What are your Lounging habits?

[Ghoulish Delight]

Alright, most of us, if not all, are now grizzled VB veterans. So how do you do your surfing?

First off, I have the PM popup set. If I get one, I always have it open in a new window (hopefully I remember to hold ctrl because of my pop-up blocker which I probably should turn off for this site, but I just don't for some reason). I read and respond to any PMs, close it up.

Then, it's straight to "New Posts". Actually, on most of my computers, I've bookmared the "New Posts" link, so I load straight into it. I then proceed to open any threads I plan to read (using the "go to first unread" button) in a new window, made so much easier since I learned that shift-clicking opens a link in a new window! I'll usually try to open all the threads I'm interested in before reading any, but sometimes I'll read one in the middle if it sounds really interesting. The last thread that I open, I always just click and open it in the same window as the "New Posts" search. I then go through and read and respond to all the threads one by one. If it's the first time I've been to the board in a while, by the time I'm done, there have more than likely been posts in the interim, so after closing all but one window, I hit "New Posts" again and repeat the process (making sure to double check the threads I posted in, just in case someone posted while I was reading/composing and I missed it).



Okay, did that make me sound as OCD as I think it did?



As for viewing, I'm always in list view. Does anyone use the threaded view? I'd guess not. It was a good theory, a way to transition people used to the news group world, but it just doesn't work if most people are viewing in list mode because they have no motivation to use the "post quick reply" button correctly, which is what would keep the threaded view organized.

I also bump my posts per page to 500. I really dislike having to change pages and am willing to sacrifice a little load time in the larger threads.

Back at Fab, when catfight and the moderator lair weren't included in "New Posts" I got into the habit of going down to the Quick Links menu and jumping to the Mod Lair and then catfight. It's been a hard habit to break, I still sometimes absentmindedly click down there (and of course I know the keyboard movements by heart to get to those forums as quickly as possible) once I've exhausted all the new posts content.




I'm not OCD, I swear! [scroll up, re-read post, click previw, re-read post, tap desk 3 times, click and hold submit, drag off submit, click submit once more]

[Eliza Hodgkins 1812]

I first go to New Posts.

Then I got to all of my posts, to reread them and be completely amazed by how witty I am...and that's when I notice all my spelling and grammar errors.

Okay, I'm kidding about the second line. Mostly I just check new threads.

[wendybeth]

Oh, you poor, poor guy.;)

Uhmm, I click on the bookmark (or the e-mail notice link) and hit new posts. That's pretty much it.

[Grumpy4]

I just clique away at things that look funny to be involved with or interesting. And I go back and forth to things. Nothing exotic like GD!

[Cadaverous Pallor]

I'm not just saying this to make GD look good - I do the exact same thing he does. I mean exact.

If I get really bored (ie, no one's posting) I'll do a forum browse to see if I may have missed anything in the last day. But other than that, identical.

Oh, and I used to use 500 posts per page too, but my work computer is really slow, so I'm down to 50 posts now. I'm used to it now. I really didn't like scrolling through a 500 post page to try find a specific post.

Then I got to all of my posts, to reread them and be completely amazed by how witty I am...and that's when I notice all my spelling and grammar errors.Heehee....you may deny it in your case, but I do this a lot. I love rereading a really good post of mine. :D There usually aren't too many errors, since I'm pretty meticulous at checking before I hit submit.

GD and I are OCD, aren't we.....oh well, I call it "attention to detail". :)

[Eliza Hodgkins 1812]

]

Heehee....you may deny it in your case, but I do this a lot. I love rereading a really good post of mine. :D There usually aren't too many errors, since I'm pretty meticulous at checking before I hit submit.



Nah, I actually do it, but it really is because I know I'll find some glaring mistake to be embarrassed about.

[HTHBellcaptain]

Let's see, my posting habits usually go like this. After a several month absence I sign in, catch up on all the latest threads. Then I post like crazy, and promise that I will start posting on a regular basis. Then I get too busy and disappear for several months. Then I start the whole cycle over again.

[Gemini Cricket]

I did the same thing you did, GD. I bookmarked LoT new posts. That way I can find out what's going on in all threads.
:)
GC & CP - I think I'm OCD, too. :D

[Gemini Cricket]

I bookmark this:
http://www.xenarchy.com/LoT/search.php?do=getnew

It works well. :)

[belleh5]

The 1st thing I do is check for new posts, then I check my pm's. I go back & forth between 3 or 4 message boards.

[Gn2Dlnd]

Let's see, my posting habits usually go like this. After a several month absence I sign in, catch up on all the latest threads. Then I post like crazy, and promise that I will start posting on a regular basis. Then I get too busy and disappear for several months. Then I start the whole cycle over again.

Welcome HTHBellcaptain!

[wendybeth]

Welcome HTHBellcaptain!

Okay (sigh)...I will...once again...welcome HTHBellcaptain, but if he does not post at least once a year, I shall be forced to, well, not expect him to post more.... (sigh)*

*HTH? I hear your a really cool guy, but damn! I keep missing your posts, I guess...:p

[MickeyD]

I'm boring. I just click on New Posts.

[Matterhorn Fan]

Let's see, my posting habits usually go like this. After a several month absence I sign in, catch up on all the latest threads. Then I post like crazy, and promise that I will start posting on a regular basis. Then I get too busy and disappear for several months. Then I start the whole cycle over again.Pffft.

It's more like this. After a several month to year-long absence, Flippyshark and Matterhorn Fan badger you and tell you that people on the message boards are wondering where you are. When you get sick of it, you log in, post a few times, and then disappear.

*HTH? I hear your a really cool guy, but damn! I keep missing your posts, I guess...There hasn't been anything to miss lately.

[Matterhorn Fan]

Oh, and sometimes I click on New Posts. Other times I don't. Sometimes I read one thread and then log off. Sometimes I don't look at the boards at all for a long time. I have no consistency.

[blueerica]

Yeah, I tend to read whole threads...

I really haven't ever tried "New Posts."

Perhaps I'll become a convert?

What I tend to do is go through each thread, through the last page I saw, or re-read for comprehensive benefit.

It's really no wonder I could never catch up with GD in post count...

[Kevy Baby]

As scary as it is, my posting habits are about the same as GD's (though I set to 50 posts per page).

And for you Mac heads (like me), you can open a link in a new window by holding the Command (Apple) key when you click on the link.

If you want to submit a post without using your mouse, hit Control-S (Mac) or Alt-S (PC). This now also works in "Edit" mode (in pre-3.0.5 versions, this was not the case).

[Jazzman]

I do pretty much the same thing, except that I'm set at the default threads per page due to my archaic dial-up connection, which still takes a lunar cycle to load even at that. :(

[blueerica]

I have new pages open in Tabs on Safari...

(I'm getting the feeling I'm veering toward Egg Head on this one...)

[MerryPrankster]

My lounging habits? Comfortable couch (I have to keep rotating the cushions so my butt indentation doesn't become permanent). Feet on magazine (old Lucky mag w/ Gwen Stefani on cover, it's Lucky!) which is on coffee table -- so my feet are not technically on CT. Laptop on lap. Click on New Posts repeatedly. :)

[alphabassettgrrl]

Depends on my mood. I tend to do a little bit of all the ways to look at the posts and reply. I use new posts to get the list of threads with new posts. Usually I open all threads in a new window. Usually I try to minimize my number of windows open. But sometimes I get tired of waiting for each thread to load, so I set a bunch of them to open and click through them. I do generally reply to each post that I want to while I'm there or I'd never find it again.

[HTHBellcaptain]

Pffft.

It's more like this. After a several month to year-long absence, Flippyshark and Matterhorn Fan badger you and tell you that people on the message boards are wondering where you are. When you get sick of it, you log in, post a few times, and then disappear.

There hasn't been anything to miss lately.

Okay, I guess it's time to tell the truth. I've wanted to post for a long time, but Matterhorn Fan and Flippy Shark threatened to shoot my dog if I made a single post. They said that if I told anyone about this that they would kill my family. Then I realize that my dog is already dead, and that I really don't love my family all that much. So I'm posting just to spite them. (I know, they seem so harmless, but they're really nasty thugs.)


















(Actually, I love my family very much.)

[Not Afraid]

But, your dog is really dead.

[FEJ]

I just go to the main page, and see if any of the new posts interest me. I dont subscribe to any of the threads. I just go where i feel like at the moment...
Kind of a board nomad..

That, and see if anyone though my posts were really cool ;)

[wendybeth]

The Captain finally posts! Yeah! :cool:

[HTHBellcaptain]

But, your dog is really dead.

Sadly, my dog really is dead. But it's not a recent occurance. She's been dead since 1990. Her name was Lady. She was so wonderful.

Come to think of it, how dare Matterhorn Fan and Flippy Shark threaten to kill my dead dog. I may just have to retaliate by killing some of their dead pets, and see how they like it. :D

[Not Afraid]

Well, sin MatterhornFan's cat is alive and living in protective custody with me, I guess she is safe.

[HTHBellcaptain]

By the way, I think that is so kind of you to take care of Matterhoof Fan's cat, since she has apparently abandoned it. :D

[Not Afraid]

She DID abandon the poor cat! And, to make matters even more dispicable, she denies ever having a cat! She really is a nasty thug of the highest degree!

[HTHBellcaptain]

If she has a dead pet, then I say "Let's kill it!"

[Matterhorn Fan]

My long dead parakeets, Jack and Jill, are horrified with what you two are saying.

I would never kill your dead dog, HTH. Not unless you destroyed that ultra-cute picture of her. No one could look at that face and think evil thoughts.

Your face, however, is quite another story.

[Motorboat Cruiser]

I then proceed to open any threads I plan to read (using the "go to first unread" button) in a new window, made so much easier since I learned that shift-clicking opens a link in a new window!



First of all, thanks so much for this tip! I'm going to be using it from now on.

I don't really have too much of a systematic approach. I will usually have a seperate browser windo open for each board that I am checking out. I'll go to "new posts" and scan them to make mental notes of what I think might interest me.

From there, it's a crapshoot though. I go where the wind takes me, never knowing if a topic is going to send me on an internet journey. A simple political topic for example, may turn into a research project, as I try to find data to support my position. Or someone may mention Fred Flinstone as a beatnik and I'll spend an hour trying to find a pic that I can use for my avatar. Stuff like that.

Generally though, I'll eventually get around to reading all of the threads that I wanted to and responding where appropriate but it can be a long, drawn-out process sometimes.

[HTHBellcaptain]

My long dead parakeets, Jack and Jill, are horrified with what you two are saying.

I would never kill your dead dog, HTH. Not unless you destroyed that ultra-cute picture of her. No one could look at that face and think evil thoughts.

Your face, however, is quite another story.

That's it! My cute dead dog is so going to kick your pail carrying dead parakeets' tail feathers for that remark.

[wendybeth]

You know, if you two don't knock it off, I'm bringing in my dead Ninja cat.

(Seriously- I have a dead cat named Ninja!)
:D

[FEJ]

You know, if you two don't knock it off, I'm bringing in my dead Ninja cat.

(Seriously- I have a dead cat named Ninja!)
:D

Ninja I
NInja II
Ninja III
all buried in the garden?

[Gn2Dlnd]

And they all voted in the last election.

[wendybeth]

lol, Gn2!

Even better- I voted in the Washington state election.
My dead cat didn't, though- as far as I know, anyway.....

Uber-
Ninja I (ran away with the bad feral kitties down block)
Ninja II- Ex- cat, ate himself to death. Not buried in a garden.

So, you had three Ninjas? Lol- I thought I was bad! Were they all black kitties?:cool:

[Matterhorn Fan]

You know, if you two don't knock it off, I'm bringing in my dead Ninja cat.

(Seriously- I have a dead cat named Ninja!)
:DEiwwww! You kept your dead cat? Gross!

[wendybeth]

Eiwwww! You kept your dead cat? Gross!

Lol! I know- I thought about that one, but if I were going to menace someone with a dead cat, then it stands to reason that I should actually have one, as opposed to had.

This is sad, isn't it? Explaining the reasoning behind a sentence where I threaten someone with an dead pet.;):p

[jdramj]

I'm a "New Posts" person and I'm just figuring out the displaying posts tricks and such. I have a new computer so I have that pop up blocker that I'm still trying to navigate...(GD you taught me something new!)

Ok then I lurk...and then lurk some more. I try in vain to find a coooool avatar and then I lurk some more. Eventually I find a post to dip my toe into, and in about 4 months, I might actually have a post count worthy of a new member. :D

:cool:

[MerryPrankster]

Ok then I lurk...and then lurk some more. I try in vain to find a coooool avatar and then I lurk some more. Eventually I find a post to dip my toe into, and in about 4 months, I might actually have a post count worthy of a new member. :D

:cool:

Hello, jdramj! Welcome, nice to see you here. :cool: You can now dip your foot in and the leg will follow. Start posting when you feel the urge -- we're a very swanky and friendly group here.

I hope you find a cool avatar soon! :)

[jdramj]

I hope you find a cool avatar soon! :)

One can hope! Thanks! (I am also known as "Tink, not Stink" and "I'm Tink, not Stink" elsewhere and more often than not "jdramj" on 3 others)

[Matterhorn Fan]

This is sad, isn't it? Explaining the reasoning behind a sentence where I threaten someone with an dead pet.;):pI think it's very English major-y of you, and that makes it totally cool to me.

Then again, I'm a total nerd.

[HTHBellcaptain]

Amen!!!!! (:D)