# Why do other member names get bolded? **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [August 15, 2003, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-other-member-names-get-bolded/195400 "2003-08-15T15:44:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-other-member-names-get-bolded/195400/1 "2003-08-15T15:44:33Z")
Almost every reference to other members sees the name bolded. Are their automatic ways to make this happen, or is everyone being very polite and taking the time to do it themselves? :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![hawthorne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@hawthorne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hawthorne)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-other-member-names-get-bolded/195400/2 "2003-08-15T15:54:28Z")
Just form, **Philster**. ---
**Author:** ![roadrunner70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e19b73/32.png) [@roadrunner70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/roadrunner70)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-other-member-names-get-bolded/195400/3 "2003-08-15T15:57:17Z")
What **hawthorne** said, **Philster**. ---
**Author:** ![UnwrittenNocturne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/6de8d8/32.png) [@UnwrittenNocturne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UnwrittenNocturne)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-other-member-names-get-bolded/195400/4 "2003-08-15T16:11:14Z")
As per **hawthorne** and **roadrunner70** , they give good instructions **Philster** Has this gone far enough yet? ---
**Author:** ![Tusculan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecd19e/32.png) [@Tusculan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tusculan)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-other-member-names-get-bolded/195400/5 "2003-08-15T16:11:53Z")
While **roadrunner70** and **hawthorne** are correct, **Philster** , they neglected to mention that (sadly) you have to do it by hand. ---
**Author:** ![Tusculan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecd19e/32.png) [@Tusculan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tusculan)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-other-member-names-get-bolded/195400/6 "2003-08-15T16:18:27Z")
Oops, simulpost there. I don’t think it has gone far enough yet, with only **roadrunner70** , **hawthorne** , **UnwrittenNocturne** and lil’ ol’ \*\*Tusculan \*\* responding to **Philster**. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-other-member-names-get-bolded/195400/7 "2003-08-15T16:20:17Z")
Ok, I’ve been following proper form then, but ‘why?’ …why is it proper form? - so people can surf for references to themselves??? ---
**Author:** ![Zoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a4c791/32.png) [@Zoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zoe)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-other-member-names-get-bolded/195400/8 "2003-08-15T16:25:30Z")
They can do that more easily by doing a “vanity search” on their names. But bolding a name calls attention to the fact that someone is speaking to you when you are reading a thread. ---
**Author:** ![Scarlett67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scarlett67/32/7387_2.png) [@Scarlett67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scarlett67)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-other-member-names-get-bolded/195400/9 "2003-08-15T16:34:40Z")
It also makes it easier to follow the “conversation” by highlighting who is responding to whom. ---
**Author:** ![Achernar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e274bd/32.png) [@Achernar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Achernar)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-other-member-names-get-bolded/195400/10 "2003-08-15T16:56:32Z")
Most importantly, I think, not all usernames are obviously names. Some of them are uncapitalized words that don’t stand out as names, so bolding makes them clearer that you’re talking about the user **astro** or **manhattan** or **tracer** or **flood** and not what these words more often mean. Bolding consistently makes it clear that you’re not just shouting at specific users. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-other-member-names-get-bolded/195400/11 "2003-08-15T17:31:20Z")
You’d think that after nearly 3,000 posts I would have gotten around to asking sooner. 🙂 Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![USCDiver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uscdiver/32/354_2.png) [@USCDiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/USCDiver)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-other-member-names-get-bolded/195400/12 "2003-08-15T20:17:37Z")
I’ve noticed that some newspapers, in particular the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, does this with the first mention of a proper name in each article. Isn’t that right **Jonathan Chance**? ---
**Author:** ![Mars\_Horizon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mars_horizon/32/2804_2.png) [@Mars\_Horizon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mars_Horizon)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2003, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-other-member-names-get-bolded/195400/13 "2003-08-15T20:58:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Philster \* > **You’d think that after nearly 3,000 posts I would have gotten around to asking sooner.** Does **sooner** post here? No, you were right to post in ATMB. You shouldn’t direct questions to individual posters. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Ringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/779978/32.png) [@Ringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ringo)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2003, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-other-member-names-get-bolded/195400/14 "2003-08-16T01:23:01Z")
Regarding **USCDiver** ’s post, I recently started _not_ bolding the second time or subsequent uses of a particular member’s name in a post. Not in a thread, but in a single post. How does that strike the SDMB stylebook mavens? ---
**Author:** ![Ringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/779978/32.png) [@Ringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ringo)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2003, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-other-member-names-get-bolded/195400/15 "2003-08-16T01:25:25Z")
And of course another thought occurred while submitting; I’m inconsistent about bolding when I have cause to use my own user name in a post. What does the collective consciousness think about that? ---
**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:** [August 16, 2003, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-other-member-names-get-bolded/195400/16 "2003-08-16T01:27:17Z")
It’s one of those herding things. We all do it, so we all do it (if you know what I mean. Every person’s policy is - ‘everyone does it, I have no idea why, but I will do it too so as not to be different’ ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2003, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-other-member-names-get-bolded/195400/17 "2003-08-16T02:39:00Z")
**Sheep**!! You are all **sheep**. Ha! ---
**Author:** ![shijinn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cc9497/32.png) [@shijinn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shijinn)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2003, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-other-member-names-get-bolded/195400/18 "2003-08-16T05:08:18Z")
is this a good place to mention the [‘origin of company policy’](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=166398) monkey junk email i’d got? 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2003, 10:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-other-member-names-get-bolded/195400/19 "2003-08-16T10:22:04Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by USCDiver \* > \*\*I’ve noticed that some newspapers, in particular the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, does this with the first mention of a proper name in each article. Isn’t that right **Jonathan Chance**? \*\* For the record I did **not** find this by vanity search! Many _many_ publications do this (bolding the first mention of a name in an article and not subsequent mentions). It happens a lot in sports and celebrity pieces. But I’m not aware of it being in any stylebook. ---
**Author:** ![I\_can\_t\_believe\_that\_s\_butter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8edcca/32.png) [@I\_can\_t\_believe\_that\_s\_butter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_can_t_believe_that_s_butter)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2003, 11:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-other-member-names-get-bolded/195400/20 "2003-08-16T11:05:54Z")
Well, I have to agree with Lobsang when he refers– Ow! OW! QUIT IT! _runs_ [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-other-member-names-get-bolded/195400.md?page=2)