Reply to thread issues

What I hate about the Org is that whenever I make a post, I'm immediately taken to that post, which means I lose my place in the thread I was reading and have to negotiate my way back to that point.

It really makes it a pain in the bum to try and read through and reply to various posts in a thread. It makes it very time consuming and I often give up after one or two posts when really I'd like to post more.

Is there some way to change the functionality of the board so that you are taken back to the post you were reading when you made the post? This simple change would make visits to the Org so much more pleasant. Thankyou.

...on the other hand, you could as well read through the rest of the thread first before posting an answer. I don't want to censor you, but the things you have to say might already have been said by someone else.
If everyone did so, there would be considerably less superflous posts in the thread (superflous in the sense as they state what was already stated, often many times before...), including some of mine ~:)

its called clicking the "back" button. :tongue2:

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Originally Posted by King Jim II

its called clicking the "back" button. :tongue2:

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The back function is what I use, but it's not perfect though. You will often see an outdated "update" in the thread looking at a sub-forum page (i.e. the last post of a thread shown in the sub-forum menu after clicking back once you posted won't be the same as the actual last post). Just click refresh to solve it. :)

Anyway, this thread belongs in the watchtower.

What happens if you declare war with a diplomat, rather than making a suprise attack? Is that perhaps better diplomatically?

What about right-clicking on reply button and using open in new window (or tab) option?

Standard technique with Forums in general is to read the whole thread, noting bits you wish to respond to (I copy into notepad) then when replying, quote each bit before you reply.
Most forum software lets you review the thread in a different window while you post if you wish to review.

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What about right-clicking on reply button and using open in new window (or tab) option?

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This is a good option too :)

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Originally Posted by screwtype

What I hate about the Org is that whenever I make a post, I'm immediately taken to that post, which means I lose my place in the thread I was reading and have to negotiate my way back to that point.

It really makes it a pain in the bum to try and read through and reply to various posts in a thread. It makes it very time consuming and I often give up after one or two posts when really I'd like to post more.

Is there some way to change the functionality of the board so that you are taken back to the post you were reading when you made the post? This simple change would make visits to the Org so much more pleasant. Thankyou.

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What browser do you use? Probably, Internet Explorer I bet. Well, that's half the problem right there.

I use Mozilla, a fully superior browser, one of the benefits is that it allows for "Tabs". For example, with IE, you can have mutliple Windows open, each to a separate site, but that's a lot of clutter.

With Mozilla's tab feature, all those Windows are in *one* Window with tabs located at the bottom. You just hit a tab to go from one window to another. It's the greatest thing since sliced cheese!!!

So, what I do in responding to threads, is in one tab I'll have the thread, and when I want to reply, I just right-click on "Reply" which opens a new Tab, with the "Reply To Thread" window open. I can write my reply, cut and paste, etc., then Submit the post, then Tab right to where I left off.

Mozilla is a Suite, just like IE, with an Email client, etc. If all you want is just a browser, then a simple browser is available with the same features---FireFox, which you may have heard of.

Best part---its all---FREE!

www.mozilla.org

BTW, in all my days, I've never seen "hate" and "the Org" used in the same sentence. At first glance, I'll bet the thread topic touched a few nerves.

'hate' goes a bit too far, but 'mildly irritated' seems about right. I usually read through the whole thread before I reply, but sometimes I want to re-read a previous post for a good laugh or something, and that's where I scowl.

This should be moved to the watchtower.

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Originally Posted by player1

What about right-clicking on reply button and using open in new window (or tab) option?

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Hey thanks for the tip P1. Heck, I've been surfing the net for six years and I didn't even know about this one! I'm afraid I'm not very adventurous when it comes to exploring software.

This is the technique I'll be using from now on - not only at this site, but at others where I've had similar problems. You've just made my online life SOOO much simpler P1 - you don't know how much! ~:cheers:

Tip: Open two IE pages...

One to reply to the thread, the other to keep reading... how do you think I post so much?

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Originally Posted by hoom

Standard technique with Forums in general is to read the whole thread, noting bits you wish to respond to (I copy into notepad) then when replying, quote each bit before you reply.

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Wow, you must have the patience of a saint. I could never do that. It often takes a long time just to read through a thread and there's no way I have the time to go back and read the whole thing through again to make the replies I want to make. My standard technique is to reply as soon as I find a post I want to respond to, otherwise the impulse may be lost.

Anyhow player1 has given me a great technique for dealing with this pet gripe of mine. So now I can handle threads the way I want to :)

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Originally Posted by ToranagaSama

I use Mozilla, a fully superior browser, one of the benefits is that it allows for "Tabs". For example, with IE, you can have mutliple Windows open, each to a separate site, but that's a lot of clutter.

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I used to use Firefox but when I got the latest upgrade it ceased to recognize my connection. So I went back to using IE.

I never got around to fiddling with the tabbing option, although it's something I meant to try out, because I know there are some folks who swear by it.

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Originally Posted by ToranagaSama

BTW, in all my days, I've never seen "hate" and "the Org" used in the same sentence. At first glance, I'll bet the thread topic touched a few nerves.

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If you want people to look at your thread, it pays to advertise... ~;)

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Originally Posted by Papewaio

Tip: Open two IE pages...

One to reply to the thread, the other to keep reading... how do you think I post so much?

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That's an obvious technique, for some reason though I've never used it much. Probably because you have to re-open a new page for every post. Player1's technique saves you from having to do that.

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Originally Posted by King Jim II

its called clicking the "back" button. :tongue2:

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No, clicking the back button doesn't work very well after you've made a post, especially on this board. You have to click back through three or four different screens, and if your'e not fast enough, you end up making multiple posts. And then sometimes the original page doesn't update properly. So it's not much of a solution.

Thanks everyone for your responses.

here you are ~:cheers:
although you could really think about answering to several posts in ONE reply. See, as you stated yourself, it takes the patience of a saint to read through the entire thread, and it does so even more if people are spamming the thread with 5 or 6 replies at once.

The problem of stating the so-often-already-stated still exists that way. I'm afraid reading through the thread first before posting answers is the best possibility, and it will surely contribute to your enlightenment ~;)

Personally I find it quite a bit irritating to see 5 posts in a row from the same poster. Especially when they are also full with quotes. Just read the whole thread and then make your comments. If that means that you no longer want to post then your post probably wasn't worth typing anyway.

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Originally Posted by Duke John

Personally I find it quite a bit irritating to see 5 posts in a row from the same poster. Especially when they are also full with quotes. Just read the whole thread and then make your comments. If that means that you no longer want to post then your post probably wasn't worth typing anyway.

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I didn't especially want to reply to all those posts, but I was trying to be courteous. Thanks for the response though Duke John, it will save me from bothering in your case.

Screwtype, use copy-paste and [$quote] and [$/quote] (without the $) like the rest of us: you like to use the "quote" button next to "Reply", but that only works once. Learn the commands! There is even a quote button in the Guided Mode reply (little button most to the right).

Perhaps you can change the title of this thread: You're irritated by making a reply, you don't exactly hate the org (or you wouldn't post here as much).
Plus i second Duke John:

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Personally I find it quite a bit irritating to see 5 posts in a row from the same poster. Especially when they are also full with quotes.

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Originally Posted by sunsmountain

Plus i second Duke John: I find it quite a bit irritating to see 5 posts in a row from the same poster. Especially when they are also full with quotes.

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In that case, you can get Incompatible language too.

I guess the board could be made to go back to the post which you replied to. Might require a bit of modding though.

In any case, there's really no call for that kind of post screwtype.

Having a tough day?

My post was blunt and to the point, but you could have at least understand that your posting style isn't liked by everybody. I mean it does say something that 99% of the posters only makes one response at a time.

Are there boards doing this?

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Originally Posted by screwtype

In that case, you can get f*****d too.

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~:eek: That was a tad uncalled for. The only other people who constantly double/triple post are all at warning level 3(Which is when you lose the edit button). It's not like it takes much extra time to just edit the first post....

You are entitled to your opinion Mongoose. But then it wasn't you whose posts were referred to as "irritating" and "not worth typing". Perhaps you'd feel a little differently if it was.

I don't mind a bit of constructive criticism, such as that made by Deus ret. above, but when people engage in gratuitous attacks, I don't see why I'm not entitled to respond in kind. Though I concede I could have put it a little more tactfully. I guess I just wasn't in the mood to put up with any more of that yesterday.

As to your suggestion that I could have just put all my comments in one post, you are correct. However I fail to see how this would save anyone much bother, since it would still be the same amount of text. Putting my comments in separate posts used up what - an extra 3 centimetres of cyberspace? Is that really so hard to deal with?

In any case I already said that I responded to each post in this thread individually, not because I wanted to, but as a courtesy to the people who were good enough to respond to my question. I guess I don't much appreciate having an attempt to show some courtesy to others on this board thrown back in my face with some gratuitous insults to boot.

Having said that, I've taken the comments of Deus ret and others on board, and in future will consider integrating multiple posts into a larger post where appropriate. However, since separation of ideas is an important part of good communication, I will also still be "multiple posting" where appropriate. Nobody likes having to wade through mega-posts which contain multiple ideas, so I try to avoid making them.

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Originally Posted by TosaInu

Are there boards doing this?

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You mean, are there other boards which take you straight back to your original position in the thread rather than to your new post? Sure there are, I use such boards all the time.

Not worth typing was a reaction on:

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My standard technique is to reply as soon as I find a post I want to respond to, otherwise the impulse may be lost.

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I have it quite often, I read through a thread, think about making a reply but continuing reading through I refrain since my opinion was already written by many before, or the issue is already solved. My post wouldn't add anything to the discussion and would be "worthless". Sometimes I already start writing and when I am about to submit the post I read it all over again and conclude that it's not worth submitting.

So my reaction was not meant to state that your posts are worthless.

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Originally Posted by screwtype

You mean, are there other boards which take you straight back to your original position in the thread rather than to your new post? Sure there are, I use such boards all the time.

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Also when your original read position wasn't the bottom of a thread? Linear mode? Examples please?

It may be that this board should do it, but that some switch has to be pulled, or maybe I can flag the developpers about this, or maybe it can be modded by the hack community. And maybe the new version (still not gold) supports it.

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Originally Posted by TosaInu

Also when your original read position wasn't the bottom of a thread?

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Certainly. Two of the most popular forums on the net, delphiforums.com and about.com, both use technology that takes you back to your previous position in the thread, ie the post you were replying to, after you make a post.

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Originally Posted by TosaInu

Linear mode?

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Sorry, I don't know what you mean by that.

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Originally Posted by TosaInu

It may be that this board should do it, but that some switch has to be pulled, or maybe I can flag the developpers about this, or maybe it can be modded by the hack community. And maybe the new version (still not gold) supports it.

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I hope so! That would be really cool. Thanks for your interest Tosa.

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You are entitled to your opinion Mongoose. But then it wasn't you whose posts were referred to as "irritating" and "not worth typing". Perhaps you'd feel a little differently if it was.

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True. But the content of the post wasn't irritating, it was they way that it was posted in 5 different posts in a row. ~:grouphug:

Back on topic:

At least it's not as bad as Totalwar.com. Every time you post it takes you out of the thread :dizzy2: Hopefuly the new version of the board will improve it though....

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Originally Posted by screwtype

Sorry, I don't know what you mean by that.

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Display modes, there are 3.

-Linear is the default mode, because something has to be default and that's the mode org users are used too.
-Threaded mode.
-Hybrid mode.

You can find it in your usercp, but also above any forum.

Oh well then, the answer to your question is yes, the "return-to-position" feature I described is available in "Linear" mode ~:)

I asked about this in the official forum and it's not a feature in vbulletin. They are working on a new version, chances that this will be made are slim (as the update is mostly 'engine' based). The official spokesman isn't a coder himself, but it seems this board 'knows' more than it shows. Perhaps a hack can be easily made. For now I can just suggest another little trick: each post has a top link that will hurl you back to the top of a thread, then you can hit another link: view first unread. This isn't failproof, but it can help in some cases.

Thanks for the info Tosa.

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Originally Posted by TosaInu

Perhaps a hack can be easily made

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I hope so. I've found it to be a very useful feature.

Gotta agree with DJ.

Multiposting & needlessly adding in your opinion on an issue without checking if it has been resolved or done to death in the rest of the thread are both poor netiquette.

There are forums where a double post automatically attracts permanent warning points even if you really have genuine reasons for the double post.

Yeah but I didn't do that hoom. I posted a personal reply to everyone who tried to help me out, and contrary to what some people have said, I was addressing different issues in each post.

You know that a new paragraph can signify a new idea/issue? Plus, you can put multiple quotes in each post, so there is no need for triple posting.