# Poll: Linear, Hybrid, or Threaded? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 14, 2004, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-linear-hybrid-or-threaded/269286 "2004-10-14T23:55:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2004, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-linear-hybrid-or-threaded/269286/1 "2004-10-14T23:55:26Z")
(I’m talking about the modes for viewing threads) I have it set to linear, because it’s what I’m used to. I just realized that within any given thread you often get two dopers having their own seperate conversation. I wondered if viewing the thread in ‘threaded’ mode is benefitting that situation. I also wondered who’s set at what, and whether people are interpreting threads differently to the way I am, because their setting is different. So which are you? Linear, Hybrid, or Threaded. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2004, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-linear-hybrid-or-threaded/269286/2 "2004-10-15T00:19:18Z")
Uhhg, I _hate_ “threaded” messageboards. That’s why I’ve never registered at slashdot and rarely read their forums. ---
**Author:** ![shamrock227](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@shamrock227](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shamrock227)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2004, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-linear-hybrid-or-threaded/269286/3 "2004-10-15T00:49:26Z")
Linear. I _hate_ threaded message boards. ---
**Author:** ![Antigen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/848f3c/32.png) [@Antigen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antigen)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2004, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-linear-hybrid-or-threaded/269286/4 "2004-10-15T02:34:43Z")
Linear, linear, linear. I can’t stand the threaded style, and one of the reasons I signed on here (besides the ignorance-fighting and all the awesome people) is the option of reading the threads in a nice linear way. ---
**Author:** ![PigBoy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/97f17d/32.png) [@PigBoy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PigBoy)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2004, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-linear-hybrid-or-threaded/269286/5 "2004-10-15T03:45:01Z")
I didn’t know we had choices. But now that I do, I’m not changing from linear. I am another that hates the threaded type. ---
**Author:** ![Jayn\_Newell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Jayn\_Newell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jayn_Newell)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2004, 11:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-linear-hybrid-or-threaded/269286/6 "2004-10-15T11:27:47Z")
Ditto Pigboy on not knowing, not that I care. I also far prefer linear to the threaded style. ---
**Author:** ![Sami41](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c57346/32.png) [@Sami41](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sami41)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2004, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-linear-hybrid-or-threaded/269286/7 "2004-10-15T11:34:09Z")
What’s the difference? I don’t even know how mine is set, but since I didn’t know there was a choice, I suppose it’s whatever the default option is. I’m relatively new to MBs, this is just the 3rd one I’ve belonged to, and the only one I spend much time on. ---
**Author:** ![35340](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/3/8baadc/32.png) [@35340](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/35340)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2004, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-linear-hybrid-or-threaded/269286/8 "2004-10-15T13:28:11Z")
I ‘grew up’ on both, but when I’m feeling spammy I like threaded (we duel and branch with titles) but otherwise I prefer a more linear approach. ---
**Author:** ![av8rmike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/edb3f5/32.png) [@av8rmike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/av8rmike)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2004, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-linear-hybrid-or-threaded/269286/9 "2004-10-15T15:42:52Z")
Linear, oldest first. Even Hybrid is annoying, because it gives some arbitrary cut-off level. **Sami41** , click on “User CP” at the top of the page, then “Edit Options”. About 1/2-way down is the option to change display style; experiment and see which you like. ---
**Author:** ![RandomLetters](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8edcca/32.png) [@RandomLetters](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandomLetters)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2004, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-linear-hybrid-or-threaded/269286/10 "2004-10-15T16:24:21Z")
Linear user here; threaded mode just takes too much clicking to read every post. With Linear, I can just pop open a bunch of new tabs for each thread with a middle click, and then mouse gesture over to each thread one at a time. ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2004, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-linear-hybrid-or-threaded/269286/11 "2004-10-15T17:17:25Z")
> [@Sami41](#): > > What’s the difference? > > I don’t even know how mine is set, but since I didn’t know there was a choice, I suppose it’s whatever the default option is. I’m relatively new to MBs, this is just the 3rd one I’ve belonged to, and the only one I spend much time on. I believe the default is Hybrid. ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2004, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-linear-hybrid-or-threaded/269286/12 "2004-10-15T17:20:14Z")
> [@av8rmike](#): > > Linear, oldest first. Even Hybrid is annoying, because it gives some arbitrary cut-off level. > > **Sami41** , click on “User CP” at the top of the page, then “Edit Options”. About 1/2-way down is the option to change display style; experiment and see which you like. You can also edit it at the top of every thread page ‘thread mode’ at the top-right (I can’t see it now because I’m in reply to thread screen) ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2004, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-linear-hybrid-or-threaded/269286/13 "2004-10-15T17:21:24Z")
make that “Display Modes” ---
**Author:** ![audiobottle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc8723/32.png) [@audiobottle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/audiobottle)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2004, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-linear-hybrid-or-threaded/269286/14 "2004-10-15T19:21:07Z")
My God threaded is terrible. By the way, default (as far as I know, since I’ve never even knew there was an option I figure the way I had it was default) was threaded. Hybrid seems like some kinda unholy bastard of the two. Does the threaded take less time to load over a slow modem connection? Otherwise I can’t see a benefit to it. ---
**Author:** ![Sami41](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c57346/32.png) [@Sami41](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sami41)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2004, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-linear-hybrid-or-threaded/269286/15 "2004-10-15T21:08:55Z")
Thanks for the explanations guys. And, after trying all 3, here’s another vote for linear. The other 2 are just . . . weird. ---
**Author:** ![Hedda\_Rosa](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hedda_rosa/32/1204_2.png) [@Hedda\_Rosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hedda_Rosa)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2004, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-linear-hybrid-or-threaded/269286/16 "2004-10-16T01:52:34Z")
Linear. Threaded give me hives. ---
**Author:** ![ninetypercent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/9de0a6/32.png) [@ninetypercent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ninetypercent)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2004, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-linear-hybrid-or-threaded/269286/17 "2004-10-16T01:59:53Z")
What’s the difference?