Newbie Tips...

ChevyFam717

OK... so there was a thread on the March Board that had some hurt feelings and I know when I was new to TB I struggled with a few things also... These are some tips that I came up with as "rules of thumb" to make TB Posts/Comments go smoother for me... Do you all Agree? Anything you might add?

I like it when boards are more supportive and I honestly made the same mistakes as a newbie around here... Lessons learned? Here are my top 10 newbie tips:

1. People from other boards will see your other posts - it isn't exclusive - which will cause 10 times as much strife as was originated in the beginning. Does that mean that they should hunt you down and do it? No - I think that is slightly rude and people should learn to let things go.

2. Don't post something that you already have a strong opinion on. You will automatically be defensive of any other replies that differ from what you think and if you have already made a decision, then why even ask opinions?

3. Make sure you title vents with "VENT" in the subject... then people who don't want to hear it can ignore it... and keep them shorter than longer if possible. People stop reading if it is a HUGE RANT that is repetitive and there is info that doesn't even matter.

4. Don't dictate responses and what should/n't be included - this pisses people off. If you post - you are opening a can of worms for whatever comes back at you. So saying, "I really want to know what you think 2nd showers... but I don't want to hear people commenting on me being grabby or that I am selfish or attention whoreish" - - you obviously don't want to hear it so why even put it out there?

5. Don't dirty delete any posts that you are later embarassed by - this also annoys people and if you can't stick by what you post then it shouldn't be posted at all.

6. People remember you! Whether it is by your ticker, your user name or your writing style, people will put 2 & 2 together to make 4. So if you post about sprinkles being rediculous then say you are having one - it is fair game to rip you apart.

7. Positive opinions help - giving constructive criticism instead of opinionated criticism helps make friends - not enemies... don't tell people what do to - tell the that they "could" do something instead. Or if you do have an opinionated post, preface it with IMO. If you are constructive - you get more constructive responses.

8. Public = strangers. This means that public forums are not all friends - they are people who do not know you - who live in other regions - who have their own value, beliefs, and ways of doing things... They will give you HONEST opinions but what might be normal in California might not be normal in New York. Period. Take it with a grain of salt - both commenting and posting.

9. Lurk before posting - If you want to post on another board - you should lurk for a while or include in your post that you are a lurker... Getting to know the types of responses that boards generate are important. IE: Baby Name board tends to be traditional, don't even suggest mis-spelling a name or a you-neek name - they are not popular there. Get to know what a board is like before you throw bait to the piranhas (not saying that everyone on the board is a piranha... just a saying)...

10. Cliques happen - When a bunch of people have a similar opinion, they stick together... plain and simple. So don't "attack" someone without expecting some retaliation. It won't be 1 on 1, I promise you. (FYI - I use the phrase Attack loosely - you all get the idea).

These are just some things I have observed in the past 8 weeks or so...Try not to let things bother you too much - you get what you ask for... it just sucks when you don't realize what you are asking until it is too late.