# No/Low content posts in stock threads



## Joe Blow

I have been noticing an increase in the amount of no/low content posts in stock threads recently.

Unlike threads in other forums, threads on particular stocks *must* contain some meaningful content that is directly related to the stock in question. Why? Because stock threads are a resource that people refer to (and will refer back to in the future) for news, information and analysis. They need to be focussed and content heavy.

If you are going to make mention of the fact you bought or sold a stock then please add some detail about why you bought or sold. The fact that you bought or sold a stock isn't particularly interesting. Why you bought or sold it *is*, so please be as specific as you can.

In short, if you are posting in stock threads, please be sure to add some value to the thread, ideally news, related information or analysis of some kind. Be sure also to keep the thread on topic and take any general conversation to private messages or a thread in the General Chat forum.

If you have any questions about what is and what isn't acceptable to post in stock threads then feel free to ask any questions in this thread and I will be more than happy to respond.

Thank you for your co-operation.


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## prawn_86

As a mod, recently these sort of low content posts have taken up a lot of my time.

Can the new members please ensure they read the posting guidelines before they post.

Thanks

Prawn


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## Joe Blow

I've been noticing that no/low content posts in stock threads have been on the increase recently. Just this morning I removed one that simply said, "Bump."

As many of you may have noticed the minimum character count in posts in stock threads was discontinued when the new design was introduced in December last year. However, it was discontinued *on a trial basis only*. Should the quality of content posted in stock threads decline significantly it may be re-introduced.

All posts in threads on particular stocks must contain some meaningful content. The more the better. Make your post useful to those reading the thread. 

If you see a post in a stock thread with no (or extremely low) content please report it and it will be removed as soon as is practicable.

Thank you all for your co-operation.


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## Joe Blow

Just resurrecting this thread as I have been noticing more no/low content posts in stock threads recently.

If you are going to add a post to a stock thread please ensure that you contribute some meaningful content that will be useful to to those reading the thread. If you make an assertion (e.g. "This stock is undervalued", "XYZ is looking like a potential breakout") you need to also provide enough supporting detail to explain *why* you believe this to be the case.


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## nulla nulla

Joe Blow said:


> Just resurrecting this thread as I have been noticing more no/low content posts in stock threads recently.
> 
> If you are going to add a post to a stock thread please ensure that you contribute some meaningful content that will be useful to to those reading the thread. If you make an assertion (e.g. "This stock is undervalued", "XYZ is looking like a potential breakout") you need to also provide enough supporting detail to explain *why* you believe this to be the case.




Does this mean Trader Girls thread on Day Trading the SPI should get the flick? Nothing meaningful in posting alleged trades throughout the day.


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## Joe Blow

nulla nulla said:


> Does this mean Trader Girls thread on Day Trading the SPI should get the flick? Nothing meaningful in posting alleged trades throughout the day.




In this instance I am referring to threads dedicated to specific stocks, which is where most of the ramping and downramping takes place.

However, that being said, I am also currently reviewing my policy on threads that are used as trade journals, and there may be changes if I feel that improvements can be made.

Any suggestions are welcome as always.


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## Joe Blow

Policing no/low content posts and trying to maintain standards of posting in stock threads continues to be perhaps the most difficult aspect of managing the ASF community.

I have noticed that some ASF members post in a stock thread simply to announce that they have bought or sold without explaining why, which adds no value to the thread at all. Could those who do this please also explain their reasons for buying or selling as this information may be useful to those following the thread. More content in posts in stock threads is never a bad thing.

Many thanks for your co-operation!


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## Joe Blow

While I understand how exciting it can be when a stock you hold is going up, please avoid posting constant price updates as they don't really add much value to a thread. When done incessantly, it qualifies as ramping.

If a stock has gone up (or down) at least 10% on higher than average volume, or it has broken up through resistance or down through support, then feel free to let everyone know about it. This is significant movement and is worth posting about.

When posting a price update, please include as much detail as possible such as the increase in both price and percentage, volume, volume as compared to average volume, and any significant support or resistance levels that have been breached. A chart wouldn't hurt either, although one is not mandatory.

This sort of detail puts the price move in context and adds a lot of value to the thread at the same time.


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## Joe Blow

Folks, just a reminder to please add some meaningful content when posting in stock threads.

Posts that consist of "Show me the money!", "Whoa!", "Ka-ching!" or any other content that adds no value to the thread is not acceptable. 

The only exception to this rule is if you are thanking someone for their post.

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask.

Thank you all for your co-operation!


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## notting

I think this forum is really well run and quite unique in it's manner of discipline. 
This 'no one liner' rule is great in general.
However, I do find some of the one liners incredibly powerful, helpful and *most* memorable.
Sometimes they are like a slap in the face that make you completely think something over or just nice words of encouragement.
So many of Tech/a one liners just totally hit the mark with me and I wouldn't want them to be censored.
So whilst I think the rule should be maintained and promoted I'd be really unhappy to see some of those one liners removed that actually say a lot in the context of a thread.


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## tech/a

I agree with the examples Joe has indicated.

For me its a time thing I just don't have the time to mark up a chart and do a report which takes an hr.
Often I'm looking for that one or 2 lines which says it all.

Im sure I wont be alone in this!

Happily it seems they don't get lost!


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## Joe Blow

notting said:


> I think this forum is really well run and quite unique in it's manner of discipline.
> This 'no one liner' rule is great in general.
> However, I do find some of the one liners incredibly powerful, helpful and *most* memorable.
> Sometimes they are like a slap in the face that make you completely think something over or just nice words of encouragement.
> So many of Tech/a one liners just totally hit the mark with me and I wouldn't want them to be censored.
> So whilst I think the rule should be maintained and promoted I'd be really unhappy to see some of those one liners removed that actually say a lot in the context of a thread.




This rule only applies in threads on specific stocks and is intended to combat no/low content posts that don't add any value to the thread. More often than not, these posts are blatant ramps.

I think stock threads should be filled with relevant information, questions, and analysis. The problem with no/low content posts is that they encourage more of the same. They offer no meaningful content and drag down standards of posting in stock threads to what I feel is an unacceptable level. One of the reasons I started ASF in the first place was to encourage quality stock discussion, not the rubbish so often found at other forums.

Just for the record, a "one liner" can be an acceptable post if it's an interesting question or an answer to someone's question. Short posts can add value, it's just a matter of offering something useful or thought-provoking to those reading the thread.


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## notting

Joe Blow said:


> I think stock threads should be filled with relevant information, questions, and analysis. The problem with no/low content posts is that they encourage more of the same. They offer no meaningful content and drag down standards of posting in stock threads to what I feel is an unacceptable level. One of the reasons I started ASF in the first place was to encourage quality stock discussion, not the rubbish so often found at other forums.




  Well you've done a great job at achieving that which is much appreciated and to be commended.

I Joined HC a while ago and have never managed to post anything or read anything useful or even get myself to bother to understand how you could find anything useful on it. The format and discipline on this forum is terrific. I will keep trying not to lose the plot.
Thank You.


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## pilots

Joe, I take it if we are not going to have any low content posts  I wont have to read any of the PMs speeches here.


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## springhill

I have to say the content of posts in the stock threads have been fairly good of late, the trouble is there is not enough of them.

C'mon ASF members, there are hundreds of stocks that must get looked at each day by those that have joined ASF, yet I think it is the same 50 names that post on this forum on a regular basis.

With Quarterly reporting season upon us I hope it will generate higher volumes of quality posts in stock threads.

Let's here some opinions, questions or analysis


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## Joe Blow

springhill said:


> I have to say the content of posts in the stock threads have been fairly good of late, the trouble is there is not enough of them.
> 
> C'mon ASF members, there are hundreds of stocks that must get looked at each day by those that have joined ASF, yet I think it is the same 50 names that post on this forum on a regular basis.
> 
> With Quarterly reporting season upon us I hope it will generate higher volumes of quality posts in stock threads.
> 
> Let's here some opinions, questions or analysis




Agreed.

The number of posts in stock threads is what keeps traders and investors coming back to ASF more often. There appears to be a real correlation between the number of daily visitors to ASF and the number of posts in stock threads.

The reality is that discussion leads to more discussion. The more that people post in stock threads, the more stock related discussion there will be. Many times I have witnessed stock threads that haven't seen any posts in a few years suddenly brought to life by a single post.

I would ask simply that those who follow particular stocks update those threads when there is something of interest to share. Announcements, analysis, significant price movement, related articles in the media, even interesting questions; it all helps to keep the discussion in stock threads active.

Many thanks to those who do keep posting in stocks threads. I assure you that your efforts are not unappreciated!


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## springhill

Joe Blow said:


> Agreed.
> The reality is that discussion leads to more discussion. The more that people post in stock threads, the more stock related discussion there will be. Many times I have witnessed stock threads that haven't seen any posts in a few years suddenly brought to life by a single post.




No disrespect Joe, but this is not my experience.

Since my schedule cleared up a few weeks ago, I have posted on 49 separate stock threads (not including the ones posted on today) for 8 replies, some of them weren't even in relation to my post but I counted them anyway.

I already know what I have to say, what is the point of posting if no one else is interested?

There are only so many times you can talk to yourself.....


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## nulla nulla

springhill said:


> No disrespect Joe, but this is not my experience.
> 
> Since my schedule cleared up a few weeks ago, I have posted on 49 separate stock threads (not including the ones posted on today) for 8 replies, some of them weren't even in relation to my post but I counted them anyway.
> 
> I already know what I have to say, what is the point of posting if no one else is interested?
> 
> There are only so many times you can talk to yourself.....




You may be surprised at the number of members that read the posts and go away and think about it. If you feel that you are talking to your self, monitor the number of "views" your thread receives. Remember, the majority is often silent.


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## springhill

nulla nulla said:


> You may be surprised at the number of members that read the posts and go away and think about it. If you feel that you are talking to your self, monitor the number of "views" your thread receives. Remember, the majority is often silent.




You are right nulla, but still does not change the fact I am talking to myself.

With all the number of views, surely there is one member who thinks the stock is good, bad or otherwise and wants to say it out loud.


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## Joe Blow

springhill said:


> No disrespect Joe, but this is not my experience.
> 
> Since my schedule cleared up a few weeks ago, I have posted on 49 separate stock threads (not including the ones posted on today) for 8 replies, some of them weren't even in relation to my post but I counted them anyway.
> 
> I already know what I have to say, what is the point of posting if no one else is interested?




I, for one, applaud and appreciate your efforts in profiling so many small and micro cap stocks and bringing them to the attention of ASF members and visitors.

I am sure that many others do too, and I hope that some of them will express their their appreciation by asking questions or otherwise contributing to the discussion in some of the threads that you are posting in.


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## wayneL

nulla nulla said:


> You may be surprised at the number of members that read the posts and go away and think about it. If you feel that you are talking to your self, monitor the number of "views" your thread receives. Remember, the majority is often silent.






Joe Blow said:


> I, for one, applaud and appreciate your efforts in profiling so many small and micro cap stocks and bringing them to the attention of ASF members and visitors.
> 
> I am sure that many others do too, and I hope that some of them will express their their appreciation by asking questions or otherwise contributing to the discussion in some of the threads that you are posting in.




Agreed.

I sometime feel the same way when I (and a couple of others) post stuff on options, but I'm sure some folks take it in and think about it, even if they don't say anything.


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## springhill

Joe Blow said:


> I, for one, applaud and appreciate your efforts in profiling so many small and micro cap stocks and bringing them to the attention of ASF members and visitors.
> 
> I am sure that many others do too, and I hope that some of them will express their their appreciation by asking questions or otherwise contributing to the discussion in some of the threads that you are posting in.




Thank you for the kind words, I do appreciate them. It is about the exchanges of ideas, not the plaudits, the reasoning that I post.

Maybe this is just the wrong market for this kind of activity at the moment, but doesn't hurt to keep across a few of the micro caps for more productive times. Whenever that may be....

There are more SFRs and SIRs out there, all a matter of diligence and being prepared.


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## tinhat

springhill said:


> Thank you for the kind words, I do appreciate them. It is about the exchanges of ideas, not the plaudits, the reasoning that I post.
> 
> Maybe this is just the wrong market for this kind of activity at the moment, but doesn't hurt to keep across a few of the micro caps for more productive times. Whenever that may be....
> 
> There are more SFRs and SIRs out there, all a matter of diligence and being prepared.




Actually, you will be surprised at how many people such as myself will read comments in threads for companies I have never heard of before and then go and look up the company data. Its always interesting and useful to be exposed to a broad range of companies. I'm not personally interested in speculative explorers at this stage of my investing learning curve but I find the info of interest. I own stocks that no-one else here seems to follow enough to comment on when I leave comments in the relevant threads too. Maybe that says more about my stock picking skills.


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## Julia

Springhill, sorry not to be supportive of your stock comments.  My experience with speculative stocks was brief and decidedly unsuccessful.

Many people have lost money during the GFC and are still a long way from recovering to their previous levels.  So they're going to be pretty conservative in investments and if buying anything will probably tend toward the 'safe' companies with good yield and franking.

Good luck.


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## Country Lad

springhill said:


> .............It is about the exchanges of ideas,....................




I find your posts interesting but unfortunately, I can not make intelligent comments because your coverage is generally at the wrong end of the market for me and I have no knowledge or interest in those particular companies. 

I must say that I am surprised that there is not more comment as my perception is that there are numerous members here whose interest is in the lower end of the market.

Cheers
Country Lad


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## burglar

Country Lad said:


> I find your posts interesting but unfortunately, I can not make intelligent comments because your coverage is generally at the wrong end of the market for me and I have no knowledge or interest in those particular companies.
> 
> I must say that I am surprised that there is not more comment as my perception is that there are numerous members here whose interest is in the lower end of the market.
> 
> Cheers
> Country Lad




Just curious!
Which companies hold your interest?


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## Country Lad

burglar said:


> Just curious!
> Which companies hold your interest?




Keep in mind that we are permanently travelling both in Oz and overseas and I do not need to trade – it is now more a hobby which pays for the overseas trips, and anyway, the simplified system has made it easier to find prospects so I am not prepared to spend as much time researching as I did previously.

It is probably easier to say which don’t turn me on, such as pretty well anything under 10 cents, particularly if it is an explorer - they are more like a lottery and too much research is needed looking for the one which may or may not take off.  

I look more for companies with a bit of substance because firstly the likely good performers are easier to identify than the spekkies, secondly because my system works far better for these candidates than the spekkies and thirdly, it less likely for the price to collapse suddenly when we are out of range in remote parts of Aus or overseas.

Many of the candidates came to light over the last 12 to 18 months and in particular I looked for recovery stocks.  I tightened stops when my canary (home grown index) got sick on 21 Feb and unfortunately died 14 March.  As I said recently, until I get a signal the market is going to behave, I am going fishing - this afternoon and tomorrow again, in fact.

Examples of the type of stock which I looked for and have held for a while (and a few of which I still hold) are CDA, AGI, MXI, BRG, GEM, GXL, RWH, FSA, IFM, SIV.  There are also others held for a short period only and I posted some of those as well.  No particular industry just ones with a high probability of appreciating.

I hope that answers the question, Burglar.

Cheers
Country Lad


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## burglar

Country Lad said:


> ... Examples of the type of stock which I looked for and have held for a while (and a few of which I still hold) are CDA, AGI, MXI, BRG, GEM, GXL, RWH, FSA, IFM, SIV.  ...




I recognised Codan, Breville Group ... some big bumps these last few days!

Cheers,
burglar


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## chops_a_must

Hi joe.

An emerging trend is political trash talking in stocks threads.

If policy directly related to an industry or stocks is discussed, fine.

But there are plenty of political threads to have your whinge, on both sides.


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## burglar

chops_a_must said:


> Hi joe.
> 
> An emerging trend is political trash talking in stocks threads.
> 
> If policy directly related to an industry or stocks is discussed, fine.
> 
> But there are plenty of political threads to have your whinge, on both sides.




It's an election year!


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## Joe Blow

chops_a_must said:


> An emerging trend is political trash talking in stocks threads.
> 
> If policy directly related to an industry or stocks is discussed, fine.
> 
> But there are plenty of political threads to have your whinge, on both sides.




I agree that politics should be confined to political threads unless there is a direct relationship between policy and industry that affects the company under discussion.

Any post in a stock thread that contains off topic political trash talking should be reported, and appropriate action will be taken by myself or one of ASFs moderators.


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