Forum Vs Chat and Poster's Regret.

  • Christian Chat is a moderated online Christian community allowing Christians around the world to fellowship with each other in real time chat via webcam, voice, and text, with the Christian Chat app. You can also start or participate in a Bible-based discussion here in the Christian Chat Forums, where members can also share with each other their own videos, pictures, or favorite Christian music.

    If you are a Christian and need encouragement and fellowship, we're here for you! If you are not a Christian but interested in knowing more about Jesus our Lord, you're also welcome! Want to know what the Bible says, and how you can apply it to your life? Join us!

    To make new Christian friends now around the world, click here to join Christian Chat.
R

Rachel20

Senior Member
May 7, 2013
1,639
106
63
Hey everyone.

So, we all know that there is a kind of distinction between regular forum users and regular chatters. A world underground and a world above.

However some of us have made the journeys and traversed both of these universes. Sometimes with ease, and sometimes not so much.

When I first started out, I did so with chat.

It was lively, fun and really fast paced. For a long while, I was afraid of the forums.

Here's why -


* It was public, google searchable and I felt daunted by putting any thoughts I ever had on the internet forever. Anytime someone could do a search and there would be my words.

* It felt like there were a lot of people out to disagree with each other on the forums. On chat, people might disagree but still be kinder about it. It felt like you need to have a thicker skin here, and surely you do!

* People on chat have always felt more real to me, than those on the forums. Unless we got to have a conversation in chat, I guess I don't know how forum users connect with each other.

PMs? Emails? I like to know someone's voice, or their face just to be more "connected".

However the point of the thread isn't solely to discuss chatting vs forum posting.

There's a little something else.

So when I first started posting on the forums, I was very excited.

My first few posts were always answers to questions posed by people or just some threads on the India Forum.

I noticed one thing, before I would post, I would always be nervous and pray for my posts. Pray for the person who would read it and pray that it would be helpful.

I would also get so excited, I would send links to people to read up on my answers (sometimes I still do :) ).

I am still a "slow" poster. I weigh the pros and cons of posting something much more than I would do on chat, which is transient and forgettable.

So many times, I've posted and regretted my posts.

Some have also been rude and juvenile.

It's like a chronic case of Poster's Regret for me.

However, I do know one thing. I don't regret the posts I've prayed over.


Do you guys feel this way too?
Do you think that forum posting is a responsibility and we should be more mindful about our posts?

I don't think God stops watching over us, even over the internet.
 
Last edited:
i think one thing is for sure, we should all pray before we post :)

i venture into the chat sometimes, but i don't like to use a webcam, and a lot of the time i'm on here, noise would bother others around me, so i can't listen to others using their webcams either -- that leaves me missing something like half of the conversation in the busy chatrooms. :(



 
  • Like
Reactions: Rachel20
I am so guilty of posting things that I regret that is why I try to stay away from religion forums… but sometimes without me even thinking it through I will post on these forums. I normally try not to be rude but unfortunately I have my weak moments. I need to work on myself and with the grace of God and guidance of the Holy Spirit I just might become a better person.
 
Rachel20 said:
Hey everyone.

So, we all know that there is a kind of distinction between regular forum users and regular chatters. A world underground and a world above.
Click to expand...


So the forum is the "world underground"?

This is the black abyss of Christian Chat?
This, our misty playground, is the dark abode of woe?


"Abandon hope all ye who enter here."
- Dante


: )
 
Last edited:
maxwel said:


"Abandon hope all ye who enter here."
- Dante


: )
Click to expand...

That's just for the Bible Discussion forum! Bwahaha.

As far as the OP goes, I really don't post a lot of personally identifiable information on CC so I'm not worried about my posts being available via public search. As far as the posts themselves, I've looked at previous posts before and thought, well now that I really think about it....I'm not really agreeing with something I said 3 or 4 months ago. That's no big deal though, we all do that.

Facebook however, I'm extremely against using that. Not only is it chock full of drama and cyberstalkers... I don't want personal info about my life available to anyone who wants to see it (or anyone who wants to repost it if you throw up the whole well you can change your privacy settings theory)....it could have some damaging consequences on posts that are completely benign. For example, you could be applying for a job somewhere in the future, and have your prospective employer face book you.....then he sees that you disliked a senator he supports, talked crap about a band he likes, etc.... could be any little thing that negatively affects your offline life.

Not hating on anybody who wants to use facebook, but that's why I don't use it primarily. I don't know anybody in real life that uses it who hasn't had to deal with some aggravating instance of drama over it.
 
I haven't been here as often as I used to. I use the forums more than chat. I think that's because I like reading and thinking about what I'm going to say. But I like to chat when there's people I like there (that''s all of you Singles Forum regulars! :) ), otherwise it bores me and I end up leaving and coming back to the forums haha
 
maxwel said:

So the forum is the "world underground"?

This is the black abyss of Christian Chat?
This, our misty playground, is the dark abode of woe?


"Abandon hope all ye who enter here."
- Dante


: )
Click to expand...


Haha. Presumptuous but I was aiming for that....not really.

I am telling you, I believe I heard a moderator describe it that way! :D
 
Last edited:
Rachel20 said:
Hey everyone.

So, we all know that there is a kind of distinction between regular forum users and regular chatters. A world underground and a world above.

However some of us have made the journeys and traversed both of these universes. Sometimes with ease, and sometimes not so much.

When I first started out, I did so with chat.

It was lively, fun and really fast paced. For a long while, I was afraid of the forums.

Here's why -


* It was public, google searchable and I felt daunted by putting any thoughts I ever had on the internet forever. Anytime someone could do a search and there would be my words.

* It felt like there were a lot of people out to disagree with each other on the forums. On chat, people might disagree but still be kinder about it. It felt like you need to have a thicker skin here, and surely you do!

* People on chat have always felt more real to me, than those on the forums. Unless we got to have a conversation in chat, I guess I don't know how forum users connect with each other.

PMs? Emails? I like to know someone's voice, or their face just to be more "connected".

However the point of the thread isn't solely to discuss chatting vs forum posting.

There's a little something else.

So when I first started posting on the forums, I was very excited.

My first few posts were always answers to questions posed by people or just some threads on the India Forum.

I noticed one thing, before I would post, I would always be nervous and pray for my posts. Pray for the person who would read it and pray that it would be helpful.

I would also get so excited, I would send links to people to read up on my answers (sometimes I still do :) ).

I am still a "slow" poster. I weigh the pros and cons of posting something much more than I would do on chat, which is transient and forgettable.

So many times, I've posted and regretted my posts.

Some have also been rude and juvenile.

It's like a chronic case of Poster's Regret for me.

However, I do know one thing. I don't regret the posts I've prayed over.


Do you guys feel this way too?
Do you think that forum posting is a responsibility and we should be more mindful about our posts?

I don't think God stops watching over us, even over the internet.
Click to expand...

Regrets, I've had a few
Which I am just, too tired to mention
I said what I could say, and saw it through without exemption
I planned each written post, each careful word along this highway
And more, much more than this, I did it my way

Yes, there were times, I'm sure you knew
When I bit off more than I could chew
But through it all, when there was doubt
I changed it up or left it out
I faced it all and I stood tall and did it my way

I've loved, I've laughed and cried
I've had my fill, my share of losing
And now, as tears subside, I find it all so un-amusing
To think I did all that
And may I say, not in a shy way,
"Oh, no.. oh no not me, I did it my way"

For what is a man, what has he got?
If not himself, then he has naught
To say the things he truly feels and share the words of one who heals
The record shows I took the blows and posted my way​
 
Some things I regret posting. Otherwise I get over it. I have used or at least tried chat and felt like I couldn't connect as much. It's more for those who already know the people there.
 
Chat is to forum as checkers is to chess. In chat you pick up a conversation, it can change in a second and people are talking in real-time usually without stopping to think a lot. Forum threads are things you can read and go back and respond to later in the day when you have thought about them. That's why I find forum generally more beneficial and interesting than chat.
 
I frequently suffer from Poster's Regret. It never kicks in until after the five minute editing window has closed. And then I have to live with the dumb things I say...but, fortunately, it's rarely held against me. Which brings me to why I hang out in the forums instead of chat...in chat, when I say dumb things, people ignore me. In the forums when I say dumb things...people give me rep points :p (okay, that's untrue).

Despite knowing that my thoughts are now out "there" forever, and often regretting have posted at all, I still prefer the forums because my brain takes longer to process things and be able to respond, so chat is too fast for me and the times I've gone in there, I've left feeling...dizzy and frustrated, and coming up with responses to things that were talked about an hour ago.
 
@DonkeyFish ---> Yes, we do need to be cautious about what we put on social media sites, especially when we have prospective employers around.

@Kayem77---> Love it when you come online :)

@Zeroturbulence ---> And I've been playing Sinatra all day. That was so cool! :)


@JustAnotherUser---> When you're ever free or so, do drop into the Prayer Room, especially in the evening. It's cool when everyone's worshipping there. Thanks for the response!


@Lynx ---> Cool analogy!



@MissCris---> That made me laugh! I do enjoy reading your posts btw. They're honest and honestly funny :)
 
Last edited:
I have always been a forum kind of person, I can express my thoughts much better in written form and I can understand things better if I read them. Also on chat the subject of conversation can switch in an instant, there is usually noises in the back ground( most of them are kind of annoying). I used to do skype with some of my closest friends here in cc and we did bible study we talked and even prayed together but sadly I no longer have a web cam or mic so even if I wanted to I can't
 
Jeez. I was typing out a reply and I dozed off in the middle. Then I typed some gibberish and I wanted to submit it, but clicked on the "cancel" button. :|

There are two reasons why I am active in the Forum and not in the Chat -
1) I prefer writing to talking. I feel that I communicate better when I am writing than when I am talking.
2) The Singles Chat has been the only exception to the above-mentioned reason, because most of the regulars also post here. Still, I don't come online on Singles Chat because of the opposite time zone.

Whenever I post a reply in thought-provoking threads, I proof-read my post. I also don't hesitate to correct any mistakes that I might have made - grammatically or logically. I think that a writer is responsible in ensuring that his/her readers can fully understand his message.
 
I usually proof-read my longer, more serious posts 3 or more times before submitting them. I really want to make sure that my posts come across as edifying and respectful, whenever possible. It isn't always successful, but I try.

If it's a lighthearted thread, I don't show as much care, but so far only once I had poster's remorse, when someone new to the site (who did not know me) misinterpreted a quip I made and thought I was making fun of new Christians, which made me feel terrible.

I love both the forum and the chat room for Singles. Linx said it perfectly... chat is like checkers. Instant gratification, not as much DEEP thinking... We discuss deep subjects sometimes, but rarely are they on the level of deeper threads here where research is done, scripture interpreted, hours are spent drafting up a long response to a question (chess). Typically chat is more lighthearted, and subjects come and go with ease and fluidity. Sometimes, I like that. Sometimes I want more.

Both offer ways to really get to know who people are. I love listening to djness speak on mic. That guy is so honest with and about himself, and has no problem talking about deep stuff, thinking out loud about life, admitting that he gets frustrated about situations sometimes. He's REAL.

But the forum is also an amazing vehicle in getting to the soul of someone. MissCris for instance, who bares her deepest concerns, faults, triumphs and craziness here for us all to grow in, learn from, or laugh with her about.

Some people aren't as comfortable digging down to the soul of things in chat, and others aren't as comfortable doing it in the forum. I tend to be relatively comfortable in either setting.

I inflict my past trials and triumphs, fears and failures on both sets of people without discrimination. :rolleyes:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom
Back