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What are the unwritten rules of online forums that new members always get wrong?

Started by Baz_26, Jun 10, 2026, 10:05 AM

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Topic: What are the unwritten rules of online forums that new members always get wrong?   Views(Read 52 times)

Baz_26

Every online community has rules that are not written anywhere but that experienced members understand implicitly. Breaking them gets you ignored, mocked or banned more reliably than breaking the stated rules. Curious what the unwritten rules are across different types of forums - tech, gaming, hobby, general discussion - and what the most common new member mistakes are.
Question everything. Especially this.

Router48

Search before you post. Every forum has a search function. Every forum has had the same questions asked dozens of times. Asking a question that appears in the first three results of a forum search marks you as someone who did not bother to look first. The response you get from experienced members reflects that

CobyOlaleye

Do not post your solution was to reinstall Windows or start from scratch without explaining what the actual problem was and what you tried. People who helped you deserve to know the resolution in case someone else has the same problem. Closing a thread with 'sorted thanks' and no explanation is the most universally disliked forum behaviour across every technical community
Views my own

Oscar_57

Lurk before you contribute opinions. Read a community for long enough to understand its norms, its recurring debates and its unspoken agreements before wading in with a confident take. Every community has topics that seem open for debate but are actually settled and newcomers who reopen them without understanding the history get short shrift
rm -rf /bad-ideas