/dev/random: On comments

One of the Friday Five postings concerns commentary in other spaces. As you might guess, the comments is where I usually am, so these have specific importance.

1. Do you like to reply to every comment in your journal?
   
   Absolutely. I think interaction is an important part of building a good community and space, and so if there's something there to continue the conversation, or even just to say thanks, I try to get to each comment and leave a reply.


2. What type of post gets the most/leasst responses in your journal?
   
   For the most part, the highly link-dense posts get the least amount of comments. This isn't surprising, given that it's a large chunk of information, compressed into a list form, and not everything is of interest to everyone. What tends to get the most comments are when I start talking about my expertise (whether actual or theoretical), like in the December Days posts. Possibly because the topic is more relatable and has more hooks for people (even if they're not subject experts) to comment.


3. What do you do when a new person first comments in your journal?
   
   Respond to the comment, usually, possibly with a welcome along with the substantive reply, and then go read their profile and public entries to see if they might be a person whose comment section I'd like to hang out in myself. Because people are neat, and I tend to do much of my journal interaction in someone else's space. (Makes it hard for people to know who I am if they go read me and my journal.)


4. When you're reading someone else's journal, do you read every comment before adding your own?
   
   Often, yes, because updates sometimes appear in comments, but also because sometimes the thing that I might have commented on has been covered by another person, and in greater detail and expertise than I might have brought to the table. That might change the comment from "this thing, I found helpful" to "I agree with Alice that this thing sounds helpful."


5. When is "too late" to reply to an entry?
   
   Never. Much of the things I post about are meant to be things that someone might come across later and find useful or helpful or informative. So there really isn't an expiry on commenting on old entries.