To ask if there’s a case to be made for MNHQ telling people to RTFT

[IvanaPee]

Hear me out!

More and more lately there seems to be a huge amount of posters who don’t RTFT and who don’t even read the OP’s posts.

This irritates the fuck out of me I won’t lie.

But worse, it happens on sensitive threads.

Just the other day there was a surge of posters who couldn’t be arsed reading a thread about the OP’s childhood abuse.

Today, I’ve read a thread where posters were offering answers to the OP two days after the whole thing had been resolved.

It’s asked on here every now and again why people don’t RTFT and there are always shouts of “it’s too long” or “I’m answering the question asked in the OP”.

Well, if it’s too long to read why post?

And pages and pages after the OP people don’t think there’s the slightest possibility that a thread has moved on??

The whole MNHQ thing stepping in is no doubt ridiculous but ugh, I wish there was a rule where you’re not allowed to post without bloody well reading!!!

To me it seems so disrespectful to the OP.

And the people who announce that they haven’t read it, then plough in anyway as though announcing it has justified it!

I can’t be the only one who thinks this should fucking stop! Can I??

don’t think that’s true.Threads more often than not go off on a tangent and do become a discussion.

And they can do that but no one is required to follow it that way..

No, I don’t think that’s worse than people barreling in on sensitive, sometimes very upsetting threads and having the arrogance to think their opinions are so important that they can’t possible wait a few minutes before spewing them.

In the grand scheme of things, it's a pretty minor complaint. Do people really want to start imposing rules over things like this?

It’s not minor when an OP discloses childhood abuse pertaining to her first post and people still steamroll in talking utter shite because reading even the OP’s posts seems beyond them.

A lot of the custom options for post have been removed over the years. On the mobile site I think the ops posts are still green but in the app it's hard to see just the username is highlighted green for me (I can't see how to change it) so changing that would be a good start.

I don't think HQ commenting will change anything and I don't think you will ever get people reading every comment so 'cancel the check' ect will continue I do agree with a poster earlier a button to show only OPs posts or way to jump to the next OPs would ar least stop the worst of if!

It's an internet forum people can use it as they like.

Yes. Including pointing out when people are behaving like twats.

Yes, but I DO think it's more annoying. That's my opinion. The difference is that I haven't started a thread to force people into doing it my way.

Its embarrassing watching people get overly invested in threads that have nothing to do with them taking over OTHER people's threads to police them. And no, they aren't all sensitive threads. It's rude having a page devoted to telling off an adult off for not interneting properly.

Yes, and also a case for telling people to have a looksy if the exact same thread on the exact same topic has been posted in the last day or two.

I don't think OP would be in favour of that :-)

Not read the whole thread, but do you know that you can highlight the OP's post to make it easier to read? I use green.

For those that don't use the app here is what this thread looks like so maybe it is clearer than I thought I tend to prefer the mobile site for ease of use

I totally agree @IvanaPee and thought it was just me.

I was becoming irrationally angry about this the other day. It was also a sensitive thread with people coming in with their pennies’ worth of opinion which was the same as the 50 posters prior.

It feels lazy to me that posters can’t at least read the advice being provided to the OP prior to providing their own advice, or at the very least read the OP’s updates.

It feels like there are a lot of new posters recently too, so perhaps that’s the reason.

I’m a lurker despite being here years and don’t post that often; so always read a thread from start to finish.

Yes. Including pointing out when people are behaving like twats

Yes, keep pretending it's about etiquette and not about a chance to be rude online.

How entitled is that? Insist people read the whole thread? No.

That’s bullshit. It’s ‘entitled’ to assume that your point is SO interesting and important that you absolutely have to make it, regardless of whether it’s alteaf been made or whether subsequent information has made it irrelevant.

That said, I don’t think it’s something MNHQ can police. How would that even work? There’s no way they have the time or resources to monitor each and every thread so it would have to rely on reports - and frankly there are more important posts to review. Twats who don’t read the thread aren’t going to stop being twats because MNHQ come over all Head Girl.

It feels like there are a lot of new posters recently too, so perhaps that’s the reason.

No this thread has been a perennial favourite for at least the decade I've been here. The truth is MN is never going to give in to "miss miss she didnt follow the rules!" Because people will stop using Mn.

The difference is that I haven't started a thread to force people into doing it my way.

Do you think my thread will somehow have the magical ability to force people to be considerate to OPs?

Because I said in my OP that expecting HQ to step in is obviously ridiculous as you’ll see. If you read it. :)

I asked for OP posts to be highlighted by default on a Site Stuff thread the other day, and MNHQ said they’d look into it. I really think it would help at least. Being able to read only the OP’s posts would help even more.

Doesn’t bother me when it’s a thread in Baby Names or some discussion about putting pineapple on pizza but it’s beyond rude on sensitive threads.
Page 1: AIBU to think DP should bring me a sandwich when I’m sick in bed?
Page 2: well no, now you mention it he doesn’t do anything to help with the kids or the house and thinks I should live off 50p a week while he’s on £800k a year...
Page 3: no I don’t dare talk to him, he gets so angry and I know he’ll kick off in front of the kids...

and then by Page 6 you’ve got 90% of people recommending the Freedom Programme and talking OP through how child maintenance works, and 10% still going “God make your own sandwich, you’re being ridiculously entitled.”

@itswinetime what a silly way to have the threads on the app!

I can see that it’s a lot less clear.

It's not rude to suggest something that could possibly prevent a poster looking stupid.

It will never change though, everyone can read as much or as little as they want, nobody can 'police' anything.

That’s bullshit. It’s ‘entitled’ to assume that your point is SO interesting and important that you absolutelyhaveto make it, regardless of whether it’s alteaf been made or whether subsequent information has made it irrelevan*

Aibu?
Yes.

Everyone else can fuck off as Person A has already said yes.

Or 400 people can say yes yabu and 5 say yanbu and then the OP will actually get a meaningful response.

@53rdWay exactly! That’s a perfect example of it.

Yes, keep pretending it's about etiquette and not about a chance to be rude online.

This is where we differ. I think it’s really rude to wander into a thread that has been running for a while and post as if you’re the first response to the OP. It shows a level of self-centredness that I can’t get my head around.

If I’m not sufficiently interested in or engaged by a thread to at least read the OP’s posts, I don’t post myself, because my need to grace everyone with my opinion on an OP from 400 posts and 3 days ago without checking whether it’s in any way relevant any more, or whether the thread has taken an unexpected turn, or whatever, is really not that great.

As a PP said, I don’t wander into a group of people having a conversation and expect them to listen to my view on what they were talking about an hour ago without first listening to them and getting the gist of what they’re currently talking about. So I don’t do it on the Internet, either.

No this thread has been a perennial favourite for at least the decade I've been here. The truth is MN is never going to give in to "miss miss she didnt follow the rules!" Because people will stop using Mn

I agree it comes up every now and then but I’ve noticed it more, say in the last 4 weeks. Every thread seems to have a lot of comments and then even 2-3 days after the OP started, people are still commenting on the OP. The “RTFT” used to be commented a few times but I wonder posters don’t want to be labelled the MN police by even posting it

MN can’t intervene either. It would be daft if they did.

Because I said in my OP that expecting HQ to step in is obviously ridiculous as you’ll see. If you read it

Yes but 53rd you've just disproved your point as that is an inconsequential thread to start out with.

Or else we really do need to read 20 pages of pinapple on pizza or babynames because maybe we find out 3 pages in that the OP lost her great aunt Maryann due to a pinapple allergy.

@IvanaPee I have always thought so and there aren't pages so scrolling though fast it's hard to find your own post or the ops!

I'm happy to be told if there is away I can change it though as I hardly use it! Only redownloaded it as away to avoid the spam last week!

Or 400 people can say yes yabu and 5 say yanbu and then the OP will actually get a meaningful response.

I’m not suggesting only one person is allowed to say YABU or YANBU - as I’m pretty sure you know. It’s about dozens of people saying ‘Do X!’ when the OP’s second post says ‘X is not an option because...’

I wouldn't read 20 pages of pineapple on pizza or baby names, that's what 'Hide Thread' was invented for.