feardragon64
Smash Champion
Posting Intelligently: A Guide To Not Being An Idiot
Good evening Smashboards, although it's still morning on the East Coast of the US. Today I'm here to talk about something that plagues these boards. It's a large problem that can often engulf intelligent conversation, swallowing it into an abyss. Not only that, but once found, it replicates and passes from person to person. Basically, it screws us over. What is it?
Stupidity.
Excuse me for the annoying introduction. Anyways, let me put it this way. Stupidity is plaguing the boards. It's not a 'now more than ever' thing; it's been there for quite some time. Unfortunately, stupidity will probably never be solved by a thread since stupidity generally caused by people who lack the common sense to follow the guidelines I'm about to provide. However, I do hope that there is some decrease in the number of spam posts.
The most annoying form of spam that exists(in my opinion) are pointless threads. I'm going to address creating threads, since this is often one of the best ways to alleviate spam and make the boards Much cleaner.
Making a Thread
Step 1: Read the stickies
All forums tend to have stickies. I find it hard to understand why the first thing people do when visiting a board they don't generally post in isn't to read the stickies. Stickies are there because something important is being said, and you should probably be aware of it before you make a new thread. If you go to a new character board, read the stickies. It may seem overwhelming to go through four or five threads of information, but glance through at least and see if you're questioned will be answered. You can even search individual threads for key words! Do it and you will be ridiculed 75% less when you make the post.
Step 2: Check the first page
This seems like an obvious one that I think generally people tend to follow. Make sure that a thread doesn't exist with the same question or purpose as the thread you intend to make. Not only that, but also check to make sure if a quick question thread exists! Quick question threads are amazing and on most character boards that have them, questions are answered relatively quickly, and people are much more tolerant of ignorance in them. So check the first page.
Step 3: Use the search function
Brawl has been out since March of 2008. From the writing of this post and beyond, that's more than seven months. There's a very good chance that someone has asked about the same question you have or discovered the same thing as you did. About two days ago someone posted a new thread claiming they just discovered this new infinite grab release on ness/lucas. Sad, I know, but you never know. Your discovery may be very well known. Use the search function two or three times searching for key words. If nothing comes up, it's fine.
Step 4: The Post! Picking a topic title
So you're Finally ready to press that beautiful new topic button since you've already completed steps 1-3. But now you have to decide a name for your topic. People will form opinions about your topic before they even click the link. Unless the thread differs vastly from their expectations, the topic title you decide upon will influence the mind-set they read your thread with and even the manner in which they post. Often times, newbies are rather puzzled as to why they received so much flaming for posting a simple question. Often enough, they name their threads "a quick question" while a quick question->answer thread is on the first page. Pick a title that shows some degree of knowledge and that you've actually put some time and thought into the thread. If you're really excited about how awesomely intelligent your thread is, use capitalization the same way I've used it in mine(The First Letter Of Each Word). Colons are a nice touch as well and usually indicate that it's some sort of in depth analysis or important thread.
-------------------------------------------------------
Good Job! If you're posting a new thread and you've followed the simple four steps above, you're highly unlikely to get flamed. But there's still some issues that remain uncovered. The posts themselves.
Making a Post
The Really Important Part
Step 1) Think about what you're about to say
If you're message resembles one of the following, rethink if you really need to post:
-LOLOLOLOLOL
-^This 10This
-BRAWL/MELEE SUCKS! YOU'RE A NOOB
-Bowser fsmash(unless you're Gimpyfish or a mod)
-In before lock!
-*Completely unrelated topic*
-*Insert flame war here*
-
:rocket:
hainsaw::sniper::teleportg:smiliegor:uzi
(scroll down if you find that last one annoying, I know I can't stand to look at it):
Oh god my eyes...
Basically, if you're message resembles Any of those, don't post it. You still have time to save your reputation and not be eternally hated by the boards you're about to post on. Joke posts are just fine! But realize where the limit is and don't go beyond it.
Also, while going over your post, as levitas aptly pointed out in a reply, you should back up your claims with facts if it's being/going to be questioned. I'm not saying you need to prove the existence of mario in brawl, but if you're responding to someone, respond with evidence whenever possible. Avoiding the question and saying "I'm not going to dignify that with a response" will just annoy people and, eventually, make the doubt your ability to reply to an argument.
Another side-note: not all members are equal. I'm sorry but it's just the facts. Some members have earned the respect of the community and will get away with things that you just won't. When an admin or mod comes by and warns you/locks your thread, the excuse "but he/she did the same thing!" generally won't work. If you want to make joke posts without getting flamed, earn the respect of the community first, Then feel free to talk about your awesome Shaya Combo.
Step 2) Read the Other Posts
There's one thing I can't stand: when one person will respond to a thread saying something, followed by 320742034 other people saying the exact same thing. You're not a parrot. If you are, please get off these forums as I have a fear of parrots that can type. But if you're not a parrot, don't post what's already been said. I don't care if you were about to say something amazingly intelligent that would make you look reputable to the entire community, only someone else said it five minutes before you. Just don't post it unless it contributes something new. Usually, people will either ignore you entirely since you're just repeating what someone else said and they'll give you little or no credit for thinking of the idea yourself(this is also often referred to as meatriding), or someone like me will come along and declare war upon your parrot imitating ways. That's right, you're imitating a parrot. How's that for irony? Now stop it; think of the typing parrots.
Step 3) Emphasizing
I understand you may be super excited to make a post about how awesome you think *insert role model here* is or how amazingly epic that falcon punch was, but capitalizing every letter in every word is not necessary. There are actually a lot of ways you can put emphasis on things. Here are a few examples:
-Capitalize the first letter in each word
-Exclamation marks(I will shoot you if you put more than 5)
-Italics, underlining, and bold'ing
-Use epic words, like epic
-Capitalizing ONE key letter(o i c wat u did thar)
Do not be the person who uses fifty exclamation marks and tries to capitalize 90% of your post. When you post like a nub, you're viewed as a nub. The moment you try and pull stuff like that(unless you've been posting on the board long enough and are well known enough to be known as an intelligent poster) you lose all credibility and will almost certainly get flamed, ridiculed, infracted or ignored.
Step 4) Reread Your Post
I'd like to quote a web-comic called xkcd for putting it better than I ever could.
Good evening Smashboards, although it's still morning on the East Coast of the US. Today I'm here to talk about something that plagues these boards. It's a large problem that can often engulf intelligent conversation, swallowing it into an abyss. Not only that, but once found, it replicates and passes from person to person. Basically, it screws us over. What is it?
Stupidity.
Excuse me for the annoying introduction. Anyways, let me put it this way. Stupidity is plaguing the boards. It's not a 'now more than ever' thing; it's been there for quite some time. Unfortunately, stupidity will probably never be solved by a thread since stupidity generally caused by people who lack the common sense to follow the guidelines I'm about to provide. However, I do hope that there is some decrease in the number of spam posts.
-------------------------------------------------------Kirby King said:
The most annoying form of spam that exists(in my opinion) are pointless threads. I'm going to address creating threads, since this is often one of the best ways to alleviate spam and make the boards Much cleaner.
Making a Thread
Step 1: Read the stickies
All forums tend to have stickies. I find it hard to understand why the first thing people do when visiting a board they don't generally post in isn't to read the stickies. Stickies are there because something important is being said, and you should probably be aware of it before you make a new thread. If you go to a new character board, read the stickies. It may seem overwhelming to go through four or five threads of information, but glance through at least and see if you're questioned will be answered. You can even search individual threads for key words! Do it and you will be ridiculed 75% less when you make the post.
Step 2: Check the first page
This seems like an obvious one that I think generally people tend to follow. Make sure that a thread doesn't exist with the same question or purpose as the thread you intend to make. Not only that, but also check to make sure if a quick question thread exists! Quick question threads are amazing and on most character boards that have them, questions are answered relatively quickly, and people are much more tolerant of ignorance in them. So check the first page.
Step 3: Use the search function
Brawl has been out since March of 2008. From the writing of this post and beyond, that's more than seven months. There's a very good chance that someone has asked about the same question you have or discovered the same thing as you did. About two days ago someone posted a new thread claiming they just discovered this new infinite grab release on ness/lucas. Sad, I know, but you never know. Your discovery may be very well known. Use the search function two or three times searching for key words. If nothing comes up, it's fine.
Step 4: The Post! Picking a topic title
So you're Finally ready to press that beautiful new topic button since you've already completed steps 1-3. But now you have to decide a name for your topic. People will form opinions about your topic before they even click the link. Unless the thread differs vastly from their expectations, the topic title you decide upon will influence the mind-set they read your thread with and even the manner in which they post. Often times, newbies are rather puzzled as to why they received so much flaming for posting a simple question. Often enough, they name their threads "a quick question" while a quick question->answer thread is on the first page. Pick a title that shows some degree of knowledge and that you've actually put some time and thought into the thread. If you're really excited about how awesomely intelligent your thread is, use capitalization the same way I've used it in mine(The First Letter Of Each Word). Colons are a nice touch as well and usually indicate that it's some sort of in depth analysis or important thread.
-------------------------------------------------------
Good Job! If you're posting a new thread and you've followed the simple four steps above, you're highly unlikely to get flamed. But there's still some issues that remain uncovered. The posts themselves.
Making a Post
The Really Important Part
Step 1) Think about what you're about to say
If you're message resembles one of the following, rethink if you really need to post:
-LOLOLOLOLOL
-^This 10This
-BRAWL/MELEE SUCKS! YOU'RE A NOOB
-Bowser fsmash(unless you're Gimpyfish or a mod)
-In before lock!
-*Completely unrelated topic*
-*Insert flame war here*
-
:rocket:hainsaw::sniper::teleportg:smiliegor:uzi(scroll down if you find that last one annoying, I know I can't stand to look at it):
Oh god my eyes...
Basically, if you're message resembles Any of those, don't post it. You still have time to save your reputation and not be eternally hated by the boards you're about to post on. Joke posts are just fine! But realize where the limit is and don't go beyond it.
Also, while going over your post, as levitas aptly pointed out in a reply, you should back up your claims with facts if it's being/going to be questioned. I'm not saying you need to prove the existence of mario in brawl, but if you're responding to someone, respond with evidence whenever possible. Avoiding the question and saying "I'm not going to dignify that with a response" will just annoy people and, eventually, make the doubt your ability to reply to an argument.
Another side-note: not all members are equal. I'm sorry but it's just the facts. Some members have earned the respect of the community and will get away with things that you just won't. When an admin or mod comes by and warns you/locks your thread, the excuse "but he/she did the same thing!" generally won't work. If you want to make joke posts without getting flamed, earn the respect of the community first, Then feel free to talk about your awesome Shaya Combo.
Step 2) Read the Other Posts
There's one thing I can't stand: when one person will respond to a thread saying something, followed by 320742034 other people saying the exact same thing. You're not a parrot. If you are, please get off these forums as I have a fear of parrots that can type. But if you're not a parrot, don't post what's already been said. I don't care if you were about to say something amazingly intelligent that would make you look reputable to the entire community, only someone else said it five minutes before you. Just don't post it unless it contributes something new. Usually, people will either ignore you entirely since you're just repeating what someone else said and they'll give you little or no credit for thinking of the idea yourself(this is also often referred to as meatriding), or someone like me will come along and declare war upon your parrot imitating ways. That's right, you're imitating a parrot. How's that for irony? Now stop it; think of the typing parrots.
Step 3) Emphasizing
I understand you may be super excited to make a post about how awesome you think *insert role model here* is or how amazingly epic that falcon punch was, but capitalizing every letter in every word is not necessary. There are actually a lot of ways you can put emphasis on things. Here are a few examples:
-Capitalize the first letter in each word
-Exclamation marks(I will shoot you if you put more than 5)
-Italics, underlining, and bold'ing
-Use epic words, like epic
-Capitalizing ONE key letter(o i c wat u did thar)
Do not be the person who uses fifty exclamation marks and tries to capitalize 90% of your post. When you post like a nub, you're viewed as a nub. The moment you try and pull stuff like that(unless you've been posting on the board long enough and are well known enough to be known as an intelligent poster) you lose all credibility and will almost certainly get flamed, ridiculed, infracted or ignored.
Step 4) Reread Your Post
I'd like to quote a web-comic called xkcd for putting it better than I ever could.
this poor fellow[/URL].
So keep it civil. If they're being stupid, the best counter is to post intelligently. I don't mean to pretend like you're more intelligent than the rest of the world and to act snobish. I mean to actually post intelligently and not blatantly pick a fight with them. Subtle jabs at a person(such as politely linking them to a thread for the uninformed, not using obvious sarcasm such as "You must place really well in *random country* don't you?") are acceptable.
------------------------------------------------------------
Feel free to ask questions. I'd be happy to answer intelligent ones.
Oh wait! There's this here guide that shows you how to post those! =D
Questions & Answers Section
Colors are very much welcome! You caught me before I gave color to my title(and soon to be rest of the article). Just remember not to use blinding colors that hurt peoples eyes or you've already antagonized them.
Some things are meant to be posted for praise. If I have this amazing video where I do amazingly well against some top level player in a tournament match I'm probably going to post it with the expectation to wow people. I want those kinds of posts, and replies will most likely be MADE for that purpose. Sometimes just saying, that's awesome, or something along the lines is in line with what the thread expects and warrants. The important thing is to realize when the thread warrants that, and when it doesn't. =]
Thank you steel. I couldn't have put it better myself.are you ****ing kidding me
WE GET AT LEAST 3 ****ING THREADS LIKE THIS A ****ING WEEK WHAT THE ****
LOOK AT THE GOD **** MO ****ING STICKIES NEXT TIME OR ILL FREEZE UR **** AND KICK IT OFF
WTFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF
**** son
stickies the ****
TOMOYO DOES NOT APPROVE
