4 ms·
The problem is the branching tree structure. If 3 replies came out at the same time, the author could just reply to one of them within the same thread and be do
by RodericDay 10y ago
The problem is the branching tree structure. If 3 replies came out at the same time, the author could just reply to one of them within the same thread and be done with it
A
B
C
D
E
F
is better than
A
B
F
C
D
For any kind of in-depth discussion. I mean, breadth-first and depth-first as concepts map conceptually pretty perfectly to the conversation structure.
- zimpenfish 10y agoThat assumes that F as a reply works for all of BCD (and E which seems to have vanished in the second diagram.) What if B, C, D all express slightly different opinions? Or F isn't a valid reply to E but you could treat it as a reply to E because of the positioning (since that's what defines it as a reply to B, C, D.) Threading has problems but it definitely avoids mistaken replies and confusion.
- RodericDay 10y agoIt's a trade-off. Depth-first isn't always better, some tangents get ignored, but often one can craft a single solid reply that addresses the points raised by many different people in one go, keeping the discussion on-track. I think in fact this is a more common scenario in real life conversations.