why do people look, but not reply?

[sonya.kaur]

it would be nice if you posted a small message after u have looked at the discussion, just makes me wanna come on the site and see a reply....please try and make the effort.

[Dave]

Lurking is quite a common thing on forums. In fact, most visitors to a forum do not post messages. Often the person reading messages simply has nothing to say about the subject. Getting a bunch of replies that simply said "I read your message" would quickly get rather boring don't you think?

[penny3333]

When replying to someone on the forum, I'm trying to give valid information. If I'm not sure, or don't think my opinion would be worth much, I'm not going to reply. I also look at posts that answer questions I might have, as well as look at review/comments people have made about their experiences. Best wishes!

[LisaP]

I agree with Dave and Penny. If I have nothing constructive to add, I won't respond.

Looking at this another way, suppose someone had a specific question and started a thread. Then, the person comes back the next day and sees a couple of responses -- and starts to get excited to learn the answer. Then, there's a big letdown when opening the thread yields something like, "I don't know the answer, but I hope you find out." Even worse -- if a few people do that on a single thread, others may think the question has been answered so don't bother to open the thread. This has happened to me a few times, and it is indeed frustrating.

Another reason is that the topic might not adequately describe the issue. This is quite common on message boards.

[Jim C.]

I read your post but have nothing to add.
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See how bothersom reading 50 posts like that would be? I only post if I have a question or can add to the discussion. Doesn't meant he lurkers or the readers get anything less out of your post.