[diggy415]

I found out that sometimes there isn't alot of replies to ones questions or comments, i got to thinking is it the person who posted or the topic. I figured out it was the topic, just like asking a question outloud in a room, you either going to get "I don't know" or a discussion about the answer. I find it annoying when one post's pictures of something and hardley anyone responds and yet someone else can post a simular picture and topic and have tons of responces, why is this?

[venus]

I think sometimes its the topic or maybe even when and what section it is posted in. Some posts get past me sometimes and I dont see them until after someone else has responded...oops Trying to get better though.

[steel rip]

I think its the thread title, a lot go for the more urgent topics and by time they get to a none urgent topic they either disappeared or at the bottom of the page, most people I think, just look at the home page and when read what they want from there, go to "new posts today" which ends up mostly of what they already replied to...

Dont know but thats my theory lol....

[Rich]

Sometimes threads are overlooked. It is never intentional. I have seen threads go without a response for a day or 2 and then someone sees the post and responds. The next thing you know, that becomes the latest thread to discuss.

Some people use the sites homepage to see the latest discussion, and if a thread isn't being displayed there, they don't respond. Others use the "New Posts" button in the Quicklinks menu and with all the posts it shows, they overlook it. Still others go through individual forums and that may not be one of the forums that they view.

Its not intentional by any means. If after a day or 2 of no one responding, post a reply so it gets bumped back up. (At least wait 24 hours before bumping any threads.) This way, it gets tossed back into the que.

UPDATE: While I was posting, 2 others had responded. This thread wasn't overlooked. lol

Donna brings up a VERY good ppoint. The thread title should be descriptive. If it says "new pics", some people (myself included) will jump past the thread and hit one where someone needs assistance.

[Typhanie]

I have to admit that I don't actually read all the threads. For instance photo posts or introductions. I'll read the ones that sound interesting or sound like they have pictures I want to see. Or if I know someone usually takes really great pictures, I'll read those, but a lot of times I'll skip those in favor of other threads.

The other thing is that I don't always feel comfortable leaving a comment that will be exactly the same as someone else's, or if I can't help that person.

Sorry about that. I think some threads will just naturally get more responses than others.

[schlegelbagel]

I know as in cases with another forum I belong to, if its a question that's been asked a bazillion times and could have been solved with a very simple search, it won't get answered. People get tired of answering the same thing all the time.

My respsonse is I usually don't have a solution.

[furryscaly]

I can name several reasons why some threads get neglected more than others:

1. It has a bad title, usually one that's not descriptive enough, or one that has nothing to do with the actual thread.

2. The topic. If I see a thread on iguanas, I usually overlook it because I don't keep iguanas, and there are many other people here with far more extensive knowledge on the subject. I'm not as interested in iguanas, unable to help others with them that well, and I know they'll get help from other members, so I skip it. If the thread's about a sick lizard, the title should reflect that. If it doesn't, someone who knows something about sick lizards may ignore the thread, because few people read EVERY thread.

3. The spelling and grammar of the post. If someone has horrible grammar and/or spelling, it's too annoying to try and translate what they're trying to say. We have rules, and we have a spell-check feature.

4. Busy lives. Sometimes if I'm running short on free time I'll only hit the threads that I find particularly interesting, or the ones I believe I can help with. Thus, this also ties in with pertinent thread titles again.

5. Where the thread was posted. Sometimes people put threads in poor locations. For example, if you're new to HC, you may want to introduce yourself in the introduction forum. However, if you also have a question about your frog, and you post that in the same thread, it may get overlooked because it's not in the frog forum. Not everyone reads the intro threads because they're usually filled with the same "Hi, I'm new. I like reptiles.", "Hi, welcome to HC. Post pics." Not all members read all the threads. If all you're interested in is tegus, for example, then you might not check the other forums as often as the tegu forum. If someone posts a tegu question in a different forum, it will likely get overlooked by many of the people who would be most interested to read it.

6. You simply have nothing to say. Sometimes, especially if I'm in a hurry, I may see a picture or an introduction, but I won't respond because I have nothing constructive to say. Though it may be friendly to say "Welcome to the site", or "Nice picture", if I'm trying to get through all the threads so I can go to sleep, I may skip replying to ones that are less important and save my responses for the "What kind of lizard do I have" threads. Sometimes I feel bad for saying "Nice picture" because it sounds so generic and I don't have anything better to say, so I just say nothing at all.

7. You don't have the answer. Sometimes, especially if a thread's gotten no or few responses, I feel compelled to say "Sorry, I can't help you. I just don't know the answer", and sometimes I don't respond at all. From my perspective, if I post a question and someone responds, I assume they'll have something constructive to say. If they can't help me, then anything they have to say will be of no value to me and just wasted my time or gave me a false sense of hope.


Anywho, those are the reasons I could think of. It's unfortunate that some threads get less attention than others, and I'm not condoning it, but it happens. These are just some of the reasons why. On the upside, you can always see how many view a thread got, so at least you know people are seeing it. If it has no responses then it's likely that nobody that saw it had anything to say. Your thread obvioulsy had a good title, good location, wasn't difficult to read, and people had constructive answers for your topic

[diggy415]

yes alot of good pointers, I too go to topics that catch my eye and aren't repeated questions or negative topics, I just get the same result wherever I go it seems, or alot of people with comment "cute, nice pic's and that be all.