Lurker's confessional

chamberlain

At this moment there are 83 people viewing D&D and about 3 people posting. Granted, it is a quiet time of day, but still, that seems to be quite a few people on the outside looking in without contributing, myself among them. I have been lurking here or G&T for years. I remember the big forum crash of years ago, opening pages of nothing but goatse. I remember the downfall of linkville. I am here enough to recognize names and remember what some people think, but not enugh to keep up on everything. (where did nameless go, did he change his name? did he die?)

So why don't we post more? Personally, I find this subforum the most interesting but the most intimidating. There are quite a few very smart people here, smarter then I am, anyway, and it is interesting to watch them argue. I love the science threads but can usually only follow them for a few pages without feeling really, really dumb. Of course it's also fun to watch threads devolve into yelling, name calling, and jailing as well. There have been a few of those in row, usually starring the same people, and they make for a good Springer fix. (I'm looking at you, penis trimming thread)

I don't think there is a fix, nor would I want to change anything, it is the nature of a forum based on debate. However, I do have a challenge: lurkers, why do you not post? Afraid? Embarassed? To good for us? Don't have arms? Register and contribute! (read the rules first) The absolute worst that can happen is you will be ignored, then again you can go back and hide in the corner and observe again. Or maybe there will be a few more conservative posters to even things out a bit, maybe give Ryuprecht a hand.


Nah.


TL, DR: lurkers, make poast on why you don't make poast!

Dichotomy

but

but if they post here, are they really lurkers anymore?

MikeMan

To an extent, lurking is important, because we all know what happens when people who post don't know the "feel" of any given community, so to speak.

But I do think more people should post. Free exchange of ideas and all that. Plus, I'm sure I speak for a lot of us when I say I'm tired of arguing with the same people over and over again. :P

Although loren and I haven't had a good religion thread to jump in in a while.

Raggaholic

I've never understood what TR,DL meant. Clearly it's the short version, but I've never known what the letters were for.

MikeMan

TR;DL means nothing.

TL;DR means "Too long; didn't read."

Richy

Well, I usually keep Firefox open on the D&D index or the [chat] thread, so I can just refresh once in a while. Plus, if I'm reading an interesting thread and I have to leave, I just keep it open where I left off. So I guess I contribute to the "viewing" numbers.

And I'm typing this in the "quick reply" box. Does it make me count as "viewing" or "posting"?

Spackle

The more you lurk the less of a chance that when you do post, you don't fuck it up and find yourself back peddling.

Mahnmut

Too long; didn't read. If someone includes a tl;dr at the end of his own post, it translates more as, "Too long; didn't read? Then..."

Aldo

I usually don't post because someone already said what I wanted to say. So I poast in [chat] instead. :? Hmm.

MKR

Richy wrote: »

Well, I usually keep Firefox open on the D&D index or the [chat] thread, so I can just refresh once in a while. Plus, if I'm reading an interesting thread and I have to leave, I just keep it open where I left off. So I guess I contribute to the "viewing" numbers.

And I'm typing this in the "quick reply" box. Does it make me count as "viewing" or "posting"?

Leaving the tab open doesn't contribute to the number. You would need to access the page from time to time.

chamberlain

MikeMan wrote: »

To an extent, lurking is important, because we all know what happens when people who post don't know the "feel" of any given community, so to speak.

But I do think more people should post. Free exchange of ideas and all that. Plus, I'm sure I speak for a lot of us when I say I'm tired of arguing with the same people over and over again. :P

Although loren and I haven't had a good religion thread to jump in in a while.

I thought they were automatically getting locked at 10 pages anyway.

MildQuixotic

Im' out of my depth in here almost always--so I try not to pipe up

chamberlain

Mahnmut wrote: »

Too long; didn't read. If someone includes a tl;dr at the end of his own post, it translates more as, "Too long; didn't read? Then..."

Or a lack on confidence that anyone would read the whole thing when they didn't recognize the name of the person posting it.

mcdermott

chamberlain wrote: »

The absolute worst that can happen is you will be ignored, then again you can go back and hide in the corner and observe again.

If you think this is the worst that can happen, you've not been lurking here long enough. ;-)

But yeah, I don't know why somebody would lurk after a while instead of posting. It's important to lurk at first (like for a month maybe), but eventually you probably ought to jump in and say something...or move on. Find something that interests you more.

Marty81

Well there's a lot of stuff here to read. I wouldn't feel comfortable posting in (contributing to) a thread if I hadn't read a good chunk of it first.

I also don't feel like getting pulled into internet debates very often, so I usually only post if it's a fairly innocuous topic or if I have something I have a very strong desire to say.

Gooey

Aldo wrote: »

I usually don't post because someone already said what I wanted to say. So I poast in [chat] instead. :? Hmm.

Hi5!

Voth

I just don't have enough time to keep up with the threads to really contribute enough to D&D. So, I just post a little bit in the chat thread when I find a conversation I can have some input on.

Leitner

Gooey wrote: »

Aldo wrote: »

I usually don't post because someone already said what I wanted to say. So I poast in [chat] instead. :? Hmm.

Hi5!

Yeah, I rarely in non chat thread threads for the same reason.

Gooey

Gooey's Life/D&D Rule of Expressing Yourself:

I find that the best policy in life is to voice 1 out of every 20 thoughts* you have. If you're like me, your brain goes at 1000mph and there's a lot of fluff floating around in there.


* 1 out of every 50 in ryuprecht's case.

The Pastry

I dunno, I guess I don't post more because I don't consistently have time. I made about ten posts I think around a year ago, and quickly realized that you had to spend a considerable amount of time contributing to be recognized. At this point, I'm sort of a casual lurker. I'll drop in every so often to kill time, maybe make a post if I feel like I have something unique to contribute (not often).

IIRC it was the Creepiest Sh*t thread that got me here originally, and while I enjoyed putting my 2c into the moral relativism thread after that, I just never really got up the enthusiasm to become a regular contributer...

Cheezy

I don't post because I am intimidated by pretty much everyone, and ditto on things I want to say already being said.

Jast

Haha, lurking. On one forum I've been registered for three years and only have 150 posts. Most of those came within the first few months of me being registered there. Most of my posts on this forum have been in threads that I myself started or the game on threads. Man I miss the Chromehound days when the lobbies would be split.

Veevee

I don't post very often simply because what I would post has already been posted. If its something I agree with very strongly I'll quote it and add my own spin, but more often than not it has been said a million times before and I hate being that guy that says it for its 1,000,001st time.

And of course, this has already been said.

Aldo

Veevee wrote: »

I don't post very often simply because what I would post has already been posted. If its something I agree with very strongly I'll quote it and add my own spin, but more often than not it has been said a million times before and I hate being that guy that says it for its 1,000,001st time.

And of course, this has already been said.

Oh, but you're not the 1,000,001st this time. So yay.

The Raging Platypus

I just want to chime in and say that lurking around this particular forum for the past two years continues to be one of my favorite workday pastimes. I find the discourse here to be consistently intelligent and frequently hilarious. And I'll be honest- when a newcomer barges in here and starts tossing around shallow, unsubstantiated arguments around in hot-button threads, I derive no small amount of pleasure in watching the D&D stalwarts go to work. I usually end up learning something I didn't know before, and I get a kick out of puzzling through some of the more esoteric arguments being put forth. Hell, for example, I credit Cat for greatly increasing my understanding of feminism, and turning me into an avid Pandagon lurker. :P

As to why I don't post all that much, well, like the OP said, it is a bit intimidating. You better know your shit here, because if you don't back up your assertions with well-reasoned arguments, or God forbid, start arguing in bad faith, people here will tear you up. Every once in awhile I'll get the itch to contribute to, say, a thread on determinism vs free will. . . but by the time I finish examining my post from every conceivable angle, someone else has already posted my thoughts, and did a better job to boot. So it's just more fun to sit back and read at a leisurely pace.

I have mad respect for how people here can spit out long, coherent posts at the drop of a hat. :^:

LateNite

Honestly? I never have something to say that someone hasn't already said. But it's at least interesting, and often enlightening, to read some of the threads that go on here.

Picardathon

MildQuixotic wrote: »

Im' out of my depth in here almost always--so I try not to pipe up

I'm not the smartest bulb on the christmas tree, but I post here often. At worst I get embarrased on the internet (oh noes!) and sharpen my debating skills to use against people in real life.

Aldo

I think most regulars spend a lot of time on their posts as well. At least, the ones making sense do. :P As long as you know how to find sources you're probably good to go. Oh and don't get angry, that seems to be the weak point for a lot of newcomers. :?

Mishra

From my experience, either a threads moving so fast I don't have I don't have anything to contribute by the time I've red the arguments. Or I just can't commit to a 4 hour long internet debate. The speed at which people post makes it so that a lot of the time I can't rebut a rebuttal, and thus my posts get ignored or buried.

kaz67

While I do post from time to time, I do my fair share of lurking. In most cases its just because I have nothing new to add to the discussion or I don't want to skim through 10+ pages to make sure I don't bring up an issue that has already been dealt with.

chamberlain

kaz67 wrote: »

While I do post from time to time, I do my fair share of lurking. In most cases its just because I have nothing new to add to the discussion or I don't want to skim through 10+ pages to make sure I don't bring up an issue that has already been dealt with.

I almost never see a thread when it is first beginning. Although it does seem that most threads become cyclical after 15 or so pages. Same arguemnts, differant profanity.

Thaiboxer

Since the new forum was put into place I post even less than I used to. I like the Joined dates, I figure if someone has been around for over a year and they hadn't been scared away or banned, they might be able to debate a little bit.

Now, unless I recognize a name there is no way for me to know if a poster is cool asshat or just your run of the mill noob asshat :P

DevoutlyApathetic

Everyones join dates are in their profiles that you can see by clicking on their name there Thaiboxer.

I don't post much in "real" threads because a majority of them I'm ignorant on. A few special cases I know a bit about and will comment on but they're almost always quagmires waiting to happen...

MikeMan

D&D is like petrified molasses compared to some other forums. That's why I like it.

chamberlain

Thaiboxer wrote: »

Since the new forum was put into place I post even less than I used to. I like the Joined dates, I figure if someone has been around for over a year and they hadn't been scared away or banned, they might be able to debate a little bit.

Now, unless I recognize a name there is no way for me to know if a poster is cool asshat or just your run of the mill noob asshat :P

Some of us would still fool you. If I could get my name from the old, old forum unlocked...

Sceptre

Sometimes I post if I feel particularly vehement about something, but most of the time someone else is already arguing my point of view. I find it just clogs things up if a lot of people burst into a thread and go "YA ME 2". That being said, a lot of the science threads are always really heavy. I'm pretty sure some of the guys who post in their are specialists in the field, so I like to wait for the one guy to come in and ask for the simplified version.

an_alt

I mainly lurk because I check the forums from work and don't want to blow half a day on a rebuttal or looking up sources. I do enjoy a lively debate, but it's just so time sucking to do good job of it. I like to put in an occasional shot, but I generally ask myself if I'd be willing to argue a point to death before I reply.

Tav

A lot people here a lot smarter then me. I find it enjoyable to read what they have to say about something, since I can usually go into a thread and learn something I didn't know before.

Also, I haven't been here long so I'm still learning the ropes of how the forums work.

MrMister

I read more than I post. It's because there aren't that many threads which meet the criteria for being worthwhile to post in. A thread should:

1) Be interesting (fuck sports threads)
2) Be in an area I have reasonable competence (politics threads interest me, but I rarely have much to add)
3) Not have degenerated into either:
3a) Everyone whaling on the dumb guy(s)
3b) A hundred poasts a minute (circumcision thread)
3c) Two people doing line-by-line responses to each other.

That doesn't happen that often.

TDM

Because you are here to entertain me.

Thaiboxer

DevoutlyApathetic wrote: »

Everyones join dates are in their profiles that you can see by clicking on their name there Thaiboxer.

I don't post much in "real" threads because a majority of them I'm ignorant on. A few special cases I know a bit about and will comment on but they're almost always quagmires waiting to happen...

That's cool. I thought they were gone altogether, but still, kind of a pain to click don't ya think? I'm just griping now...