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Should you post if you haven't properly read?

post #1 of 38
4/12/07 at 5:56pm
Thread Starter 
Does anyone ever have an experience on TCS or other forums where you get/see responses and it's clear the person posting hasn't really read the original post? I'm not saying anything bad about TCS itself....in fact, by far the vast majority of replies are very helpful, insightful and pleasant. But sometimes, I see posts where I'll think to myself "Wow, that guy didn't even scan the original post!"

I find this really frustrating. I know it's time consuming to read posts and quicker to just skim and then reply, but if you don't have time to read it, it seems like you shouldn't post until you do have the time.

I know that when it happens, the person is well-intentioned, but it just bugs me.

What do you guys think?
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post #2 of 38
4/12/07 at 6:03pm
It bugs me too...I had at least one personal experience with this. I'll skip the details but I was looking for help with an unspayed female. I think you can relate.

I do agree, though...that the majority of repsonses are helpful.
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post #3 of 38
4/12/07 at 6:10pm
I do that sometimes but that's when I am really tired, but not often.

I get distracted easily if there are long posts BUT I will read it depending on what time I have. I do think the person who just posts and skims it isn't wrong, per say. I just think they are trying to be helpful and give their advice/opinion but just go about it a different way. but that is just my 2 cents.
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post #4 of 38
4/12/07 at 6:14pm
I think sometimes it can really rub ya the wrong way if it seems that preson is way off on what you wrote or what someone else wrote. Most of the time people reply back to that person re telling them...clearing it up.

I just dont like when your words are taken out of context and people twist things. Not so much here...the fourm is mostly good chatter and warm posts.
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post #5 of 38
4/12/07 at 6:18pm
I read fast - always have, and probably guilty of not reading the post right the first time before replying
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post #6 of 38
4/12/07 at 6:49pm
Sometimes people don't really know what to say.So, they jsut say hugs/vibes/ or what have you..........just so you know that someone has read your post and you aren't being over looked.
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post #7 of 38
4/12/07 at 6:50pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by crittermom View Post
Sometimes people don't really know what to say.So, they jsut say hugs/vibes/ or what have you..........just so you know that someone has read your post and you aren't being over looked.
my thoughts exactly!!
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post #8 of 38
4/12/07 at 6:57pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by crittermom View Post
Sometimes people don't really know what to say.So, they jsut say hugs/vibes/ or what have you..........just so you know that someone has read your post and you aren't being over looked.
That's not what I'm talking about. I mean when you post about something and the response is completely off base from what you were talking about.

I wouldn't consider vibes or a non-specific comment of good will to be an off base post.
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post #9 of 38
4/12/07 at 6:58pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Miagi's_Mommy View Post
I do that sometimes but that's when I am really tired, but not often.

I get distracted easily if there are long posts BUT I will read it depending on what time I have. I do think the person who just posts and skims it isn't wrong, per say. I just think they are trying to be helpful and give their advice/opinion but just go about it a different way. but that is just my 2 cents.
I definately don't blindly post..but if I am reading a runon paragraph for 3 minutes, and I get the gist of it, I will reply before I have read the entire thing...thats only if I am tired though.
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post #10 of 38
4/12/07 at 7:03pm
Your 2 cents is good by me Miagi
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post #11 of 38
4/12/07 at 7:06pm
I try to read everything but ...
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post #12 of 38
4/12/07 at 7:14pm
I try to read the entire thread, but if it is long, sometimes I skip to the most recent answers... I try to at least make sure I've read the entire original post and get it, but sometimes I miss...
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post #13 of 38
4/12/07 at 7:51pm
I try to read the entire thread as well, but if it's really long, I usually just read the original post and a few of the responses and add my two cents.
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post #14 of 38
4/12/07 at 7:55pm
Yes its frustrating but people are human. People may have read the original post and misinterpreted it. Live and let live I say....
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post #15 of 38
4/12/07 at 8:07pm
or they could be answering someones else post?
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post #16 of 38
4/12/07 at 8:08pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by minxie View Post
Yes its frustrating but people are human. People may have read the original post and misinterpreted it. Live and let live I say....
I agree with the live and let live stuff. I do find it frustration sometimes, but I'm not suggesting a lynching
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post #17 of 38
4/12/07 at 8:48pm
I find that frustrating too - good example - the original poster states the problem, says they have taken the cat to the vet and someone posts "You should take the cat to a vet"!

Being a mod, I have to read a lot of posts and it's time-consuming so when I see that type of post I have to admit it is frustrating for me.
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post #18 of 38
4/12/07 at 8:56pm
I try to never post with out reading everything in the thread, plus I'm generally truly interested in what everyone has to say. I'm more of a reader than a poster anyways.

I do find I notice it happening in the Pregnant Cat and Kitten Care section a lot, but most often, another poster or the OP or a mod will point that poster in the right direction or tell that poster what they missed.

I do feel sometimes I wish people would read a little more carefully, but for the most part it doesn't really matter.
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post #19 of 38
4/12/07 at 9:33pm
There are times when I just cannot or do not have the time to read the entire post/thread. So....I will state "I didn't read everything...." or whatever & toss out my 2 cents. Or if I think something is important, I will duplicate another poster's post.....just to stress that idea/topic.
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post #20 of 38
4/12/07 at 10:14pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Yosemite View Post
I find that frustrating too - good example - the original poster states the problem, says they have taken the cat to the vet and someone posts "You should take the cat to a vet"!
I know you see it a lot, so it's more annoying to you, but I see stuff like that and laugh it off with a '' to myself. Maybe it's because DH does the same thing, I'll tell him something and I know he wasn't completely listening.

I read every post because I do not want to sound like a broken record and repeat what 5 or even 20 posters said before me. If I don't have time to read everything, then I don't reply. There's usually a thread with less posts and surely an OP that would like having someone reply to it.

And I agree some posts being difficult to read, DH calls posts like that "wall of text".
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post #21 of 38
4/13/07 at 2:48am
i've been both on the receiving and giving end of this.....sometimes it's just an honest mistake and other times people don't want to take the time to read everything.....what is kind of annoying is when the thread title is one thing and the rest of the thread morphs into something else....do you answer the original poster or the new topic. fortunately this doesn't happen often because of our great mods!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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post #22 of 38
4/13/07 at 2:54am
It is very easy to miss something even if you have read the thread, especially if you're tired, are reading between a cat's ears or are reading in a minimised window at work! I do try to read the whole thread before I respond but if it's very long I don't always have time. Generally then I won't post but if I've read the first page or so and the last few responses I might feel I want to say something. I've also missed something in a post before. I once responded to a post by asking someone if their cat had been neutered. I read the entire thread (only about 5 posts) twice before responding and still failed to see the bit where the OP stated that the cat was neutered. So genuine mistakes can happen. It can be annoying but tbh there are bigger things to worry about and I don't let it bother me.
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post #23 of 38
4/13/07 at 2:56am
I always make sure I read the Orignial post, however, I'm guilty of not reading all of the posts in between.
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post #24 of 38
4/13/07 at 4:04am
Quote:
Originally Posted by strange_wings View Post
And I agree some posts being difficult to read, DH calls posts like that "wall of text".

I always try to read the whole original post but sometimes I can only grasp some of the facts due to loooong sentences without a break for a nice paragraph. Unfortuntaely even some of the more interesting posters on tcs are guilty of this
Can I also point out that we have a lot of different nationalities on tcs and this can lead to confusion in its own way
Otherwise, yes I do try to read all the posts before replying
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post #25 of 38
4/13/07 at 4:17am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ReesesPBC View Post
I try to read the entire thread as well, but if it's really long, I usually just read the original post and a few of the responses and add my two cents.


I usually read the OP, then the responses afterwards, just to see if the question was answered. Yes, sometimes I don't read the entire OP if its long BUT I will read the responses afterwards to gather the information.

If the thread is long, I read the first page and the last 2 pages so that I'm not responding to a question that has already been answered 20 posts ago.
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post #26 of 38
4/13/07 at 2:45pm
Thread Starter 
I just think that, if you're going to respond, you should at least read the OP.....if it's too long to get through, then maybe don't respond or respond with a simple message of good will (vibes or what have you), but don't offer advice on how to handle the problem if you're not willing to spend the few minutes it would take to find out what the problem is.

I understand there is the potential for misinformation, though, when responding to the long posts....sometimes they can be confusing or digress. But what about a short post? Say, about the size or smaller than this one. If you're not willing to spend the time to read the facts of a short post, should you really be commenting? It just seems disrespectful to me...as though you're too busy or unwilling to read it, so the OP should end up with a stock answer that doesn't apply to them.....
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post #27 of 38
4/14/07 at 10:26pm
i think people get bugged way to easily
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post #28 of 38
4/15/07 at 3:11am
Quote:
Originally Posted by strange_wings View Post
And I agree some posts being difficult to read, DH calls posts like that "wall of text".
I normally skim over long posts without paragraphs, they are just too hard to read.

Even though someone may have taken the cat to the vet in original post, sometimes they need to be told get a second opinion, so that's not completely irrelevant.
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post #29 of 38
4/15/07 at 1:12pm
I think saying 'get a second opinion' is very different to 'take your cat to a vet' when they have said they have. I will usually at least read the first post and skim the rest of the posts before replying.

As far as walls of text, I don't read them and usually won't reply to them. It is just too difficult to read and without all the facts from it, I wouldn't be able to reply properly and so don't reply. A part of me also says that if the OP can't be bothered to make their post coherent enough to read, I won't waste my time trying.
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post #30 of 38
4/15/07 at 1:36pm
I think this depends on whether the OP is serious or not.

When a person does not commit to reading the whole thread in Health or Behavior forums they should not reply, unless its vibes. We could lose a person who we could have helped by doing this, and bottom line its the kitty that suffers.

Its fine to skim other threads and answer but I would advise caution.
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