"Is there an etiquette question here?"

[Pinky830]

Am I the only one who gets irked when people ask this?

If somebody posts a topic that should probably go in Coffee Break in another folder, it's not the end of the world. There's something about posting that question that just seems, I dunno, unnecessarily snippy.

Just ask a mod to move it already, if it really bothers you that much.

Or maybe it's just me...

[lovestoread]

No, i'm with you on this one!!

I can understand why people get annoyed with things being in the wrong folders, but i think that phrasing it that way can be a bit snarky!!

[Hillia]

POD

[Shoo]

And not every post needs to contain an actual question.  Sometimes just telling a story prompts a lively discussion.  I find the, "Is there an etiquette question here?" question to be rather condescending.

[MDefarge]

And not every post needs to contain an actual question.  Sometimes just telling a story prompts a lively discussion.  I find the, "Is there an etiquette question here?" question to be rather condescending.

seriously I've never seen that asked in a way that didn't come off as know it all and rude - which is more than a bit ironic.

[Scuba_Dog]

For me, it depends on if it's a rant/vent disguised as a "story."  Or, if a story just turns into pages and pages of mocking the person in the OPost that made an etiquette blunder.  That seems out of place here.

I *do* happen to think that posts in the etiquette section of the forum should have some sort of etiquette question in them.  I think it's ok to ask the OP what the etiquette dilemma is and if there isn't one, suggest the thread me moved.  Of course, this should be done with as much kindness as possible.  I've only once seen it done in a rude way and it was done by a very new member, who may not have known better.  JMO, YMMV.  

eta:  I think I understand now a bit more specifically.  When someone has made a simple posting mistake, it's probably best to just PM them instead of posting in the thread at all. 

[AprilRenee]

THis is why I started putting "No question, just a story" on top of some of my posts. Because sometimes I really don't have a question, I just want to relate something I had witnessed. I think when you insist on a question, that's when you get the ever popular 'did I do ok?' or 'what would you have done' in a post where the OP knows they did well, they just want to avoid the "Whats the question" line.

[M-theory]

No, it's not just you. That phrasing is very snotty.

[Scuba_Dog]

THis is why I started putting "No question, just a story" on top of some of my posts. Because sometimes I really don't have a question, I just want to relate something I had witnessed. I think when you insist on a question, that's when you get the ever popular 'did I do ok?' or 'what would you have done' in a post where the OP knows they did well, they just want to avoid the "Whats the question" line.

I like that idea.

[Shores]

For me, it depends on if it's a rant/vent disguised as a "story."  Or, if a story just turns into pages and pages of mocking the person in the OPost that made an etiquette blunder.  That seems out of place here.

I *do* happen to think that posts in the etiquette section of the forum should have some sort of etiquette question in them.  I think it's ok to ask the OP what the etiquette dilemma is and if there isn't one, suggest the thread me moved.  Of course, this should be done with as much kindness as possible.  I've only once seen it done in a rude way and it was done by a very new member, who may not have known better.  JMO, YMMV. 

ITA with this. I get really tired of the thinly veiled rants that pop up on occasion. I believe I've asked this question 2, maybe 3 times in the 4 years I've been posting on this forum and every time it was a "story" that was really just the OP mocking some example of "rudeness" that they'd seen in real life. I realize that examples of rudeness can start discussions, but overly superior-sounding "Can you BELIEVE someone would do this?!??!" posts are just obnoxious. Usually, I just report posts, but if I think an OP is just ranting, I will ask what the point of the post is.

Telling a "story" with no dilemma and an overly obvious etiquette blunder does not start discussions, just trash-talking. I don't really see the point of "No question, just a story" posts. Why not post them in the off-topic folders instead of the areas specifically designed for advice?

[AprilRenee]

Telling a "story" with no dilemma and an overly obvious etiquette blunder does not start discussions, just trash-talking. I don't really see the point of "No question, just a story" posts. Why not post them in the off-topic folders instead of the areas specifically designed for advice?

I went looking at the main board pages and descriptions. No where, anywhere does it say the ettiquete portions of the boards are only for asking advice. But the off topic folder, the coffee break does say:
Time For a Coffee Break!
A cozy folder for non-etiquette related, get-to-know-you discussions

[Shores]

Telling a "story" with no dilemma and an overly obvious etiquette blunder does not start discussions, just trash-talking. I don't really see the point of "No question, just a story" posts. Why not post them in the off-topic folders instead of the areas specifically designed for advice?

I went looking at the main board pages and descriptions. No where, anywhere does it say the ettiquete portions of the boards are only for asking advice. But the off topic folder, the coffee break does say:
Time For a Coffee Break!
A cozy folder for non-etiquette related, get-to-know-you discussions

Fair enough. I guess the only point I was really trying to make is that the few posts that I have seen people ask "what's the question here?" were obvious rants. I haven't honestly seen it asked in any thread where I didn't believe it was justified (not that I read every thread, ofc). I always saw the question as giving the poster a chance to make it fit within the site's rules, rather than simply reporting them for the rant that it usually is. I'd have to see an example of it being used "unfairly" before I'd agree that people shouldn't have the right to question the OP about it. Stories that serve no purpose but to mock someone that the OP has encountered in real life are rants, IMO, not "discussion-starters."

[Wendy Moira Angela Pan]

I agree with Shores. I can only recall having seen the question in threads that were more about ranting than a productive discussion. For the people who think it sounds snotty, is there another phrasing that sounds more polite?

[M-theory]

I agree with Shores. I can only recall having seen the question in threads that were more about ranting than a productive discussion. For the people who think it sounds snotty, is there another phrasing that sounds more polite?

"This doesn't seem to be an etiquette issue, so I think it would be better categorized in the off-topic folder."

[Pinky830]

I agree with Shores. I can only recall having seen the question in threads that were more about ranting than a productive discussion. For the people who think it sounds snotty, is there another phrasing that sounds more polite?

I'm referring to posts that were honest questions, just not etiquette ones, and should have been in Coffee Break. I remember once it was a person who had made a pie that hadn't set up right and was asking how to firm it up.