Joanie

There are a lot of reasons that people don't respond to particular posts. Timing has a lot to do with it, for instance. Some posts on weekends won't be answered as well as they could, because a lot of people don't get on the internet over the weekend, for whatever reason. Spring is a busier time for people than fall or winter, people are out messing with their trees or on vacation. A question that is essentially a repeat of a question that has recently been answered may get no response. A question that no one has a good answer to, such as a tree ID, may get no response. Just because no one has a good guess. A fuzzy pictures of a few leaves and a nondescript trunk don't give many clues that would lead to a correct answer. Especially if the poster lives in an area that most people aren't familiar with.

Sometimes the first answer to a question pretty well says it all, so people aren't inclined to come on and just reconfirm it. Sometimes the question isn't easy to answer, doesn't make sense, or isn't written in a way that people can decipher.

Often with styling critiques, people aren't interested in spending time doing virtuals, or trying to explain their thoughts. Or they don't know exactly what to do with a tree, or the pictures aren't really showing what they need to know.

There are so many subtle factors in why posts get answered or don't, that you can't really quantify it. And if you think that we aren't answering the posts enough, then it would be beneficial if you spent time regularly answering them too. (This is a general "you", not meant for anyone specifically) There are a few regular people who consistently take the time to answer, patiently and fully, many of the beginner questions. And there are countless thousands who only look, but don't contribute at all.

Joanie

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