Is there etiquette on commenting in your own posts?

February 8, 2005 7:08 PM

Is there etiquette on commenting in your own posts (FPPs?)? I'm exercising restraint - don't want to end up on Noobs Gone Wild. Looser in the green than the blue?
posted by hellbient to Etiquette/Policy at 7:08 PM (20 comments total)

Excellent question. I also want to ask about "moderating" which seems to be frowned upon.
posted by mlis at 7:17 PM on February 8, 2005

It's incredibly tacky.
posted by Mean Mr. Bucket at 7:26 PM on February 8, 2005

yeah, glad you said that. Tacky in a "I'm going to keep this thread alive" kinda way. It's a fine line for sure, though.
posted by hellbient at 7:29 PM on February 8, 2005

It's incredibly tacky.
posted by Mean Mr. Bucket at 7:26 PM PST on February 8

What I mean is, it's not so bad, but if taken to far it's like you're corralling people into staying on target. I'm more fond of the 'put it out there and let it ride' school of posting.
posted by Mean Mr. Bucket at 7:30 PM on February 8, 2005

I find it distasteful if a poster addresses nearly any comment or question raised like an overeager host at a party. See to it that you set a comfortable stage for everyone with the post, put in a few helpful bits now and then, and then let it ride.
posted by majick at 7:32 PM on February 8, 2005

I tend toward "put it out there and let it ride", and I tend to enjoy it more when other people do the same thing, but that's not to say that you can't join in the conversation — just let the rest of the passers-by decide where it's going.

It's like, y'know, art. Picture a painting on a gallery wall — do you appreciate it more if you can take it in and maybe discuss it with whoever you went to the gallery with, or if the artist is there to tell you how to interpret it? Your post is that painting!
posted by mendel at 7:33 PM on February 8, 2005

I agree there can be too much goal tending in some threads - but doesn't it ultimately hinge on the topic?
posted by Quartermass at 7:42 PM on February 8, 2005

Certainly, opinion based topics require a more delicate hand. Links to random cool things, less so.
posted by jonson at 7:49 PM on February 8, 2005

I think the Green is looser than the Blue, especially if you're asking about a nuanced issue. You can clarify and respond to the questions that get asked. In the Blue, people who are all over their own threads look a bit ... desperate.
posted by jacquilynne at 8:06 PM on February 8, 2005

Is there etiquette on commenting in your own posts (FPPs?)? I'm exercising restraint

Sounds like you've got the right idea. Let them go for a while before you jump in and develop your post or respond to criticism/additions/etc. Once you post it, you've let it go to large extent. That's part of the fun. Don't spoil it by pruning the ensuing discussion so that it follows exactly the line of thought you'd expect. Believe it or not, one of the priveleges of posting something here is that you learn more about it from other people's comments and links than you ever knew was even out there.

Sit back and drink it in. You'll be outdone, chided, and generally schooled within 15 comments, and, did I mention? you'll be in very, very good company by the end of it. Never pass up an opportunity to learn because of your ego. That's how stupid people get stupider.
posted by scarabic at 8:28 PM on February 8, 2005

I think it's imperative to make comments in your own FPP in the green. How else are you going to get your question answered?

In the blue, you should make comments as well. Not that you should make up one in three for the thread or anything though. However, I can't remember how many times someone made a post that turned into a flamewar and the person who posted stood back and didn't make any comments. Seems rude to me.
posted by Arch Stanton at 8:56 PM on February 8, 2005

If attacked in your FPP, it is important to come out swinging and defend it to the death. Preferrably in the form of a duel or some kind of verbal ninja death match.

But I kid.

I see nothing wrong with commenting in your own FPP if clarification is needed. Sometimes I'll post something that, on paper, looked like most everyone would get, only to find that I was sadly mistaken and had to jump in and pull the stick up.

Agreed Arch. Nothing like someone dropping a turd post and bailing out never to be seen again.
posted by KevinSkomsvold at 9:30 PM on February 8, 2005

It's not tacky in the slightest to participate in a discussion that results from your post; I'm surprised folks would suggest otherwise. I'd agree waiting a bit is good form, but you certainly don't give up your right as a MeFi member to discuss, offer rebuttals or call people on lame rhetorical garbage just because you were the one who posted a cool site.

What constitutes attempting to "moderate" one's own thread? Trust your own gut. I was accused of trying to "moderate" after posting the 5th, 18th and 20th comments in the Bastard Nation thread, for instance. Apparently, suggesting that folks bother to respond to the arguments raised at the linked site rubbed someone the wrong way (which I found absurd).

Bottom line: Don't crowd the thread, sure, but for heaven's sake don't feel you have to sit on your hands while other folks talk about something you obviously found interesting.
posted by mediareport at 9:34 PM on February 8, 2005

I too fight the urge to tend my posts. Sometimes more successfully than others. Restraint is key. Though clarity isn't so bad either.
posted by fenriq at 10:30 PM on February 8, 2005

i think mediareport's example is illuminating (and wrong). telling people what they should be posting is moderation, but taking part in a discussion is not. sometimes it's a difficult call - that post could have made the same point, but come across much less like moderation, if it hadn't used such a school-teacher-ly voice.

in askme there are times when you need to reply qiute often (and it's frustrating when people don't). what i find hardest is getting a bunch of useful replies - i want to say "thanks" to everyone, but that would just make the thread twice as long, so end up posting generic "thanks everyone" messages.
posted by andrew cooke at 2:08 AM on February 9, 2005

I have learned through direct experience that shepherding the discussion following an FPP you've posted is a faux pas. That being said, I post to my own threads sometimes. I resist the urge to guide the thread, but if someone brings up a good point or adds a good related link, I may comment like anyone else would (and try not to comment as the FPP poster). I also post if someone addresses me directly and expects a response.
posted by Doohickie at 7:40 AM on February 9, 2005

I think Doohickie's guidelines are excellent. The key thing is to avoid the "protect my baby" syndrome. Treat it like someone else's thread.
posted by languagehat at 8:43 AM on February 9, 2005

I feel that it's perfectly acceptable to participate in an FPP that you've made in the blue. It's practically necessary to participate in AskMe. Like others I feel that once you make and post an FPP you have to let it go and evolve on its own. I always figure that the links mean something to the poster or they wouldn't have taken time to make an FPP. It's interesting to know the poster's feelings about the links. But demanding that people comment on certain issues and trying to force people to comment narrowly on what you feel is the importance of your links is boorish and should not be encouraged. It comes off as hostile and controlling.
posted by Juicylicious at 8:43 AM on February 9, 2005

Certainly, opinion based topics require a more delicate hand.

Opinion-based topics belong on your own weblog where you can moderate to your heart's content.
posted by timeistight at 8:56 AM on February 9, 2005

I think Doohickie's guidelines are excellent.

Getting such input from languagehat, I'm flattered. Now, if I could only follow my own guidelines...
posted by Doohickie at 9:45 AM on February 9, 2005