Gentle Request Regarding Events and Time

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DivMiler

Lead Service Attendant
Joined
Nov 12, 2007
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295
Location
Central Pennsylvania
Can we please use dates instead of (for example) "last night", "today", "tomorrow", or "yesterday"?

It gets confusing when one looks at a topic title and reads "Spokane Delay on EB Night Last Due to BNSF Fatality" or "Today's CZ in Burlington, IA" or even "Lake Shore Limited this week".

With a specific date, one will know if the topic is about a train event on August 31, or September 5.
 
DivMiler said:
Can we please use dates instead of (for example) "last night", "today", "tomorrow", or "yesterday"?
It gets confusing when one looks at a topic title and reads "Spokane Delay on EB Night Last Due to BNSF Fatality" or "Today's CZ in Burlington, IA" or even "Lake Shore Limited this week".

With a specific date, one will know if the topic is about a train event on August 31, or September 5.
Click to expand...
[rant]

I agree. Also, please.... Don't use abbreviations unless they are obvious (CHI, WAS, NYP, Etc...). I can't remember every podunk stations abbreviations!

While were at it (Ohhh I like this thread).........

Please seperate your thoughts into paraghraphs. One long block of text is difficult to read.

Please use punctuation. It makes it easier to read.

Please add spaces after periods (or the end of a sentence). Again, It makes it easier to read. Otherwise it looks like one long sentence instead of two.

How about some civility (or at least tact). Too often I see 'you're wrong' or 'wrong!'. That's harsh man! Take it easy...

I won't name names of who is guilty of each of these 'crimes' against my humanity, but those of us who are regulars know who they are!

[/rant]

Thank you, I feel much better now.... :)
 
DivMiler said:
Can we please use dates instead of (for example) "last night", "today", "tomorrow", or "yesterday"?
It gets confusing when one looks at a topic title and reads "Spokane Delay on EB Night Last Due to BNSF Fatality" or "Today's CZ in Burlington, IA" or even "Lake Shore Limited this week".

With a specific date, one will know if the topic is about a train event on August 31, or September 5.
Click to expand...
Sorry, but with each post having a date stamp available at the top, I view this as being a moot point!
 
AAARGH! said:
DivMiler said:
Can we please use dates instead of (for example) "last night", "today", "tomorrow", or "yesterday"?
It gets confusing when one looks at a topic title and reads "Spokane Delay on EB Night Last Due to BNSF Fatality" or "Today's CZ in Burlington, IA" or even "Lake Shore Limited this week".

With a specific date, one will know if the topic is about a train event on August 31, or September 5.
Click to expand...
[rant]

I agree. Also, please.... Don't use abbreviations unless they are obvious (CHI, WAS, NYP, Etc...). I can't remember every podunk stations abbreviations!

While were at it (Ohhh I like this thread).........

Please seperate your thoughts into paraghraphs. One long block of text is difficult to read.

Please use punctuation. It makes it easier to read.

Please add spaces after periods (or the end of a sentence). Again, It makes it easier to read. Otherwise it looks like one long sentence instead of two.

How about some civility (or at least tact). Too often I see 'you're wrong' or 'wrong!'. That's harsh man! Take it easy...

I won't name names of who is guilty of each of these 'crimes' against my humanity, but those of us who are regulars know who they are!

[/rant]

Thank you, I feel much better now.... :)
Click to expand...
Exercises in futility do sometimes help one to feel better! :D
 
AAARGH! said:
[rant]I agree. Also, please.... Don't use abbreviations unless they are obvious (CHI, WAS, NYP, Etc...). I can't remember every podunk stations abbreviations!

How about some civility (or at least tact). Too often I see 'you're wrong' or 'wrong!'. That's harsh man! Take it easy...

I won't name names of who is guilty of each of these 'crimes' against my humanity, but those of us who are regulars know who they are!

[/rant]
Click to expand...
Dates are on each post, but I totally agree with the above parts of the post from AAARGH.
 
Everydaymatters said:
Dates are on each post, but I totally agree with the above parts of the post from AAARGH.
Click to expand...
But when you look at the index page it tells you the date of the last post, not when the thread about "Today's such and such" was actually started. You have to click inside the thread to see what day it is referencing and then it may be something a couple of months in the past that folks have kept alive with making jokes back and forth.

At least there are not too many "I have a question" type titles that give pretty much no information about what is inside the thread. Good job everyone on that at least.
 
One other peeve of mine, though I haven't seen it lately here. A question posed as a statement in the topic title, like: "Desert Wind to resume service!" with the first message reading "Do you think this will happen?"
 
AAARGH! said:
Don't use abbreviations unless they are obvious (CHI, WAS, NYP, Etc...). I can't remember every podunk stations abbreviations!
Click to expand...
I strongly second that! It took me a couple of hours to figure out where The Traveler had been last week because of all those "podunk"(???) station abbrev's.

Ruud
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Everydaymatters said:
Dates are on each post, but I totally agree with the above parts of the post from AAARGH.
Click to expand...
Upstate said:
But when you look at the index page it tells you the date of the last post, not when the thread about "Today's such and such" was actually started. You have to click inside the thread to see what day it is referencing and then it may be something a couple of months in the past that folks have kept alive with making jokes back and forth.
Click to expand...
Precisely. A week from now, we won't know what "Today's CZ in Burlington, IA" means.
 
ruudkeulers said:
I strongly second that! It took me a couple of hours to figure out where The Traveler had been last week because of all those "podunk"(???) station abbrev's.
Click to expand...
I wasn't going to single out The_Traveler, but that is who I was thinking of. With him, I don't worry too much about knowing where exactly he has been. He's been everywhere and will be again! :lol:
 
Last edited by a moderator:
AAARGH! said:
DivMiler said:
Can we please use dates instead of (for example) "last night", "today", "tomorrow", or "yesterday"?
It gets confusing when one looks at a topic title and reads "Spokane Delay on EB Night Last Due to BNSF Fatality" or "Today's CZ in Burlington, IA" or even "Lake Shore Limited this week".

With a specific date, one will know if the topic is about a train event on August 31, or September 5.
Click to expand...
[rant]

I agree. Also, please.... Don't use abbreviations unless they are obvious (CHI, WAS, NYP, Etc...). I can't remember every podunk stations abbreviations!

While were at it (Ohhh I like this thread).........

Please seperate your thoughts into paraghraphs. One long block of text is difficult to read.

Please use punctuation. It makes it easier to read.

Please add spaces after periods (or the end of a sentence). Again, It makes it easier to read. Otherwise it looks like one long sentence instead of two.

How about some civility (or at least tact). Too often I see 'you're wrong' or 'wrong!'. That's harsh man! Take it easy...

I won't name names of who is guilty of each of these 'crimes' against my humanity, but those of us who are regulars know who they are!

[/rant]

Thank you, I feel much better now.... :)
Click to expand...
While we're on a posting rant, get a spellchecker; (not naming names here...) :rolleyes:

seperate

paraghraphs
 
PetalumaLoco said:
While we're on a posting rant, get a spellchecker; (not naming names here...) :rolleyes: seperate

paraghraphs
Click to expand...
Touché! :lol: :lol: :lol: :blink:

Notice that I didn't put 'spell correctly' on my list of rants? Something about throwing stones in glass houses rings a bell (wow two clichés in one sentence!). I am GUILTY as charged of being a poor typist (I know how to spell them (for the most part), but get lazy at proof reading). :blush: I do suffer from a minor form of dyslexia. No excuse, but there is a reason.

Actually, poor spelling (or mispelled words) don't bother me unless it is unintelligble like some of ray_ray's posts were. The occasional mispell is to be expected and in my book, normal (IE, not rant-worthy).
 
AAARGH! said:
PetalumaLoco said:
While we're on a posting rant, get a spellchecker; (not naming names here...) :rolleyes: seperate

paraghraphs
Click to expand...
Touché! :lol: :lol: :lol: :blink:

Notice that I didn't put 'spell correctly' on my list of rants? Something about throwing stones in glass houses rings a bell (wow two clichés in one sentence!). I am GUILTY as charged of being a poor typist (I know how to spell them (for the most part), but get lazy at proof reading). :blush: I do suffer from a minor form of dyslexia. No excuse, but there is a reason.

Actually, poor spelling (or mispelled words) don't bother me unless it is unintelligble like some of ray_ray's posts were. The occasional mispell is to be expected and in my book, normal (IE, not rant-worthy).
Click to expand...
Try this add in that works with this forum. I'm a very poor speller and it finds my errors 99% of the time.
 
Hey Ruud:

"Podunk" means minor or small. In my usage, it is the opposite of a major station like CHI or NYP. A podunk station would be like ALC (jost poking fun) or just about any flag stops.

Think of them as small back-water rural towns.
 
I also agree with the comment about the "today", "last night's" or "last week". It is true that there is a time stamp on each post, but if you hold the cursor over the thread title in the list, it does say, "This thread started July 29, 2009 at 9:52 PM"!

AAARGH! said:
ruudkeulers said:
I strongly second that! It took me a couple of hours to figure out where The Traveler had been last week because of all those "podunk"(???) station abbrev's.
Click to expand...
I wasn't going to single out The_Traveler, but that is who I was thinking of. With him, I don't worry too much about knowing where exactly he has been. He's been everywhere and will be again! :lol:
Click to expand...
I'm sorry, but I'l try better next time. It's a (bad) habit that I find it easier to write such as MTZ for Matrinez, CA or KEL for Kelso-Longview, WA. Besides, the reason I use PRB is that I can't even spell Paso Robles, CA (sp?).

There's a few places I haven't been! Maybe I'l get to them soon! :p (Maybe I'll take a trip to them next week!)
 
the_traveler said:
I also agree with the comment about the "today", "last night's" or "last week". It is true that there is a time stamp on each post, but if you hold the cursor over the thread title in the list, it does say, "This thread started July 29, 2009 at 9:52 PM"!
AAARGH! said:
ruudkeulers said:
I strongly second that! It took me a couple of hours to figure out where The Traveler had been last week because of all those "podunk"(???) station abbrev's.
Click to expand...
I wasn't going to single out The_Traveler, but that is who I was thinking of. With him, I don't worry too much about knowing where exactly he has been. He's been everywhere and will be again! :lol:
Click to expand...
I'm sorry, but I'l try better next time. It's a (bad) habit that I find it easier to write such as MTZ for Matrinez, CA or KEL for Kelso-Longview, WA. Besides, the reason I use PRB is that I can't even spell Paso Robles, CA (sp?).

There's a few places I haven't been! Maybe I'l get to them soon! :p (Maybe I'll take a trip to them next week!)
Click to expand...
Take a trip? Now that could be a solution to help those worry about their pet peeves less and enjoy themselves more! :lol:

Seriously, when it comes to presenting the location codes or spelling them out, I try (or tend) to use the codes on commonly used locations and spell out the location on less obvious codes; or more accurately... just do what my mood swing dictates! :rolleyes:

When the less obvious codes are used by others and I don't know where those codes are identifying, I simply tend to just move on or to simply look the code up if I'm interested. I see little purpose or sense in moaning and groaning about the minor habits of others although I do see some merit in a few of the points presented in this thread!
 
the_traveler said:
I also agree with the comment about the "today", "last night's" or "last week". It is true that there is a time stamp on each post, but if you hold the cursor over the thread title in the list, it does say, "This thread started July 29, 2009 at 9:52 PM"!
Click to expand...
Correct, simply hovering over the topic title will tell you when that topic was started, without the need to actually click the link and enter the topic to find out.
 
A couple of comments (or more):

  • When using 3-letter abbreviations, please use the official Amtrak code for the station, not a made-up or otherwise rarely used one (CUS for Chicago-Union Station, when Amtrak uses CHI for Chicago-Union Station, is the one that comes to mind). If you don't know what a station's abbreviation is, go to Amtrak.com and click on any of the "Station List" links.
  • Spacing after periods and commas is a must. One or two posters here often put in spaces rarely or not at all. :(
  • Some browsers have spell checkers built in. Others don't. If you're on a shared computer and forced to use a browser that lacks a spell-checker, do the best you can. One way is to simply Google a word you're not sure about. You may get a "Do you mean ______?" response on the Search Results page, with the assumed correct spelling of the word showing in the place where I've put a blank line.
 
SanJoaquinRider said:
I agree. Also, please.... Don't use abbreviations unless they are obvious (CHI, WAS, NYP, Etc...). I can't remember every podunk stations abbreviations!
Click to expand...
How about formatting any abbreviations as links?

E.g.

"I took the CZ from WNN to CHI."
Click to expand...
While I generally applaud the idea, I have too many tabs/windows open already; I don't necessarily want any more!
 
GG-1 said:
the_traveler said:
There's a few places I haven't been! Maybe I'l get to them soon! :p (Maybe I'll take a trip to them next week!)
Click to expand...
Aloha

I hope you will take Me, Myself, and I with you. Then you can have your group at one diner table. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...
I have suggested that, but they always want to go some other places - so we all compromise and go to all of them! :lol:
 
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