To me, it kind of feels fake to interact with someone that I know in person over a forum.

 

Say the guy makes a joke, and he shared it with me first. I already had my reaction to it with him. It feels fake to then again, try and recreate that authentic reaction on the forum when he makes it public.

 

The same for memes, etc., as he'll dump a lot to me in private and post some to the forum. Sometimes, I'll steal those and post them before he does, if he does, as I'm kind of also pulling his chain to get him to participate as a friend to forum build.

 

How would you handle it? Do you think it would make for a better community if I engaged with him on the forum in about the same manner that I already did in private, or, if you knew we were friends in person, would you feel it's inauthentic to do so?

There's always a difference how you interact in person compared to on forums. If you would send me something privately, I'll give my reaction, but I'll likely ignore it if you'd post the same thing on forums.

There's always a difference how you interact in person compared to on forums. If you would send me something privately, I'll give my reaction, but I'll likely ignore it if you'd post the same thing on forums.

That's kind of how I feel too, but from the perspective of someone looking in, whether they know we have that relationship and whether they don't know?

I believe only two people I know in real life have joined my message board. I no longer speak to either of them, but one of them posted for a short period on my message board and he made a comment about cooking steaks and I made the comment back that his steaks sure are tasty. It feels fake to talk to one another like that when you know them in real life, but people should be able to take the hint that you know them personally if you do talk to them that way.

It feels fake to talk to one another like that when you know them in real life, but people should be able to take the hint that you know them personally if you do talk to them that way.

Like just a.

 

[Reply]

+

See ya this Tuesday if I don't get caught up. /

Better reading it than when you tried to tell it (joke) to me.

Better reading it than when you tried to tell it (joke) to me.

True, knowing someone personally and acting silly with them on the forum when you may not act that way otherwise can feel inauthentic. But you can always clarify that you know the person personally so people won't feel that way.

I do. It don't matter if I know the person or not, if I have something to add to the discussion. I'll post it.

Like just a.

 

[Reply]

+

See ya this Tuesday if I don't get caught up. /

Better reading it than when you tried to tell it (joke) to me.

[mention=1]Cedric[/mention] often says to me: C U Next Tuesday. I never know what he means by that...

When my wife posts something on social media, I react, sometimes I even comment. Do I really have to do this? Well, I avoided doing this for as long time. But then I thought what's a big deal about this. On forums I know some people personally, not just from social media, but even from real life, and I don't mind reacting or replying to them.

I've noticed I do reply differently to people I know in real life online. I'll usually crack an inside joke or bring up old memories. But pretty much everyone I know in real life prefers to use social media over forums sadly, so they never join my forums. Plus I haven't been on Facebook in almost two months so I haven't even interacted with family in a long time.

That’s such an interesting take, and I totally get what you mean! It can feel a little weird to react twice to the same thing, especially when it’s already had its “real” moment in private. But at the same time, forums are all about creating those shared experiences in a bigger space.

 

Personally, I think engaging with him on the forum still has value, even if you've already seen the joke or meme. Your reaction doesn’t have to be a full-blown re-enactment—it can just be a more natural way of keeping the energy going for the community. Like, instead of pretending you’re seeing it for the first time, you could reference your inside joke history or add a little twist that keeps it fresh.

 

As for whether it feels inauthentic—I wouldn’t see it that way at all. If anything, it helps set the tone that the forum is a fun, interactive space, not just a dumping ground for posts. And even if some people do know you’re friends, they’ll probably just see it as you both keeping the momentum going rather than faking anything.

 

So yeah, I’d say go for it! Keep engaging, keep having fun with it, and if you ever feel weird about a reply, just tweak how you interact so it feels natural to you. What matters most is that you’re fostering activity, not whether every reaction is brand new.