Are you a "lurker" on DISboards? If not, what caused you to de-lurk?

[Golden Rose]

I go in and out of being active on the boards. If I'm reading it these days, I'm willing to post, but I seem to cycle through how often I'm on the boards at all. I am around if we have a trip booked, which is maybe about 75% of the time. I certainly post most when I have questions because we're doing or considering something new, so I'm checking back frequently.

I think I quit lurking when we were contemplating buying DVC and I had questions.

 

[DVC Mike]

I think it's cool that a thread on lurking resulted in a few people posting that normally don't.

That's actually the intention behind the polls I run. Contrary to popular belief, I don't run polls to irritate people. I run them since an anonymous response to a poll can be one of the first steps someone takes to participate here.

 

[ljcrochet]

I'm more of a lurker. Not really sure why.

 

[DVC Mike]

Any other "lurkers" out there who wish to chime in?

 

[thewesterberg]

I used to respond more, back when I was in the "thick" of my Disney love: I had a couple of trips under my belt, we were able to go more often, and I felt like I had something to contribute. Then a job change happened which meant less money for extras which meant we weren't going on trips as often. I backed off for a couple of reasons - I was out of the loop with all the changes and to be honest, coming here made me miss going to the parks so it was best I stay away to keep the "Disney-ache" at bay. Now I'm lurking on a more regular basis as we have our first trip with FP+ and all the changes in the parks so I feel like I need to get in-the-know again!

 

[Splashboat]

I lurked for over 2 years and didn't create this login until we were ready to purchase DVC.

 

[sticker231]

I post more in other sections. I have been a DVC lurker for a long time, but that will be changing since we passed ROFR last week on a resale at OKW.

 

[MJTinNH]

I lurk more now then I used to. Online experience changes overtime. Obviously I will still put in my 2 cents though! LOL

 

[Hunclemarco]

I was heavily into the DIS when i became a DVC member... until i joined another social media outlet. Their format allowed for easier conversation per se. I have always enjoyed and appreciated the advice on the DVC section of the DIS, but started feeling disenchanted with the different rules that started coming up on the DIS. Renting rules changed, and although i never rented points here, the restrictions did affect my outlook of DIS. Same with the new rules on the cruising pages with FE's. I looked at the DIS from time to time, and am starting to participate a little more recently. Trying to find the good again...and miss hanging out with the regulars on the DVC boards.

 

[Wedgeh]

Generally it's the case that anything I might have to contribute will already have been expressed by one of the '1%' posters.

 

[Cirlonde]

It seems that we are evolving as a society that if someone does not share the same opinion as they do, that makes that person wrong, and need to be called out. I'm not a very confrontational guy and would much rather not get into confrontation, especially not about WDW.

The latest snarky comments came on the towel animal issue, saying we should have taking lamps and furniture if we were taking the towel animals. It's a minority of people that have to post in this fashion, but it does get old and I have much better things to do. Now I mainly just lurk and if I have a question, I ask it elsewhere.

Edit: This disenchantment is not singular to this board, but to all boards on all sites. The vocal minority seem to take control and tend to drown out the others.

These two quotes most closely describe the first reason I am a lurker, not just on this forum but on all forums I am a member of. As a new poster, it can often feel (whether true or not) that everything you type is subject to intense scrutiny and critique, with an intention of putting the most negative spin on it possible. For example, if I were to post and say how much I love the color blue on a car, there's nearly a 100% guarantee that at least one person would come along and (incorrectly) interpret my statement as an attack on all other car colors and that I think anyone who chooses to drive a car that is a color other than blue is a moron. Obviously, that type of negative response is in the minority, I'm just not willing to deal with it from even one person for a topic that doesn't really matter to me one way or the other.

Which leads me to the second reason that I rarely post. Unless I feel like my response will add something of value to the conversation or it's a topic that I'm very passionate about, I'm not going to respond at all. Time is a valuable commodity and I strive to use mine wisely! Convincing strangers on the internet to drive blue cars is a waste of my time.

Unfortunately, this is one of those times where my response probably isn't going to be super helpful because there's just not a lot that any moderator can do to encourage courtesy and respect. Or to thicken the skin of people like me. The anonymity of the internet has created a huge cultural problem...there's just not enough motivation for folks to be respectful or tolerant. Under the guise of phrases like "free speech" and "everyone is welcome to have an opinion" and "if you choose to post, you've opened yourself to this voluntarily", we've given ourselves a free license to be painfully and brutally "honest" without any filter. By choosing to be a lurker, I choose not to open myself to the risk of a harsh response. It's just not worth the gamble (or the elevated blood pressure).
-C