Friends, Forumers, BuffyBuds, lend me your ear

[Skanky Vamp]

Are there are certain members whose posts you go out of the way to read, posts from forum members in which you search for and respond quickly?

Do you covet certain members posts or certain topics? I have found myself lately altering the methods in which posts I respond to, and which posts I try to avoid. Certain members I will converse with and those I just give a one or two word answer to.. have you went through anything similar?

 

[Edmund Blackadder]

No .

 

[Relic]

Without naming names, yes. There are some very smart, level headed people on the boards. I have not found anyone that I avoid or do not enjoy talking with, but there are a handfull of people that will pull my intrest toward a thread when I see they have replied to it.

As far as me changing how I reply to someone with one or two word answers. No, I don't do that. I don't talk frequently around here, but when I do it is ad nauseam. 🙂

 

[Floop695]

I e-stalk Nerd4Hire... but don't tell him 😛

 

[anyatara]

Usually, no. But if there are two topics I'm wanting to read, each by a different member, I'd probably read the one by the member I thought would have more to say, or make a better point, first.

 

[Aly Fan]

I dunno, erm i guess there are a couple of people who's views i rarely share but i never avoid them...i find it interesting to see another point of view on what ever subject it is. I tend to stay away from insanely long first posts unless it's a topic i'm really interested in.. And now i think of it there isn't people i follow to check there comments but there are usually a couple of people who generally share the same views i do on most things so i enjoy reading what they have to say.

 

[Edmund Blackadder]

I dunno, erm i guess there are a couple of people who's views i rarely share but i never avoid them...i find it interesting to see another point of view on what ever subject it is. I tend to stay away from insanely long first posts unless it's a topic i'm really interested in.. And now i think of it there isn't people i follow to check there comments but there are usually a couple of people who generally share the same views i do on most things so i enjoy reading what they have to say.

Thats the point.
You come to a forum, you should follow the topic not the poster.

I disagree with one person in one thread and agree with them in another. Its not about the poster, its about the post.

If I did want to be 'friends' with a specific poster, then I wil talk to them on VM and PM maybe even an IM and THEN I will follow that person in that space, but not in the main forum.

 

[Relic]

Interestingly enough, most of the people I follow, so to speak I've disagreed with on things. It's not that they are my friends or I value them more than others, it is moreso that they have shown me their ability to see things with an open mind and are capable of debating without hating, or that they have an entertaing quality to their back and forths with me, or they are just plain crazy intelligent..

I do follow the topics not the posters, but a topic is only as interesting as the people posting in it.

 

[Floop695]

Thats the point.
You come to a forum, you should follow the topic not the poster.

I disagree with one person in one thread and agree with them in another. Its not about the poster, its about the post.

If I did want to be 'friends' with a specific poster, then I wil talk to them on VM and PM maybe even an IM and THEN I will follow that person in that space, but not in the main forum.

I see your point, but I don't think you should follow only the topic or the poster.

I think you should go with whatever you prefer to do. Having said that, you'd obviously be less likely to get the full effect of the board if you're only following one person but following a poster who is enjoyable to read can lead to finding a few threads you wouldn't have read otherwise.

 

[Blondie Bear]

I pay more attention to the topic. If it's something I'm REALLY not interested in, it doesn't matter who's been posting in it. If I'm only vaguely interested, I might read it if I'm interested in what a particular poster has to say (and also not naming names, there are a few posters who I'm more interested in than others). There are a few threads I follow religiously and a few I might drop into if the discussion starts to get interesting. It all depends.

 

[Washburne]

There are certain members that I from time to time "stalk" to see what they´ve posted. Not very often but it has happened more than once. It has absolutley nothing to do of the quality of their posts and most likely I won´t read most of the posts. It´s more of a check up. "What has x been writing lately? Something I wouldn´t want to miss?" So that is based on personal relationships.

Are there certain members I try to avoid getting into discussion with or members that I look for to try to get into discussion with? I don´t think so even though the limit of expressing myself sometimes stops me from getting into discussions.

Am I more inclined to read posts by a certain member? Sometimes. But the same goes as for the first answer. Has more to do with personal connections than quality of the post.

Do I read certain threads first depending on the subject (the topic)? Yes, of course. I don´t go by date. I look at the first page of "New posts" and first click on the ones that catches my interest the most. Is there a certain section that always get my attention? VH of course but after that no even if I do post most in Social studies.

Do I answer differently depending on the member I´m answering? I would love to say no but I´m not sure that´s totally true. My feelings for the the member I´m answering may affect me. But it doesn´t mean that I´m using fewer words or are more "mean" to people I don´t like just that the style can be different. I hope it isn´t so but I´m aware that it can be.

 

[Edmund Blackadder]

I see your point, but I don't think you should follow only the topic or the poster.

I think you should go with whatever you prefer to do. Having said that, you'd obviously be less likely to get the full effect of the board if you're only following one person but following a poster who is enjoyable to read can lead to finding a few threads you wouldn't have read otherwise.

Do you come here and go straight to your favourite poster, click 'posts made by' and just read them or do you go and click 'New thread'?

Over time you do begin to notice a pattern.

Like I am sure certain members could see a topic started on this board and go 'Ohh, EB will be posting in that thread, I can guarantee it'.

Do you then go into the thread because you think I have posted in there or do you go in because its a new thread/interesting title?

I like Lyris posts, I think they are intelligent and well thought out, but to be honest I don't go into a thread because of her - heck I stay away from art threads and I know for a fact she posts in there.

You go for a topic. You can assume someone is gonna post in it and get a buzz when they say something even, but if you're not there for the topic, there isn't much point to be there at all.

 

[Floop695]

Do you come here and go straight to your favourite poster, click 'posts made by' and just read them or do you go and click 'New thread'?

Over time you do begin to notice a pattern.

Like I am sure certain members could see a topic started on this board and go 'Ohh, EB will be posting in that thread, I can guarantee it'.

Do you then go into the thread because you think I have posted in there or do you go in because its a new thread/interesting title?

I like Lyris posts, I think they are intelligent and well thought out, but to be honest I don't go into a thread because of her - heck I stay away from art threads and I know for a fact she posts in there.

You go for a topic. You can assume someone is gonna post in it and get a buzz when they say something even, but if you're not there for the topic, there isn't much point to be there at all.

I'm a creature of habit, i go to the few sections of the site that I post in and then if I tire of them, i'll search for someone's post. I'll then go to a thread they've replied in and if I like the topic, i'll read it and post. If I love your posts but see something in "blahblahblah math" (I don't like maths 😛) i'm not going to read it.

 

[Relic]

For me the answer is obvious, I do go for topics I enjoy first, but to prioritize that order I will check to see how many people are actively in the thread as well as see who's participating.

I don't think there is anything wrong with that, the people that garner my attention now have earned it by how I see them behave, and by the knowledge and both the ability to learn, and help me learn, they have displayed on threads back before I had a feel for how they 'are'.

I've gone to threads as experiments of sorts that I might not normally go to on a slow day and enjoyed it because a person who's opinion/character I value has drawn my intrest there. I've also walked away from threads on other boards that I was enjoying because an influx of people displaying bad behavior has taken it over.

If I see a pattern, sometimes I imangine I short change myself by staying away from topics posted by poo-poo heads, even if the topic interests me simply because I don't want to risk wasting the time getting all worked into a tizzy.

I go to forums for pleasing talk about topics I enjoy, that does not mean it must be an echo chamber where everyone agrees with me but I'd also like to not get attacked over some written drivel. I also like getting the most bang for my buck so I prioritize my experience to try and make it the most enjoyable it can be in the amount of time I have.

 

[Blondie Bear]

Oh, and there are a few people who I avoid like the plague because they tend to make me angry just by being on the boards. But they're few and far between.

 

[Kali]

Generally, because I have so little time to read posts I just hit for recent posts. Then I'll scan and see what has been posted in Social Studies and my house, so I don't usually follow a member. Sometimes though, when the boards slow down a bit, you'll find the same 3 or 4 people posting consecutively (particularly in the house) so you inevitably build up a reparte with some people, and know that you will respond to those particular members differently because there's a history, in jokes etc..

As to whether I respond differently in general to some members than others? Some I won't even respond to, because I know it will rapidly descend into chaos, and I don't have the time. Some I won't respond to because I feel the post is not worth the effort, as some posts don't interest me. But sometimes it is great to get an answer from certain members, because you know you can get a debate going. All depends on the members really.

So I suppose it depends on my mood at the time, and whether the post is by a member whose body of comment I respect and admire.

Unless it's one by Buffy Summers (do I get a brown nose award there??)

 

[Clem Rocks]

If i see a topic i wouldn't usualy read has had it's last post by someone like Lou, BoF or YC. I'll read it anyway, so yeah, i have

 

[Tueuse de Vampires]

For me it's not at all about who posted it. I either use the New Post button, or I go directly to the subforums I feel like writing in. There I then go for the topics that sound interesting. I don't pay attention at all to who had participated.
What I do pay attention to sometimes is how many people have replied to a topic yet. If it's a Buffy/Angel specific question and there's tons of replies already I often think to myself 'nah, somebody probably already said what I would say at some point', so in said subforums I prefer the threads with less replies.

And man, some of you make me very paranoid. I am now scared that you might all be avoiding my posts 🙁

 

[StuckinTraffic]

There are some people I tend to "follow," because the opinions and thoughts of those people are usually interesting to me. Sometimes I agree with them, sometimes I don't, so it's not that they're of the same mindset as me. I like to hear differing opinions, it's what makes for good discussion. I don't come to the boards and read ONLY those posts, tho. I read the topics that interest me, and if one of those people happens to have posted on that thread, great. I can kinda say that I'll seek out the threads that these people are reading, posting on, but I don't do a lot of searches on the boards, so I can't say how they stand out for me. I DO look at Who's Online all the time, and I'll click on threads that people are reading, if the topic seems interesting.

I guess I probably do respond differently to different people, and just don't realize it. There is one person here that I consider a friend (by MY definition of friend, which is a bit more involved that just an online friend. I have quite a few online board "friends," only ONE actual friend) and I can say with certainty that I respond differently to that person than I would to anyone else, simply because of the history. With the exception of that one person, tho, I don't think I respond differently to individual posters.

 

[Blondie Bear]

I have noticed that if a mod was the last person to post in a thread, I always check to see if the thread got closed. And if it was Buffy Summers, I always click on it, just in case she's said something important.