"Community" use tips

[rslade]

OK, this isn't going to be a "how to" like @SamanthaO_isc2 's "Getting Started" (which is a good place to start, and explains some of the structures and vocabulary around here).

Like it says, these are some tips.  Some of them might help you find or use things.  Some of them might be termed "netiquette."  Some of them might be directly useful.  Some of them might assist you in putting your best foot (or post, or persona) forward.

[rslade]

You've got a topic to raise.  Or a piece of news to post.  Or an idea to express.  Or a suggestion to make.

Has it been raised before?  Is it really news?  (If it isn't maybe you still have a contribution to make, but maybe make it where others are likely to find it?)

There is, of course, the search bar, which appears on pretty much every page I can recall on the system.  (I've talked about the search function elsewhere.  And noted weirdnesses.  And noted that you can use Google to find most things in here.)  If you type in a word or phrase that has to do with what you want to post about, the search bar will pop up some suggestions even before you commit a search, and you might find some postings already here.

But if you can't be bothered with that, the subject line bar, when you are posting, does the same thing.  Type in a word.  See if what pops up covers what you want to say.  (You might want to go read it, first, before you post yours.)

If the word or phrase you typed in doesn't bring up what you are interested in, you might try synonyms or different words.  Someone else might have thought of it in different wording.

If you can't find anything, you're good to go.  If you do find something, you might want to see what they said.  You might want to reply to what they said, and join an existing discussion, before you post something separate.

[rslade]

So, over in one of the (many, many, MANY!) discussions/postings/topics on the subject of "I passed/failed the exam," somebody made a weird comment in a reply.  And then there were a couple more replies.  And then the originator wrote:

---

@segunng wrote:

I have no clue of what you meant. But thank you. 

---

And then someone wrote:

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@Early_Adopter wrote:

If it was me I was giving @Flyslinger2 props  for his working in the US higher education admissions scandal.

---

And then the originator had to explain:

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@segunng wrote:
My statement ''I have no clue of what you meant. But thank you.'' was directed to Flyslinger2's statement ''Unlike the recent announcements of college entrance scandals this is certainly only by you!'' and not to Early_Adopter.
@Early_Adopter, thanks for the clarification.

---

And then ... well, you get the picture.

The point is, your reply to something might not appear immediately after the posting/reply you meant to reply to.  It's best to be extra clear about what and who you are referencing in a reply.  (Being clear about what you meant in the first place is also a good idea.  Yes, @Flyslinger2 , I'm looking at you  🙂

There are ways to do this.  There is a "Quote" button that is at the top of the editor panel when you are making a reply.  It drops the whole message you are replying to into your reply, and it's kind of clumsy, but, for quoting short messages it works fine.  (For quoting longer messages you can trim parts you don't want, and, if you want to reply to multiple parts of a long message, you can quote multiple times and trim.  But, yes, it's clumsy.)

When you are making a reply, you will notice that, on the Web page created for you to do so, the message you are replying to is down at the bottom of the page.  You can, while editing your reply, scroll down the page and find a part you want to quote, and then copy that, and paste it into the editor section.

(You can also do what I do a lot of, and reply via email, but that gets into "subscribing" and you might want to do a search on "reply via email" and that's basically a whole other topic.)

And, since @AppDefects liked it so much:

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@AppDefects wrote:

@rslade your third message in this thread is fine art and I will probably frame it;) It is one of the rare times I have seen the quoting system used correctly.

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... and wants to frame it, I figured I should sign it:

[Flyslinger2]

@rslade Due to many constraints, visual (I wear glasses and contacts just to see), technical (my web browser is severally limited/restricted based on security policies I don't control), and personal (I find it very hard to read your replies when you start quoting other posts-see the first two whines) I don't use the quoting system.

I'll make sure that I'm more succinct in my comments/replies.

[rslade]

> Flyslinger2 (Community Champion) mentioned you in a post! Join the conversation

> @rslade Due to many constraints, visual (I wear glasses and contacts just to
> see), technical (my web browser is severally limited/restricted based on
> security policies I don't control)

Mea culpa, Mark. I *do* try to keep in mind that not everybody is going to "see"
the same system the same way. I work with colleagues who find problems dealing
with visual and other impairments. I also made some interesting mistakes when I
first started using Twitter (based on the fact that, at that point, many people were
using it via text messaging).

> and personal (I find it very hard to read
> your replies when you start quoting other posts-see the first two whines) I
> don't use the quoting system.

Many people find it hard to read my replies, regardless of whether I'm quoting or
not 🙂

And, of course, as I mentioned, and know very well, the built-in quoting system is
... well, I suppose "awful" is a more apt description. (I was trying to be polite with
"clumsy.")

>   I'll make sure that I'm more succinct in my
> comments/replies.

I don't think concision was what I was going for 🙂

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[AppDefects]

@rslade your third message in this thread is fine art and I will probably frame it;) It is one of the rare times I have seen the quoting system used correctly.

[rslade]

> AppDefects (Newcomer I) mentioned you in a post! Join the conversation below:

> @rslade this message is fine art and I will probably frame it.

Well, thank you. Thank you very much. Certainly the only time to date (and
probably the only time ever) I have been accused of creating art.

> It is one of the
> rare times I have seen the quoting system used correctly.

And it was not easy. But thank you again.

And, since you liked it so much, I went back and signed it 🙂

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leaving early. - Charles Lamb
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