# What is "threadshitting" v.2? **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [December 31, 2020, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-threadshitting-v-2/929362 "2020-12-31T16:42:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-threadshitting-v-2/929362/21 "2020-12-31T17:07:43Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > We usually go with the common vernacular. No we don’t. > [@](#): > > Which I have shown. No you haven’t. > [@](#): > > You want to use an archaic form. You haven’t shown which form is older. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-threadshitting-v-2/929362/22 "2020-12-31T17:08:19Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > Dude. It’s the definition that this community has had for the term for a long time. Regardless of whether or not it’s how the term is used _elsewhere_ , it’s still valid _here_ . The term that is used universally _except_ here? That’s your argument? ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-threadshitting-v-2/929362/23 "2020-12-31T17:09:31Z")
Well…I have provided cites. You haven’t except “SDMB said so 18 years ago.” ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-threadshitting-v-2/929362/24 "2020-12-31T17:11:17Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > You haven’t except “SDMB said so 18 years ago.” You seem to have missed post #10. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-threadshitting-v-2/929362/25 "2020-12-31T17:12:03Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > The term that is used universally _except_ here? > > That’s your argument? Whereas, your argument seems to be, “hey, SDMB, some people use the term differently now, so you need to stop using it the way you always have, and come up with a different term, because I don’t like how you use it, and it makes you look archaic”? Is that the gist of it? ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-threadshitting-v-2/929362/26 "2020-12-31T17:12:27Z")
Doing what you want does not make it right. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-threadshitting-v-2/929362/27 "2020-12-31T17:13:34Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > The term that is used universally _except_ here? > > That’s your argument? I’ll tell you it’s an obscure term everywhere. I’ve been on hundreds of forums over decades and I’ve never even heard of the term outside of the SDMB. If you want to go by what is “universal” we wouldn’t use the term at all. Again, the basis of your argument is flawed. The community has no obligation to try to curb its language to fit some imagined norm outside of it. You’re arguing for something that is not needed and would be incredibly disruptive to the board if attempted. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-threadshitting-v-2/929362/28 "2020-12-31T17:13:51Z")
Not some people. Most people. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-threadshitting-v-2/929362/29 "2020-12-31T17:14:02Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Doing what you want does not make it right. And arguing purely for the sake of arguing, as you are doing here, is pretty pointless. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-threadshitting-v-2/929362/30 "2020-12-31T17:14:55Z")
That’s dismissive. Indeed…by your definition that is threadshitting. Mod yourself. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-threadshitting-v-2/929362/31 "2020-12-31T17:17:12Z")
It doesn’t matter that the word “threadshitting” is used in a slightly different way on different boards. What matters is that the instructions to posters says “don’t do this”. The “This” is called threadshitting, which is IMMEDIATELY defined to explain how the word “threadshitting” is being used on this board. If you want to argue that we ought to change the rules to use some other word, sure, go for it. But if you want to argue that behavior that is expressly forbidden in our posted rules should be okay because other people use the word “threadshitting” differently, well, that argument holds no merit. This is not a new or obscure rule for the forum. As Colibri says, it’s been posted for ages. And if you can find any of the rules, you can find how it’s defined here. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-threadshitting-v-2/929362/32 "2020-12-31T17:17:49Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Not some people. > > Most people. So, your argument really is, “hey, SDMB, most\* people use the term differently now, so you need to stop using it the way you always have, and come up with a different term, because I don’t like how you use it, and it makes you look archaic." Okay, then. \*- evidence for “most” seems to be “a couple of posts on the internet.” ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-threadshitting-v-2/929362/33 "2020-12-31T17:20:11Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > So, your argument really is, “hey, SDMB, most\* people use the term differently now, so you need to stop using it the way you always have, and come up with a different term, because I don’t like how you use it, and it makes you look archaic." We use words. Words mean things. Words we all understand. Making up unique definitions is not helpful to anyone. Can you make your own definitions for words on your own website? Sure! Of course you can. But why would you want to? ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-threadshitting-v-2/929362/34 "2020-12-31T17:25:38Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > We use words. Words mean things. Words we all understand. Words also sometimes have different meanings in different places, and in different cultures. I’ve been a member of many other discussion boards over the years (not so many now that they’re an endangered species), and most of those boards had a few words or terms that seemed to have a unique meaning there, because it had evolved as part of the particular culture that developed on that board. In this case, the SDMB-specific definition of “threadshitting” is something that most members of this board seem to understand, because it’s part of the unique culture of this place, and because it’s been part of the board’s particular vernacular for a long time, just like “Hi, Opal” or “conch.” Did someone set out to give us a made-up definition for that word, 18 or more years ago? I kind of doubt it. More likely, the definition to which @Colibri pointed you was a codification of what was already being used. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-threadshitting-v-2/929362/35 "2020-12-31T17:25:40Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > We use words. Words mean things. Words we all understand. > > Making up unique definitions is not helpful to anyone. Unless we’re talking about codifying a rule or law, or having some other very specific discussion, in which case making up unique definitions is both helpful and commonplace. ~Max ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-threadshitting-v-2/929362/36 "2020-12-31T17:27:43Z")
See my post 29. Also, I never heard the word “threadshitting” before using this board. I don’t think it’s a word that’s universally known. If it were, I would argue that we should change the name we give for the forbidden behavior in the SDMB rules, not that we should change the rules to match a definition that presumably wasn’t what TPTB had in mind when they wrote those rules. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-threadshitting-v-2/929362/37 "2020-12-31T17:29:52Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > Did someone set out to give us a made-up definition for that word, 18 or more years ago? I kind of doubt it. More likely, the definition to which @Colibri pointed you was a codification of what was already being used. Again…definitions change. Clinging to archaic definitions is not helpful. Perhaps the older members of the board get it but people new to the board won’t and pointing them to a lengthy rules page probably won’t help much. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-threadshitting-v-2/929362/38 "2020-12-31T17:32:41Z")
What gives? Haven’t _you_ been here for _twenty years_? ~Max ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-threadshitting-v-2/929362/39 "2020-12-31T17:34:20Z")
Yes… ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2020, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-threadshitting-v-2/929362/40 "2020-12-31T17:34:57Z")
Of all the things that might be a disincentive for new people to join this board, the fact that we might have a unique definition for a term that doesn’t appear to be widely used outside of the SDMB anyway (and a definition which can be easily and quickly pointed to and understood if a question arises) has got to be pretty damned low on the list. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-threadshitting-v-2/929362.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-threadshitting-v-2/929362.md?page=3)