Much like my similar "Some Reminders On Spam", this thread is meant to be a quick read to work as a reference as to the appropriate way to post. Remember, my word is not the end all of discussion, please, correct me or point out opposing views to anything I say.
So let me just give a few brief words on why a matter such as posting needs attention. Online, you are what you type. If your post looks intelligent, you look intelligent. If you post intelligently, you'll sound mature. And most of all, if you sound mature, you post will convey more persuasion in an argument, carry more weight when suggesting an idea, and if you post a topic it will be more liable to get replies. In short: A good post gets a good reaction. So, with no mroe mindless crap from me, lets get on with the goal of the point of the thread.
Please Note: If English is not your first language, than
that is perfectly acceptable. Being a second language, you're not expected to know all the perfect spellings, all of the right grammar, etc... Though that really isn't a problem, anyways. Most people here that don't have English as their native language type it better than most.
Fallacies of Intelligence
1. Capitalization- when you don't capitalize anything, like other forumers names, thread titles, the word "i", etc... it sort of makes your post look silly. after all, if a person can't use the shift key, what can they possibly do besides grow up to flip patties? capitalizing plays a very important role in making it easier to read a post by differenciating sentences. i didn't used to capitalize. don't make the same mistake i did.
2. Punctuation- When you dont put proper puncuation it makes it somewhat hard to read posts does it not? Put periods commas etc... and all of that other good jazz especially when doing lists. Get in the habbit of using apostrophes too because you should respect the English language like the rest of the litereate world at least in my opinion.
3. All Caps- REALLY, IT TAKES ONE PUSH OF A BUTTON BY THE PINKY TO NOT LOOK LIKE A COMPLETE IDIOT. SAVE OUR EYES THE TROUBLE, PLEASE, AND JUST DON'T USE CAPS LOCK.
4. Specification- If you start a topic on something, refer to an event, etc... always specify what you're talking about. If you start a thread about a new political issue, explain what the issue is. If you give a reference to a person whom everyone might not know, clarify who they are. It makes it alot easier for someone to join the discussion.
5. Spelling/Typos- When you type, it si best too have good speling, or as close to good as you can get. This includes breifly cheking for typos before you psot, correcting any major spelling mistakes, etc... Also, please don't type wit a linguistic style either, cause dat can be a bit annoying.
NOTE: If you really don't know the spelling of a word, don't bother looking in up unless it bears some sort of imediate relevance, is vital to the meaning of the post, or is undecipherable. When you find yourself in need, http://www.m-w.com is an excellent online dictionary you can use for quick spelling/thesaurus look-ups.
Fallacies of Persuasion
1. Mindless Flaming- Keep this in mind if you ever get into an argument with someone. Don't insult them for things outside of the topic at hand. Don't automatically nitpick their posts. Argue your point, and leave it at that. The next two points somewhat relate to this.
2. Equality- Remember that online, we're all a bunch of pixels displayed on somebodies computer. Getting any sort of superiority complex will only make people hate you. Forums are the great equalizer. No one's opinion is better than anybody elses. Face it. No matter how much better you think you are, the other person is equal.
3. Knowing When To Quit- Don't continue an argument. If you have nothing more to argue, simply state that in a non-agressive way. Even concede. Remember, we're pixels. If your pride gets hurt by conceding in an online argument, you have some serious ego issues. AKA, you should be shot.
Fallacies of Post Appearance
1. Too Much Punctuation- Whoa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Who would've thought that a whole bunch of lines could look so stupid?!?!?!?!?!?!??!?! It's obstructive. One exclamation point of question mark perfectly conveys the meaning of a sentence.
2. Stretched Posts- Let me clarify: Holding a word out rrrrrrrrreeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaalllllllllllyyyyyyyyyyyy long. If done improperly, you can easily expand the width of your post, causing it to only be 2 or 3 long lines of text. If your post creates a left/right scroll bar, edit it so it doesn't turn out like that.
NOTE: Pictures count as an exception. There is no picture size limit
3. Too Many Smilies- A
can help to convey you're joking around. A
can show confusion. A
can express happiness.
just indicates that you're an idiot. Smilies are great to add some color and eye relief to blocks of text, but don't use them in excess.
4. Seperate Paragraphs- This is rarely an issue, but a major one. If you have a large block of text, see if you can divide it into 2 different paragraphs. It helps people to keep their place, and makes your post more visually appealing.
Misc. Points
Not necessarily relating to an individual post
- Don't make large, scrolling, or obstructive sigs.
- Don't overgeneralize a group, like "Rich People", or especially "Americans". I'll really get onto anybody using "American" to generalize the actions of a few politicians as the choice of a couple hundred million people.
- Please, please, refer to "Some reminders On Spam". It will help to clarify any confusion regarding spam.
- Before making a topic, check to see if there is a similar topic within at least 2-3 pages.
- Make sure posted links work.
- Always post "SPOILERS" in the title of a topic with spoilers.
- Don't post any topic of crude or offensive nature. The OWF house people from all over the world, a good deal of different cultures, and a broad range of ages. Don't spoil the fun for others, don't clash cultures, and remember to always enjoy posting.
General Posting Tips
