Do you read through the thread before posting?

[Spot's Meow]

I always read all of the posts in a thread. If a thread is more than 3 pages (I have it set to show the highest number of posts on a page, so most threads are only 1-2 pages in my view), and I haven't been following it from the beginning, I probably won't click on it because I don't feel like reading through the whole thing.

The only exception to reading every post is when people start getting chatty in a thread, usually 2 or 3 people just talking back and forth to each other, in which case I skip past their posts and focus on any "real" conversation.

 

[rhubarbodendron]

lovely new avatar, Spot's Meow! Jedi Geordy - lol quite a tongue twister!

I try to read the whole thread, but like most others have already said it's hard when it's a very long thread. In that case I tend to just read the first page properly to get an idea of what it's all about. Then I skim over the next pages to find out what positions have already been stated and then I read the last 2 pages properly again to see where the discussion is atm (because very often threads here go off-topic after a while).

Enjoy your (well deserved!) vacation, HIjol and don't forget to pack the long undies. You're propably not used to our northern summers anymore

 

[bbjeg]

...interesting...so far, there is anything but a majority that read through the posts before posting...does that imply that you need to get into a thread early, or your posts might be missed?...I am not referring to the "5 word" or "describe in one word" or other threads like that...

I want to say I've read the "5 word" story completely in the threads I post in though it doesn't feel like I went through that many pages.

I try to read the whole thread to see whether I can contribute or whether someone else has already contributed what I wanted to say...

This...

I always read all of the posts in a thread. If a thread is more than 3 pages (I have it set to show the highest number of posts on a page, so most threads are only 1-2 pages in my view), and I haven't been following it from the beginning, I probably won't click on it because I don't feel like reading through the whole thing...

... and this, but my pages are set to twenty posts.

I like to throw a dart at my computer screen and whatever post it hits, that's the one I reply to.

Now, T, we both know better than that...any thread you reply to contains your thoughtful comment and wonderful wit...

teacake derails threads like the best.

 

[Melakon]

Depends. In this one's case, it was the first time I'd seen it and it was on the main page, so I read beginning with the first post. After a dozen or so, I was wanting to skip ahead, but instead skimmed down to here.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

I like to throw a dart at my computer screen and whatever post it hits, that's the one I reply to.

Now, T, we both know better than that...any thread you reply to contains your thoughtful comment and wonderful wit...

teacake derails threads like the best.

To paraphrase Douglas Adams:

teacake is definitive. Reality is frequently inaccurate.

 

[Amaris]

Well, not that much ice cream, but maybe with the butter.

 

[CorporalCaptain]

Didn't take long to drift off-topic! I'm lost!

 

[MacLeod]

Most of the time, though as others have said it depends on how many pages it is when I join it.

 

[Leviathan]

TL; DR

 

[Miss Chicken]

Depends on how long the thread is - if a thread is too long i will post but usually begin my post with a statement that i haven't read the whole thread.

The one thing I'd like to see would be a Trek BBS archive storing certain topics. Often a new poster isn't aware of previous threads, starts a new one and we all post the same arguments again which we've already posted a couple of times in other threads.

i don't mind topics being rehashed because members come and go, attitudes change over the years and and quite often two threads on the same topic end up being quite different from each other. If someone is sick of the topic they can just avoid the new thread.

 

[Otto Harkaman]

Sometimes depends on the topic

 

[MacLeod]

Depends on how long the thread is - if a thread is too long i will post but usually begin my post with a statement that i haven't read the whole thread.

The one thing I'd like to see would be a Trek BBS archive storing certain topics. Often a new poster isn't aware of previous threads, starts a new one and we all post the same arguments again which we've already posted a couple of times in other threads.

i don't mind topics being rehashed because members come and go, attitudes change over the years and and quite often two threads on the same topic end up being quite different from each other. If someone is sick of the topic they can just avoid the new thread.

True, and I'd rather a new thread rather than brining one back from the dead.

 

[shivkala]

As with most of the posters in this thread (of which, I read the entire thread before posting), I usually try to read the whole thread if I'm going to post in it. I don't want to repeat what's already been said. I'd rather my comment have something unique to it. Most longer threads, unless I feel what I want to post is all that important, I tend to ignore and go on to shorter, newer threads. Half the time I make it through a long thread, I give up on adding a new comment and move on.

I remember seeing Captain America: The Winter Soldier about three weeks after its release in the US. I read through the entire thread before posting, which seemed like a chore. Actually, to be honest, I think I skimmed the first few pages, as they were all posts about the movie before its release, I started reading carefully once people were actually posting after seeing the movie.

I find most TV and movie threads are like that, and if I'm posting about the actual TV episode or movie after watching it, the discussion before people actually see it is irrelevant to what I'm posting.

The exception to all this is if it's a thread asking a personal question (e.g. Miss Chicken's 10 questions about your family thread) or one of those "What song are you listening to now"/"What did you have for dinner last night"/etc. threads. In those cases, I view the thread as being a repository of information that might interest others, but for me, I'm just interested in posting information that others will find interesting.

 

[Nerys Myk]

Usually. Though sometimes, when a thread explodes quickly, it's hard to catch up. At that point I begin skimming.

 

[RJDiogenes]

I prefer to read every post-- I feel like I'm being rude if I don't. A lot of times I just won't even look at a thread with a lot of posts, because I know I won't have the time to catch up. If I've already posted in a thread and it suddenly grows a dozen pages overnight, I'll try to read it all, but sometimes I'll skim through, or even jump to the last couple of pages, out of necessity.

 

[SPCTRE]

TL; DR

Oh look, butterfly!

 

[rhubarbodendron]

Didn't take long to drift off-topic! I'm lost!

the thread stayed on topic for almost 1.5 pages and later even returned to the topic. That's pretty much a record I'd say!

 

[bbjeg]

...
I remember seeing Captain America: The Winter Soldier about three weeks after its release in the US. I read through the entire thread before posting, which seemed like a chore...

I know your troubles.

 

[Jono]

Depends on the topic. Stuff like this I generally don't bother since it doesn't really matter what others have said before so I don't need to worry about repeating things already said.

For others, if the thread is too long I'll probably just read the first page and the last page or two.

 

[shivkala]

...
I remember seeing Captain America: The Winter Soldier about three weeks after its release in the US. I read through the entire thread before posting, which seemed like a chore...

I know your troubles.

The funny thing is the more time I put into reading a thread before I post, the less time I think I spend on keeping up with the thread after I post.

Another interesting question and one I am guilty of, is how many people continue read a thread to the bitter end. Personally, when I notice people aren't responding to what I posted, I tend to forget about the thread and move on. Egotistical? Most likely. But, especially in longer threads, I feel that if I've read 10+ pages, commented, and no one is engaging in my comments, everything that's been said has been said. More often than not, I notice the thread has either veered mostly off-topic or, perhaps even worse, has become focused on a small, insignificant thing someone said on page 3 that everyone and their mother is now debating.

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