I’ like to say “thanks” that no one has made the claim that the world would collapse if we added such a button.
If silenus is to be believed, I am suffering from “extreme esteem issues.” Ergo, your post hurts me deeply. I’ll thank you not to post so thoughtlessly in the future.
And how many threads do we have that get cluttered up by someone thanking another? I believe silenus. If you want to thank someone, just type it.
Thank you, silenus.
We need an “I’m so sorry” button!! 
And along with it, a “Jesus Christ on a pogo stick, can we drop it already?” button.
See? You don’t need a button. You’re perfectly capable of expressing the concept using your words!
It’s a breakthrough! YAAAAYYY! (Dammit, where’s the “exuberant celebration” button?" :mad:)
What this board really needs are lots and lots of bright, shiny buttons.
Mmmm, buttons.
Bacon flavored, too!
it’s a discussion board. It’s okay to discuss. Whereas our board culture doesn’t expect you to thank every person who responds directly. Blanket “Thanks, all!” is sufficient (and not really necessary), unless there’s some specific comment you wish to directly reply to/about.
No, the OP was looking for a way to not bump a thread. He was not trying to get out of typing. Typing out a thank you reply won’t accomplish that.
I’m a member of a couple of other MBs that use thanks button. Everyone understands how they work. Hitting a button is meaningless only if you don’t understand the system. I don’t understand why it’s so noble to hit 6 keys instead of just one but keeping up with a thread you are waiting for thanks from isn’t.
But sending a PM would.
that that thanks thanks that that thanks not thanks not is that thanks it is is it not[spoiler]that that thanks, thanks. that that thanks-not, thanks-not. is that thanks? it is, is it not?
For some strange reason this conversation made me think of Flowers for Algernon 
[/spoiler]A “Thank you” all by itself doesn’t really mean anything. Are you thanking them for what they just said? What part? The last post? All of the thread?? A good “Thank you” is always preceded by an explanation (i.e. thank you for ‘what’ exactly?) or followed by a course of action (e.g. I’m going to try that tomorrow, or that’s useful but I can’t afford it, etc.).
So, I’ll thank you to keep your thank you’s to yourself! … Wait, then you wouldn’t know what I was thanking you for. I’ll guess I’ll have to elaborate. But I’m too tired to do that, thank you very much; so just take it for granted. Thank you for your attention.
+1
But shouldn’t you post a message saying you sent a PM so they would know to go read it?
Actually, for a simple “Thanks” a PM makes more sense. It will show up at the top of every page where the recipient is going to see it whether the original thread is returned to or not.
That’d be this:
†!
I’m firmly in the camp of " oh please, take a moment and type out a reply. " It’s a Message Board. Bumping isn’t cheap. It’s part of the rhythm of the entire machine.
I’m not debating that. In fact I think that is the best solution. My original response was to Chronos whose reply to the OP did miss the point. The subject of this thread is something I struggle with from time to time too because I work outside, away from a keyboard. By the time I see that someone has responded to something I said, the thread in question may have dropped off of the first page depending on the forum. So should I bump the thread just for thanks or not? The answer might not be the same for someone who is on the boards constantly.
Many years ago someone asked the question here - should I bump a thread to say thanks. The answers were varied but in particular two (then) mods weighed in: one said yes, one said no, it clutters up the board. So it’s not as cut and dried as some are making it.
I think the big problem here is board prejudice. Take this post above:
Avatars? Buttons? OH MY F’IN’ GOD… GOATSEEEEEE!!! It’s will be the end of the world! We communicate with WOOORRRDDDSSSSS!!!
It all get lumped into the same pile. And it’s silly. Where you you draw the line is completely arbitrary. If you really cared why not write a note out long hand and snail mail it? Think I’m overstating it? Check it out -
“Extreme esteem issues”, are you kidding me? It’s thanks for some off-hand help on an internet computer board. Saying thanks in any particular way or medium is not “meaningless” if everyone understands the infrastructure.
Why is it that whenever I see anything even close to this it comes from the pro-button side introducing a ridiculous strawman to argue against?
Thanks for making my point. Please see this post:
http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=19982933&postcount=27
to see who introduced this discussion to this level. The OP asked a reasonable question and was met with the above hyperbole.
ETA: I’m not pro-button, per se, I’m not just blindly against it.
Nobody “made your point”-that wasn’t anywhere near the level of the histrionic strawman you introduced. “Avatars? Buttons? OH MY F’IN’ GOD… GOATSEEEEEE!!! It’s will be the end of the world! We communicate with WOOORRRDDDSSSSS!!!”-There is no way for anyone actually posting on this topic to continue a debate when sand like this is thrown into the engine of reasonable conversation.
I’m late/slow to this thread but I’m coming down as “this”. Usually my habit is more to go to PM but thanking someone in a thread, even one that has fallen off, isn’t that unusual for me.