Why Do You Threadjack?

[Homicidalheathen]

I have ADD.

[Troy Spiral (13)]

1. Lack of Self Control (for the people that know better)

2. Don't realize its even an issue (for newer people)

3. No manners

Are the key reasons for most.

No one has ever been banned from DGN for thread jacking in the entire 6 year history of DGN. But its possible that somone could get banned for it (numbers 1 and 3) as it could be interprated as falling under "Blatantly Disruptive Posting" part of the DGN rules if its often enough and clearly intentional over and over again.

I suspect that as DGN gets more and more active its likely to eventually happen. It will be preceeed by plenty of polite suggestions to stop doing it and just start a new thread, but as the posts get more active, the mod patience level gets lower and lower for BS.

Also there is a clear distinction between a "topic shift" (which is generally fine) and a true "thread jack" which is a blatant fucking up of the topic post and changing the subject of a topic that is clearly intended to be about a specific subject.

[phee]

Ehh.... If I could think in a linear fasion I probably wouldn't do it as much....

In the course of a conversation though the subject can change without warning.... I personally don't consider it rude unless it was done specifically to disrupt the conversation...

To me this is rude:

Goth A: I certainly like eggs

Goth B: Me too I like the pouched

Goth A: I like them on toast

Goth C: Fuck Eggs lets talk about Panic At The Disco...

(That's rude)

Not rude:

Goth A: I certainly like eggs

Goth B: Me too I like the pouched

Goth A: I like them on toast

Goth C: You know the egg is the symbol of the soul?

Goth B: Really that's interesting?

Goth A: which culture thinks that?

etc...

[know_buddy_kares]

I honestly try to keep it to a minimum... but I honestly think, if you were sitting down talking about one thing over and over, it would get boring, that's just how real life works, so it's only natural for someone to say something relavent, but eventually gets a thread off track because on dgn, we've several convo's going on in their own specific thread, not just one big group convo (not including the coffee house thread for this)

Sometimes, I'll see a thread convo, and add in my two cents that's relavent, or someone else has, and I (or someone else) will take it from there. Like honestly, if you've seen the episode of Pinky and the Brain where you get an inside ear as to what exactly Pinky thinks of to always wind up WAAAY out in left field when asked by Brain, "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?", Pinky usually replies with, "I think so brain, but how are we going to get an angry walrus in a polkadot bikini?" It's like that, well.. less far fetched, but it'll change from one topic, that's relative, to the next, to the next, ect.

Example. Thread jacking - jacking off - people who make a living jacking off - related jobs - some other odd sort of employment, and before ya know it, thread's been jacked. Often when I see it, it is obviously unintentional and not malicious in any means, but jacking just well... hey.. it happens.

[Rayne]

If you have ever heard me and my mother talk ... you'd know why.

I don't do it for any other reason except ... that's how I talk in real life.

I have ADD, never medicated, I learned to deal with it on my own, granted not the best in the world, but I suffice ... however, try to hold a conversation with me for an amount of time and you'll see it.

My daughter is worse than I am ... I use this example ... We're driving along the Detroit River. My daughter was 3 (she's 8 now), she had never seen such a large river. I say "Look Emily, that's the Detroit River." She says "Look Mom, there's 7-11, Can I have a Slurpee?"

[Gaf The Horse With Tears]

I never thread jack.

BF - Make your brownies as usual but.. the butter/margerine.. you melt it on the stove top at low temp.. then add your special ingriediant... cook for a bit... to extract the thc.. then strain the solids out... add to brownie mix.

[Kit Kat P]

If you have ever heard me and my mother talk ... you'd know why.

I don't do it for any other reason except ... that's how I talk in real life.

I have ADD, never medicated, I learned to deal with it on my own, granted not the best in the world, but I suffice ... however, try to hold a conversation with me for an amount of time and you'll see it.

My daughter is worse than I am ... I use this example ... We're driving along the Detroit River. My daughter was 3 (she's 8 now), she had never seen such a large river. I say "Look Emily, that's the Detroit River." She says "Look Mom, there's 7-11, Can I have a Slurpee?"

I'd like to blame genetics (my mother) as well. I've had a similar conversation.

btw I really try not to threadjack

[jadnifer]

I try not to threadjack

If I do, its completely unintentional.

If someone does it and its intentional, well its just rude.

Thats all for now.

[BrassFusion]

the google ads at the bottom of my screen are for marijuana brownie recipes.

i wonder what gave google the idea that we'd be interested in anything like that

*CLICKCLICKCLICKCLICK*

[Msterbeau]

the google ads at the bottom of my screen are for marijuana brownie recipes.

i wonder what gave google the idea that we'd be interested in anything like that

*CLICKCLICKCLICKCLICK*

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!

[Steven]

I Jack therefore I am.

Besides, since when does any real life conversation stay soley on topic 100% of the time? To me a nice thread Jack is like the lilting inflections of an individual's voice...nobody wants to hear a monotone speaker... jacking gives us a nice bit of releif from the mundane....

[Der Nister]

I Jack therefore I am.

Besides, since when does any real life conversation stay soley on topic 100% of the time? To me a nice thread Jack is like the lilting inflections of an individual's voice...nobody wants to hear a monotone speaker... jacking gives us a nice bit of relief from the mundane....

Agree.

[Head Wreck]

ADHD.

but not thats the reason i do it, its the reason my brain works so fast y the time i've read it my mind has linked it 5 steps on to something obscure.

that and i used to be king of threadjack much to troy's disgust some years ago

[BrassFusion]

why are you diverting the topic from pineapples, HW? that's very rude.

so... how 'bout them pineapples?

[Steven]

why are you diverting the topic from pineapples, HW? that's very rude.

so... how 'bout them pineapples?

well, its not the 36's that get ya - its the Double D's....

[Sybil]

If you ever had a conversation with me, you'd understand. I'm the king of digression and making oddball connections between various topics, which usually make for fun, rambling conversations. Off topic is how my brain works.

..and i am the Queen of this...

everything reminds me of something else..

and so i go there and drag everyone with me far off topic.

[Troy Spiral (13)]

Online conversations on a message board give you plenty of time to think before you click add reply. They are not analogous to "real life" conversations in this respect. Partly why DGN is what it is, and NOT a "chat room" is to encourage at least some bit of thoughtfulness.

Some topics are intended for "randomness" and there are PLENTY of them. Post in them. Not in well defined, clearly thought out topics if you feel the need for scattered BS type posting. They are easy to find check the Other Stuff forum for some good examples.

A "topic shift" is inevitable on longer discussions, but a topic that is clearly intended to be "serious" (whatever that means) should be kept on-topic as much as possible. There is a fairly clear distinction between true "threadjacking" (basically disruption of the actual topic at hand) and just a shifting of the subject.

If hitting "new topic" instead of "add reply" is too much work, I'd rethink my worldview. There will be , eventually, bans of people that ruin clearly stated topics habitually.

[Steven]

Online conversations on a message board give you plenty of time to think before you click add reply. They are not analogous to "real life" conversations in this respect. Partly why DGN is what it is, and NOT a "chat room" is to encourage at least some bit of thoughtfulness.

Some topics are intended for "randomness" and there are PLENTY of them. Post in them. Not in well defined, clearly thought out topics if you feel the need for scattered BS type posting. They are easy to find check the Other Stuff forum for some good examples.

A "topic shift" is inevitable on longer discussions, but a topic that is clearly intended to be "serious" (whatever that means) should be kept on-topic as much as possible. There is a fairly clear distinction between true "threadjacking" (basically disruption of the actual topic at hand) and just a shifting of the subject.

If hitting "new topic" instead of "add reply" is too much work, I'd rethink my worldview. There will be , eventually, bans of people that ruin clearly stated topics habitually.

Dang Troy you'll be banning us all then!!! to the dungeons with them!!

[Daniel]

I have always been a bit fuzzy on when a derail occurs. It seems to me that DGN believes the format of a thread should be:

Original Post--> reply 1 to Original Post

-->Reply 2 to OP

-->Reply 3 to OP

-->Reply 4 to OP

-->ad infinitum

Which, isn't really a conversation, but a series of replies to one question. In a real conversational thread, this tends to happen:

Original Post -->Reply 1 to Original Post

-->Reply 2 to OP

-->Reply 3 to OP

-->Reply A to Reply 3

-->Reply 1a to Reply A

-->Reply B to Reply 3

-->Reply Reply 2a to Reply A

-->Reply 4 to OP

-->Reply A to Reply 4

and so on.

There is a fairly clear distinction between true "threadjacking" (basically disruption of the actual topic at hand) and just a shifting of the subject.

I do not think it is that clear. How many steps of deviation from the original post is considered a derail? Particularly in threads with complicated subject matter, sometimes a major deviation is required to agree on certain givens and variables in a discussion. This may appear to a discussion about a completely separate issue, when it is in fact not. Where is the line drawn? How far can a subject shift without being considered a derail?

[Destroit]

I try so hard NOT to threadjack, but I'm crazy, so it just happens. I think everyone does it here and there, it's a natural discourse of messageboarding (and real convo too). So yeah....it's fucking hot outside. I'm seriously serious about getting one of those window AC things, I can't take this much longer.

[BrassFusion]

i could be wrong, but my personal interpretation of the rules relating to threadjacking is that the "bad" kind is the "deliberate" kind. like, someone who gets on and tries to drive the conversation specifically to themselves when their own experience has little to do with the topic at hand. which is of course still subjective, as to whether it's relevant to the topic. i believe that the rules also state that the "threadjacking" is more a problem when it becomes the same people doing it habitually rather than one person perhaps unwittingly initiating a topic shift.

of course, I didn't write the rules so I'm not in the best position to interpret them- much like strict constructionists aren't in the best position to interpret the constitution.

see? THAT'S a deliberate threadjack!

[Steven]

i could be wrong, but my personal interpretation of the rules relating to threadjacking is that the "bad" kind is the "deliberate" kind. like, someone who gets on and tries to drive the conversation specifically to themselves when their own experience has little to do with the topic at hand. which is of course still subjective, as to whether it's relevant to the topic. i believe that the rules also state that the "threadjacking" is more a problem when it becomes the same people doing it habitually rather than one person perhaps unwittingly initiating a topic shift.

of course, I didn't write the rules so I'm not in the best position to interpret them- much like strict constructionists aren't in the best position to interpret the constitution.

see? THAT'S a deliberate threadjack!

I agree with this wholeheartedly, and like any set of rules (of this type - lets not get crazy people) they are open to personal interpretation.

I'd like to think that as a whole - we - meaning us - patrol our own fences. there are tiems when good thread jack has proved to be monumentally enlightening or entertaining or quite simply was neccesitated to shatter the mundane, as one sole topic of discussion can get tiring. If there is someone who is deliberately just trying to stir up conflict, that's usually pretty obvious. Whats not so obvious are the social limits when unintended or residual conflcit arises out of our basic differences and that inability to look one another in the eye and hear our vocal inflections when we type. thats the downside of posting, which is one of the reasons that I tend to write in the same loose style that I speak in, and even that doesent always work.

I'd also like to add that unless were discussing something that's light and is meant just for entertainment - I like to feel that we got something done with all of our posting. All of us, I dont care who you are, at some point or another attatch our emotions to the values we are presenting - thats just basic human nature. But there are times when we lose the topic altogethor in favor of simply vanquishing your opponent, and again I would say that all of us have done this from time to time as well. Its hard to know how far to push an idea in hopes that somewhere along the line that lightbulb will click "on".....

and its usually at about that point when I can count on Erin to throw in a snipe that makes me chuckle....even if its thrown at me. (we all have our roles, no????)

[Homicidalheathen]

Yup. I change my mind more often than I change me undies coarse I usually run around naked but thats besides the point.....isn't it?

If you have ever heard me and my mother talk ... you'd know why.

I don't do it for any other reason except ... that's how I talk in real life.

I have ADD, never medicated, I learned to deal with it on my own, granted not the best in the world, but I suffice ... however, try to hold a conversation with me for an amount of time and you'll see it.

My daughter is worse than I am ... I use this example ... We're driving along the Detroit River. My daughter was 3 (she's 8 now), she had never seen such a large river. I say "Look Emily, that's the Detroit River." She says "Look Mom, there's 7-11, Can I have a Slurpee?"

[Homicidalheathen]

...Oh and might I add.....slurpies.......yum.......!

I am rather like Homer in that way......!

[DeadBurgerKing (10)]

I really try not to, but my main problem is not actually recognizing that I'm actually straying off topic. For the most part I usually end up reply to a comment someone else left that was half-way on topic but-half way off topic. But sometimes I make a smart ass comment as a joke, then someone replies to that and it goes off topic from there.

I deliberately do it if the topic is going from a heated debate to a flat out personal fight (or I see it forming) I'll crack a joke to try lighten the tension in hopes that that joke is funny enough to get the next reply to be less angry and personal.

But from here on in, it's going to be happening alot less from me.