Regarding this edit, I'm wondering if it's an adopted convention to exclude any friendly greetings or signatures in a question:
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1meta.stackexchange.com/questions/2950/…– nicaelCommented Oct 26, 2014 at 21:38
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@nicael The only thing that thread illustrates is that this is still a hotly debated topic. Cherry-picked quotes from that thread: "Whats wrong with hi or thanks? Boy what is this world coming to." / "Systematically hunting down and killing even a few hints of humanity like "thanks" that don't clutter questions or make them hard to read, reinforces the negative stereotype that we techies are just emotionless robots" / "+1 three years passed and this subject continues to be discussed onto new questions everyday!"– Lindsey D ModCommented Nov 6, 2014 at 18:01
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Within that thread, my personal viewpoint is echoed here and here.– Lindsey D ModCommented Nov 6, 2014 at 18:03
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3 Answers
This has actually been discussed before (though I can't remember where... if I can find the link, I'll post it here).
Signatures. Never necessary. Every question and answer is automatically "signed" with your SE namecard. There is never any doubt as to who posted.
Greetings & Thanks. This one is more debatable. Some people are of the opinion that SE is a place for strict questions and strict answers... a more "by the book" approach. For those folks, there's absolutely no need for informalities. Saying "Hi everyone" or "Thanks in advance" is extraneous information and completely unnecessary.
However, I personally am of the opinion that those friendly greetings and signs of appreciation are not obtrusive, and are technically harmless. In fact, I kind of enjoy seeing someone expressing gratitude towards the community for the assistance they are about to receive.
Let's not forget, this is a community. And the best communities are the ones that show respect and appreciation towards each other. We are not robots. We are human beings. If a person is being prevented from simply saying "thank you", then we are in essence punishing good behavior.
Lastly... is it a worthwhile edit simply to delete someone's expression of gratitude? I think not. Stack Exchange discourages making "minor edits", and I'd certainly classify the removal of "thanks" as a minor edit.
That being said, the revision you linked to also included a code formatting revision. If the editor is doing more than just removing signs of gratitude, then it's more than just a minor edit.
Anyway, just my two cents. :)
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1Yes, those edits do not only discourage the (mostly new) users, but also bump that question unnecessarily and annoyingly at the top.– carlcsCommented Nov 6, 2014 at 16:20
I think greetings and salutations aren't necessary and should therefore be excluded or even removed.
To me, the Perfect Question™ or Perfect Answer™ is a harmonious balance of descriptiveness and brevity, so anything that's not necessary should go. I like friendliness and witty banter, but they don't contribute anything to a good question or answer.
This is a good topic though, because we're all establishing a tone for the community around here and I'd like to know what others think.
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Actually I even asked the question about it, but Anna MediaGirl decided to remove it. Please look at my deleted questions and undelete it.– nicaelCommented Oct 26, 2014 at 21:35
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@nicael Anna deleted your question because it wasn't a question... it was a command. "Don't add “thanks” in questions" was the title of your post, followed by explicit instructions to edit posts in order to remove pleasantries. Here's Anna's quote when closing your post: "I suggest posting a question for discussion instead of directives telling folks what to do."– Lindsey D ModCommented Nov 6, 2014 at 18:11
I definitely don't mind any greetings by new users in their first post and totally understand the feeling that you want to say hello to the community when you are new.
But please don't make this become the new standard and you start feeling rude if you forgot to say thanks in advance! :)
