Really @NEPatsGirl ? I just thought you were being rude 
LOL, @NEPatsGirl ! Happy to have helped!
Stop blaming it all on the kids! I’m sure grownups do this too.
Adults do it too.
Often you don’t have enough info to really be able to help in a meaningful way without the OP coming back and answering questions.
And as it happens, they often do not.
It’s the INTERNET, folks. Don’t take it personally. There is no internet code of ethics requiring responses on message boards.
It’s hard enough to get friends and family to RSVP to invited events these days (now that is rude and irritating). I sure don’t worry about getting replies from strangers because I took 30 seconds to impart my well meaning, anonymous advice online.
Actually, the adults who do this bother me more than the kids. Often seems the kids are in a momentary funk (at least here on Parents Forum) and then move on. But parents often get many responses with good information and advice and never come back to update or thank everyone. Of course there are also times when the responses likely make the OP run for the hills, which I usually think is a shame. Not really helpful to shame and blame someone asking for help, but that does happen too, to both kids and adults.
^ 30 seconds is no problem. But when I compose a post over 30 minutes then, yeah, I’m annoyed when I don’t get a response.
I agree about the RSVP issue. Sometimes, people RSVP “yes” then don’t show up, while others don’t RSVP at all but show up anyway… Like I said, I wasn’t raised that way. There seems to be a coarsening of society, perhaps caused by the internet.
At what point does it become a “you problem”? If I spend an hour writing a novel-length comment, that’s not the OP’s fault or concern. I chose to put so much time into it.
It wouldn’t even cross my mind that someone would invest 30 minutes in a single post, honestly.
There is no obligation to comment at all on an OP’s thread, so it’s never really a “you problem” for posters. It is, IMO, the responsibility of an OP to check back. And it requires little effort to acknowledge (check “like” or “helpful”, or simply say “thanks”) responses. After all, the OP created the thread.
So don’t.
It’s like giving money to family members. You’re expecting a loan, but really you should only give your time and effort if you’re going to treat it as a gift. Otherwise you’re placing unfair expectations on people not based on their lives and circumstances but on yours.
@doschicos Lengthy responses are often the most useful (ie., provide the most relevant information). Short responses are often meaningless.
“Is a 750 on the SAT Math II test a good score? Should I retake?”
“Is UChicago’s USNWR rank justified?”
These are just two questions that are floating around on CC, and could be answered with just one word by any poster. But more thoughtful, nuanced responses require time. It depends on one’s thought process and willingness to let typos slide.
@bodangles A gift should always be acknowledged. Maybe you don’t call to say thanks to grandma, but I always do. I don’t consider that an “unfair expectation.”
First of all, thanks for devolving into personal attacks.
Secondly that’s not the internet. There are different expectations here. End of story.
That’s your choice to spend that time, though. Plenty of people here write helpful and even long posts that don’t take 30 minutes. Honestly, I think you are vesting too much of yourself into it and expecting too much in return, taking it too personally. I think your expectations are not reasonable.
You compared it to gifts to family. I didn’t. Sorry my response was received as a personal attack.
“Maybe you don’t call to say thanks to grandma, but I always do.”
That’s a direct insult no matter how you try to spin it.
The threads that bug me the most are the “I"m a current student at X! Ask me anything!” threads when the OP disappears! That’s why we always retitle the threads and make it clear that anyone can ask or answer questions in the thread.
Ok folks, I appreciate everyone’s input. I should probably not spend as much time trying to help out, because in my world one acknowledges help and gifts. I agree that it may just be an internet thing. I’ll chalk it up to that.