An (Ir)rational Suggestion

[XFool]

And why not?

I put forward my (Ir)rational suggestion - for your rapid dismissal - in a spirit of seeking to enhance the "User Experience" (UE) of TLF members. My suggestion is:

'Completely abolish any and all post quoting mechanisms in the TLF BB software'

"But", I hear you say, it's "useful". Yes it is! Of course it is, but that is hardly the point here. Which is... the politics of quoting and referencing. Which, here on TLF, seems to be becoming more and more labyrinthine as the months go by.

"Too much quoting!", "Too many quotes!", "Not the right kind of quote!"

Could not abolishing all TLF BB software quoting functions, at a stroke, abolish such vexations?

In the best traditions of Free Enterprise: "Let a thousand flowers bloom". "Let my people quote!" - If they want to and how they choose to do so, for themselves.

Some might declare this to be "Hard work". Nonsense! Hard work never did anyone any harm (and isn't TLF "hard work" as it is?).

Everyone simply accepts that any reference to a previous post by a TLF poster is in whatever style or method that poster decides appropriate. There would therefore be no "Right" or "Wrong" method of referencing preceding posts. No need for any further entry's (on this matter, at least) in that ever growing, voluminous tome (hand bound in Scivertext) 'The TLF Book of Things Not to Be Allowed'.

What's not to like?

Sir! I have the pleasure(?) to remain your humble, obedient and unworthy servant,

Xfool

[GrahamPlatt]

And why not?

'Completely abolish any and all post quoting mechanisms in the TLF BB software'

Sir! I have the pleasure(?) to remain your humble, obedient and unworthy servant,

Xfool

Bah, humbug.

[GrahamPlatt]

Admittedly, the quoting mechanism is perhaps a bit too quick & easy, allowing for knee-jerking replies. But the benefit is that the quotee gets an automatic notification that they’ve been replied to. Perhaps if there was an “@Xfool” method, that’d make the quoting unnecessary.

[servodude]

What's not to like?

Losing the ability to target part a specific part of a long rambling post for reply

[doolally]

I agree
Now guess which post I'm replying to
doolally

[XFool]

And why not?

'Completely abolish any and all post quoting mechanisms in the TLF BB software'

Sir! I have the pleasure(?) to remain your humble, obedient and unworthy servant,

Xfool

Bah, humbug.

Which bit?

[AJC5001]

Duck!

[csearle]

Maybe it might improve misunderstandings if the quoting facility prevented selection of anything but an entire sentence?

I remember the late great Gengulphus occasionally used to get irritated by partial quotes. In fact I can feel him channeling my post now as I swype it. C.

[XFool]

Duck!

[Clariman]

Moderator Message:
Thanks for the suggestion and apologies for the delayed official response. I've discussed it with the Mods and Admins and we are unanimously of the view that the quoting mechanism can be very useful for giving the appropriate context to replies. We recently reduced the maximum number of nested quote levels down to 2 which has reduced the clutter on the boards, so we are happy with the way things are at the moment. Thanks again.

Clariman