Unpopular Opinions (fish related)

[GaryE]

When I started writing commercially, my editor railed at my paragraphs.

He said readers need to some white on a page.

Put the ideas out but never in blocks of text, and don't follow the usual rules of paragraph set up with just indenting.

Then, you can develop your super theory of everything.

I don't usually respect beliefs or opinions. That sounds bad, but I do respect reasoned arguments even if I don't agree. I tend not to believe in things, but a good presentation will make me believe things that are supported.

There, you see. Layout. Spaces. It's a good reminder.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

For me, it's long posts with terrible spelling and punctuation. It's a form of selfishness, in my opinion. It shows that, if the poster is thinking at all about anyone else, they're thinking, "What I have to say is so important that I expect people to decipher my cryptic spelling, wade through my interminable paragraphs, and figure out for themselves when my sentences begin and end."

I generally don't bother reading or responding to posts like that.

 

[GaryE]

For me, it's long posts with terrible spelling and punctuation. It's a form of selfishness, in my opinion. It shows that, if the poster is thinking at all about anyone else, they're thinking, "What I have to say is so important that I expect people to decipher my cryptic spelling, wade through my interminable paragraphs, and figure out for themselves when my sentences begin and end."

I generally don't bother reading or responding to posts like that.

As a semi-retired English teacher and editor, yeah, I don't usually answer those. If you can't be bothered to try to be clear when you ask people to do something for you, bye.

That's just a matter of respect for the reader.

It's different when I detect google translate, or a second (3rd, 4th) language issue. There, people have taken time and are trying to communicate as best they can.

 

[Naughts]

Not everyone has the same level of literacy and, as Gary said, may not be using their first language. If you hang around long enough you look at the poster and know if what they have to say/ how they relay it will be to your liking.
For those who need support with spelling, grammar or punctuation there are apps that really help.

 

[Oldspartan]

If it is worth writing for an audience, it is worth the time to make it readable.

 

[jaylach]

If it is worth writing for an audience, it is worth the time to make it readable.

The way I see it is that this is an international site and English for some is a second or third language Since people want an answer to a question I think that at least most do the best that they can.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

Yeah, I'm not talking about non-native English speakers. I actually really respect them and appreciate their efforts, just as people in countries I've traveled in seem to appreciate my feeble efforts to communicate in the local language.

I'm talking about people who are obviously typing on their phones, can't be bothered to use punctuation or paragraph breaks, say U and 2 instead of you and too, that sort of thing. Bleah. I don't want to work that hard to figure out what someone is getting at. Do I sound like a grouchy old man? Guilty.

I agree with Gary that line breaks in between paragraphs go a long way toward legibility in on-line posts.

 

[jaylach]

Yeah, I'm not talking about non-native English speakers. I actually really respect them and appreciate their efforts, just as people in countries I've traveled in seem to appreciate my feeble efforts to communicate in the local language.

I'm talking about people who are obviously typing on their phones, can't be bothered to use punctuation or paragraph breaks, say U and 2 instead of you and too, that sort of thing. Bleah. I don't want to work that hard to figure out what someone is getting at. Do I sound like a grouchy old man? Guilty.

I agree with Gary that line breaks in between paragraphs go a long way toward legibility in on-line posts.

I actually hear you on that. One of my big gripes are new threads with subjects such as 'Help needed'. I often don't even look at these as I think it to be proper to give at least a basic hint of the problem in the subject.

 

[Fishmanic]

WhatsgetsmeispeoplewhodontproperlyspacetheirsentencesandalsopeoplewhomakeveryverylongsentenceswithoutproperpuctuationbugstheheckoutofmeImeanreallywhymustsomepeoplewriteultralongrunonsentences

 

[Fishmanic]

To sum up my previous post:

In promulgating your esoteric cogitations or articulating your superficial sentimentalities, and amicable philosophical or psychological observations, beware of platitudinous ponderosity. Let your conversational communications possess a compacted conciseness, a clarified comprehensibility, a coalescent cogency and a concatenated consistency. Eschew, obfuscation and all conglomerations of flatulent garrulity, jejune rabblement, and asinine affectations. Let your extemporaneous descanting and unpremeditated expatiations have intelligibility and voracious vivacity without rodomontade or thrasonical bombast. Sedulously avoid all polysyllabic profundity, pompous prolificacy, and vain vapid verbosity.

In other words ”Get to the point, be brief and don’t use big words.”

 

[GaryE]

We're really rocking the unpopular opinions.

I look at most threads. Most are well presented. The ones I really dislike are those that know the answer they want, and wait for someone to confirm their belief, those that say something like "yes" and never say why, and those that clearly haven't read the thread.

Bad spelling and lousy syntax can make me wince, but not everyone's a writer. If you have a title like "My BLT has BBA" you're using a dialect I don't speak. That's different.

We could all decide to write with our local versions of English, with a our age, class and region related slang, and we'd fight. Most of us have the brains to recognize some type of language compromise is needed when we speak internationally. I spell Canadian here, but if you hire me to write for a US audience, I'll spell American. We all do our versions of that, if we think. Some people won't think.

Most of the time, if I see flowerhorn, blood parrot or fancy goldfish in a title, I skip it.

 

[MaloK]

For me the problem...

Lies partly in the fact that you have no idea of the "Aquarist Level" of OP and don't want to start with an intelligence insulting "biology 101" response.

While many times, some contextualization (Big word there ) is required to have a understandable answer.

I always attribute strange cryptic posts from Asia to some kind of automated translation software that spoils everything.

I gladly ignore all posts that uses over abbreviations without at least specifying once the meaning they have.. Like:

BRB BFF, gotta opt my DIY MH+T5 NFT Hydro with proper PAR! n My LED lights SMD, CCT 3000K are awesome, but these finicky JF need it! I finally got my GH, KH, PH, PPM & EC stable. BTW my AWC is ready 2 go. SMDH! n my DIY AIO LPS n HOB FW tank with 5KK SMD COB LED n self cont NFT plant fert. IGVW.

I'm able to read post with "n" and "2" but it has some limits...

 

[GaryE]

Outside of the chat sections like this, I never assume I'm talking to one person. We see discussions that started with one person's questions, and another's answer. Some have thousands of views. So I think we have to write as if our audience is at all levels of experience, and since it's a beginner's forum, try to remember to keep it comprehensible for a new aquarist.

 

[Magnum Man]

A bunch of curmudgeons…
BTW… I don’t write like that no punctuation reply… but I found it surprisingly easy to read, maybe because it had none, and my brain started filling in, rather than missing half, where my brain doesn’t realize from the get go, that it needs to fill in the punctuation…

I do find it requires much more thought, to reply, from my phone, as I’m doing now, I just fat finger too much for spellcheck to help me out much…

 

[Fishfunn]

As an engineer, I was taught the main principle of engineering, which I believe applies here, is KISS: Keep it simple, Stupid.