Tracy9
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 7521
posted
posted 26 January, 2007 02:41 AM -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Betty G -
For some of us it is harder to read when the print is all broken up. It actually makes my eyes "bug out" and causes too much jumping around for me to follow; much easier to read a steady paragraph. Guess we are all different; just noticed you are asking lots of people to edit thier posts and I'm not sure that is making it easier for everyone. I have a really hard time followinig too many spaced sentences. They all look alike. I wonder how others feel; do we all have different visual preferences; or is it just me who finds it more confusing that way???
13 years Lyme & Co.; Small Fiber Neuropathy; Myasthenia Gravis, Adrenal Insufficiency. On chemo for 2 1/2 years as experimental treatment for MG. Posts: 4480 | From Northeastern Connecticut | Registered: Jun 2005
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posted
I have the same problem i dont like it all spaced out,it messes with my vision also.Maybe betty should copy and paste in her word and break it up so she can read it.I believe neuro lymies can go both ways.
Posts: 510 | From NEVERLAND.USA | Registered: Jul 2005
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shazdancer
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 1436
posted
I found a simple solution when I can't read big blocks of text. I get a piece of paper or cardboard, and put it up against the screen, to isolate just a few lines at a time.
I also use the scroll bar and move the text down against the bottom bar, so that only a couple of lines are showing. With the bar for a guide, I can track better.
Heck, I'm pretty healthy just now, and I can't always sort out a big paragraph, or a huge bunch of evenly-spaced small ones.
Posts: 1558 | From the Berkshires | Registered: Jul 2001
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CaliforniaLyme
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 7136
posted
Oh GOOD glad to hear this because it is actually a big deal to me to change the way I post!!! I am a writer and I LIKE to post things the way I do, that's why I do it. Then lately around here it is the first time ever I have been asked to change the way I post!!!!!!!!
-------------------- There is no wealth but life. -John Ruskin
All truth goes through 3 stages: first it is ridiculed: then it is violently opposed: finally it is accepted as self evident. - Schopenhauer Posts: 5639 | From Aptos CA USA | Registered: Apr 2005
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posted
I've been around this board for awhile but I don't post much partially because I've seen how some posters get ripped apart for this or that.
I think it takes alot for someone to actually get up the nerve to post whether it's looking for advice or just looking for a sympathetic ear. I also think it's wonderful that so many take the time to respond and share their experiences and knowledge.
To me this is all of our forum and any way someone can get their point accross the screen is fine. I like shazdancers solution. You do what you have to do to adapt as you would outside of this forum.
We're all here because either we or someone we know doesn't feel well. This should be one place we can count on that we will receive support no matter the spacing or the delivery.
Posts: 58 | From NY | Registered: Dec 2005
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geniveve
Unregistered
posted
i agree. altho i majored in english in college, much of what i've learned has gone by the wayside.
it's a bit scary to post and then to find out someone is ripping you apart for spacing, punctuation, grammer, formatting, etc. ok, well maybe not all, but you get the drift.
i have too many problems to worry whether i've spaced things properly or not. and most of us, depending on how we are feeling, might take it ok one day and then burst into tears and say "the he__ with it, i'm not posting anymore: the next day. all depends on our lyme moods....
making each paragraph one or two sentences is too hard for me to read. and besides i get bored easily and wouldn't make it to the end of the post!! LOL
newbies especially need to be welcomed and not criticized the first time they post -- we could loose some valuable would-be members that way.
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quote:Originally posted by shazdancer: I found a simple solution when I can't read big blocks of text. I get a piece of paper or cardboard, and put it up against the screen, to isolate just a few lines at a time.
I also use the scroll bar and move the text down against the bottom bar, so that only a couple of lines are showing. With the bar for a guide, I can track better.
Heck, I'm pretty healthy just now, and I can't always sort out a big paragraph, or a huge bunch of evenly-spaced small ones.
My eyes prefer it to be spaced like shazdancer's post above.
The ones that I have trouble reading are the
large blocks of print as well as the ones that
are spaced out like I'm writing right now. I
find this hard to read, but it's better than the
large blocks of print. ============================
The other method that causes trouble for me is when people suddenly put space
right in the middle of a sentence!
That is hard for me
as well.
-------------------- --Lymetutu-- Opinions, not medical advice! Posts: 96239 | From Texas | Registered: Feb 2001
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Boomerang
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 7979
posted
Sounds to me like everyone should just post the way they are the most comfortable with. Those who can read the format, will, and others can just skip over?
I agree, I hate to see posters get chewed out for their posting style. Especially for the new people. I got chewed out when I first started posting on this site. Not a fun thing.
Posts: 1366 | From Southeast | Registered: Sep 2005
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bettyg
Unregistered
posted
to all,
i have no regrets for asking many of you to break up those solid blocks of text.
i've seen more comments in favor of broken up text for comprehension and readability than those long story paragraphs that go on forever.
then they are the ones that have ....... yada yada .... throughout it all.
1 newbie's posts now are so hard since every word is misspelled and it's difficult when reading about a roomie meant a roommate to me; not a rheumatoligist. hard to help folks when they have their own language.
if you want help, then members should be assisting others here so WE can help them any way we can.
otherwise, i'll use the SOB method; scroll on by without reading/replying. it's your loss.
guess i'll start a poll and we'll see how many respond! that should show both sides what people like/don't like.
EDITED: just tried to start a poll! you have to go thru jenifer to do this, so i sent her what i want to set up; we'll see!
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Tracy9
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 7521
posted
Thanks so much everyone for posting the wonderful, awesome and eloquent feedback! This may not be the biggest issue in the world by any means, probably not worth a poll by any means, but I guess it feels kind of yucky for any of us to be told what to do in such a directive fashion. Happy weekend everyone!
13 years Lyme & Co.; Small Fiber Neuropathy; Myasthenia Gravis, Adrenal Insufficiency. On chemo for 2 1/2 years as experimental treatment for MG. Posts: 4480 | From Northeastern Connecticut | Registered: Jun 2005
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Tracy9
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 7521
posted
OOPS; one more thing...Betty G: I appreciate all your efforts on this board. I must say though I couldn't even follow the editing instructions; perfect example of the Lyme Brain at work! It was way too much for me to follow the steps actually; total overload! I understand if you pass on replying to my or anyone else's posts that are difficult for you to read.
13 years Lyme & Co.; Small Fiber Neuropathy; Myasthenia Gravis, Adrenal Insufficiency. On chemo for 2 1/2 years as experimental treatment for MG. Posts: 4480 | From Northeastern Connecticut | Registered: Jun 2005
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posted
Betty G I sense a little anger in your post.
I've read many of your posts and you offer a wealth of knowledge which is so appreciated and benifits so many, myself included.
I've got to say though, sometimes when you respond to an apparent newbie it comes off as though you are an official representative of this board and you demand they post in a certain way as though that's an official rule.
I'm sure that's not your intent but I think it may turn some people away from the very help you strive to provide.
Getting your exact point across is so difficult with just the written word. There is no voice inflection, no facial expressions to let someone know your true intentions.
I'm sure these words I've written will probably get misconstrued as well but please know that I'm sitting here with a smile on my face with true admiration and appreciation for all that you contribute.
Posts: 58 | From NY | Registered: Dec 2005
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lymednva
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9098
posted
quote: Originally posted by Lymetoo: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Originally posted by shazdancer: I found a simple solution when I can't read big blocks of text. I get a piece of paper or cardboard, and put it up against the screen, to isolate just a few lines at a time.
I also use the scroll bar and move the text down against the bottom bar, so that only a couple of lines are showing. With the bar for a guide, I can track better.
Heck, I'm pretty healthy just now, and I can't always sort out a big paragraph, or a huge bunch of evenly-spaced small ones. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
My eyes prefer it to be spaced like shazdancer's post above.
The ones that I have trouble reading are the
large blocks of print as well as the ones that
are spaced out like I'm writing right now. I
find this hard to read, but it's better than the
large blocks of print. ============================
The other method that causes trouble for me is when people suddenly put space
right in the middle of a sentence!
That is hard for me
as well.
I agree completely!
In fact, I made a similar request to an online course I moderate twice a year and the administrator, whose post I had broken up, responded that he thought my way was much easier to read, and he's not ill!
-------------------- Lymednva Posts: 2407 | From over the river and through the woods | Registered: Apr 2006
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posted
I'm just a parent of a Lyme patient and I don't have any real problems reading posts here regardless of how they are presented.
Having said that, the facts are that I'm OLD, so I need help every now and then with long posts, again regardless of how they are spaced.
What I do is highlight the entire post or multiple posts, copy them to my clipboard, open up my word processor (MS Word in my case) and then paste the paragraphs to a new page.
I paste them via the "Paste Special" - "Unformatted Text" feature of Word. I can then edit, reformat, delete or anything else I want to the document.
In addition, that's how I've built my library of information from LymeNet. I keep a separate folder on my hard drive with all the pertinent information I want to save.
Just a thought. Good Luck to all of you.
Posts: 681 | From California | Registered: Oct 2005
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bettyg
Unregistered
posted
quote:Originally posted by Life inLymbo:
Betty G
I've got to say though, sometimes when you respond to an apparent newbie it comes off as though you are an official representative of this board and you demand they post in a certain way as though that's an official rule.
I'm sure that's not your intent but I think it may turn some people away from the very help you strive to provide.
Getting your exact point across is so difficult with just the written word. There is no voice inflection, no facial expressions to let someone know your true intentions.
I'm sure these words I've written will probably get misconstrued as well but please know that I'm sitting here with a smile on my face with true admiration and appreciation for all that you contribute.
lymbo, you did an outstanding job of expressing in words the above. yes, folks can't see/read my facial expressions or my voice tone ... only typed words.
i try to be assertive but folks misconstrue it as aggressive! please be assured, i have your BEST INTERESTS in mind when i suggest things so you WILL get whatever help you are looking for.
fyi, i spend between 4-6 hrs. daily here split up between 2 times; when i get up and after 10 pm at night!
i'm not spending any more time breaking up folks' posts including newbies; i used to so extra hrs. were added on top of what i show above already.
1 newbie who used to be on this board must have written 5-8 pages worth all SOLID TEXT!
she needed so much help, i took 1.5 hrs. of my precious energy/time to edit the entire thing. i asked her to delete what she had in 1st post so folks could read a broken up one i'd spent hrs. on so anyone reading could comprehend it. this person had between 12-20 problems she was addresses. another member made fun of me breaking it up! so that was the last straw; i don't break up anyone's posts anymore.
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Boomerang
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 7979
posted
Well said, LyfeinLymbo........
I agree with Tracy, I don't think a poll is really necessary. Not sure that would really be constructive.....jmho.
posted
Actually, I have always applauded Betty for coming along and asking poeple to space out paragraphs. I cannot read block print at all. And I don't want to copy & paste just so I can read someone's post.
Usually if Betty misses it, I tend to ingnore the post and not bother answering it, which is a shame for newbies seeking info. So I won't be reading a post that is solid block, and alot of chronic lymies won't either.
And asking people to space things out has been in practice FOR YEARS!!!!!
Boomerang
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 7979
posted
This is exactly why we don't need a poll. Just will cause more trouble. And really, it's all senseless and petty.
So, if you don't like the posts that aren't done in the format you prefer, don't read them. You can skip over them; it's not a hard concept.
I just know when you're a newbie on here, and you get PM...you think, "oh gosh, someone has some info for me".....and then to get chided on whether your posts had enough spacing....well, it comes across wrong. I just know it did for me. Like someone said, it's probably the tone. I don't think it is meant to be negative, but sadly, it is.
This is NOT to say I don't appreciate any contributions anyone has made to this board. I've learned a lot here. I hope to learn more.
People come here to find answers, and get better. They don't need negative comments. jmho
And there is no "right or wrong" about posting, as we've seen from the above responses.
Posts: 1366 | From Southeast | Registered: Sep 2005
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bettyg
Unregistered
posted
thank you lisa for your 2 cents worth!
yes, this discussion is a NO WIN on both sides; each one of us is so UNIQUE WITH THE LYME SPYMPTOMS IT'S GIVEN EACH OF US, there is no consensus .
we'll each continue struggling our own lyme world. i'll just use the SOB, SCROLL ON BY method starting right now. night all.
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