Formatting Posts - an advice and practice thread

[jojojo]

Sometimes it's not what you say, it's the way that you say it. It might stop your post being read or stop you getting a like for it. It might even mean you get a warning from a mod asking you to sort it out. This thread offers advice on formatting and delivery and it's a place where you can (if you want) do a practice post and get feedback on layout issues and similar problems.

Badly formatted/constructed posts are difficult to read and act like speedbumps in threads, breaking the rhythm for readers, and annoying other posters. It often happens by accident, when someone writes something that looks OK on their screen (often a phone) but looks dreadful on other devices. This thread will attempt to explain what goes wrong and how to avoid the most common problems.

First of all, some basics:

• Please switch on your browser's (English) spellchecker, it will help.
• Always reread your post before hitting the reply button.
• Don't use text speak on the site, it's not only unpopular, it's against the rules.
• Steer clear of text message habits in general, LOLs etc get on people's nerves.
• Don't post in all capitals, it's SHOUTING, and it's against the rules.
• Overdoing the !!!!!!????? keys and smilies etc makes you sound like a kid, don't do it.
• Using reasonable punctuation helps people read your posts.
• The site automatically resizes and adjusts its layout to fit various screen sizes. Poor formatting ruins this feature. That's what the next post in this thread will concentrate on.

 

[jojojo]

It's not always what you write, sometimes it's the way you write it. The following examples show a normal post and then the same post with wrongly positioned line breaks. Line breaks should be used at the end of paragraphs, they are created when you press the Enter key or Return key. On some keyboards the Return key will just have a graphic like:

=============

A normal multiple sentence, multiple paragraph post, the line break (enter/return) key was used twice at the end of each paragraph. Pressing it twice leaves a line of white space before the next paragraph, which most people think makes it easier to read:

Now the same post but as a "wall of text" with no paragraphs used (and a bit of duplication because I'm tring to emphasise what can end up looking like!). The enter key has not been used to break up the text at all:

At the opposite extreme we get the seemingly random linefeed "poetry" post. The enter key has been used when it isn't needed, sometimes at the end of sentences, sometimes at the end of the line on the poster's own computer/phone screen and it has split the post into fragments:

On a different screen size, those extra line breaks mean we see yet another layout:

Some posters go one step further and abandon punctuation as well. By this stage no one is even looking at the post content, they're just irritated by the look of it, and annoyed about being expected to skip past it. Could I read it if you paid me? Sure, but you aren't paying other posters to read your posts, so making them easy to read is a much better idea.

 

[jojojo]

A screen capture for @Aki_United

Spoiler: Post format

 

[detime]

Someone told me l messed up my quotes.
What does that mean?

 

[jojojo]

I'm bumping this because both "wall of text" and "poetry format" have started to become common again and with the newbie/mains trials running more people are mentioning it.

 

[JASR]

I'm bumping this because both "wall of text" and "poetry format" have started to become common again and with the newbie/mains trials running more people are mentioning it.

I blame the schools.

How to write a sensible, well written, well laid out post on a United fan forum should be part of the national curriculum. With lessons for iPhone and android kids and extra remedial lessons for Blackberry and WinPhone kids.

What are they teaching young people these days? Flat earth/chemtrail/vaxxer ideology?

 

[EireLemon]

There's an extension for Google Chrome called "Grammarly", it tells you if you have made any mistakes and I use it not only on RedCafe but also for doing essays or other work. I've only had it for about a week and I've already fallen in love. Here it is if you want to try it out.

 

[Flying high]

Tl:dr

 

[Vanitas]

You can also enable grammar and spelling in Chrome (or any other browser you're using), which will help you to write properly, at least regarding the correct writing of the words.

 

[EVO]

disagree its a football forum it should read like a football forum

their parking there car they're!

 

[Martial'sgaze]

@jojojo please how does the edit option work and can one use it to format already posted comments?

 

[jojojo]

The edit button is active on your own posts, a pop-up editing window should appear when you click on it. You can use it to fix formatting issues and that editor has save/cancel options for exit. Do you get the pop-up window or is that not working for you?

If someone has told you that your formatting makes a post look awkward, but you're not sure what you're supposed to be fixing or you don't know how to fix it, you can post a link to it in here, or quote the post in here and we'll take a look.

 

[Martial'sgaze]

The edit button is active on your own posts, a pop-up editing window should appear when you click on it. You can use it to fix formatting issues and that editor has save/cancel options for exit. Do you get the pop-up window or is that not working for you?

If someone has told you that your formatting makes a post look awkward, but you're not sure what you're supposed to be fixing or you don't know how to fix it, you can post a link to it in here, or quote the post in here and we'll take a look.

This is the link to my post;
https://www.redcafe.net/threads/antoine-griezmann.416986/page-19#post-19324948

 

[Invictus]

@jojojo please how does the edit option work and can one use it to format already posted comments?

Spoiler: Edit

Click the 'Edit' button on the top right hand corner of your post:


You will see existing text in the popup window:


Edit in new text, then press the 'Save Changes' button:


Magic:


PS: Ninja edit doesn't work after 4 something minutes. Once you're past the time limit, it's shows an edit signal. Like so:

Last edited: 16 minutes ago

 

[Martial'sgaze]

Spoiler: Edit

Click the 'Edit' button on the top right hand corner of your post:


You will see existing text in the popup window:


Edit in new text, then press the 'Save Changes' button:


Magic:


PS: Ninja edit doesn't work after 4 something minutes. Once you're past the time limit, it's shows an edit signal. Like so:

@Invictus Thank you very much ,it has been helpful.You gave me a like for a particular post but not reflecting on my dash board,still showing 5 likes.

 

[Invictus]

@Invictus Thank you very much ,it has been helpful.You gave me a like for a particular post but not reflecting on my dash board,still showing 5 likes.

That's strange. Shows 6 for me:

Martial'sgaze
New Member
Joined: Jan 5, 2016
Messages: 869
Likes Received: 6

EDIT:
Also, you should format the post:

I think you should also reassess your view on Gomes,He plays in a midfield 3 and no where else,usually the furthest of a midfield 3,while Griezmann's best position is as 10 or a second striker.Therefore,in a team that wishes to play with two wide wingers or forward who can actually beat their man to create something and an out an out striker where does Griezmann and Gomes fit in?
My take is that Griezmann's can only operate in a 4231, Flat 442 or 442 diamond as you don't want him in wide areas where he is usually tame or useless really.
He is best as a second forward and not really a great no 10 in terms of creativity. I know if I want a creative no 10 I rather have Ozil all day ahead of Griezman, and Martial and Coman all day in wide areas.
But if it is a choice between Griezmann and Giroud as my striker then I would prefer the former depending on what you value in a striker.
Thus,in a nutshell there are few systems Griezmann fits in and for how much he had cost,you better be sure where you want to play him.

Hit 'space' after punctuation marks (. or ,):

I think you should also reassess your view on Gomes. He plays in a midfield 3 and no where else, usually the furthest of a midfield 3, while Griezmann's best position is as 10 or a second striker. Therefore, in a team that wishes to play with two wide wingers or forward who can actually beat their man to create something and an out an out striker where does Griezmann and Gomes fit in?

 

[Penna]

Yes, I see you with 6 likes, Martial'sgaze.

 

[Invictus]

@Invictus Thank you very much ,it has been helpful.You gave me a like for a particular post but not reflecting on my dash board,still showing 5 likes.

Thank you very much, it has been helpful. You gave me a like for a particular post but not reflecting on my dash board, still showing 5 likes.

 

[Invictus]

 

[Big-Red]

TWO SPACES?!?!?!?!?

 

[Maldini03]

Lol! It's a football forum... not an entrance exam for Eton.

 

[Penna]

Lol! It's a football forum... not an entrance exam for Eton.

Yes, we realise that it's a football forum. However, some people are spoiling their own chances of getting into the main forums because of the way they write their posts.

The vast majority of posters know how to write in readable paragraphs and understand how to use basic punctuation. However, for those who aren't sure, this thread will help.

 

[ManRant]

I'm bad at this, that is why I only post short comments.

 

[Maldini03]

The vast majority of posters know how to write in readable paragraphs and understand how to use basic punctuation. However, for those who aren't sure, this thread will help.

My good man, English is a curious language at best, what if the language isn't even a member's 1st or 2nd tongue? There may well be a some who suffer from dyslexia.

 

[PredatorX]

No offense but to me..this is meaningless

This is about football talk not some exam or lectures or scientific project so go easy on that dude... people can write anything they like as long as the others side gets the message...

And not everyone here is british and native english speaker so theres a different habit on how they write..punctuation...writting style...etc..

You guys are just making it hard for common people around the globe to take part into this manchester united forum

 

[Xoxo Gossip boy]

Honestly speaking, I don't mind the poorly written posts. For me, its more about the message you are passing rather than the quality of the write up. If I wanted to read something decent, I won't login to a football forum (no offence), I'd just pick up a novel by Stephen King. But I do get what you guys are saying tho.

 

[Penna]

This is nothing new folks, so don't think there's some change of policy here. The mods and scouts have always looked out for posters who are having problems with the way they format their posts, and have given advice. However, with so many new newbies now being able to post in the main football forums, it's important to draw people's attention to this thread. A good message can be lost if it's poorly-written.

We know that a fair few people on the forum don't speak English as a first language and it's sometimes more difficult for them, that's always taken into account.

 

[Duafc]

My good man, English is a curious language at best, what if the language isn't even a member's 1st or 2nd tongue? There may well be a some who suffer from dyslexia.

Could have left it there.

 

[Maldini03]

Could have left it there.

I think it was Cicero who warned us that the more rules there are the less justice they will lead to. Often wondered if that were not true.

 

[Oluwaplumpie]

From the look of things, this only applies to the newbies. One would think from reading this thread that the guys at the mains are superb in their grammar, punctuation and formatting. I beg to differ.

This idea of always providing some form of warning or rule to newbies is honestly tiring... Makes you feel like you're not really welcome. It's a football forum... A forum for Manchester United fans all over the world. Grammatical correctness shouldn't be an issue on here.

 

[Grinner]

From the look of things, this only applies to the newbies. One would think from reading this thread that the guys at the mains are superb in their grammar, punctuation and formatting. I beg to differ.

This idea of always providing some form of warning or rule to newbies is honestly tiring... Makes you feel like you're not really welcome. It's a football forum... A forum for Manchester United fans all over the world. Grammatical correctness shouldn't be an issue on here.

Yes it's a football forum, one that's owned by somebody who has their own rules about posters and posting. If you don't like it then you're perfectly free to go elsewhere.

 

[Akshay]

TWO SPACES?!?!?!?!?

This was news to me as well.

Honestly speaking, I don't mind the poorly written posts. For me, its more about the message you are passing rather than the quality of the write up. If I wanted to read something decent, I won't login to a football forum (no offence), I'd just pick up a novel by Stephen King. But I do get what you guys are saying tho.

It's not about the literary quality of the writing, it's about basic grammar and punctuation so that posts are readable. Also, if only one or two posts are poorly written it's not so bad, but if you had to read entire threads made up of those posts it would get tiring pretty quickly.

 

[jojojo]

We're not running grammar classes. We are trying to make people's posts as easy to read as possible. There are thousands of posts each day on this site and the scouts, mods etc read a lot of posts. If your post is hard to read, it acts like a speedbump.

If you've got something interesting to say, don't lose that by making it hard to read. A lot of our posters are second/third language English. Our English posters aren't grammatically perfect. Perfection isn't necessary. Interesting and easy to read are.

 

[Varun]

From the look of things, this only applies to the newbies. One would think from reading this thread that the guys at the mains are superb in their grammar, punctuation and formatting. I beg to differ.

This idea of always providing some form of warning or rule to newbies is honestly tiring... Makes you feel like you're not really welcome. It's a football forum... A forum for Manchester United fans all over the world. Grammatical correctness shouldn't be an issue on here.

Perfection in grammar is not expected as we have posters from all over the globe, formatting posts so that they are easy to read is. There's a difference. This applies to mains posters as well who get warnings for posts that aren't formatted correctly.

 

[vintiz]

You can also enable grammar and spelling in Chrome (or any other browser you're using), which will help you to write properly, at least regarding the correct writing of the words.

Does it work on phones mate?

 

[Seasidered]

This is one of the main reasons we should tried harder at school folks i knew my childhood would come back to haunt me one day.

 

[Member 5225]

So I've been banned from a thread I was participating in due to not spoilering one fact-based data photo thingy (and disagreeing with a prominent Mod in the thread, however I am sure that has nothing to do with it!).
How long do these thread-wide bans last for? Any form of appeal?

 

[AngeloHenriquez]

So I've been banned from a thread I was participating in due to not spoilering one fact-based data photo thingy (and disagreeing with a prominent Mod in the thread, however I am sure that has nothing to do with it!).
How long do these thread-wide bands last for? Any form of appeal?

Not sure it's related to this thread, but if it's a thread ban and your first, I'd imagine 24 hrs to 3 days

 

[Damien]

So I've been banned from a thread I was participating in due to not spoilering one fact-based data photo thingy (and disagreeing with a prominent Mod in the thread, however I am sure that has nothing to do with it!).
How long do these thread-wide bans last for? Any form of appeal?

Why not ask the mod who banned you?

 

[Member 5225]

Why not ask the mod who banned you?

Did via PM (as I apologised and explained how I was on mobile device hence couldn't retrospectively spoiler in time) - and ofcourse no response...