How do you "Forum"?

I've always wondered how other people "forum".

Like, when you're on a forum, what do you do exactly? If you make a post in a thread do you keep an eye on that thread to see if anyone quotes you, perhaps longer than you should just because you really want to see what someone wrote about your post? Do you stay on the forum index and continuously refresh for new post? Use the new posts tool? In vBulletin, do you stay on the Who's Online page and watch what everyone is doing? Do you stay on that page so it looks like you're online for much longer than you really are (depending on what it's set to it usually refreshes every 60 seconds)? Do you post, leave the forum completely, and come back in 10 minutes?

 

I usually check for new posts, reply to the topics that are "calling me", and then leave for a bit.

 

When I first log on I check to see if I have any PMs, then I click the New Posts tool and read up on what's been happening Then throughout the day when I have spare time at lunch, breaks etc I'll check in on the computer at work (ssshh )

 

I'm going to tell on you. BUSTED.

... :lol:

 

Any forum I visit regularly I've bookmarked the New Posts search; that's normally my entry point, middle click each thread that's looks interesting (open in new tab), and get to reading/replying.

On larger forums that have a huge static to noise ratio, I still do new posts append &pp=500 to the end of the resulting search URL, this will show you 500 search results to per page instead of paginating them at the standard 25 (uber annoying), scan the titles and middle click anything interesting.

My last stop is usually the User CP where I check for missed threads (I subscribe with no email notification, so it will pop up in my UCP), and PM's, rep comments, etc.

On forums where I'm not a regular poster, I use daily email notification and generally only go in for a visit once a week from the email link.

 

Depends on the forum. On a large forum, I go to specific area and read them one at a time. New Posts is overwhelming. On smaller forums, I'll use the New Posts page.

Whether I return a PM or not depends on the time that I have available.

 

If it is a forum I frequent, I subscribe to all threads I post in with no e-mail notification. So the first thing I do is check my subscribed threads and make any necessary responses.

Then I check out the New Posts and open all the ones that interest me (like Big Dan) and go through reading as well as possibly replying to whatever.

If the forum is one I rarely visit or need a prompt answer (i.e. a support forum) I subscribe with instant e-mail notification and just wait until I get the e-mail to check back.

I rarely go in through the regular forum interface into a specific section to see what threads are in there.

And yes, I do love the Who's Online feature. Not for making myself appear online when I'm not, but I just like to see what everybody is up to. Chris and I seem to be there a lot here.

 

Uh oh, you caught me. :p

 

:lol: No worries. I always feel "caught" when the admin of the forum I'm browsing is watching me watch who's online. It makes you feel like you're doing something you shouldn't. Or maybe I'm just crazy and this feeling isn't normal. :p

 

Well most of the time, I go on there when I get up and leave (rather than signing off). It's one of my many tactics. :lol:

 

Well I generally have a computer in my hands from sun up to sun down. During that time I go through a great effort to make sure I'm logged on to my forum using one of my accounts at all times. I do this to help make the board look some what active since it's still a small board...I'm also able to catch spammer rather quickly.

As for other forums, I only refresh the page if it's an on going good discussion. The rest generally falls under bookmarks or subscriptions. When it comes to surfing the boards, I generally stick to certain areas of a board. This site is cool in a sense that all you do is click on the Unread post link under your name and it brings up all the new post. You can scroll down and find threads you like or have responded to pretty easy.