Whose answers do you trust the most?

I trust answers by individuals who don’t say things they know not to be true elsewhere.

Someone who can spell certainly tends to get my attention better.

Anyone who posts a link to their source is the number one thing I can think of…multiple sources for bonus points. (I’m assuming that when I click their link(s), the source inspires confidence in their answer…)

Not particular people, but when an answer makes claims which aren’t obviously true and not linked, I don’t trust it.

And sweeping generalizations turn me off. If someone writes, “Everybody hates brussel sprouts”, I think they don’t see the world past their noses. P.S. I hate brussel sprouts.

I read all answers, but I prefer to read answers from those who are not condescending towards people for a simple misspelling/typo or just because that person thinks they are better than you, it’s stupid! I like Fluther-babies who clearly have a heart and a sense of humor; those who really want to help and don’t want to waste their time just trying to insult someone or their intelligence.

There are jellies here that I’ve come to trust. I also like to see links and sources for questions that are technical in nature and not a matter of opinion, but there are many jellies whom I believe to be quite well informed in their areas of expertise and I trust what they have to say.

Well, as a newbie here this past week, I am already tuning into some nuances of a few of the posters.

I’m most likely to be attracted to those with good expression, communication, humor and good manners. I am not into endless circle jerks of debate. lolol

So far it’s a pretty fun & informative place! :-)

Depends on the question.

The type that makes sense in what they answer, gives their sources if they can and is not known to be a troll.
Truth be told, though, I tend to believe jellies by default, unless I see reasons to take their posts with a grain of salt. Which might still happen much of the time. But no one is impervious to honest mistakes.

I trust the Flutherites that I have observed to post good answers in the past: well-written, well-reasoned.

Trust? On Fluther? It’s only March 19th. You should have held this Q for another 13 days. We could have really had fun with it then.

I don’t trust much of anyone. Really. I don’t even trust many of the questions. (Quite often they address ‘either or’ scenarios that present a false dichotomy right away, and go downhill from there. Or they present ‘facts’ which I know or at least strongly suspect to be untrue, and syllogize from those to false conclusions. Or they’re worded in such a simplistic way that it’s apparent that responding critically to them would be like shooting fish in a barrel. Dead fish. In a small barrel. With no water. And double-aught buckshot.)

There are a lot of jellies whose responses I appreciate, a few who make me laugh more often than not—as they intend, sadly, a few that I just laugh at (not the same thing at all), and several that I just ignore routinely. The great thing is that I can be surprised almost any time. Almost anyone can make me think from time to time. (I hate that, because it makes my head hurt.)

There are even a few jellies I routinely disagree with, but I have to do that carefully and respectfully, because their opinions are backed by logic and clear thought, concrete and honest examples or good analogies.

There’s almost no one here with whom I routinely and regularly agree—and that’s just the way I want it.

Well jeez dude…@CyanoticWasp

An island unto yourself ey’? lololololololololol ;-)

@Chongalicious: People who spell correctly are better than those who don’t.
@elenuial: The irony, right…

This is hard without naming names.

But I have been here for a long time. I (mostly) know who is good at what. I was having a problem that dealt with a specific programming language the other night. And I knew the person to track down. He answered my question in about 60 seconds.

There is probably a lot of Q&A stuff that goes on in private comments that never gets seen. I have gotten a bunch of Macintosh questions (via PM) since people tend to trust me for those and I usually get back to them quickly.

If I have a medical question I will just send a pm to our resident doctor instead of asking the frontpage. I can google stuff too. But I know that they are actually a very good doctor.

When I read answers I don’t even look to see who posted, unless I have a comment for them.

@breedmitch, by spelling errors, I meant a simple slip of the finger on a keyboard; not people who have no idea how to spell anything…although I have encountered some really wise people who just happened to be terrible spellers :)

I am most likely to respect an answer rather than trust an answer. (I even feel that way about mine.) There are a few people that I am coming to think of as dependable for answers that are authentic and sincere. These people seem to meet my understanding of boundaries, respect, fitting humor, attentiveness, and wisdom. I don’t always agree with them, but I appreciate their reasoning and attitude.

I think a majority of what happens on fluther is individual internal process. Meaning people find themselves refining and expressing what they believe along with why they believe it. I know it is often true for me and I think it is a positive thing.

Those on fluther who understand that they are engaging with themselves just as much as, if not more than, anything else catch my attention. People who are able to go a step beyond self-awareness and expression into the awareness of another always get a second glance. People who go even another step further by allowing another’s perspective to impact and, in some cases, change their own win my admiration.

If I observe a person admitting they are wrong, that is an automatic add to my fluther.

@liminal

Very good!

Thanks for the reminder…yep, our reactions are always all about us! Good pointer to point out!

I look at their history, word choice, tone and citation (if appropriate). I tend to trust people with a history of calm, respectful and intelligent answers. That’s not to say that I don’t trust those who make me laugh- that’s simply a different category to me and doesn’t have much to do with trust.

I do sometimes get on my grammar train and ride it. I don’t tend to put as much initial stock in someone’s answers if they don’t generally use passable grammar and punctuation. Everyone makes mistakes and all that- it’s more of a feel. I’m less likely to trust someone’s answer on a technical topic if they can’t even punctuate a sentence properly.

Those are just things about trusting another jellies answer. I frequently laugh, roll my eyes, are made to think and am emotionally moved by all jellies, not just the ones I trust.

Well certainly not mine!

@liminal Exquisite answer.

@johnpowell I’m rather envious of that old-timers network, in that sense. I’d really like all that knowledge to be public so I can learn from you smart people!

@Chongalicious Once anyone starts talking about spelling or grammar in a conversation, it’s not worth continuing. That’s nitpicking wankery, and it just gets in the way of good communication. I’m really glad to have seen none of that here. And almost everyone I’ve come across has managed to teach me something regardless of their mastery of the English language. This place is way more fun to hang out than 4chan, for sure. :)

@elenuial You’re right; I mean if I wanted an English lesson, I’d walk right back into class lol :P For me as long as you get the point and main idea, it’s all gravy! Hehe

Intelligence, compliments, common sense and also intriguing different points of view.

I’m learning, after being on Fluther since 3/6/10, that I tend to trust jellies who are thoughtful and kind, who listen and think before responding, and ask clarifying questions within threads instead of over-reacting.