Why do people not understand about post a reply vs. reply to comment?

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   FloraBreenRobisonposted 13 years ago

   Once again, I have found a person responding to my original post starting a forum thread instead of replying to a comment that was a reply to mine.
   
   I was talking about photograph citation including , among other things, the fact that I prefer to use my real name instead of a pen name something like "Cats Are Gods.." as pen names could be anyone. One of the responses talked only about using your real name only. It was a short response.
   Here is the problem:
   That got someone on a tangent about identity theft of several hundred words which would have been totally appropriate if he/she had hit reply under the response to the original post that had only mentioned using real names. However, this person did not do it. He/She hit "post a reply" at the bottom of the screen which automatically means that your response is *only* a response to the first post.
   
   Why do people not seem to understand this process?

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      ImKarn23posted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Flora: I come from another site where when you responded under a particular comment - IT STAYED THERE! Here at hubPages it doesn't seem to matter if you respond to a comment or to the original post - it winds up at the bottom anyways! Maybe that's why people don't bother?

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      1. 76

         Aficionadaposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         The position of the post depends on whether the Hubber viewing the thread has chosen Chronological or Threaded view.  Chronological is only available for signed-in Hubbers, and it works as you have described.  That's the view I prefer.  But in the Threaded view, a response to a comment does show up directly under the comment it quotes.  For me, that is more confusing, but I guess some people like it.

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            FloraBreenRobisonposted 13 years agoin reply to this

            Oh, I've never responded to forums when I'm not signed in so I didn't realize that. I've only ever seen the one type of view.

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         Greekgeekposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         This. I have tried to do it correctly, yet I am sometimes startled to see where the reply actually lands.
         
         Why don't I understand? Because...er... I don't understand. Apparently my 23 years of bbs / message board experience are not sufficient to master Hubpages' reply button. Go figure!

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            FloraBreenRobisonposted 13 years agoin reply to this

            I've only just figure out there is more than one way to read these forum feeds.  As such, I won't be confused again if I can't follow to what forum comment was responding.

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            1. 76

               Aficionadaposted 13 years agoin reply to this

               Just to clarify - we can't respond to forum comments when we are not signed-in, but we can read them (and only in the Threaded View).  But still, just as you have indicated, if someone clicked Post a Reply, rather than Reply (to a comment), the post they are responding to will not be quoted.  And, if other commenters have posted between the responded-to-but-not-quoted post and the response, it can be difficult to figure out what someone is saying and why! 
               
               I mentioned above that I don't always respond in the way you prefer, but I do agree with you that it can be confusing (and irritating), if there is not enough information provided to figure out what the person is talking about. 
               
               I also get a bit irked when some people post comments with the assumption that we know them from other forums and can weed through their garbled speech.  Oh well.

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   2. 76

      Aficionadaposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      
      It's interesting to me that you see this kind of response as applying only to the first post.  To me, it seems a little different.
      
      When I am responding, if I want to limit myself only to one post, then I click "reply to comment," and sometimes I edit that comment for brevity or clarity (as I did here).  But if I feel that my comment has a broader application - even if it refers specifically to one comment in some way - then I will "post a reply."
      
      And sometimes I don't really bother to make a distinction in either direction.  It often depends on whether I feel my comment can be understood with or without quoting someone else's comment.

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2. 75

   Uninvited Writerposted 13 years ago

   It's really not a huge deal. People go off on tangents no matter who the reply is to.

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3. 66

   Lisa HWposted 13 years ago

   Two other things that can happen is you'll have a comment "up here" and then some more related comments "down there" (because people have hit the different reply buttons for whatever reasons) - so then you don't know where your own reply should go.  Also, though, sometimes it's not that people don't understand.  It's just that they make a mistake and hit the wrong thing.

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