Okay, can we talk about this rationally? Hide Poster Option

I would have liked to have an 'ignore poster' button, but for it to only work for that thread, not the entire site. Sometimes I need to take out a particularly loud/off topic/rude voice of a conversation to be able to follow the gist and not get side tracked.

Thank you Garlic - my logic not being faulted is a rare occurance

you can say "no, I didn't RTFT because I have hidden the numpty". And then you can sit back and watch them implode.

Can't fault your logic, SirC

You think if you don't read posts, that have no bearing on the conversation, someone will tell you to RTFT? Who? How will they know you haven't read them?

I've never seen that happen, can you link to any examples?

I disagree Outraged.

Maryz - there is a post upthread that shows you how to hide a poster (and let's face it, some of them deserve no less ). It can be done, hurray!

Sir I'm talking about a situation where the hidden poster is crucial to the discussion as that's the only time you'll be told RTFT, if you've missed important information.

If the hidden poster isn't vital, it won't matter that you haven't read their posts, no-one will say RTFT and the whole scenario you imagine won't happen.

Or how about pearls to whack someone round the head with? Too violent, perhaps?

I agree Outraged (I came to this thread a bit late)

Anyway I do try to post temperately and find that reading views which are highly contrary to my own does help me to clarify my own thoughts.

Also at a simplistic level I struggle to remember posters names so I will see a poster and will have no memory as to whether I generally agree with them or not (I have the memory of a fruit fly).

I love the thought of a smelling salts emoticom. Or a pearls one. To clutch.

That's assuming you perceive their contribution as vital! Hiding the OP is obviously not going to work, but that's not what I meant.

'And equally no-one would say "WTF are you on this thread for" - because hide poster would be an actual MN option and therefore there wouldn't be any point in arguing.'

They would if you openly admit to hiding the OP! You can't join in a thread where you've hidden someone whose posts are vital to the flow of information.

And equally no-one would say "WTF are you on this thread for" - because hide poster would be an actual MN option and therefore there wouldn't be any point in arguing.

RTFT does, in fact, mean read the entire thread (or certainly, there are plenty who believe this to be the case). How many times have you seen a post along the lines of "I haven't read every post, sorry " or "I said X 27 hours ago, RTFT". RTFT does not mean skim read, or just read a few post. Not every poster who spouts crap on a regular basis is a troll - sometimes they are just posters who spout crap on a regular basis.

Anyway, someone upthread (see, I RTFT ) has posted some bit of kit that enables you to hide a poster, so I will be using that from now on. Bliss.

*your not you're

As I explained RTFT, doesn't mean 'read EVERY post', so I don't think that scenario is going to happen.

That would only happen if the poster you've hidden is vital to the thread e.g. they're the OP. You post without knowing what they've said, so your comments are pointless, someone tells you to RTFT, you wittily reply 'can't I've hidden them'.....then they say 'WTF are you on this thread for?! Why are ruining it for everyone with your pointless posts?! Maybe they hide you because now you're posts are the annoying ones.

How is that better than just ignoring trolls?

No, you can't RTFT if you have them hidden - brilliant, isn't it?

And then when some posters jump up and down and stamp their little feet and say "why haven't you RTFT, you didn't RTFT, are you new to MN, you didn't RTFT, I'm telling, YABU, etc etc blah blah blah" you can say "no, I didn't RTFT because I have hidden the numpty".

And then you can sit back and watch them implode.

A win-win (or it would have been, if MN towers had seen sense)

No thank you

Thanks Rowan.

Glad of the greasemonkey script shared here, even if it does make all my blue bars huge!

sorry, that should say 'might it not be'

Garlic, how can you tell if they're using the plugin or if they're just good at ignoring?

One thing I have got from this thread is that some people don't seem to have any trouble with it and others of us do. I can ignore things in some areas and not in others.

Also, if they're replying to something you said but to someone else's paraphrase, but it not just be that they couldn't be bothered to read your long post but read the shorter one? If I'm skimming a thread I might go straight to shorter posts by people I know from experience explain stuff in terms I can understand - absolutely nothing personal about it and no intention to ignore specific posters, but the result would be the same.

RTFT means read the thread, not read every single post even if it's tolling/abusive. It's said when someone responds to the OP or an early post 400 posts in, by which point the OP has come back and admitted they were wrong/given extra information. No-one has ever been 'abused' for not reading abusive/pointless/trolling posts.

How do you plan to RTFT when you have some posters hidden? Un-hide their posts or don't read any thread that they're on?

Did you say something, usual?