# How often do you ditch a reply to to a thread? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 11, 2008, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-ditch-a-reply-to-to-a-thread/437123 "2008-02-11T05:17:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![freckafree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/freckafree/32/3050_2.png) [@freckafree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freckafree)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2008, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-ditch-a-reply-to-to-a-thread/437123/1 "2008-02-11T05:17:55Z")
I do it all the damned time. I begin typing a response, but at some point I say to myself, “Meh. Who the hell cares?” And I ditch it. I’d estimate that my ratio of ditched responses to posted responses is about 5:1. When I consider threads I’ve thought about starting but then have ditched, it’s more like 10:1. What about you? (I can’t believe I actually posted this instead of ditching it.) ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2008, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-ditch-a-reply-to-to-a-thread/437123/2 "2008-02-11T05:22:31Z")
Nev ---
**Author:** ![gwendee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/35a633/32.png) [@gwendee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gwendee)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2008, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-ditch-a-reply-to-to-a-thread/437123/3 "2008-02-11T05:27:33Z")
I’d estimate about 3:1. There aren’t very many threads I read before someone’s already posted the same point I’d have made. ---
**Author:** ![Strain\_of\_Thought](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3be4f8/32.png) [@Strain\_of\_Thought](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Strain_of_Thought)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2008, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-ditch-a-reply-to-to-a-thread/437123/4 "2008-02-11T05:28:16Z")
Heh. I often start really long, rambling replies to threads, but then lose momentum, copy the reply to an unfinished replies folder and never touch it again. Sometimes I have to stop for a while, and when I come back and read my post over I decide I sound a leeetle out there and I should probably just keep the whole thing to myself. Repeatedly rewriting and re-editing the posts until they make sense just takes too long. ---
**Author:** ![Randy\_Seltzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ee7513/32.png) [@Randy\_Seltzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Randy_Seltzer)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2008, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-ditch-a-reply-to-to-a-thread/437123/5 "2008-02-11T05:28:48Z")
I’m glad I’m not the only one. I ditch responses all the time. Before I hit ‘submit’ I always sit back and read over everything I’ve written, and ask myself, “Does this add anything to the thread?” Half the time, the answer is no, and I just leave the page. I’ve also got a nice collection of OPs I’ve ditched at the last minute and have instead saved on my hard drive. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2008, 5:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-ditch-a-reply-to-to-a-thread/437123/6 "2008-02-11T05:34:17Z")
[QUOTE=Czarcasm] Nev [/QUOTE] Seriously, if it’s short and sweet I usually post it, but if it’s a long and rambling missive I’ll go ahead and do a quick check to see if somebody has already said the same thing, only better. If so, I dump it. ---
**Author:** ![Orual](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/779978/32.png) [@Orual](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orual)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2008, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-ditch-a-reply-to-to-a-thread/437123/7 "2008-02-11T05:37:10Z")
I don’t know an exact ratio, but it’s far, far more than I actually post. ---
**Author:** ![jackelope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a6a055/32.png) [@jackelope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackelope)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2008, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-ditch-a-reply-to-to-a-thread/437123/8 "2008-02-11T05:40:03Z")
[QUOTE=Strain of Thought] Heh. I often start really long, rambling replies to threads, but then lose momentum, copy the reply to an unfinished replies folder and never touch it again. Sometimes I have to stop for a while, and when I come back and read my post over I decide I sound a leeetle out there and I should probably just keep the whole thing to myself. Repeatedly rewriting and re-editing the posts until they make sense just takes too long. [/QUOTE] Same here; I often start long, ramblig replies to threads, but then realize that I’ve spent the last three paragraphs talking about stuff that’s of no interest to the OP, so I go back and try to shorten, then realize it’s better to let it go. If I had a main point, it’s probably obvious anyway, so let someone else say it. ---
**Author:** ![Malienation](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4af34b/32.png) [@Malienation](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malienation)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2008, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-ditch-a-reply-to-to-a-thread/437123/9 "2008-02-11T05:43:49Z")
Not that often. Most of the time, it happens like this: I spend a half hour or so on a long post, only to realize that I’ve covered only about 1/3 or so of the salient points I need to hit to make a coherent argument. Sometimes, I read any points posted since I started, only to realize there are additional arguments to make, thus extending my post still further. Then I figure, ah, fuck it, I’ll be here all night if I continue… ---
**Author:** ![pepperlandgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f17d59/32.png) [@pepperlandgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pepperlandgirl)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2008, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-ditch-a-reply-to-to-a-thread/437123/10 "2008-02-11T05:44:36Z")
I’d say I dump 8 out of 10 responses I type. For a variety of reasons. Sometimes it’s because it adds nothing to the thread. Other times, because I’m not entirely sure of the information I’m posting, and I’d rather dump the response than actually research. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Blue-Sighted\_Shadow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecae2f/32.png) [@The\_Blue-Sighted\_Shadow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Blue-Sighted_Shadow)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2008, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-ditch-a-reply-to-to-a-thread/437123/11 "2008-02-11T06:00:25Z")
I ditch mine most of the time. Someone else has usually said it better, faster. Or I’ve rambled on too long, revealed too much, or decided I was being too argumentative, and didn’t feel up to the ensuing argument. (Even when I \*knew \*I was right.) I usually edit and censor my posts right out of existence. (I edited this post a bunch, too, but I’m going to post it anyway.) ---
**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2008, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-ditch-a-reply-to-to-a-thread/437123/12 "2008-02-11T06:40:41Z")
Somewhere between 1out of 2 and one out of 3. ---
**Author:** ![Blue\_Mood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac91a4/32.png) [@Blue\_Mood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blue_Mood)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2008, 6:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-ditch-a-reply-to-to-a-thread/437123/13 "2008-02-11T06:42:20Z")
Never. For the reasons mentioned above I don’t reply very often, but if I do decide to reply I go ahead and do it. If a preview shows something relevant has been added in between I just edit the post, but still submit it. ---
**Author:** ![UncaStuart](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uncastuart/32/404_2.png) [@UncaStuart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncaStuart)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2008, 6:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-ditch-a-reply-to-to-a-thread/437123/14 "2008-02-11T06:43:47Z")
Heh. Look at my join date and my post count. And then consider that I come to the Dope 'most every day of the week. I think my ditch ratio is about a gazillion to one. A lot of what\*\* The Blue-Sighted Shadow\*\* said, too. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2008, 7:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-ditch-a-reply-to-to-a-thread/437123/15 "2008-02-11T07:50:48Z")
About half. Of those, a quarter because it’s a "me, too’ variation, and the other quarter because emotions or insults are running high in the thread and I don’t care enough about the topic to put myself in the path of that. ---
**Author:** ![installLSC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/54ee81/32.png) [@installLSC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/installLSC)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2008, 8:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-ditch-a-reply-to-to-a-thread/437123/16 "2008-02-11T08:06:15Z")
The only time I bail on posting is when my computer times out on me. I’ve got this weird thing about increasing my post total. I just see my low total and for some reason I think I’m not keeping up. True, a lot of my posts are trivial, but that’s true for a lot of posts. ---
**Author:** ![Nanoda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Nanoda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nanoda)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2008, 8:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-ditch-a-reply-to-to-a-thread/437123/17 "2008-02-11T08:42:44Z")
Less than 1/5. If I start to type up a response, I’ve normally passed the point at which I would give up due to repetition or dullness; I also post primarily in GQ, where if I have an answer that no-one else has brought up and I’ve started to type it, I’m going to post it. For thread starting, It’s more like the other way around. I start to type, add in information for context, decide it’s too long and boring and edit it down, then realize I didn’t search properly for my new edited question, wait through the lame board search timeouts, find a good enough answer on Google, consider posting it for everyone else’s benefit, start to re-word my post for MPSIMS, then give up. ---
**Author:** ![Ice\_Wolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/dfb087/32.png) [@Ice\_Wolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ice_Wolf)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2008, 8:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-ditch-a-reply-to-to-a-thread/437123/18 "2008-02-11T08:57:52Z")
From time to time. The little voice will say, “Oh, hey, that’s _beyond_ pointless, isn’t it?” And I will agree, and hit the back button. ---
**Author:** ![puppygod](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@puppygod](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puppygod)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2008, 9:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-ditch-a-reply-to-to-a-thread/437123/19 "2008-02-11T09:19:52Z")
About 50%. And that’s only responses that I actually started typing. There is also huge number of these that I started to compose (or even composed) in my head before realizing “Aww, hell with this”. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tof](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cdc98d/32.png) [@The\_Tof](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tof)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2008, 9:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-ditch-a-reply-to-to-a-thread/437123/20 "2008-02-11T09:58:30Z")
My ratio would be very high… both on replies and threads potentially started that never were. (I am also counting times when I read the OP- consider my own answer- and then find somebody else posting my answer somewhere down in the thread. This happens a lot in Cafe Society and IMHO) But more than anything, just like the OP stated… I usually start to post and lose my steam halfway through, thinking “Ahh, who the hell cares anyway.” [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-ditch-a-reply-to-to-a-thread/437123.md?page=2)