings, rendering, even composting. That is a tutorial.
Now gandalf's famous black hole, or X-27's bge answers are hugely long and have countless steps, but only cover one specific topic. (In each case the question asked a was pointed.) I do not consider them tutorials but that is up for debate.
If I even try to sum up the difference between a long step by step answer and a tutorial I would say, how much does it cover? Is it just about how to model something, or is it how to make that same something and then render it to a video so I can use it on my youtube channel?
So I would say, keep writing good answers, don't worry too much about the length (concise is always better), and if you find a youtube video, or you wrote a expanded post on your blog, of course add a link (just don't let the link be the only thing in your answer).
Until the day comes when BSE has a clearly defined too broad rule set, we will keep having this type of "hmm, I wonder if I should write a tutorial for this question."
PS this long answer is not a tutorial on how to write answers. :)
