If you have a question of someone are you better off sending a private message or an email? I'm new to this and haven't used boards much. This is my first week. Also does anyone know how to put a "Report Bad Thread" on the bottom of your threads? Thanks for any help.

I usually send PMs, since many flyertalkers use an email address at sign-up that is not their primary email address... and therefore may not see your message right away.

Not sure what you mean by the "Report Bad Thread" part. It's customary here at flyertalk to PM the person who offends you (if their post was directed primarily at yourself). If you have an issue regarding a thread in general, you might try PMing the moderator of that board and discuss it with him/her. Sometimes things can be resolved best that way.

But I usually ignore offending threads unless they're horrific. And usually if they are, there are many more FTers who are addressing the issue. Follow their lead.

Good luck. And welcome to FlyerTalk. It's a great place
Rita

Generally PMs. They have the benefit of a return receipt, which I find doesn't work as well on email these days.

I only use email for the local FTers that I communicate with on a regular basis, and even then I'll use PMs if I'm someplace like an airport lounge where I don't feel like firing up the web-based email.

The report icon doesnt show up at the bottom of your own threads. Because ..well.. I can't imagine why someone would want to report their own thread. It does show up for everyone else though.

It's "Report Bad Post" rather than "Report Bad Thread."

If you think the whole thread (rather than just one post) is bad, you could still click on the "Report Bad Post" icon and explain in your message that you think the whole thread is problematic.

As for e-mail vs. PM, remember that there is a limit of 100 saved PMs in each person's maibox, so although the "confirm receipt" option is nice, you may be filling up someone's PM mailbox (or even find it is already full). For this reason I often prefer e-mail over PM.

Many people have been thorugh several e-mail addresses, so I would always PM them, then they will get it next time they sign in. You could do both too if you wanted, lots of people do that.

I'll usually see messages here first though.

I HATE PMs!!!! I'm on email constantly & prefer to be contacted that way. PMs require me to log on to FT to get the messages, which eats up time especially when you get a lot of them. And being on dial-up it's a double-whammy cuz now it takes forever to load & I have to go multiple times to get the messages. Grr. So for my fellow FTers who know me well, email darlins' - email....

Sharon

Another reason to use e-mail (and we're talking about e-mailing via FlyerTalk here, which some responders may or may not have understood) is that a lot of us have access to e-mail even when we don't have access to the Web.

For instance, I can retrieve my e-mail messages via phone. (Sometimes the computer voice makes it difficult to understand them -- especially the ones for V1@gr@ from [email protected] -- but it's a handy feature nevertheless.) But I cannot get PMs via phone. (I can also get SOME posts via e-mail -- if I've subscribed to a thread -- and therefore by phone.)

Ditto. I turned off the PM option from day #1.

I like the concept of PM's but am not impressed with it's clunky interface. It never opens up to a full screen, you can't tell who else was copied nor "Reply All" if all parties to the PM require an answer. I also find them a bit cumbersome to organize and manage.
The PM feature of this BB, while useful, could probably stand a user-friendly update.

And, to add to my anti-PM thoughts already expressed in two other posts on this thread: even if the limit of 100 saved PMs were increased to infinity, I STILL would prefer e-mail, as I archive all my e-mails in one place. I do realize that PMs can be saved to files as well, but they end up in a different file that is NOT integrated with my e-mail.

To all of you who have answered my question. Thanks but now I'm still confused but a lot more knowledgeable. Thanks again.

Darlin', don't let the rest of us old timers (eek, does 18 mths count?_ confuse you. Either do PM or email depending on your own preference. Whatever. But some ways are easier to communicate. Cheers. Sharon...

PM if it's something that I want people to deal with when they are browsing FT.

Email if it is more important

Instant messaging with just a few, for moderating purposes, or just to chat with friends

August 2002 to now is 28 months. (Two years and four months.) Sounds a lot better than 18 months, no?