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Do you have any rules you try to follow when engaging with others online? (sopuli.xyz)

submitted 1 day ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

46 comments fedilink hide all child comments

I'm curious what, if any, guidelines people self-impose to try and engage in a productive way online (both on Lemmy and elsewhere). "Netiquette" if you will.

A couple of rules that I think are good practices, but still see too often, are:

don't pile onto the most downvoted comment. Kinda like don't feed the trolls, but it's more about not letting yourself get rage baited. Instead, downvote them and move on.
don't give a non-answer to someone's question. Ex. if someone asks how to do X, don't answer with, "Why are you trying to do X? You shouldn't want to do X. Do Y instead." Instead, explain what it would take to do X, and then offer Y as a possible alternative and why it may be a better option. But assume they already know about Y, and it doesn't fit their use-case.

For that last one, finding a thread where someone has asked the exact question you want answered, only to find a thread full of upvoted non-answers is up there with the dreaded "nvm, I figured it out - 10y ago".

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[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Do not entertain an argument of any kind. We're no longer in a realm where people can be reasoned or rationalized. People mostly just want you to be wrong and will break you down in trying to make you feel wrong. Block the moment someone starts swinging back at you.

If you see someone out in the open giving someone else a hard time, you can bet that they'll do it to you so block them also.

Never go too open with someone beyond your comfort level. People online can be notorious for abusing sensitive information for ammo, personal gain or to do with as they see fit.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 day ago

You should read False Witnesses, it explains a phenomena you're touching on here. People normally don't actually care if what they believe is true, they want to feel virtuous and license themselves to believe the unbelievable in order to do so. I think you'll find the essay interesting.