# Posting styles you hate **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [November 5, 2011, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posting-styles-you-hate/601999 "2011-11-05T22:13:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![Apex\_Rogers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e480ec/32.png) [@Apex\_Rogers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apex_Rogers)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2011, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posting-styles-you-hate/601999/121 "2011-11-08T18:56:21Z")
> [@Steve\_MB](#): > > Any post that cannot be understood without clicking on a link. > > That goes 10^google times if the link is to YouTube. I’m not sure I get the complaint. Would you prefer posters describe the link in excruciating detail, obviating the need to even click it? Seems a bit overkill to me… Could you point out some examples or come up with one yourself? Perhaps a link that would make this post make sense? ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2011, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posting-styles-you-hate/601999/122 "2011-11-08T20:25:06Z")
For example: “What is your favorite scene in any TV show?” Bad reply: “This” (assume a link on the word “This”.) Good reply: “When Spike counts his five words on _Buffy_” (Assume a link somewhere in that). * * * Anyway, another thing that bothers me is when somebody searches for a thread, finds it, then links to the thread _with the search term highlighted_. C’mon, can’t you be bothered to remove the “&highlight=ThisBothersMe” tag? ---
**Author:** ![bucketybuck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/898d66/32.png) [@bucketybuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bucketybuck)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2011, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posting-styles-you-hate/601999/123 "2011-11-08T20:37:19Z")
> [@drastic\_quench](#): > > :rolleyes: \<– That shit right there should get your ass banned. I can’t believe it’s allowed as heavily moderated as this place is. I once considered just writing a pit thread about the rolleyes smilie, but, you know, I was just too lazy to do it. Use it to describe some off-board situation sure, but directing it at other posters is just being a fucknut. It really is the calling card of the moron. Every time I see it I picture some fat greasy little cretin puffing the bangs out of their eyes before deigning to write some stupid reply with what they think is cutting wit. If all you can offer for a reply is the internet version of [Kevin the teenager](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kfHM568oBWg&feature=related), then perhaps you should just fuck off. There is one user here who uses it all the time. The thing is, she is notorious for having a completely fucking useless life, who is she to roll her fucking eyes at anybody? Bitch too dumb’t know it though. ---
**Author:** ![drastic\_quench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e36b37/32.png) [@drastic\_quench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drastic_quench)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2011, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posting-styles-you-hate/601999/124 "2011-11-08T22:30:57Z")
> [@choie](#): > > Jeeze louise, **drastic** , you’ve got three of the same ones [I listed myself earlier in the thread.](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=14433963&postcount=76) That’s almost Bingo! Heh. Jinx. I owe you a Coke. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Robson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gary_robson/32/3448_2.png) [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2011, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posting-styles-you-hate/601999/125 "2011-11-08T22:53:41Z")
Number one to me is the people who post without reading the rest of the thread first. That’s actually one of the reasons I post so little in the Pit. All of the active threads seem to have hundreds of replies, and I don’t want to read that much before commenting – but that doesn’t stop a lot of people from just dashing off a response that’s been dealt with already. the 2nd has to be … intentional flouting of language conventions … like punctuation and capitalization and paragraphing … and all those other things that make your writing readable A personal little pet peeve is references we can’t all follow. For example, “the comment at the top of page 3 of that thread.” It may be page 3 to you, but it would be halfway down page 1 for me and the top of page 7 for someone else, depending on our “posts per page” settings. Other example would be links to expired searches, links to paid content, and links to pages that require registration. People who think they can’t swear outside the Pit, and people who think they _have_ to swear in the Pit. Adding, “Oh, yeah – this is the Pit – shit piss fuck” to the end of your post just isn’t funny anymore. Nor is “s\*\*t” or “G\*d” outside the Pit. Either find a different word or just spit it out. Except in thread titles. Keep those clean, please, for when I read the Dope at work. On the other hand, I just don’t see all the hate for signoffs. Who cares, as long as they’re short and sweet? > [@Acsenray](#): > > – when someone posts a link with no description of the video, audio, or text behind the link. Please provide a summary or a quote of the relevant portion. If its an image of a celebrity at least provide identification. This bothers me much more since I’ve become a moderator _because we actually have a board rule against it._ ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2011, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posting-styles-you-hate/601999/126 "2011-11-09T00:14:03Z")
I despise posts that are obviously going against the grain, followed by 100 carriage returns, followed by a smiley face to show everyone you were really kidding. Ho! Ho! I was shaking my head at you while scrolling, then I kept scrolling until I got to your winking smiley! Ya got me! What a card! ---
**Author:** ![EvilTOJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee59a6/32.png) [@EvilTOJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EvilTOJ)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2011, 6:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posting-styles-you-hate/601999/127 "2011-11-09T06:34:29Z")
I hate it when people post before they get to the end of the thread. It’s an- FUCK!! Dammit Wombat! ---
**Author:** ![Sri\_Theo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f04885/32.png) [@Sri\_Theo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sri_Theo)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2011, 9:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posting-styles-you-hate/601999/128 "2011-11-09T09:56:31Z")
I can’t stand I read the title as _this_ type posts. What’s supposed to be funny about the fact that you can’t read? At least make a pun or something if you want to make a joke. Also in Soviet Russia stuff didn’t originate on the boards and memes are just a way of people who aren’t funny trying too hard. ---
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2011, 10:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posting-styles-you-hate/601999/129 "2011-11-09T10:07:07Z")
Quoting an entire very long post. Lack of paragraphs. Links with no clue as to what they might be. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2011, 10:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posting-styles-you-hate/601999/130 "2011-11-09T10:34:56Z")
Here’s another one I’ve thought of: referring to a consensus of opinion as a ‘circle jerk’. And/or pre-empting one’s opponents as ‘the usual suspects’. > [@](#): > > All kittens and puppies should be kicked to death! (Awaits usual suspects to circle-jerk about how it’s a bad thing.) It’s annoying because it mischaracterises _any_ thoughtful opposition to one’s opinion as part of a herd mentality, and deems anyone who opposes the position in any way a circle-jerking usual suspect. It’s dishonest and ultimately devalues the argument it’s trying to uphold. I also note that the phrase is not used when the broad consensus of opinion happens to coincide with one’s own. ---
**Author:** ![Mince](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecd19e/32.png) [@Mince](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mince)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2011, 10:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posting-styles-you-hate/601999/131 "2011-11-09T10:35:25Z")
> [@Apex\_Rogers](#): > > **People** who **OVER-FORMAT** their **posts** in order to _ **emphasize** _ their _ **argument!!!** _ **Give it a rest** and **let your point stand** on its own merits!!! Of course, you’re over-formatting here to emphasize your argument. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2011, 11:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posting-styles-you-hate/601999/132 "2011-11-09T11:18:54Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > Anyway, another thing that bothers me is when somebody searches for a thread, finds it, then links to the thread _with the search term highlighted_. C’mon, can’t you be bothered to remove the “&highlight=ThisBothersMe” tag? You assume most dopers are aware of how URLs work? I honestly think this is an ignorance problem. Just like using an image that can’t be hotlinked or using a search URL as a link. My pet peeves list is rather small, I think. The only one mentioned here that bugs me is refusing to use the built in quotes. I know why they do it, but I think the reason is stupid. It is not misleading to have the first line of the quote box not actually be a quote. My contribution to this thread: I prefer “snarky answers to thread titles” threads to people actually putting them into the thread. And other inthread snark also needs to be at least slightly funny. Otherwise, just use plain sarcasm. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2011, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posting-styles-you-hate/601999/133 "2011-11-09T11:49:33Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > Otherwise, just use plain sarcasm. _That’s_ a good idea. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2011, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posting-styles-you-hate/601999/134 "2011-11-09T12:24:11Z")
> [@Silver\_Tyger](#): > > It’s not just tattoo threads, although they get several people. There are quite a few specific topics (which naturally I can’t think of right now…) that somebody always has to rag on. > > Can we just say thread shitters in general too? [This thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=630561) is the worst I’ve seen lately. Yeah. Another common one is Americans coming in to discussions about football/soccer and telling everyone that they game is “for pussies” and they’ll show us “real football”. _rolleyes_ (And I even like American Football!) ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2011, 12:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posting-styles-you-hate/601999/135 "2011-11-09T12:26:45Z")
And another one: > [@jjimm](#): > > _That’s_ a good idea. Assholes who do exactly the thing a person is complaining about, in the misguided belief that it is somehow funny. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2011, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posting-styles-you-hate/601999/136 "2011-11-09T12:35:33Z")
Closely related to the link with no description is the reply with no explanation. TO use an example, there’s a thread in The Game Room right now about [what’s the most embarrassing sports play you’ve seen](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=14420201#post14420201) and MOIDALIZE came out with this gem: [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=14420201&postcount=34](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=14420201&postcount=34) > [@Most embarassing sports play you've seen](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-embarassing-sports-play-youve-seen/601595/34): > > Chris Webber’s timeout. OK. So who is Chris Webber? What sport is he playing? When was this? What happened? Why was it embarrassing? No link, no explanation, no video. I guess we’re either supposed to know or the poster is just a lazy shit. ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2011, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posting-styles-you-hate/601999/137 "2011-11-09T12:39:35Z")
People who link to a multipage thread, rather than link to the specific post they are referring too. I don’t want to slog through pages of conversation to get the reference you’re trying to make. Double if they don’t bother to give the post #. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2011, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posting-styles-you-hate/601999/138 "2011-11-09T12:48:47Z")
> [@IvoryTowerDenizen](#): > > People who link to a multipage thread, rather than link to the specific post they are referring too. I don’t want to slog through pages of conversation to get the reference you’re trying to make. Double if they don’t bother to give the post #. My grandparents gave me a book published in the 1930s called something like “How to Annoy People”. One of the techniques was to get the biggest Sunday newspaper you can find, wrap a note round it saying “There’s something in here that concerns you, that I think you’ll find VERY interesting..!” then mail it to your friend. Love it! ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2011, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posting-styles-you-hate/601999/139 "2011-11-09T12:59:34Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > – when someone posts a link with no description of the video, audio, or text behind the link. Please provide a summary or a quote of the relevant portion. Even worse are these as an OP: > [@Total Numpty](#): > > Here is a link to a 30/60/90-minute-long video. I agree with this. I’m not going to tell you what it’s about or what specifically I agree with but please watch and refute all of its points in detail or else I win the Internet. ---
**Author:** ![Erdosain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/erdosain/32/7284_2.png) [@Erdosain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Erdosain)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2011, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posting-styles-you-hate/601999/140 "2011-11-09T13:29:14Z")
> [@amanset](#): > > OK. So who is Chris Webber? What sport is he playing? When was this? What happened? Why was it embarrassing? > > No link, no explanation, no video. I guess we’re either supposed to know or the poster is just a lazy shit. I think this is more just a cultural divide problem. Chris Webber’s phantom timeout is the most famous play in American college basketball history. I hate college basketball, but the play is instantly recognizable to me. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posting-styles-you-hate/601999.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/posting-styles-you-hate/601999.md?page=8)