How To Post In The General Forum?

[legacyfan]

Im working on trying to figure everything out so I don't cause problems anymore (by following the rules) and was wondering what the right way to post in the general forum? if anyone could help with this it would be much appreciated

Edited May 19, 2023 by legacyfan

[NotHereToPlayGames]

I am not quite sure I understand the question nor what prompted it to be asked.  I'll offer some thoughts up as "rules of thumb" and allow others to chime in from that.

1)  If you have more than 2 or 3 posts back-to-back with nobody else chiming in, then consider the possibility that you are "talking to yourself".
2)  Always remember that you are writing to a human being that does the reading, you're not talking to your keyboard or your computer monitor.
3)  Remember that this is a discussion forum and not a "blog".  A blog (in my view) is somebody "talking to himself" with an occassional reply.
4)  Read before hitting the submit button and ask yourself, "Am I being informative or am I being spiteful?"  (ie, don't submit something with the agenda of causing an online "flame war")
5)  Remember that you don't have to have the last word in order to have the last word.  Readers can read and know when the discussion is over but people just keep replying for the sake of having the "last word".
6)  Remember that you don't always have to be "right".  You can present your point and let the reader decide.
7)  Excessive underlines, bold, and italics ALL OVER THE PLACE in a post comes across (at times, not always) as AGGRESSIVE, often even RUDE, and can be DISTRACTING and CONFUSING (at times, not always).

[legacyfan]

14 minutes ago, NotHereToPlayGames said:

I am not quite sure I understand the question nor what prompted it to be asked.  I'll offer some thoughts up as "rules of thumb" and allow others to chime in from that.

1)  If you have more than 2 or 3 posts back-to-back with nobody else chiming in, then consider the possibility that you are "talking to yourself".
2)  Always remember that you are writing to a human being that does the reading, you're not talking to your keyboard or your computer monitor.
3)  Remember that this is a discussion forum and not a "blog".  A blog (in my view) is somebody "talking to himself" with an occassional reply.
4)  Read before hitting the submit button and ask yourself, "Am I being informative or am I being spiteful?"  (ie, don't submit something with the agenda of causing an online "flame war")
5)  Remember that you don't have to have the last word in order to have the last word.  Readers can read and know when the discussion is over but people just keep replying for the sake of having the "last word".
6)  Remember that you don't always have to be "right".  You can present your point and let the reader decide.
7)  Excessive underlines, bold, and italics ALL OVER THE PLACE in a post comes across (at times, not always) as AGGRESSIVE, often even RUDE, and can be DISTRACTING and CONFUSING (at times, not always).

thanks for the help @NotHereToPlayGamesIm working on becoming a better member of the forum and wanted to make sure I knew what I was doing before posting again (ive made a lot of mistakes in the past that I want to make right)

Edited May 8, 2023 by legacyfan

[D.Draker]

14 hours ago, NotHereToPlayGames said:

7)  Excessive underlines, bold, and italics ALL OVER THE PLACE in a post comes across (at times, not always) as AGGRESSIVE, often even RUDE, and can be DISTRACTING and CONFUSING (at times, not always).

Add to the list : screaming in CAPSLOCK, "jokes" from non-English users, enormous amount of smileys,  patronising language, cheap sarcasm, adding links to "funny" sources, junk/crap in someone's "signature".

Saying "me too", "I agree" , making up and then writing absolute crap just to fill out space on the forum. 

[jumper]

Good, selective quote.

So also: never redundantly quote the previous post in its entirety. Be selective, or simply respond without quoting.

 

[mina7601]

2 minutes ago, jumper said:

So also: never redundantly quote the previous post in its entirety. Be selective, or simply respond without quoting.

This is already mentioned in the forum etiquette FYI, number 10.

[UCyborg]

And yet, this is occurring regularly. If you want to annoy the person that wrote something, you can just use @ before their name. But no, let's repeat the long wall of text again just after it was posted. Seems some aren't even aware selective quote is a thing.

[D.Draker]

5 hours ago, UCyborg said:

And yet, this is occurring regularly. If you want to annoy the person that wrote something, you can just use @ before their name. But no, let's repeat the long wall of text again just after it was posted. Seems some aren't even aware selective quote is a thing.

On one hand, yes, annoying - on the other, it can and will be misused. I know examples when users (won't tell their names) simply rip out of context and drive in another diriection.

[legacyfan]

3 hours ago, UCyborg said:

And yet, this is occurring regularly. If you want to annoy the person that wrote something, you can just use @ before their name. But no, let's repeat the long wall of text again just after it was posted. Seems some aren't even aware selective quote is a thing.

ive definitely seen people like this on here (that I won't mention for there privacy)

[NotHereToPlayGames]

[legacyfan]

this has been a very informative guide so far (with lots of good tips)

Edited May 17, 2023 by legacyfan

[NotHereToPlayGames]

Yep!  I've seen DOZENS (plural!) of conversations here at MSFN taken out of context and steered in the wrong direction.  DOZENS!

By dozens of different people, no real "common denominator" (some have a common denominator, but not "statistically significant").

Most of the time "by accident".  A few times "on purpose".

I try to just "write them off" as cultural differences and language barriers.  This is a multinational web site.

Points can not often be conveyed ACCURATELY in a tiny sentence or two.  And nobody wants to read a "diatribe" when visiting MSFN.

We all view the world differently and that view can effect just how a tiny sentence is interpreted.  ALL forums are like that.

[NotHereToPlayGames]

It's also human nature to kind of think that the world revolves around "you".

We are all the CENTER of our own world, our frame of reference is always through our own eyes and ears, not somebody else's eyes and ears.

Somebody can wave to somebody BEHIND you, and it is kind of human nature to want to wave back, but some of us can divert that reaction to looking to the side so that our peripheral sees behind us.

That's actually one of my funniest observations in life, I drive with one hand at the steering wheel "at noon" (my vehicles are manual transmission, dislike automatic transmission).

It is HILLARIOUS the number of people that WAVE to me because they see one hand at the top of the steering wheel and they are so self-centric that they think I was WAVING at them.

[D.Draker]

Reads more like projecting,

[NotHereToPlayGames]

That is ONE way to look at it.

One person can be a "glass half full" person.

Another can be a "glass half empty" person.

And NEITHER ONE of them is "correct", nor NEITHER ONE of them is "incorrect".

Truth is not "absolute".  "It's all relative."

Having to choose between two choices does not make the selection 50-50.

The world is not "black and white".

Edited May 18, 2023 by NotHereToPlayGames