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Why so aggressive?

SquirrelsGoneWild

By SquirrelsGoneWild
in How do I...?

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SquirrelsGoneWild

+SquirrelsGoneWild

Posted
Posted

I have been reading posts for a few weeks now trying to get a handle on geocaching and trying to learn whatever I can from others who have been doing this longer, as well as reading problems newbies like myself are having, and trying to learn from them as well. What I can't understand is why some of the responses are so aggressive. To be honest, with some of the responses I've read, it almost makes you rather leery and tentative to ask questions at all. I get that us newbies are irritating to some of you, that we ask questions you might have answered months or years previous, simply because you have been caching for so long. I understand that some days you might log on before you have had your caffeine fill, or maybe you didn't get enough sleep last night because your spouse was snoring too loudly, or maybe you are just grumpy in general. If any of these are true for you, than why answer posts at all? Those postings are typically requests for help from us newbies who are trying to be good, responsible, and valued members of the geocaching community. We are trying to ask questions about swag, etiquette, and other items so that we don't offend or annoy the community with our newbiness. We also need help sometimes with tech that is completely new to us and that our small children probably understand better than we ourselves do ( I for one admit my kids know a heck of a lot more about computers than I do).

 

Geocaching for most of you is probably second nature by now, but for myself and other newbies, it is all still new and exciting. Every time I pick up my GPS and head out, or read a message posted here, I learn something new or I find myself having new questions that I need to search out answers for. All I am asking is for a bit more tolerance and patience. Trust me, I am in NO way trying to start the next tirade or argument here. This is more meant for you to ponder. We ask our children to think before they speak so that they don't offend anyone or hurt anyone's feelings, we ourselves were taught this skill by our parents as well. So maybe we should also try to apply this knowledge to message boards and the things we type.

 

Thank you all for your time and for lending me your ear.

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Pup Patrol

Pup Patrol

Posted
Posted

There shouldn't be any aggressive, snarky, or rude posts in this, the "Getting Started" forum.

 

I guess you mean the "Geocaching Topics" forum? Yes, it can get rowdy in there. But posters are still bound by the Forum Guidelines:

 

http://forums.Groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?app=forums&module=extras&section=boardrules

 

This is like any other forum, everyone is different, and each poster has their own posting style. Some are naturally sarcastic, some are unfailingly polite, etc.

 

A lot of times, though, it's just the unfamiliarity with a forum community that makes it seem like the posters are "aggressive". You will get to "know" the posters once you've read their responses for a while. You will get to the point where you will know what's coming as soon as you see the username. The repetitiveness of the replies is pretty predictable.

 

But the main thing to remember is that the forums are just a tiny fraction of the caching community. I don't think the forums represent the caching community at large, and in particular, my local caching community. That's an important point to keep in mind.

 

Forums represent a way for people to express themselves that they might not otherwise, like at an event. Some people take this to an extreme. It's all about reading other people's personal opinions with a grain of salt and an open mind.

 

There's also the point that what one person perceives as "aggressive" might not strike others that way. Again, we're all different, and some of us have been on other forums that are way more caustic.

 

I'm yakking here, avoiding other stuff. :D

 

Don't let it get you down, or intimidate you from posting your opinions. Jump in there with both feet!

 

 

B.

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luvvinbird

+luvvinbird

Posted
Posted

I agree with Pup Patrol. The forums can be intimidating...if you let them. And, yes, I've seen many reasonable requests or statements end up in a bickering duel between two contributors. But such is the way of the forums and probably in any field, not just geocaching. The important thing to remember is helpful, positive responses far outweigh negative replies. I've received countless valuable technical tips and far too many helpful suggestions to my questions, to let unimportant, negative opinions bother me. Like the man says, "jump in with both feet!"

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The Blorenges

+The Blorenges

Posted
Posted

Hi... welcome :)

 

Sometimes a (very) new cacher will post something like, "I've just discovered geocaching and I want to go out tomorrow with my children and find caches. What do I need to buy? What do I do when I find a cache? What swaps should I put in? Do I use my real name or my geocaching name on the log? etc... etc... "

 

Very often such questions get answered briefly with two or three links to specific places on the geocaching site. Not because the poster wants to be rude/intimidating, simply because new cachers need to do a bit of reading before starting out and the information they require is ready and waiting to be read - they just need to be pointed in the right direction. :D

 

As others have mentioned, this particular section of the forums should be a fairly gentle - We try and play nice ;)

 

MrsB

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Chief301

+Chief301

Posted
Posted

You know, sometimes a newbie in the forums is just asking for a snarky response. Examples:

 

Good post: "Hi, we've been Geocaching for a little while now and want to hide our first cache. We've read up on hiding caches and would like to know if you guys can offer any suggestions for making sure we have the best coordinates we can get. Any advice is appreciated. Thanks!"

 

Bad post: "Hi, we just heard about Geocaching and found our first cache today! We are going to go out and hide a few of our own tomorrow. We already got the coordinates from Google Maps, what do we do now?". Then post the question again 15 minutes later when they haven't received a reply yet.

 

In the second example, it's obvious this person has not done the first bit of research about Geocaching and is likely to get a snarky reply and some links to helpful info they should have already read before they even THINK about hiding a cache.

 

When newbies ask thoughtful questions that show they have done their homework but are still confused on some detail, they are usually received better than someone who comes bumbling in here looking for answers they would have easily found themselves with just a little bit of reading.

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BAMBOOZLE

+BAMBOOZLE

Posted
Posted

I have been reading posts for a few weeks now trying to get a handle on geocaching and trying to learn whatever I can from others who have been doing this longer, as well as reading problems newbies like myself are having, and trying to learn from them as well. What I can't understand is why some of the responses are so aggressive. To be honest, with some of the responses I've read, it almost makes you rather leery and tentative to ask questions at all. I get that us newbies are irritating to some of you, that we ask questions you might have answered months or years previous, simply because you have been caching for so long. I understand that some days you might log on before you have had your caffeine fill, or maybe you didn't get enough sleep last night because your spouse was snoring too loudly, or maybe you are just grumpy in general. If any of these are true for you, than why answer posts at all? Those postings are typically requests for help from us newbies who are trying to be good, responsible, and valued members of the geocaching community. We are trying to ask questions about swag, etiquette, and other items so that we don't offend or annoy the community with our newbiness. We also need help sometimes with tech that is completely new to us and that our small children probably understand better than we ourselves do ( I for one admit my kids know a heck of a lot more about computers than I do).

 

Geocaching for most of you is probably second nature by now, but for myself and other newbies, it is all still new and exciting. Every time I pick up my GPS and head out, or read a message posted here, I learn something new or I find myself having new questions that I need to search out answers for. All I am asking is for a bit more tolerance and patience. Trust me, I am in NO way trying to start the next tirade or argument here. This is more meant for you to ponder. We ask our children to think before they speak so that they don't offend anyone or hurt anyone's feelings, we ourselves were taught this skill by our parents as well. So maybe we should also try to apply this knowledge to message boards and the things we type.

 

Thank you all for your time and for lending me your ear.

 

This forum is the only one I participate in but at times I have looked at comments on other forums and found them to be vulgar and hostile. This forum can be contentious at times ( maybe more than it needs to be )but over all I think it does O.K. mainly because its participants are members of GC.com with profiles that can be searched and not some faceless, vulgar blogger that uses forums to compensate for some issue in his life.

We also have moderators who will step in long before things get out of hand.

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T.D.M.22

+T.D.M.22

Posted
Posted (edited)

I'll point out that when someone asks a question that could be answered if they just read the guidlines and rules it makes it look like you didn't even try to find the answer yourself. Like asking how to make a virtual-if you read the guidelines you would know it can't be done. Or if you search the forums you would come up with at least 50 threads all telling you the same thing.

 

EDIT for crappy spelling here-that's what happens when I use my phone

Edited by T.D.M.22
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Pup Patrol

Pup Patrol

Posted
Posted

Hello SquirrelsGoneWild,

 

Can you give some examples of aggressive posts?

 

I don't think that is a good idea. It has the potential of dragging angst from the other subforums into this one, and perpetuating the cycle.

 

Why perpetuate the negative? Let's focus on the positive.

 

This is the "Getting Started" forum. It's not the same as the other subforums. Let's keep it that way, please.

 

 

B.

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Mr.Yuck

Mr.Yuck

Posted
Posted

I will be honest and nice about this. Welcome to the forums. Of all the forums I been to over the years, this forum is pretty good. Not perfect, but calmer than some other forums I been to.

 

I've always said this is pretty tame, and generally over-moderated. *NOT* this particular sub-forum by the way, never this one. :lol:

 

The OP hasn't come back yet, but the first post was just today. I will echo what others have said, you sure you're talking about this particular sub-forum? Yes, there was a little back and forth in the "What does TFTC mean" thread, and I'll admit whenever there is a "should I just use a smartphone, or buy a GPS" thread, those sometimes get very slightly heated. But this getting started forum? One of the tamest I've seen on all the interwebs. :D

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The_Incredibles_

+The_Incredibles_

Posted
Posted

Hello SquirrelsGoneWild,

 

Can you give some examples of aggressive posts?

 

I don't think that is a good idea. It has the potential of dragging angst from the other subforums into this one, and perpetuating the cycle.

 

Why perpetuate the negative? Let's focus on the positive.

 

This is the "Getting Started" forum. It's not the same as the other subforums. Let's keep it that way, please.

 

B.

 

I wouldn't mind seeing some examples.

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Jumpin' Jack Cache

+Jumpin' Jack Cache

Posted
Posted

Hello SquirrelsGoneWild,

 

Can you give some examples of aggressive posts?

 

I don't think that is a good idea. It has the potential of dragging angst from the other subforums into this one, and perpetuating the cycle.

 

Why perpetuate the negative? Let's focus on the positive.

 

This is the "Getting Started" forum. It's not the same as the other subforums. Let's keep it that way, please.

 

B.

 

I wouldn't mind seeing some examples.

If you want your geocide to be officially recognized, you will need to first fill out this handy form (unless you think it's too many questions. :) )

 

http://forums.Groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?showtopic=55007&hl=geocide

That work for ya? :lol:

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SwineFlew

+SwineFlew

Posted
Posted

Hello SquirrelsGoneWild,

 

Can you give some examples of aggressive posts?

 

I don't think that is a good idea. It has the potential of dragging angst from the other subforums into this one, and perpetuating the cycle.

 

Why perpetuate the negative? Let's focus on the positive.

 

This is the "Getting Started" forum. It's not the same as the other subforums. Let's keep it that way, please.

 

B.

 

I wouldn't mind seeing some examples.

I dont...really.

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SwineFlew

+SwineFlew

Posted
Posted

Hello SquirrelsGoneWild,

 

Can you give some examples of aggressive posts?

 

I don't think that is a good idea. It has the potential of dragging angst from the other subforums into this one, and perpetuating the cycle.

 

Why perpetuate the negative? Let's focus on the positive.

 

This is the "Getting Started" forum. It's not the same as the other subforums. Let's keep it that way, please.

 

B.

 

I wouldn't mind seeing some examples.

If you want your geocide to be officially recognized, you will need to first fill out this handy form (unless you think it's too many questions. :) )

 

http://forums.Groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?showtopic=55007&hl=geocide

That work for ya? :lol:

Thats nothing because its long running joke.

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SquirrelsGoneWild

+SquirrelsGoneWild

Posted
  • Author
Posted

I apologize for not getting back to this post yesterday but our net service was out "all" day...ugh (we also had no TV service due to the outage). I appreciate all the feedback. Maybe it's me being overly sensitive and thinking to myself "really? how that was a nasty little comeback to a post". It's mostly me just tending to be outspoken. I even responded recently to a post myself simply because I felt one of the comments was just plain rude. As I said originally it wasn't so much to gripe and groan just to hopefully get some people to stop and think. I do believe for the most part that YES the community here is very helpful. I also agree that when you type you can't use inflections in your words and therefore sarcasm (which I employ myself on a daily basis - just ask my kids! hehe) does not always translate well in a written post.

 

Thank you all for your participation.

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RThreeSonz

+RThreeSonz

Posted
Posted

SGW:

 

I had the same feeling when we joined just over a year ago. It's like some of the people who post need to find a fun hobby that gets them out in nature or something. :)

 

Some advice:

- stick to this forum for a while. Lurk on the others as you see fit

- join a local geocacher group if there is one in your area. Go to events and meet geocachers. Pretty nice group once you meet them face to face. And, funny how post-event caching together breaks a lot of ice.

- repetitive questions on the other forums do have their own annoyance factor. Especially when not following the official posting calendar (psst, there isn't an official posting calendar)

- realize that certain geocachers are not high on the social skills scale others are just having a bad day

 

Welcome aboard -

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SquirrelsGoneWild

+SquirrelsGoneWild

Posted
  • Author
Posted (edited)

I like this..... already folks have shortened your moniker to SGW. That usually indicates that you have been (unofficially) welcomed.

 

Well that's good cause I don't think I'll be going anywhere anytime soon... I'm finding the whole thing to be rather addictive! This weekend my husband needed new tennis shoes, and we decided to stop and get some fast food for dinner.. so we threw the kids in the car and off we went - 7 caches later we finally made our way home hehee Now everywhere we go the GPS comes with just to see what caches "might" be lurking around. Problem is once you know they are there, you find you just HAVE to seek them out! A trip to Wal-Mart turned into us heading to the Dunkin Donuts right out front to get a cache, a trip to Target lead to 4 finds, and a normal trip to our local Sonic even produced a cache in the parking lot! LOVE IT!

Edited by SquirrelsGoneWild
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Off Grid

+Off Grid

Posted
Posted

I have been reading posts for a few weeks now trying to get a handle on geocaching and trying to learn whatever I can from others who have been doing this longer, as well as reading problems newbies like myself are having, and trying to learn from them as well. What I can't understand is why some of the responses are so aggressive. To be honest, with some of the responses I've read, it almost makes you rather leery and tentative to ask questions at all. I get that us newbies are irritating to some of you, that we ask questions you might have answered months or years previous, simply because you have been caching for so long. I understand that some days you might log on before you have had your caffeine fill, or maybe you didn't get enough sleep last night because your spouse was snoring too loudly, or maybe you are just grumpy in general. If any of these are true for you, than why answer posts at all? Those postings are typically requests for help from us newbies who are trying to be good, responsible, and valued members of the geocaching community. We are trying to ask questions about swag, etiquette, and other items so that we don't offend or annoy the community with our newbiness. We also need help sometimes with tech that is completely new to us and that our small children probably understand better than we ourselves do ( I for one admit my kids know a heck of a lot more about computers than I do).

 

Geocaching for most of you is probably second nature by now, but for myself and other newbies, it is all still new and exciting. Every time I pick up my GPS and head out, or read a message posted here, I learn something new or I find myself having new questions that I need to search out answers for. All I am asking is for a bit more tolerance and patience. Trust me, I am in NO way trying to start the next tirade or argument here. This is more meant for you to ponder. We ask our children to think before they speak so that they don't offend anyone or hurt anyone's feelings, we ourselves were taught this skill by our parents as well. So maybe we should also try to apply this knowledge to message boards and the things we type.

 

Thank you all for your time and for lending me your ear.

 

G'day this is not new and has been going on since usenet was the thing, Simply put you have a small group of insecure people AKA "Trolls" that have "Personal Issues" and most important "Anonymity" So they are free to make comments safe in their parents basement.

 

Don't worry about it there are enough good people on the board (and in Geocaching) to make up for the Trolls :)

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The_Incredibles_

+The_Incredibles_

Posted
Posted

Hello SquirrelsGoneWild,

 

Can you give some examples of aggressive posts?

 

I don't think that is a good idea. It has the potential of dragging angst from the other subforums into this one, and perpetuating the cycle.

 

Why perpetuate the negative? Let's focus on the positive.

 

This is the "Getting Started" forum. It's not the same as the other subforums. Let's keep it that way, please.

 

B.

 

I wouldn't mind seeing some examples.

If you want your geocide to be officially recognized, you will need to first fill out this handy form (unless you think it's too many questions. :) )

 

http://forums.Groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?showtopic=55007&hl=geocide

That work for ya? :lol:

 

You're right, that one was nasty. And uncalled for! Don't know how people stand it on here. :anibad:

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knowltonGeo

+knowltonGeo

Posted
Posted (edited)

I have had a very positive experience on here. Maybe I'm just too dumb to understand snarkiness or sarcasm when it is thrown my way. LOL.

 

But you are correct in that rudeness and personal attacks do not need to be tolerated.

 

Most of the folks I meet on here are polite and very personable. You get some sarcasm, but most of the time it is just poking a little fun at you.

 

I think some people do get a little tired of answering the same questions over and over and OVER AGAIN. Sometimes it shows. I've noticed that at least one or two folks on here have very well prepared responses for beginners that cover the basics (start with larger caches, not micros; go for easier terrain; look for cache "trails" and other hints).

 

I am surprised the FAQ is not updated more often than it is, or that folks are not pointed to it more often. Maybe they are and I am just up in the night. : )

 

Anyway, hopefully your post is taken as intended; something to think about and apply to ourselves if we realize we have been a little cross with newbies. Of which I am one.

Edited by knowltonGeo
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Understandblue

+Understandblue

Posted
Posted

I think it's okay to see the questions again and again from newbies. I manage a different community, and experienced people can forget how confusing and intimidating forums can be at first.

 

It's nice to have a real person share their tips when you're new instead of doing some solitary exploring of threads when you feel lost. I know I'd rather talk to a human than an FAQ. :)

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