Replying to posts, unnecessary quoting

When replying to a post please don't use the Reply with Quote button unless absolutely necessary, especially if there are pictures in the post you are replying to.

Using the Reply with Quote button this way makes the thread unnecessarily long and it takes much longer to scroll through.

We see plenty of threads where this happens, there may be several pictures in a post, then someone replies to it quoting it and we see all those pictures posted again, usually right underneath the original post, with maybe 1 or 2 lines of text.

Please use the Reply to Thread button where ever possible, it will make scrolling through a thread much easier and quicker for everyone.


http://metalworkforums.com/attachmen...373795&thumb=1

As there are alternate ways of extracting and quoting I'd like to see the quote button removed completely.

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Originally Posted by BobL

As there are alternate ways of extracting and quoting I'd like to see the quote button removed completely.

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Bob, the main issue is not with the Quote button but how people use it, repeating a number of (sometimes very large:;) photos is not necessary and clutters up the flow of threads, as does posting 2 sets of the same photos in a post.:roll:

People tend to click the Reply with Quote because its closer and it becomes a habit.

You can us the reply with quote function but then edit the quote to remove pics etc and just leave the part you are specifically replying to.

Yes, that is what I normally do when I need to quote a post.

As a moderator I at times do this in other peoples' quotes where I think the pictures quoted are excessive.

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Originally Posted by george mavridis

You can us the reply with quote function but then edit the quote to remove pics etc and just leave the part you are specifically replying to.

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Most people appear to be too lazy to do that.
I still reckon disable the quote button then only those that really want to quote others will do so.
"Opt in" as the say, rather than "Opt out".

take a look at hotcopper.com
its a stock market forum. they handle quotes differently. much more streamline. it condenses the quoted material into a clickable bubble, when clicked it expands to display the full quoted material. and iirc images that were within the quote aren't displayed as per the usual, instead it gives a clickable link to the image.

:aro-u: I like that idea. Unnecessary quoting is in the same category as hitting "reply all" when you don't need to. Grrrrrrr

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Originally Posted by Big Shed

When replying to a post please don't use the Reply with Quote button unless absolutely necessary, especially if there are pictures in the post you are replying to.

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However, if the original post is long, it may be desirable to quote a snippet of the original post so that it is clear to the reader which bit you are responding to.

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Originally Posted by Big Shed

there may be several pictures in a post, then someone replies to it quoting it and we see all those pictures posted again, usually right underneath the original post, with maybe 1 or 2 lines of text.

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True, it is often not necessary to include pictures in a quote but if a post contains a lot of pictures it may be a good idea to include one picture in a quote if you are commenting on something in that one picture.

Multi-quoting can also be useful as it allows you to get right to the point of your reply without having to explain what part of the original post it applies to.

Cheers

Doug

PS: But seriously, why start a thread asking people not to use the quote button when replying to posts, particularly the one immediately above and then, yourself, quote verbatim the first reply in the very next post? Was not the purpose of the thread to ask us not to do exactly that?

Fred was pointing out the problem of quoting when there are a lot of pictures or a massive ramble that goes on for a number of screens. There really isn't any need to quote at all if you are responding to a thread in general or the post directly above yours, but if you wish to point your reply to a specific person then the quote will make it obvious who your post is aimed at.

I have hated the "Reply With Quote" thing from the day it went on as almost from day one it made threads longer because lazy people just had to do it that way. It is also a bit of a drain on resources and can slow down loading of pages.

It's easy enough to quote a line or portion of a post or numerous snippets from other posts, without the need to copy the entire thing along with half a dozen pic, unless absolutely crucial to the post.

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Originally Posted by Kuffy

take a look at hotcopper.com

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Had a look at that one Kuffy. That's not your bog standard type forum. Looked through a dozen threads and couldn't find one replied to with quotes so gave up. I'll see if there's a plugin that may work like that for these forums. Might also reimplement the "Quick Reply" thing we used to have but was causing problems.

Some people are naturally lazy and will look for the easiest way out and the "Reply With Quotes" link is the most visible and the easiest, although I think I've only used it maybe 4 times.

Same thing has happened with the "Thank you / Likes" links. People say the forum doesn't have as many posts now.... That's because you don't have to put down your feelings in words anymore all you need to do now is hit "Like" or "Thank you. Posts have dropped off but Likes & Thanks are running into many thousands per month replacing the posts.

Cheers - Neil :U

Another quoting issue is when someone comes on an individually but successively replies with quotes to 5 or six people instead of one post simply with responses directed to each person by name.

So you end up with a bloated thread for no reason other than laziness.

Neil, I'm surprised you couldnt find replys including quotes on hotcopper. People love to pick apart and argue on that site, given that one of primary uses of many people is to mislead others into buying a stock while they are trying to sell, or vice versa.

anyways. post #5 on this thread has quotes, its quite a big quote. click the orange bubble and it expands, and since it such a big quote, at the bottom of the expanded bubble is another clickable link to allow it to expand to the full quote.
http://hotcopper.com.au/threads/dayt.../#.Vfofz9-qpBc

it also included an image, but displayed a smaller version of the image rather than the big one in original post.

you are correct that it isnt your bog standard off the shelf forum. Im sure its a fully custom built site with alsorts of tracking going on given that legal action due to the actions of others on that site is not an uncommon occurrence.

Off the top of my head (i aint fantastic with web programming, only know enough to get by for my own meager requirements), the quotes could be replicated with a bit of CSS and javascript. to give a link to an image rather than displaying the image would need to be done in the php scripts.

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Originally Posted by Kuffy

anyways. post #5 on this thread has quotes, its quite a big quote. click the orange bubble and it expands, and since it such a big quote, at the bottom of the expanded bubble is another clickable link to allow it to expand to the full quote.
http://hotcopper.com.au/threads/dayt.../#.Vfofz9-qpBc

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Need to register to see post #5.

ahh yeah, its kinda weird. i think it defaults to viewing single posts at a time, there is a link up the top somewhere to "thread view" which will display the entire thread. perhaps you need to sign up.

I must admit, I like the idea of the "Like this post" and "Thanks for this post" buttons. Its a simple way to pay basic courtesies and I might suggest it on a couple of other forums I belong to (assuming no copyright issues?)

Regards, Paul

doh, i realised i could logout and see the site as someone that hasnt signed up. you dont need to sign up, just click the "there are more pages in this discussion* 155 more msgs etc etc". page 4 has the post i am referring to. can also use the prev/next button top right corner of post.

OK I finally found it. Strewth that's way too sophisticated for here.

Will look at other fixes but the best one seems to be for people to stop hitting the "Reply With Quote" button all the time and only use it when necessary. Which isn't every time anyone wants to respond to a thread.

:U

Perhaps we need to start naming and shaming people who do it. A reeducation campaign.

The likes and thanks facilities certainly have their place and I use them. I also reply with a quote, but would like to think I extract the minimum relevant information to focus my comment.

One problem I see with the likes/thanks facility is that they don't alert you to subsequent posts unless you have previously posted on the thread in question. Is it possible to have a button that will alert you to subsequent posts even if you haven't contributed a post yourself?

I suppose it must be, but whether that is desireable or will bog down the system is the question.

Regards
Paul

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Originally Posted by Bushmiller

..........Is it possible to have a button that will alert you to subsequent posts even if you haven't contributed a post yourself?

I suppose it must be, but whether that is desireable or will bog down the system is the question.

Regards
Paul

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Yes it is Paul. On the top bar of the first post in a thread is an option called Thread Tools.
When you click on that there is an option Subscribe to Thread, click on that and you choose how and when to be notified of New Posts in that thread.

When you blokes get it sorted here, there are a couple of guitar forums I'd like you to go & clean up.
One I read last night had the same 6 guitar photos quoted 3 times so there were 24 photos of the same guitar on the same page. :doh:

Could you add a Reply to Thread button next to the Reply with Quote button so it is in a more convenient place? Might provide a convenient alternative for the lazy.

Reply link is now firmly wedged between Edit Post and Reply With Quote. See below right side of this post box.

:U

Just a quick little note on using the reply button:

• 1 click on the reply link will let you respond in the basic Quick Reply box below directly below the post.
• 2 clicks will take you to the full Reply to Thread screen where you can do a more complex post.
• You can also get to the full reply screen by clicking on the Go Advanced button below the Quick Reply box.

:U

Wow! That was quick.
Nice work. :2tsup:

Note: The double click doesn't work on an iPad (it just zooms).

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Originally Posted by hiroller

Note: The double click doesn't work on an iPad (it just zooms).

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If you wait till the quick reply box to open click reply again then it opens :wink:

Sorry. Should have emphasised two clicks not double click. ie click....click not clickclick :U

Some thing I've often wondered is how does one reply using several different quotes, sometimes from different posters?
TT

Use the quote mark with the + for the first post(s) you want to quote, then use the Reply with Quote for the last - bingo!

Thanks for that Fred.

TT