Why do you come to Gransnet?

I am not sure why some of you don't understand. I must be explaining it badly. You do not HAVE to 'hide' a persons comment. If this is not what you want you just wouldn't use it. As you would have to go into your own area on GN and, physically put in the GN name of the person it wouldn't happen by accident. You may have the opinion that this would not be something you want to use but, it seems, a couple of you think the world should live by your rules and not have a choice. Why would that be fair?

Very good point devongirl. I can think of at least one person like that!

M0nica

I should behave like a good MIL on GN and keep my mouth firmly zipped
Not rush to the defence of others.
Or just retreat to a 'bubble'.

That's true devongirl

Has the Indonesian recipe gone?

Also even when you diagree fundamentally with another poster on one thread, you can find that you have a lot more in common than you expected on a different type of thread, or that they have problems of their own which can make you feel more inclined to be accepting.

Just come to this thread after deciding not to respond to a post on another thread because, IMO many of that particular person's posts are ill-informed and irritating and a response is generally unproductive. But I still want to give myself the opportunity to read them and I would never abuse her and anyway on some subjects her views are quite unexceptional.

I avoid post's on some subjects because discussion is one-side and repetitive. But really what delicate flowers we must be and what sheltered lives we must have led if we cannot cope with reading posts now and again by someone whose views we do not agree with or think ill-informed.

Doesn't everyone Kitty ?

I come on ro read Indonesian adverts!

I didn't think it was what you were saying Swanny but if would be the outcome of what you are saying.

No GracesGranMK2 that is not what I'm saying.

One forum I'm on has a hide button so you don't have to read anything posted by those who you know will annoy you

I don't know if that would be useful on GN - surely most posters contribute to a wide variety of topics?

Also, you can just skip comments by anyone who annoys you, but can any poster be so awful that you need to be spared even looking at their posts?

You would not have to use it Swanny. What you are saying is you don't want anyone else to have that choice.

Says you

I don't agree with 'like', 'ignore', 'hide' or anything else buttons. If you feel you have something worth saying, what's wrong with just saying it? If you don't have anything to say, or don't want to say anything, then don't. Where's the difficulty/hardship/problem? Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me. If you feel another GN member has really overstepped the mark, there is a report button and Granset guidelines ... No need to be publicly vicious to anyone.

I am loathe to disagree with you Eloethan as I know how thoughtful your posts are but the hide button seems better to me than people not feeling able to go on to the thread and I have seen it work where you have someone you feel is being unnecessarily inflammatory, personal or off-topic. Without the replies that people might otherwise feel provoked into making they soon either choose to join in at a proper level or stop posting. I am sure we should just ignore that provocation but sometimes just leaving the thread and not bothering is the only way to do that and it seems I am not the only one who feels that way.

I do agree that piling up 'likes' is not the way to discuss. I have only seen that used on one forum (although obviously on FB) but it was a specific hobby and business site and the moderators changed it to 'thanks' on the request of the members as that was basically what is was being used for. When it comes to a political discussion, on here, it seems to me gathering 'likes' or even 'I agree' reduces the discussion to even more of a feeling of a baying crowd than it sometimes feels at the moment. I think that would be more likely to encourage me to leave GN again rather than want to add to the discussions.

Not so much a 'Like' button, Eloethan - more an 'I Agree'. I think most of our threads move on a lot quicker than FBs. I don't think there'd be time to collect them.

I don't think an ignore button is a good idea. If a person posts something that you know is factually incorrect or which you believe is a misrepresentation, you can say why you believe what has been said is wrong. If you are not aware of what has been said, you cannot challenge it.

I also don't like the idea of a "like" button. Having recently read a quite frightening book by Dave Eggars called "The Circle", I am suspicious of the way in which people are drawn into a system where responses to complex issues are reduced to a tick or an emoticon.

There is one. It's called "I'm on".
Or you could use the watch this thread button then just go on watching.
Or, for those who can't stand the political threads because they are too political, don't go on them.
So easy.

It would be nice to have a hide button for whole threads allowing only threads of interest to be in your active selection and def an edit button .

If FB can make it work I don't see why it couldn't work here .

I think it's a choice you make merlot. Do you join in something you are interested in with one person 'hidden' or do you stay off the thread because you are finding it difficult, possibly because of just one person? Some people sound as if they are choosing the latter.

You tend to get a sense of anything they may have added to the discussion because other people may answer them - you just don't see whatever it is that makes you consider not going on the thread.

Not removed for everyone; just for you.
The only bits that would be removed would be from people you do not want to follow.
Otherwise it would be just mayhem. Like HQ banning everyone.

But how do you follow what's being said/going on?

The politics threads move at such a cracking pace that if bits of it were removed I'd totally lose the plot and that's not difficult in my case.

I understand what you are saying but if you have an 'ignore' or 'hide' button you just don't see what the other person has written which can make for a much calmer read. With the one on the forum I mentioned all you see (although obviously no one else can) is 'you are ignoring this person' followed by 'Show me the post' which you can click on to reveal the post if you choose.

Surely, if GNHQ can do it and think it is worthwhile you can have no objection as obviously those who don't want it never have to use it. I think it might encourage more of the people who are feeling they would like to join in the politics threads but currently don't.

With an ignore button for some people you'd hardly know the difference.

Exactly.